The dynamic duo behind Dusk restaurant, chefs Darren Badenhorst and Callan Austin, have opened the doors to their new immersive restaurant and cocktail bar in Stellenbosch. The trailblazing team, who shook up South Africa’s dining scene with the hyper-conceptual, multi-sensorial, fine-dining Dusk, are once again pushing boundaries at Nocturne.
This new gastronomic and mixology offering blurs the lines between restaurant and cocktail bar. Here they set the stage for a truly one-of-a-kind dining and drinking experience. Situated in the same strip as sister restaurant Dusk, Nocturne leans into a similar aesthetic — it’s dark and moodily elegant, with a palette of blue, brown, black, and gold brought to life with textures of natural wood, leather, steel, and glass.
Heading up this new operation alongside the chefs are Nocturne’s beverage director, Shane Mumba (previously the sommelier at Badenhorst’s Le coin Français restaurant) and bar manager Yorick Faict and mixologist Becca Melvill (both previously at Cause | Effect cocktail kitchen). It’s a formidable team spanning kitchen, bar, and front of house, making for an exceptional gastronomic and mixology experience.
The Hot Seat
Mood midnights at Nocturne
This new immersive restaurant and cocktail bar in Stellenbosch shakes up expectations with its mix of fine dining and conceptual cocktails
Image: Supplied
The dynamic duo behind Dusk restaurant, chefs Darren Badenhorst and Callan Austin, have opened the doors to their new immersive restaurant and cocktail bar in Stellenbosch. The trailblazing team, who shook up South Africa’s dining scene with the hyper-conceptual, multi-sensorial, fine-dining Dusk, are once again pushing boundaries at Nocturne.
This new gastronomic and mixology offering blurs the lines between restaurant and cocktail bar. Here they set the stage for a truly one-of-a-kind dining and drinking experience. Situated in the same strip as sister restaurant Dusk, Nocturne leans into a similar aesthetic — it’s dark and moodily elegant, with a palette of blue, brown, black, and gold brought to life with textures of natural wood, leather, steel, and glass.
Heading up this new operation alongside the chefs are Nocturne’s beverage director, Shane Mumba (previously the sommelier at Badenhorst’s Le coin Français restaurant) and bar manager Yorick Faict and mixologist Becca Melvill (both previously at Cause | Effect cocktail kitchen). It’s a formidable team spanning kitchen, bar, and front of house, making for an exceptional gastronomic and mixology experience.
Review | Dusk restaurant
The cocktail menu is structured in two parts. There are the classics and then there are 10 signature cocktails, which are created with the same mindset as that used for the menu at Dusk. Think ethical, creative, and wholly original — these aren’t just any cocktails. Staying true to their ethos of sustainability and minimal waste, the team use a lot of by-products from their pickles, preserves, ferments, and cures, as well as off-cuts from the produce used at Dusk.
Expect the likes of Gateaux Spiced Latte, which repurposes unused ingredients in Dusk’s pre-dessert to create a nutty, spicy, creamy, rum-based drink, and Ugly Bourbon, which sees the smoky liquor infused with buttery brioche off-cuts from the kitchen. Elsewhere the mixologists draw inspiration from a plethora of other reference points, be it the childhood breakfast favourite Rice Krispies, the smoke of the restaurant’s Diablo grill, or Austin Powers. It’s a seriously fun, playful, and creative menu.
Image: Supplied
Naturally, given that the founders are first and foremost chefs, each signature cocktail is paired with a snack (the snacks can also be ordered on their own). The small-plate menu features dishes that have undergone a similar creative process as at Dusk, conceptualised and created in the restaurant’s test kitchen. The menu offers six plates, of which five are savoury and one sweet, with a good combination of light and hearty dishes — including six-hour confit duck leg, slow-braised and pressed Karoo lamb belly, and a local line-fish ceviche. The chef’s recommendation is to go for three to five plates and share between two people — while sipping on the creative cocktails, of course.
Nocturne also makes sure discerning wine and brandy drinkers have something special, with Mumba having curated an excellent wine programme along with a speciality brandy tasting, in collaboration with the SA Brandy Association. And thanks to a partnership with Riedel — the premium Austrian glassware manufacturer — the cocktails are served in speciality glasses, amplifying their flavours and aromas.
Nocturne, 43 Plein Street, Stellenbosch Tuesday-Saturday from 4pm till late.
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• From the August edition of Wanted, 2023.