Bientang’s Cave – Whales and Seafood on the Rocks

Our visit to Bientang’s Cave was planned right at the start of our trip. A getting together of friends in Hermanus over an extended lunch in a great spot. It was everything we had wished for and more.

What and Where is Bientang’s Cave

Bientang’s Cave is a restaurant situated on the rocks on the Hermanus seafront in an old strandloper cave. Tables are positioned on the rocks, giving the visitor a great view of Walkers Bay With luck, at the right time of year, you’ll see whales.

Our Meal

We had planned to sit out on the rocks, as close to the sea as possible. As the wheather wasn’t perfect we moved back to the main body of the restaurant. That proved to be a good plan, as we did see a few people getting their feet wet at tables on the rocks.

The menu offers a range of dishes including steak and burgers, but is very clearly a seafood menu. With prawns at the top of our choices, a good spread of seafood potjie, seafood curry and seafood platters was eaten. Of course these are “proper” prawns, much bigger than anything you’ll see outside of top restaurants in the UK.

For me an excellent snoek pate was followed by one of my favourites, a seafood potjie, though it was difficult choice between potjie and Malay seafood curry.

There was no rushing this meal – it took all afternoon, with a fair amount of South African wine consumed as well.

And the Whales

A couple of whales were seen nearby, with some activity out in the bay.

The Cost

With most of our group having three courses it worked out to under ZAR450 a head. Now I am not sure how that works out for South Africans, but for the UK tourist that’s around £26 each. Excellent value.

If you are visiting this part of the world, a meal at Bientang’s cave is a must. Great food at good value.

And Again

As a footnote, on our last full day in Hermanus, after spending the day just sitting around and seeing the sights, we opted for a late lunch at Bientang’s Cave. Just as good as the first time around!