We enjoyed a delicious lunch at Café Bica Pastelaria, situated at Ballito Steps. The restaurant is decorated in bright yellows and ocean blues, creating a lively atmosphere, and you can enjoy fresh air and sunshine by sitting outside on the deck.
Being the sweet tooth I am, I can never resist a milkshake, so I had to try their gourmet selection. I had a creamy pastel de nata milkshake! This was a flavour I haven’t tried before. DELICIOUS! We shared a few petiscos (snacks) to start our food trip to Portugal. Their beef trinchado is super tender and in a lovely wine sauce that will lead you to dip your bread. The chourico (Portuguese pork sausage) is served in the cutest terracotta pig on a skewer with an alcohol-lit flame underneath to add that sense of flame-grilled. Lastly, their camaro frito e alho (fried garlic prawn) was served in a creamy cheese sauce with toasted Portuguese bread. We devoured this in seconds.
For mains, we went all out and tried a mix of dishes. We chose from their lunch meals and got their Bica marisco (seafood platter), packed with four prawns, a portion of fish, grilled calamari and deep-fried tentacles in either lemon garlic or peri-peri sauce. We went for some spice. We also ordered a chicken espetada da casa (house skewer). We were shocked to see a big contraption with a hanging metal skewer arrive at the table. Wow! It was really juicy chicken that was enough to share. We had to try their gourmet chicken hamburger, a classic at many restaurants but everyone has their flavours that make it unique. For Bica, it’s their buns – a sweet Portuguese bread that is super soft and delicious.
Lastly, we were told to try their Bitoque, a fillet steak in garlic mustard and wine sauce with a fried egg on top served with round chips placed around it. The fillet melts in your mouth, and the sauce is so good you’d eat it like soup. All lunch meals are served with round chips, salad or milho frito, a Portuguese take on pap made into cubes and deep fried. I would be happy with a massive bowl of this and a dipping sauce. You have to try these!
You may think we were all super full, and yes, we were, but I still had room for a dessert, of course. So I chose to indulge in something unique to Bica, their Portuguese meringue pudding. It’s like eating a cloud with a light caramel flavour, plus it’s gluten-free, with no flour used, only eggs! Michaela went with a slice of their serradura cake, a vanilla cake layered with a condensed milk cream filling. Yum! You must try Café Bica this festive season and meet the de Canha family, who have brought their hometown to us. Thank you, Cafe Bica, for the delicious experience.
032 061 0043Â
10 Jack Powell Road, Ballito Drive, Ballito
Instagram @bica_cafe_ballito
Words by Kai Coates