Louis

Friday, April 17th, 2009

Reviewed by Louis Young

Due to all my favourite restaurants being fully booked for the evening, I found myself once again going to Avocado. I told myself that everything will be fine this time around as long as I dont order any complex dishes on the menu.Avocado is set in an old house, so the ambience is homely and cosy with wooden floors and an arty finish. An old piano stands against the one wall. The ambience is what gives Avocado five-star potential.The service was very friendly, however more attention needs to be paid to mise-en-place before the shift and also to the table setting during the shift. Our table was unstable on its feet. All tables should be checked before the shift. I didnt have a soup spoon before the soup arrived and I didnt have a steak knife before the steak arrived.The wine-list features mainly Durbanville Wine Valley wines. I discovered Altydgedacht Barbera 2004. If you are a red wine drinker, this is a must try. To accompany my red wine, I ordered a mushroom and blue cheese soup and for my main meal a beef fillet served with a corn potato cake and grilled veg.When the soup arrived it had a green colour. I thought this was interesting and accredited this to the colour of the blue cheese mixed with the mushroom, however when I tasted it, it tasted exactly like the broccolli and cheese soup that one can buy at leading supermarkets. If it looks like broccolli, smells like broccolli and tastes like broccolli then it probaby is broccolli. The soup was very tasty, but ultimately not what we had ordered and I was looking forward to tasting the blue cheese and mushroom with the Barbera.I ordered a medium prepared fillet. Although the steak was soft and very well seasoned, the steak was well-done on the outside and completely raw on the inside. The potato cake was ordinary and required better seasoning. The veg was also bland and mushy. Now normally these arent deal breakers, but I paid more for my meal here than I have paid at some of the top restaurants in our country. This restaurant has a great menu, but the dishes are not prepared with love and attention to detail. I get the idea that the chef has a recipe book, but not the experience nor the training to pull it off.A nice touch was that we received a complimentary dessert wine when we were brought our bill (quite possibly to numb the senses or soften the blow).This restaurant has the perfect location and the perfect ambience. Appoint a qualified, experienced chef and head-waiter and Avocado would be a full-house every single night.2 Young stars.