Part of the Slick Restaurant group and sister to Belthazar and Balducci's fine-dining options, Gibsons has been part of the V&A Waterfront’s harbour-view experience since opening a good four years ago. No ‘spur’ of the moment decision (excuse the burger pun), the owners are said to have visited all the world’s top burger joints in the ‘meat sandwich capitals of the world’ (mainly in the US of A, of course) beforehand to find the most winning combinations. Now, there’s more reason to visit as it’s just been handed the Savanna Award for being voted ‘best burger eatery in the Western Cape’, based on a year of reviews and star ratings for ambience, service and food at the 2016 Eat Out Mercedes-Benz Best Everyday Eateries competition in Cape Town.
Add to this the October opening of the Waterfront’s new all-weather terrace dining enclosure, featuring low glass ‘walls’ and a large-scale awning, and you can now kiss those queues of the past goodbye and savour your gourmet meal whatever the weather. Situated right at the edge of the Waterfront and adorned with heavenly water 'misters', you can keep cool in the summer sun while taking in those panoramic views across the Quay 5 basin, as we did.
While there’s also a selection of leafy salads, chicken and seafood dishes, as well as a choice of fall-off-the-bone smokey marinated beef, pork and lamb spare ribs or A-grade wet-and-dry-aged grainfed beef, supplied by Belthazar’s master butcher, we couldn’t let you down and not try those award-winning burgers. We were a little overwhelmed at the vast array of over 40 burgers alone across gourmet, designer and Rolls Royce beef as well as chicken, pork, vegetarian, salad and banting burger options, so luckily our waiter was attentive and happy to share his recommendations. In the end we went for the Tex-mex burger, which is Jalapeno-laden and served with a side of nachos, sour cream, salsa and guacamole; and the slightly-more-subtle Governor, oozing BBQ sauce, cheddar cheese and a tangy mustard. Each table is topped with Gibson’s ‘secret sauce number 6’ and ‘secret sauce BBQ’, ideal for dousing your side basket of fries, sweet potato fries, baked potato or salad. As we tried them both, I can state with authority that those sweet potato fries are just heavenly, as is the baked potato. But then I hear the creamy mac-and-cheese starter is amazing as a side dish, too... It's tough choice upon tough choice!
With 200g patties standard, these burgers are some of the meatiest monsters I’ve encountered, with the seeded buns packed with fresh tomato, lettuce, sliced gherkin and fried onions standard – start practising opening your mouth really wide beforehand, and make sure you go hungry. Luckily the wait staff have no issue with providing takeaway boxes for anything you just can’t finish at the table. Those basting sauces remain a secret, but you can watch how Gibson’s burgers are made in the video embedded below:
But all this eating is no good without something to wash it down, am I right? And as I said, I’m a ‘burgers and shakes’ kind of girl – strong emphasis on the shakes, #thankyouverymuch. Luckily Gibson’s places lots of emphasis on liquid refreshment, too.
So much so that their flip-top menu has over 100 gourmet milkshake options, without a boring strawberry, chocolate or vanilla in sight – hello ‘Nutella marscapone’ and ‘peanut butter brownie’, I’ll see you next time – all handspun and double-thick, with healthier Greek yoghurt versions like ‘honey and toasted almond’ or ‘banana and chai’. The shakes are also available as adult versions for those over-18s who prefer to add a variety of liqueurs and whisky. If that doesn’t bring all the boys to their yard, I don’t know what will.
I couldn't not try the 'peppermint caramel' Freek shake. At R145 it's one of the most expensive out there, but truly a meal in itself at 850ml of cold, creamy goodness. The three straws in the jar and two on the side were probably a sign (I chose to blissfully ignore) that this monster was not meant for one. Instead, I bravely slurped my way through the minty shake base, stopping to munch on wafers wedged together with caramel sauce, and little mountains of whipped cream topped with mint crumble.
There’s also a strawberry Freek version brimming with fresh berries, marshmallows, meringue, jelly beans, 100s and 1000s sprinkles and blocks of coconut ice; or a ‘chocolate nemesis’ Freek, built around chocolate ganache, milk and dark chocolate discs, chocolate brownies, Oreo cookies and pretzels pasted around the jar for a bit of salty crunch.
The peppermint-caramel was a real winner though, as I used the long spoon provided to scoop out blocks of toffee and bits of peppermint-crisp chocolate long after the demolished burger plate was carted away.
Especially as I was just too full to try any of the amazing-sounding desserts – how you can you read about gooey chocolate brownies, 60’s diner-style jelly-and-custard, Bar-One and Oreo sundaes or New York cheesecake slab and not have a mouth-watering moment?
I didn’t even have space for the ultimate dessert-y cocktail, the ‘Amarula Colada’. Sob. I’ll have to go back for that.
In the name of providing as comprehensive a review as possible, my husband also tried Gibson’s own craft beer brand, which was mild and went well with his meal. There’s also a value and premium wine list option, but we went through the cocktail list and decided instead that a shared, strongly-minty refreshingly-lime mojito would be the perfect ending – it was. Gibson's deserves all the accolades.
*Leigh Andrews was a guest of Gibson’s Gourmet Burgers & Ribs. It's open daily from 11am to 11pm, situated at shop 157 in the V&A Waterfront’s Victoria Wharf. Visit Gibson’s website for their group set menu options and New Year’s Eve 2016 special menu, and follow them on Twitter for the latest updates.
