The Guardian Peak pork chop provenance

  

15 May 2022

 

Guardian Peak

Off the Annandale Road, off Route 44, Stellenbosch

 

Over my lifetime many people have suggested I should listen to a record, read a book or watch a movie/play that would allegedly be life changing, and today our water assured me that the Guardian Peak pork loin chop was the best thing on the menu and would be life changing.

 

Needless to say, no record, book, movie or play has ever changed my life, and to be honest, there was no noticeable difference in my life. all things considered, after eating the pork chop.

 

Last time we were here, with the same friends, the one guy had an epiphany after his pork chop lunch and he was the prime mover for our return today, for more of the same.  His enthusiasm persuaded me to try the pork chop too.

 

Guardian Peak restaurant still has an awesome view over the Hidden Valley and, thankfully, doesn’t present mediocre food on the premise of  “never mind the food, luxuriate in the view.” 

 

As I’ve mentioned in a previous review, the only issue I have with the place is that one can’t order any alcohol other than wine. I remembered this brutal fact too late but next time I’m packing a half-jack in my hip pocket. I contented myself with a couple of hearty Appletizers.

 

 The  pork chop prophet and I ordered the chop, and the three others ordered respectively fillet, rump and sirloin steaks.

 

The pork chop is humungous (I’ve seen smaller suckling pigs) and brought to mind the Titanic steak that a Kloof Street eatery once offered to the discerning glutton who won some prize if they could eat the steak in a stipulated time frame.  Fortunately, time wasn’t of the essence on this fine day.

 

Not only was there a goodly quantity of prime pig on the plate, but there was also a supporting cast of an abundance of butternut, sweet potato and courgette. The vegetables were what one would call rustic in size and cookery and, if unadventurous, were more satisfactory than carbs as accompaniment to a meat.

 

Admittedly, it was a very nice piece of pork, juicy, succulent and with well rendered fat and a topping of flavoursome sauce, and was quite enjoyable, if a tad hard going after a while because I had to kind of hack through the heft of it.  For me, it was a case of too much of a good thing and I think it might be better if it were half the size. 

 

Our friend didn’t have my qualms and again thoroughly enjoyed his pork chop.

 

The wife’s fillet was perfectly medium rare, the bearnaise sauce was almost life changing for her, the fries were nicely crisp, the fresh salad was the perfect counterfoil to the meatiness and the side of onion rings were yummy.

 

I didn’t interrogate the others on their steaks but they seemed well satisfied too. 

 

My dessert was an exquisite, wobbly Amarula panacotta,

the wife had a sugar cone with vanilla ice cream, a Flake and chocolate sauce. She uttered small cries of delight as she ate it. The other dessert on the table was a baked cheesecake and there was material satisfaction with that as well. 

 

The total bill, including wine and soft drinks, came to R1745,00 for four people, before tip.

 

Apparently, the wine is excellent, the food is definitely well cooked and served in generous portions and if you have a table with a valley view on such a beautiful Autumn day, you will experience an enormous sense of well-being after lunch. You’ll eat well and plenty, and you won’t feel you’ve been ripped off. 

 

Highly recommended.