Apprentice @Institute of Culinary
Arts

Apprentice offers a warm ,
contemporary interior, with a semi open plan kitchen
. This is fun, and invites
interaction between
customers and students.
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An evening at
Apprentice Restaurant
Apprentice
Restaurant in Andringa St, Stellenbosch, is
an unique concept ,and I'm not referring to the
decor. Apprentice is a sort of living classroom in which the students of the ICA
get to live out their passion while they learn the Culinary Arts
.
Does that
mean the customers are guinea pigs on which the students experiment? Well, one might
think that, but as we found out, this couldn't be further from the truth, as we felt more like
valued customers than
hapless victims!! Both the Service and the Food were of an
excellent standard...
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For
Starters The menu offered 5 starters, 5 mains, and 4 desserts. After some deliberation,
(the Waldorf Salad looked delish) we opted for Beetroot
Tart with Dukkah, Goats cheese and honeycomb crumble, and West
Coast Taster, a medley of a snoek croquette, Malay Curry Fish Samoosa and
Pickled Fish.
Service was attentive and
efficient, but not intrusive, I'm glad to say. Very professional actually.
The Beetroot tart was a blend of delicate
complementary flavours, and the West Coast Taster was a
generous portion and tasty, according to my husband... A plate of toasted herb crostini
appeared on our table along with a little amuse bouche which I could have happily eaten a
bowlful of ( Apple & Sesame Asian Salad & Chicken).
Wine Guessing
they wouldn't put an inferior wine to their name, I chose the Apprentice
Sauvignon which at R20 a glass was amazing value as it was a great crisp
young wine, complementing my meal perfectly.
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Gary chose the Spiced
Chicken Supreme which I just had to taste and
well, if my fish hadn't been so good ,
I would definitely have been jealous!
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Mains
The Sesame Linefish with Seaweed, Miso Butterscotch Sauce, Sesame Cabbage and Rice
Noodles was my choice and it was an excellent one. The Fish was Fresh Hake, and as Johan explained,
paramount to Apprentice is the Freshness of their produce, and if Hake is fresh, thats the one
for the day. It was great, flaking nicely, moist but not undercooked. Once again I have to say the
flavours were excellent in their complement of each other. I enjoyed every morsel of this
dish.
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Dessert Once again, a hard
choice but the Poached Pear with Gluhwein & Honey appealed the most and it was really good, and
just enough to satisfy that sweet craving I often get after a meal!
Apprentice Restaurant has been open for over
5 years, though the School (The Institute of Culinary Arts) for much longer. The ICA is accredited
by several major national and International Culinary Organisations. It has 2 Campuses just outside
of Stellenbosch. The ICA is also able to offer Sponsorship programs for less
fortunates.
Prices All in all, I would say
Apprentice offers value for money, with the starters from R38 and the mains between R72 and
R135 (this was for Venison).
Contact
Details +27-21-887-8985, Oude Hoek Centre, Andringa
St, Stellenbosch
View
Apprentice's Web
Page
Review written by Jo
Scott of www.stellenbosch-unlimited.co.za . June
2012
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