And now for something completely different
Imvelo Xhosa is part of a movement to integrate previously disadvantaged communities into the booming tourist hospitality industry; and, indeed, it's the only restaurant on the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront that serves any sort of African tribal cuisine. The entertainment also includes traditional drumming, sometimes at a volume that makes conversation challenging. The setting integrates native arts into an elegant beige color scheme.

I experienced Imvelo's menu as a dinner buffet, making it difficult to name dishes. There's a sort of fried popover that's alarmingly addictive, a number of bean dishes, a variant on the curried chicken that shows up almost everywhere in Cape Town, and a lasagna/sloppy Joe-like dish spiced similarly to Ethiopian curries but with less of a vinegary tang. My advice for newcomers to this cuisine is to take a very small serving of everything and see what works for you: some of the spice combinations are delicious for the first three bites but hard on American palates thereafter.

Vegetarians in our group were frustrated by a lack of vegetarian options in the buffet set-up. Pudding was the ubiquitous spice cake with sauce -- go back for more bread instead. Of the wines provided us, my impression was that the red did not go as well as it might with even the most strongly flavored meats; on a subsequent trip, I would try white.    []

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     ­Anonymous