'Little Fox' now offers second dining option at historic Constantia Nek

The La Colombe Group has opened a new restaurant alongside Foxcroft, which relocated to Constantia Nek from High Constantia.

Little Fox is also headed by chef-proprietor Glen Foxcroft Williams, with Keanen Jaftha as his head chef.

While Foxcroft has a fine dining focus, Little Fox offers a more casual experience with an à la carte menu catering for a larger number of people, Williams explains.

"We had a great ten years at High Constantia with Foxcroft, evolving from what opened as a tapas restaurant and bakery into a more fine dining product, but we felt a little bit stymied in that location."

"We decided to take Foxcroft along its line of evolution and then have another product like LIttle Fox that can do larger covers, absorb the red buses that come along and look after the locals. Foxcroft is a bit more of a 'treat' night out."

What also spurred the choice of location are the wonderful sea and mountain views at Constantia Nek, Williams concedes.

It's an iconic Cape Town venue as well, which he notes has been operating as a restaurant consistently since 1929.

Jaftha, who hails from Kimberley, started working in the winelands as a chef when he moved to the Cape, soon being offered a post at La Petite Colombe in Franschhoek, before moving up to La Colombe in Constantia.

What made Williams consider him for head chef at the new Constantia Nek venture, was Jaftha's reputation in the group.

"With an à la carte restaurant of this size it's going to be chaos, and the first thing I said is that we need a 'bulldog'. I think his reputation is a product of the environment - at a place like La Colombe the pressure is so immense, and it has to flow down."

Jaftha likens his work approach in the kitchen to a sport where the adrenalin gets him going and he is fully immersed.

"You cannot compromise on the standards otherwise you're not going to be a good restaurant. People are not going to want to come back if they're not getting what we're promising them, which is excellent service and great food."

The offering at Little Fox is described as global, produce-driven, small-plates cooking with a strong focus on the Constantia wine route.

And while they aim to use as much local produce that is available to them seasonally, the global side comes in to ensure that guests have a holistic experience in terms of an international taste profile.

Click here to find out about booking, which is done online through Dineplan.

To listen to Glen Foxcroft Williams and Keanen Jaftha in conversation with Sara-Jayne Makwala King on CapeTalk's Weekend Breakfast, click on the audio link below: