Our Anniversary Dinner at Terrarium: beautiful dishes with some trompe l'oeil
A restaurant week favourite at the V&A Waterfront
By Shawn Godfrey (The Roasted Dad)
Lianne and Shawn on their wedding day 13 years ago
My wife Lianne (The Roasted Mom) and I celebrated our wedding anniversary at Terrarium recently. It is a fairly new fine dining spot that feels perfectly matched for a milestone celebration. As we walked toward the Queen Victoria Hotel in the historic Portswood Ridge precinct, it started to rain - just like it did on our wedding day.
We have been taking full advantage of Restaurant Week lately (running until 3 May). It is the best way to experience Cape Town’s culinary scene at a more accessible price point. At Terrarium, they are currently offering an eight-course tasting menu for R700.
Lianne and Shawn celebrating their thirteenth wedding anniversary at Terrarium.
I have been a fan of Chef Chris Erasmus since his Foliage days, and I love his focus on sustainability and locally sourced ingredients. I am not surprised that Terrarium has already stacked up accolades, including a One Plate awardfrom the 2026 JHP Gourmet Guide and the Emerging Green Star at the 2026 Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant Awards.
Terrarium is situated within the Queen Victoria Hotel. The restaurant itself is intimate and sophisticated. With it being a cold autumn night, we settled right next to the gas heater. While the vibe is moody, the lighting can use an upgrade; the beautiful art on the walls deserves more than spotty downlights, but the backdrop of the Silo Hotel glowing over the Waterfront more than made up for it.
The menu at Terrarium
After a warm welcome from Siviwe, we ordered a bottle of Morgenster Cab Franc (R540). It’s a classic, and paired well with the variety of courses we had ahead of us. We also ordered some sparkling water (R65) to keep ourselves hydrated between courses.
Chef Chris Erasmus kicked off with some culinary theatre. The Melon & Seaweed course featured winter melon, seaweed mignonette, a herb oil and radish. It was a refreshing start and presented beautifully in a bowl with stones and foliage. The Bone & Yeast course was brought out at the same time and featured a fire-roasted beef bone marrow butter, shaped to look exactly like a marrow bone. It was a clever culinary trompe l'oeil (optical illusion), but it did need a pinch of salt to really carry the richness of the crispy sourdough that was served along with it. We really enjoyed the parmesan cornflakes though.
My favourite courses came up straight after though, starting off with the tomato course, which was a tomato tartar (tomato tartare chopped and assembled to look exactly like its beef counterpart). You eat with your eyes first, and so I always appreciate beautifully plated food. Unfortunately I found that the chilli oil slightly overpowered the delicate tomato flavours, providing more ‘burn’ than flavour.
The ceviche (tuna with kombucha dashi) was delicious. Even Lianne, who is not a big fan of seafood, tasted a few bites which she enjoyed. When I finished the rest of her dish, I was surprised to learn that hers tasted different to mine. It seems that hers had a lot more kombucha dashi which changed the flavour of the dish. The inconsistency was a shame for a kitchen of this caliber.
The Leek dish that was presented to us next, was a highlight for both of us. The “textures of onion” were showcased in four distinct ways: fresh, pickled, confit, and charred. Taking basic ingredients like leeks and onions and infusing them with a depth of flavours requires real skill. The user of turmeric in the vadouvan gave it a distinct Cape Malay warmth that felt perfectly 'at home' in Cape Town.
After the refreshing water melon and dried strawberry sorbet, the second last dish was the only meat dish of the night: duck. This was the letdown of the night; it arrived overcooked and tough. It was a real shame, as the layered beetroot and potato pavé served with it was excellent.
By the time the Tanzanie Dark Chocolate arrived, we were feeling quite full. Personally I would have served a lighter dessert dish after the previous seven courses, but it was presented beautifully.
Despite the hit-and-miss execution of the menu, we had a wonderful experience at Terrarium. Not only did we appreciate the chefs’ creativity in serving optical illusions of the beef bone marrow butter and tomato tartar, the beautifully presented charred leek was also a highlight.
What mostly brought us a great experience was thanks to the great hospitality. The staff at Terrarium were incredible - friendly, attentive, and they gave us just enough technical info to know what we were eating without having to listen to a long spiel that can sometimes kill the mood.
At R700, the menu is worthwhile. If you’re a fan of sustainable dining and are looking for a unique view over the Waterfront, Terrarium is well worth visiting.
The Terrarium Restaurant Week Menu
Melon and Seaweed
Winter melon, Seaweed mignonette, Herb oil, Radish
_____
Bone & Yeast
Fire roasted beef bone marrow butter, Parmesan corn flakes, Sourdough
_____
Tomato
Tomato tartare, Peach atchar, Whey vinaigrette, Chilli oil
_____
Ceviche
Linefish, Kombucha dashi, Miso, Red onion
_____
Leek
Charred leek, Textures of onion, Vadouvan, Turmeric
_____
Sorbet
Seasonal garden sorbet
_____
Duck
Roasted duck breast, Beetroot pavé, Black garlic, Blackberry
_____
Tanzanie Dark Chocolate
Dark chocolate crémeux, Cranberry, Dulce de leche, Cha
Terrarium is situated within the Queen Victoria Hotel, in the the Queen Victoria Hotel in the historic Portswood Ridge precinct, a short walk away from the hustle and bustle of the V&A Waterfront.
Location and Opening Hours
You can find Terrarium within the Queen Victoria Hotel, at the V&A Waterfront
Address: Moorings 5 & Portswood Ridge, 5 Portswood Rd, Victoria & Alfred Waterfront
Contact info: 021 427 5940
Price: R700 (Restaurant Week Menu)
Open daily for lunch and dinner (from 12:00 to 9:30 pm).
Booking: Essential via Dineplan (Restaurant Week menu valid until 3 May 2026 and for dinner only)
While we used uber to get to Terrarium and back home, it is worth mentioning that guests are provided complimentary parking in the bays outside the Queen Victoria Hotel.
Also read my review on Little Fox in Constantia, that also offers a seven-course menu for R700 during restaurant week.
About Shawn Godfrey
Photo credit: Niki M Photography
Shawn Godfrey is an entrepreneur based in Cape Town, South Africa. After the Covid-19 lockdown saw his business in financial distress, cooking was the creative outlet that helped to keep him sane. To keep track of his recipes, and encourage friends and families to join him, he starts his instagram account The Roasted Dad.
Fast-forward to late 2021 - on a whim Shawn (encouraged by his wife Lianne) enters MasterChef South Africa. It is a crazy time of life: running a 200 people business and struggling to keep it profitable, two small children with a third on the way, and about to move into a new house. But when Shawn gets selected to be one of the 20 contestants participating in the fourth season of MasterChef South Africa, he decides to go all in. Leaving his 7-month-pregnant wife to look after their then three and one-year-old children, he battles it out and comes back home five weeks later with the trophy and a million rand prize money in his pocket.
It all started with an Instagram account, but The Roasted Dad is so much more now. Shawn has stayed his entrepreneurial self and whilst he hosts Private Dinner Parties and Cook-with-Me Demos, does Restaurant Take-Overs, he still runs the lighting company and several other businesses.
On his blog, Shawn shares Restaurant Reviews and Accommodation Reviews, and gives an insight into the wild and wonderful life he leads together with his wife Lianne, and their three children Aiden (8), Olivia (6) and Harvey (4).
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