Bliss on a stormy night

The clever folk at Rhodes’ House have managed to create a nightspot that not only attracts the local glitterati but also internationals who include Hollywood stars and royalty. To expect them also to create a restaurant that is, to my mind, near perfect is unreasonable. Yet 95 Keerom, despite all the possible jabs about being trendy and pandering to the superficial, is one of the most enjoyable restaurants I’ve been to.

I concede that the door staff, with their Madonna-mics and sleek attitude, take themselves a little more seriously than they need to, but acknowledge that Giorgio Nava, that stylish Italian owner of this phenomenon, has created a restaurant that looks good and serves delicious food.

No doubt this is the place of the minute but my sense is it will continue to be the place of the decade, too. I spotted Jonathan Ackerman with some friends at the bar, the delicious Karen Abrahamson with her husband upstairs and tables of people that I recognized from the Financial Mail and social pages.

Inspired interior

There was a fashion show at Rhodes’ House (joined to 95’s back-end by a stylish umbilical corridor) and fashionistos hovered around the bar after the show waiting for a table. Cape Talk’s Charmaine Noy was looking as glamorous as ever.

The Eames-inspired interior, with rounded chairs and clean-lined timber tables, is wonderful to look at and very comfortable. I would have preferred to sit upstairs where an age-old tree takes centre stage rather than in the historic, exposed-brickwork rooms downstairs.

Here’s what really impressed me: the owner called at all the tables to recite the specials. He has a strong Italian accent and a wonderful dress sense. I found myself lost in the lilt of his voice, similar to the way Enrica Rocca made Rugula sound like a Karma Sutra position.

It was on a stormy night the four of us -- myself, Michael Endler and two British guests staying at his guesthouse -- ventured out, and I was wearing a full-length coat.

Careful preparation

There is a “95” special on each of the menu categories and I opted for the “95” for both starter and main. L’insalata alla “95” (R36) was a simple yet perfect salad of rocket, avo, boiled egg and feta. I devoured the Il pescato del giorno alla “95” (R69), which was salmon trout with almond butter, mashed potatoes and veg garnish. Both the starter and main were dishes I could probably make at home but the reason I enjoyed them so much was the freshness of the produce and the careful preparation that enhanced the natural taste of the ingredients.

Before I tell you about dessert and what the others ate, I must share a Berkman family tradition. I had always thought this was, for the men of the family, to loosen their belts after dinner, which I always do. I was surprised to learn from my uncle recently that I had remembered the tradition differently. In fact, the Berkmans loosened their shoelaces after dinner and not their belts. Anyway, what is the value of tradition if you can’t change it to suit yourself?

Others at the table had the rolled pork with porcini mushroom sauce (R67) and grilled lamb with olive oil and rosemary (R85). Oohs and aahs abounded.

Much pleasure

It was the chocolate dessert, Il soufflé al cioccolto (R34) -- a bombe-shaped baked cake that erupted molten chocolate when cut -- that provided so much pleasure that it actually reduced the tension between my shoulders.

It was only after I had donned my coat and was walking through Rhodes’ House en route to Queen Victoria Street where I had parked that I realized my belt was still undone. Holding on to my trousers through the pocket of my jacket to prevent them from ending around my ankles, I pushed and shoved my way through an anchovy-packed Rhodes’ House, where all kind of delicious creatures rubbed up against me in the people traffic. By the time I got to the entrance, my pants were down to my knees and as I walked tight-legged past the long queue outside, someone called out my name. I just kept walking, gritting my teeth and my knees, before dashing behind a tree to pull up my pants.

95 Keerom Street, (021) 422-0765 is open for lunch Monday to Friday and Monday to Saturday for dinner.