Review – Flourish Bistro, Woodstock

SINCE WRITING THIS REVIEW, THE LOCATION AND OPENING HOURS HAVE CHANGED. FLOURISH BISTRO IS NO LONGER SITUATED AT THE CANTEEN IN SALT RIVER. 

NEW LOCATION: 403 Albert Rd, Woodstock

NEW OPENING HOURS: 9am-4pm Mon-Fri, 9am-3pm Sat, closed Sun

If you don’t know where it is, you might miss it, which you won’t want to do because it is one of Cape Town’s best-kept vegan secrets… until now!

Address: 2 Factory Road, Canteen, Salt River

Hours: 8am-4pm Mon-Fri, closed Sat-Sun

Flourish Bistro is hard to find as it makes up part of Canteen, so, first about that! Canteen is a relatively new concept (to Cape Town) in that it encourages communal dining in a space that boasts some of Cape Town’s best players in the gourmet market foodie scene. One of these is Johanna de Groot (or Hanna for short), the owner and chef of Flourish Bistro.

I don’t ever pretend to be a food expert, but my first experience (and second experience) of Flourish Bistro has left me with the conclusion that this place is one of the best vegan options in Cape Town hands down for a number of reasons. Once you’ve entered Canteen, veer to your left and you’ll be greeted by Hannah’s stand. She will likely be working on some insane creation such as Salted Caramel Blondies, or a vegan cheese sauce or getting stuck into the preparation of her secret nut butter blend with her assistant, Janna. Or she’ll be on Instagram: documenting her day-in-the-life-of-a-chef experiences.

There is only one way to describe the food at Flourish Bistro, and that is simply this: Hanna is essentially the South African answer to Deliciously Ella, a concept that Ella Woodward rose to fame with in London. The idea is that food should always be easy to make, healthy, delicious, plant-based and gluten-free. The result? A brand that speaks for itself in terms of a packed Deliciously Ella restaurant, too many cookbooks to count and recently an array of Deliciously Ella branded foodstuffs. Hanna has essentially created her own unique style based on this concept which means that all of her food is refined sugar and gluten-free and definitely DELICIOUS!

Her trading hours are weekdays only, so you’ll need to plan a way to get there when you can. I would suggest phoning in sick or working from Canteen all day as they have exceptional wifi. I have some time off work this week, and I actually plan to go to Flourish Bistro for breakfast, stay for lunch, and then take something away for dessert. You think I’m obsessed much?

The menu changes on a daily basis, but may look a little something like this:

BREAKFAST: Pear, Cinnamon & Roast Walnut Porridge w/Organic Oats & Cashew Milk (R65)

LUNCH: Chickpea, Tomato & Spinach Curry w/Coconut Fried Carrots & Rice (R75)

or Buddha Bowl: Roasted Cauliflower, Garlicky Green Beans, Falafel, Smoky Hummus & Cucumber Shavings (R75)

TREATS: Nut-Free Bliss Balls (R15) or Salted Caramel Blondies (R30)

Now, imagine this changing on a daily basis – never knowing what culinary genius will pop up next. I literally have goosebumps.

There really is nothing else left to say because all I am going to do is keep raving on and on about how exceptional Flourish Bistro is.

I will leave you with one last thought: In my (everyday average Joe) opinion, THIS is what vegan food should be. Period.

See you there soon!

Follow Flourish Bistro:

Facebook: @flourishbistro

Instagram: @flourishbistro

Peace xx

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