THERE are some rules meant to be broken, especially when it comes to gin and food pairing. Gin’s unique blend of botanicals make it a wonderfully playful drink to experiment with no matter what cuisine. Food has always been a very important part of why people travel, but you don’t need to look far to experience almost every cuisine in the world if you’re visiting Cape Town this summer.
Pushing the boundaries of flavour, Musgrave Crafted Spirits, well-known for its artisanal gins and brandies, has paired three delicious gin cocktails with a few of Cheyne Morrisby’s exotic Mexican, Asian and Pacific Rim style dishes. Mexicola, Cheyne’s and Lucky Boa, all in the village of Hout Bay, are much-loved favourites for locals and tourists and if you can’t get on a plane to travel the Asia or Mexico, you can just make your way down to Hout Bay. The menus are all an artistic expression of flavour that elevates one’s eating experience.
Here are Simone Musgrave’s top pairings you must try this summer if you’re visiting one of these Cheyne’s restaurants.
- Frozen Original Margatini with smoky nachos (Mexicola). This is a play on a margarita – which is as Mexican as nachos – so it combines gin and all the margarita ingredients to create a fusion margarita that matches a fusion nacho.
- Pink Saigon Smash with sticky fusion chicken wings/korean fried hot wings served with gochujang, honey and sesame (Lucky Bao). Musgrave pink Saigon Smash has the freshness and tartness of berries with the fragrance of rose so the sticky, sweetish chilli wings with crispy skin are cooled but also given zing with the rose and tartness of the drink.
- Original Gimlet with crispy soft shell crab bao buns with corn, cumin, coconut, Vietnamese leaf (Cheyne’s). A gimlet is limey and lovely and the subtleness of the crab bao buns are complemented by not only the spiciness of Musgrave gin but also feels like the crab has been doused in lime without dulling the softness and subtlety of the crab.
Known to sharpen and refresh one’s palate, gin is the ideal drink of choice for a night out if you’re looking to tease your taste buds. All cocktails can be found on the menus. Other restaurants in the Cheyne Morrisby Restaurant Group are Himitsu in Camps Bay and Shio in De Waterkant.
For more information, click here for Musgrave and here for Cheyne.
PHOTO CREDIT: Tegan Smith Photography
