6 Best Restaurants in Cape Town, South Africa

It may be laid-back, shabby, and a bit out of the way, but this locally beloved eatery in a former fishing village enjoys views overlooking a stretch of pristine beach and extremely fresh line-caught seafood. There are salads, burgers, and toasted sandwiches on the menu, but the seafood combos and baskets—which combine fish with calamari, shrimp, mussels, or chicken—are the most popular items. At R439, the seafood platter for two is probably the best bargain of its kind. Don't be tempted to order a garlic-and-cheese roll; you need to save space for what's to come. Service is friendly but can be slow.

The Codfather serves an excellent array of fresh seafood in a casual yet buzzing environment by way of a slightly unorthodox system. Rather than ordering from a menu, you instead head to a display of fresh seafood on ice, where, with the help of your waiter, you select everything from fish to shellfish in the quantities and style of your choice (you're charged by weight, as in Greece). Possible selections include calamari grilled Cajun-style; kabeljou, yellowtail, or bluenose grilled and served with a choice of sauces; or Mozambican langoustines. All orders come with side dishes of stir-fried vegetables, rice, or fries. A conveyer belt of tasty sushi is also on offer. Although it is set back from Camps Bay's typical sea views, diners can enjoy mountain views from an outdoor terrace. The food here is pricey but perfectly cooked, always fresh, and served with a smile.

Sister restaurant to the original Harbour House in Kalk Bay, the V&A location serves the same reliably fresh and tasty seafood menu from an enviable spot overlooking the harbor. As with the Kalk Bay location, the fresh fish of the day is always a good bet, and desserts are excellent. Sushi and cocktails are served upstairs, from which vantage you can also enjoy stellar views of the mountain and sunset.

This cozy home-style seafood restaurant is a neighborhood classic, owned by a husband-and-wife team who are very friendly and knowledgeable. With a small menu, you can expect simple but consistently good fresh fish dishes inspired by Cape flavors, but the meat and vegetarian options are also great. 

Serving locally and sustainably caught seafood, SeeBreeze has become the go-to spot on Bree Street for oysters, cocktails, and a well-made light dishes. Bringing a contemporary take to traditional seafood dishes, expect to find things like fish and chips, prawn linguine, creamy mussels, and grilled whole fish. In the warmer months, sit outside in the sunshine and enjoy some bubbly with your meal. 

In this raw-timber structure in the heart of the docks, about three miles north of other V&A venues, the music is loud, the tables are crowded, and the decor is nonexistent, but tourists come in droves to gorge on fresh seafood. Expect to pay through the nose for a kilogram for local crayfish (similar to lobster) or scarce and endangered wild abalone, which is being poached nearly to extinction. Large prawns are also pricey. There is plenty of less expensive seafood, and daily specials such as baby squid and local line-caught fish are competitively priced. Lunch specials are more reasonable, but this is still more of a tourist destination than a destination restaurant.