Where: 5 Park Road, Gardens
Tel 021 422 4415
Open: 8am tp 11pm (kitchen) Tuesdays to Sundays, 8am to 6pm Mondays
License: Yes
Smoking: Outside and at the bar
There are people who love Greens in Constantia so much that they will drive there all the way from Camps Bay just for a burger.
The newly-opened Greens on Park is related to its southern suburbs counterpart and many of the menu items are the same, with some additions. It has quite a different feel to it though, with Constantia being more like an upmarket deli.
Located in premises that have just been built up from the rubble of Park Road Inn, Greens on Park has a more modern, contemporary look, married with the building's original pressed ceilings and metal girders. The interior is light and airy, with lots of pale wood, recessed lighting, glass partitions and a central fireplace.
Outside, white moulded chairs and tables are shaded by lime-green umbrellas. This is the place of choice, especially to soak up the late winter sun, and it gets crowded around lunch time.
Besides the restaurant, there is also a separate bar with the same clean, uncluttered lines and soft lighting. Along one wall is a high, very straight-backed couch which was obviously designed more for its aesthetic appeal than comfort. Perched up there, my feet swung a good 10cm above the ground.
Greens on Park serves breakfast from 8am to 6pm - a useful thing to remember for City Bowl inhabitants who don't keep regular hours.
There are open sandwiches, focaccias, salads, starters, pastas, big main meals like linefish and lamb chops, and plenty of pizzas - wood-fired - which are served from noon.
Across this range you can expect ingredients like bacon, feta, parma ham, smoked salmon, roasted vegetables, pine kernels, ricotta, camembert and chilli.
On paper, the selection is fabulous. What is needed is a little more care in the execution.
Part of me wants to make excuses on the restaurant's behalf - we were there for a meal outside what most people consider normal dining hours.
However, the waitress assured us the kitchen was open and operational. She would just have to check what the soup of the moment was since that can change more than once a day, she said.
It was butternut, as it turned out. No surprise there. Easy to make, virtually flop-proof ... just about everywhere you go, you'll get butternut soup.
This one (R20) was in the top two-thirds of the range. It didn't quite send the eyeballs rolling back in the head with ecstacy but it was definitely better than some that have been inflicted on us in the past. A basket of bread and butter accompanied the soup.
I chose a salad to start - spinach (not Swiss chard), creamy feta, very crispy bacon bits and pine kernels (R40). The portion was a good size and the whole lot was drizzled with a creamy dressing which was a little on the sweet side. It could have been toned down, especially since the salad also had deliciously sweet, lightly roasted baby Rosa tomatoes.
My partner followed with a ricotta and roasted vegetable pizza (R44), which he gave a big thumbs-up. Except for the carrots, which he felt had no place on a pizza.
I had to agree, and added the baby corn to the list of things not to put on pizza. Neither look very nice and are just the wrong taste.
From the pasta selection I had spaghetti with parma ham, lemon and chilli (R52). This, sadly, was the downfall of the meal.
The biggest sin, I thought, was that the spaghetti was old. It had a stale taste, plus there were strands that had shrivelled up, the way it does when left to stand. It really doesn't take that long to cook a fresh batch.
Or use a more forgiving pasta which can handle being left lying around then being refreshed before serving. If you must.
There was the slightest hint of chilli and none whatsoever of lemon, although I can't complain about the amount of ham, nor the shavings of parmesan. The ham could have been broken into more manageable pieces though.
Although the food had its ups and downs, the service at Greens is excellent. Janine kept our glasses topped up with Twee Jonge Gezellen rosé (R60) and was never very far away when we needed something that she hadn't already anticipated.
Also on the plus side are the very reasonable prices, both for the food and the wine. With a bit of shaking up in the kitchen, this place should be perfectly positioned to take off this summer. The bill, with drinks, came to R241 before tip.
- All Tonight restaurant reviews are unannounced and paid for in full.