Also known as the Crab Shack – that’s what many people are calling it and you know exactly what they mean – this newish place has enjoyed mixed reviews. I read a few online and they ranged from high praise to bitter complaints. There didn’t seem to be any middle ground, but I believe we found some.
The deck of this house is busy and extremely noisy. Perhaps in the actual inside, diners use their inside voices but out there it’s raucous. Live music by Jon Shaban added to the highly festive atmosphere. We sat outside where the lighting is dim, provided mainly coming from streetlights. There are tall candles on the tables, but the windy night put them out of action. Some of the moaning I read was about the service, but although it was busy we found this to be quite good and our waitress knew the menu well enough to explain the dishes and answer questions in between keeping my wine glass topped up. Our food arrived fast and piping hot.
If you’re Banting you’re going to have problems as your options for dishes without batter, crumbs or basting sauce are quite limited and seven of the 11 side dishes are full of carbs. That didn’t affect us and our starters were all battered and fried. I had a 150g bucket of shrimp popcorn (R65 and available in two larger sizes as well). They were delicious, plump, firm and crispy. I’m guessing the restaurant bought a truckload of buckets in the same size and for the smaller portions they stuff the bottom of it with bunched paper, because that’s how it was served. The tartare sauce was excellent, made with a creamy rather than a tangy mayonnaise.
My son had crispy salt and Szechuan pepper squid (R55) which was good although the batter slid right off each piece, which is simply a matter of incorrect cooking procedures. His girlfriend had jalapenos on a stick, basically a chilli popper on a skewer (R55 for three), in this case wrapped in corn batter. They were served with tzatziki and sweet chilli sauce.
For main course I had to try the soft shelled crabs (R115 for three in the same size paper-filled bucket as the shrimp). They are tiny little things and almost all batter. I couldn’t taste anything else in the legs and only a slight crab flavour in the body. You can have these in a sandwich or a salad if you prefer. Jesse had mussels (R110 for 500g) in garlic and herb sauce, which came with corn bread and corn on the cob. Tookta, being Thai, couldn’t wait to get her hands on her bucket of blue swimmer crab (R115) because it’s a cultural thing to nibble and suck every morsel of flesh from the shell. She was extremely happy and we didn’t hear a peep out of her for ages.
We finished with a Mississippi mud pie (R55) to share, which was rather average.
Overall the pricing is a bit weird. Some things, like crayfish, funnily enough, seem reasonable, while others are ridiculously expensive. I’d never pay R175 for a kilo of chicken wings or R325 for a kilo of prawns unless it was to feed more than one person. With not excessive drinks the bill came to R895. There is a little note at the bottom of the receipt which calculates a 10 or 12 percent tip, as a not so subtle hint as to what is expected. It was mostly good, with patches of mediocrity, but I think you need to know what to order.
THE DECK HOUSE
Where:108 Kloof Street, Tamboerskloof
Phone:021 424 1020
Hours: Daily 11am-10pm (11pm in season)