Rcaffe's Tim Noakes Diet Menu Specials

This lovable Long Street restaurant’s new offering is perfect for those on the high-fat, low-carb Banting eating plan

Sports science professor Tim Noakes has sparked an eating revolution in South Africa that doesn’t just go against the grain – it outlaws it. Often referred to as ‘Banting’ in honour of the Englishman who first popularised the weight loss regimen, the untraditional diet calls on followers to maintain a low-carb, high-fat, medium-protein chow philosophy.

Essentially, it practically forbids observers from eating sugar and grain, and it encourages the intake of vegetables and full-fat food. And while the eating plan has certainly proven that it’s useful for shedding unwanted kgs, it’s also proven that it’s making dining out difficult for pious followers (most restaurants can’t uphold the strict specifications).

Enter Rcaffé. The lovable Long Street locale has added five Banting-acceptable breakfast options and one regularly changing lunch special to its vast and varied menu for those who’ve forsaken its everyday selection of scrumptious pastries, stacked sandwiches and flavourful quiches.

Morning dishes (also subject to change) include the likes of a carb-free, gluten-free seed bread that’s spread with sun-dried tomato pesto and topped with smoked salmon or crispy bacon, moist scrambled eggs, avocado and fresh rocket. And the mid-day meal is likely to be an oven-roasted chicken thigh seasoned with olive oil, rosemary, garlic and smoked paprika; stuffed with goat cheese; served on a bed of oven-baked creamy cauliflower, leeks, red onion quarters, thyme, garlic and fresh basil; and topped with grilled Parmesan (or something delectably similar).

“We are dedicated to promoting the health benefits of this diet concept,” maintains Sharon. “People on the diet can have peace of mind that the food they’re here eating is not only upholding the [Tim Noakes] specifications but is truly delicious.”

Sharon maintains that Rcaffe uses full-cream dairy products and coconut oil or olive oil in the cooking process, and she’s adapted many of Noakes’s own recipes for the menu. Not to mention, the creative coffee shop also happily sells its low-carb seed bread, which is baked on the premises, to health-conscious patrons and offers low carb, gluten- and sugar-free versions of its delectable sweet treats, most specifically its double chocolate cake, brownies and berry cheesecake. 

Of course, it goes without saying that those still happily addicted to croissants the size of slippers and the eatery’s legendary carrot cake can find all the usual suspects on offer at the same affordable prices.

The Bill: The options on the Tim Noakes menu at Rcaffe cost between R80p/p and R135p/p.   

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Want to know more about what’s on offer at this charming Cape Town restaurant? Read about our lunch at Rcaffe.

Cabbage to the rescue of your health and the environment with catering company McKay Cabbage Bowls.

Diet tricks for success at the office from Tim Noakes.

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