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FU.SHI
| PLANET FOOD
The only ‘f’ word to use in Plett is Fu.shi!
Remember that piece of advice, and you won’t go wrong with your restaurant bookings in Plettenberg Bay, one of the gems of South Africa’s Garden Route. Summer’s here and the place to meet and be seen is Fu.shi whether you’re in the mood for cocktails or some seriously good sushi or fusion food.
Text Michelle Snaddon
Photography Michelle Snaddon, Fu.shi
Published 15th February 2008
‘The only ‘f’ word you can use in Plett is Fu.shi!’ laughed co-owner Noelle Bolton one morning over breakfast at the restaurant. We needed coffee: the power was down and we’d come to the restaurant for a fix (sensibly, it is well prepared for the idiosyncracies of the local power supply) but we landed up having a hilarious (and much more healthy) breakfast together. Spirits were high - it was the day after the South Africans had won the Rugby World Cup and the national flag was still hanging off the town’s dolphin statue, green and gold balloons were stoically bobbing about in gardens and things were generally rather quiet after the celebratory shenanigans of the night before.
I had arrived in Plett the previous day to try out Executive Chef Vanie Padaychee’s expanded fusion menu and, in her usual style, she had treated us royally. Way more than a tasting menu, our meal was a journey of both spicy and subtle flavours from start to finish, ending with yummy sorbets and the most unusual version of a crème brûlée - Vanie had added wasabi – her sense of humour showing through - but the flavour was incredible!
I met Vanie years ago at one of Franschhoek’s most gracious estates, Grande Provence, just an hour out of Cape Town. At the time, her food was making headlines in all the lifestyle magazines and I can still remember the meal she served. Not surprising, since she’d spent time with Margot Janse at award-winning Le Quartier Francais restaurant in Franschhoek and then as executive chef at Phantom Forest Eco Lodge in Knysna before moving back to Franschhoek in 2005.
I had arrived in Plett the previous day to try out Executive Chef Vanie Padaychee’s expanded fusion menu and, in her usual style, she had treated us royally. Way more than a tasting menu, our meal was a journey of both spicy and subtle flavours from start to finish, ending with yummy sorbets and the most unusual version of a crème brûlée - Vanie had added wasabi – her sense of humour showing through - but the flavour was incredible!
I met Vanie years ago at one of Franschhoek’s most gracious estates, Grande Provence, just an hour out of Cape Town. At the time, her food was making headlines in all the lifestyle magazines and I can still remember the meal she served. Not surprising, since she’d spent time with Margot Janse at award-winning Le Quartier Francais restaurant in Franschhoek and then as executive chef at Phantom Forest Eco Lodge in Knysna before moving back to Franschhoek in 2005.
I remember her modesty (just like the trademark pencil she uses to clip up her hair) but am reminded again of her serene aura as she kept remarkably cool while Fu.shi filled up with everyone feverishly wanting to order before the Rugby World Cup started in the early evening.
She had been persuaded to leave the Winelands and head for Plettenberg Bay’s new kid on the block: the very glamorous new development at the top of the hill. The restaurant is Fu.shi. The brain child of dynamic duo Ara Manuelian and Noelle Bolton, it is part of The Upper Deck development which includes BoMa, their stylish champagne and cocktail bar, the Chef’s Bar – a more intimate bistro downstairs – as well as a row of shops and their own art gallery. Up above, a row of penthouse apartments have one of the best views in town. And Ara is about to develop the property diagonally across the way so we’ll keep you up to date….
But back to Fu.shi: the name means ‘happiness, good fortune and prosperity’. Happiness is Vanie at a glance. Always smiling and quite at home here, she effortlessly manages a team of six with two dedicated sushi chefs responsible for sushi and sashimi in their own little kitchen facing the BoMa terrace. Downstairs, in the Chef’s Bar kitchen, all the rotis, naan and dim sum are prepared by a Nepalese chef – quite a combo in this little coastal town.
The menu is expansive, making it difficult to choose, so it’s easiest to book with a group of friends and order loads of different dishes to taste. Start with sushi and then move on to subtle beauties like the veggie tempura, followed by mouthwatering curries and rotis. Vanie’s versions of the Asian classics are heavenly – and not too searingly hot either. I’m tempted to tell you what to try on the menu (have a look at Fu.shi Menu) but perhaps the best solution is to go for the Imperial or Colonial menus on offer this summer – they’ve been devised by Vanie to take the pain out of indecision. Book in advance at the beginning of your holiday so that there’s time to return for more.
Tel +27 44 533-6497
Email reservations@fushi.co.za
Website www.fushi.co.za
Tweet
She had been persuaded to leave the Winelands and head for Plettenberg Bay’s new kid on the block: the very glamorous new development at the top of the hill. The restaurant is Fu.shi. The brain child of dynamic duo Ara Manuelian and Noelle Bolton, it is part of The Upper Deck development which includes BoMa, their stylish champagne and cocktail bar, the Chef’s Bar – a more intimate bistro downstairs – as well as a row of shops and their own art gallery. Up above, a row of penthouse apartments have one of the best views in town. And Ara is about to develop the property diagonally across the way so we’ll keep you up to date….
But back to Fu.shi: the name means ‘happiness, good fortune and prosperity’. Happiness is Vanie at a glance. Always smiling and quite at home here, she effortlessly manages a team of six with two dedicated sushi chefs responsible for sushi and sashimi in their own little kitchen facing the BoMa terrace. Downstairs, in the Chef’s Bar kitchen, all the rotis, naan and dim sum are prepared by a Nepalese chef – quite a combo in this little coastal town.
The menu is expansive, making it difficult to choose, so it’s easiest to book with a group of friends and order loads of different dishes to taste. Start with sushi and then move on to subtle beauties like the veggie tempura, followed by mouthwatering curries and rotis. Vanie’s versions of the Asian classics are heavenly – and not too searingly hot either. I’m tempted to tell you what to try on the menu (have a look at Fu.shi Menu) but perhaps the best solution is to go for the Imperial or Colonial menus on offer this summer – they’ve been devised by Vanie to take the pain out of indecision. Book in advance at the beginning of your holiday so that there’s time to return for more.
Tel +27 44 533-6497
Email reservations@fushi.co.za
Website www.fushi.co.za
Tweet
Wasabi crème brûlée (Serves 4)
6 egg yolks
500ml fresh cream
50g castor sugar
½ vanilla pod split into half lengthwise
25g wasabi powder
Bring the cream, sugar, vanilla to a boil. Remove from heat and add in wasabi powder and allow it to infuse. Beat the egg yolks and add the cream wasabi mixture. Pour into ramekins and place into a tray filled half way with water and bake at 160ºC for 25 minutes. Remove from oven when baked and allow to cool in the water.
Cool further overnight in the fridge. Sprinkle with brown sugar and burn the surface with a blow torch or place under the grill in a hot oven till the top goes brown.
6 egg yolks
500ml fresh cream
50g castor sugar
½ vanilla pod split into half lengthwise
25g wasabi powder
Bring the cream, sugar, vanilla to a boil. Remove from heat and add in wasabi powder and allow it to infuse. Beat the egg yolks and add the cream wasabi mixture. Pour into ramekins and place into a tray filled half way with water and bake at 160ºC for 25 minutes. Remove from oven when baked and allow to cool in the water.
Cool further overnight in the fridge. Sprinkle with brown sugar and burn the surface with a blow torch or place under the grill in a hot oven till the top goes brown.
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