Cape Town has fabulous food. There are a large number of relaxed and convivial restaurants, which generally serve imaginative and healthy food of a high standard. The range of styles is broad, with international cuisine readily available. The devalued South African rand means that many foreign visitors can eat in upmarket restaurants with outstanding chefs creating innovative food for the kind of money they'd spend on a pizza back home. This is the city to splash out on whatever takes your fancy, and you'll find the quality of meat and fish very high, with many vegetarian options.

While there is a local Cape cuisine, it's not the thing to concentrate on when you're choosing somewhere to eat. Some elements of Cape and African cuisine find their way onto fusion style menus at upmarket restaurants. If you are curious, there are a couple of restaurants dedicated to Cape cuisine, which is a spicy hybrid of the cooking styles brought to South Africa and adapted by slaves, principally from Asia and Madagascar. Mild and semi-sweet curries with a strong Indonesian influence predominate, and include: bredie (stew), of which waterblommetjiebredie , made using water hyacinths, is a speciality; bobotie , a spicy minced dish served under a savoury custard; and sosaties , a local version of kebab using mincemeat. For dessert, dates stuffed with almonds make a light and delicious end to a meal, while malva pudding is a rich combination of milk, sugar, cream and apricot jam.

As far as seafood goes, you can expect fresh fish at every good restaurant. Cape Town itself offers cold-water fish such as kingklip, hake and snoek. The cold waters up the West Coast yield quantities of crayfish and mussels, while fresh fish, oysters and prawns are flown in from warmer waters, including Mozambique. Cape wines are the obvious accompaniment to your meals, particularly when sampled under the gaze of Table Mountain.

As far as prices go, expect to pay under R40 for a main course at an inexpensive restaurant, up to R60 at a moderately priced one, and more than this at an expensive place.

City centre
Cape Town's city centre has recently enjoyed a renaissance, and its restaurants are being joined by plenty of continental-style cafés . Service tends to be efficient and friendly, and most cafés stay open till around 11pm. ...
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V&A Waterfront and De Waterkant
The V&A Waterfront offers a lot if you want to eat well and your budget is fairly generous, while De Waterkant offers some nice places in a gentrified historic quarter that has a more rooted urban character than the...
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Mouille Point to Sea Point
MOUILLE POINT AND GREEN POINT Chariots Italian Coffee Bar 107 Main Rd, Green Point. Stylish decor and great inexpensive food make this a fashionable haunt for Cape Town's yuppies; come for foccaccia and decent coffee....
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City Bowl suburbs
Amigos Mediterranean Restaurant 158 Kloof St, Gardens tel 021 423 6805. A tasty mixture of Greek meze combined with Italian and Spanish food. This is a lively joint, with some tables outside and a loyal clientele. Lunch and dinner daily...
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Southern suburbs
OBSERVATORY, WYNBERGAND NEWLANDS Café Carte Blanche 42a Trill Rd, Observatory. A former curio shop decorated with Eastern artefacts, where you can sip wine under a hanging Persian carpet or quaff beer on a Mongolian bedspread. Small,...
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Atlantic seaboard
Fish on the Rocks Beyond Mariner's Wharf, Hout Bay, drive through the dock and factory. Delicious fresh fish'n'chips, served under red umbrellas or eaten on the rocks overlooking the bay. In season it's also a fabulous place to watch whales. Daily...
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False Bay seaboard
MUIZENBERG AND KALK BAY Artvark Gallery and Café Main Road, Kalk Bay. A relaxed café with sea views and upstairs seating, dominated by an old palm tree. Daily 9am-5pm. Inexpensive. Brass Bell In Kalk Bay station...
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