East City Grill, Cape Town: Japanese-South African Cuisine in the World’s Tallest Hemp Building

 At 84 Harrington Street in Cape Town’s District Six is a hip new dining destination. East City Grill and Yakiniku are two sister restaurants that serve a tasty fusion of Japanese and South African cuisine with a focus on wagyu beef …which you can cut with super impressive steak knives …and enjoy in a rather unconventional but sustainable building. 

Image: Supplied

The World’s Tallest Hemp Building

The chic setting of both of these restaurants is a new 50-room hotel, made out of, yes, hemp. I can’t tell if its location in Cape Town, where cannabis is so widely and legally used, is fitting or surprising, but, at 12 storeys, it has been certified by the International Hemp Building Association as the world’s tallest hemp building. 

It was designed by contemporary, sustainable architecture practice, Wolf + Wolf Architects, and it is also home to a co-working space and a hemp shop called Hemporium. It turns out that “Hempcrete” holds massive potential in the world of architecture, both economically and ecologically.  

Yes, that's what 12 storeys of hemp looks like, in case you were wondering

Inside 84 Harrington: The Decor

The interiors are chic and sophisticated with a lot of black and red. The decor is simple with a distinctly Japanese aesthetic and subtle nuances that hint towards fire.

There is also a tea room/lounge where an impressive cherry blossom sculpture under a canopy of Japanese hemp and paper lanterns forms a very impressive centrepiece. 

A red origami construction adorns each table. I initially thought it was a dinosaur, but when another member of the group suggested that it was a cow, I agreed that that would make a lot more sense. Cows feature quite heavily in both the menu and the decor. 

Ceramic bull heads by Shirley Fintz

Not an origami dinosaur

The Restaurant/s: 

The restaurant is actually two restaurants in one:

Yakiniku Cape Town: A Japanese Grill Experience

South Africa is not the only nation where communal grilling is a big deal. Yakiniku is basically an elegant Japanese DIY braai experience. This intimate 16-seater restaurant-within-a-restaurant is based on — and named after — a Japanese-style grill house where people grill their own meat.  

Here, guests cook bite-sized pieces of meat and vegetables over a fire at the centre of each table. The smokeless grills are imported from Japan. A first in South Africa, they draw smoke down and extract it through ducting in the floor, so your efforts to avoid smoke-inhalation don’t stifle the conversation (we’ve all been to that braai), and no one goes home smelling like smoke. 

You can look forward to sliced wagyu: rump, skirt and Denver, cooked the way you like it with bowls of Koshihikari rice, sauces, kimchi, cucumber, and other delights that work well in a self-made lettuce parcel.

Image: Supplied

East City Grill

I, however, experienced the East City Grill, Yakiniku’s sister restaurant, which serves an à la carte menu that showcases Wagyu beef with a Japanese South African twist. 

East City Grill Menu: Starters & Snacks

At the event I attended, they ordered a whole range of starters, including:

Wagyu tartare, wagyu boerewors (served with a cheese and onion braaibroodjie), burrata & tomato, and parmesan mushroom toast, among others.

I expected to love the double-baked cheese soufflé, and I did. What’s not to love? But when I return, my first choice for a starter will be the crisp wagyu beef short rib bitterballen. They were like delicious little flavour bombs. 

Image: Supplied

Mains: The Best Wagyu Beef in Cape Town

Although there are seafood and vegetarian options on the menu, wagyu beef is the main feature.

The beef here comes from Elandsberg farm where the free-range cattle are raised. They started a breeding programme roughly a decade ago when they imported Australian wagyu embryos and implanted them into a Bonsmara herd. They are ethically raised and they use the whole animal. 

Choices include rib eye, sirloin, sirloin on the bone, rump, and fillet, with the specialities including compressed wagyu beef short rib, wagyu burger, and the katsu sandwich.

I had the wagyu beef short rib. And after sampling some of the food enjoyed by the people around me, I feel like I made the right choice. It was slow-cooked to fall-apart perfection and packed with rich flavours. If you’re not already jealous, you should be. The meat practically melted in my mouth, making my very fancy steak knife somewhat unnecessary.  

[Yes, I did photograph the short rib but the picture just doesn't do it justice]

Yes, before they serve the mains, the waiter brings a wooden box of knives to the table, and you get to “choose your weapon”. There were a few different kinds of steak knives to choose from, all with wooden handles. Some had a hemp pattern embedded in the side of the blade, some were decorated with Japanese cherry blossoms, but my favourite was the version that had Table Mountain engraved into the side of the blade. 

Have you even dined in Cape Town if you haven’t cut your food with a depiction of our most iconic landmark?

They also have a potato menu — my favourite vegetable! (I might not be invited to more restaurant launches if I keep making comments like that) — with a selection of hand-cut fries, triple-fried crispy potatoes, dauphinoise, and baked Gruyère mash. Choosing just one would be really hard. I’m glad I have been able to emotionally prepare you for this decision. It’s a pleasure. 

Wine, Cocktails & Sake

Sommelier Marc Botes, former Head Sommelier for Gordon Ramsay Restaurants in London — and therefore a very big deal — kept us from going thirsty. His wine list is based on style rather than varietal, divided into sections like ‘clean and precise’, ‘dry and defined', 'full and aromatic’, ‘bright and juicy, and ‘refined and restrained’. The list featured wines from both small producers and more familiar big names. 

The Japanese-born master mixologist of Cape Town’s ANTHM Bar, Tetsuo Hasegawa, is responsible for the cocktail menu. I will be back for a Kyoto Summer, described as a refreshing mix of Inverroche Amber Gin, Campari, elderflower, and grapefruit. There is also an extensive sake collection in the works that should be available soon. 

Managed to unintentionally dress to match the colour scheme

Dessert: Yes, They Have Matcha!

When it came to dessert, I experienced a lot of food envy. The yuzu and cherry blossom granita looked like a work of art on a plate. I was also very tempted by the sesame panna cotta and the miso chocolate mousse. However, I stuck with my usual MO and went with the cheesecake, in this case, a Hokkaido cheesecake, topped with matcha and served with toasted rice ice cream, rice puffs, and ginger curd. 

It feels like Cape Town is very much in its matcha era, and I’m sure this dish will make a lot of people very happy. (I half expect to be invited to try a restaurant in a matcha building next). 

I personally feel that matcha is a bit overrated and just tastes like 'green'. In this case, however, the slight bitterness balanced out the sweetness, and overall, the cheesecake was just delicious and a nice departure from what I’m used to. I also enjoyed the rice ice cream that accompanied it. 

If you’re looking for a wagyu restaurant in Cape Town that offers something truly different, East City Grill and Yakiniku in District Six are worth experiencing. They are both open for lunch and dinner, Tuesdays through Saturdays. Click here for more info or to book. 

Looking for More Great Dining Experiences in Cape Town?

• If you’re looking for sushi, try Konnichiwa
• If you’re looking for a distinctly African dining experience, try GOLD Restaurant
• If you enjoy cooking your own meals, there’s Food Jams
• Or you can find more restaurant reviews here