Cafe Sofia review

Cafe Sofia has replaced Maestro’s in Kloof Street. They have made a lot of changes so you wouldn’t recognise that it was Maestro’s at all. It’s now airy and open, nice modern furniture, clean lines, stylish effect. There are actually several Cafe Sofia’s around. One in Three Anchor Bay, one in Rondebosch and another in Joburg somewhere.

Cafe Sofia is a tapas and mezze bar, which hints at the menu influences. They have three different portion sizes: Samples, Tapas and Big Plates. Samples are about R20 each but the more you buy the cheaper it gets. We went for the platter of all 20 which cost R220. They came all at the same time, I think I would have liked 5 at a time or maybe even 10 at a time. That way you eat them hot and you can focus on each one and enjoy the tastes.

The ’samples’ varied from nice to not nice at all. My top 5 were: Spiced mushroom, meatballs, chicken spring rolls, pan con jamon (bread & ham) and the chilli poppers. My 5 worst were: Chicken wings, beef skewer, smoked salmon tartare, linefish with olive tapenade (the tapenade was not great and very overpowering) and zuccini & feta croquettes.

The tapas are priced from R39 to R69 and there looked like some good option. the big plates ranged from R69 to R119. There are also sandwiches, salads, desserts and breakfasts. In fact they are currently running a breakfast special, english breakfast with coffee for R20, or feta & chorizo omlette with coffee for R25.

We washed the food down with one of a selection of sangria at R45 for half a litre, but including a lot of fruit and ice. The service was fine, but I found the wine list quite pricey. No reds for under R130 which means a quick tapas lunch could become quite expensive unless you drink by the glass (R25).

I want to go back and try their breakfasts, and some of the other menu options. The bar is also very nice, with a few couches and free WiFi. I hear that it get’s quite vibey on some evenings. I like the place, I’d give it a thumbs up.

Cafe Sofia
60 Kloof Street
021 426 0801