Few dining rooms in the world sit closer to the ocean than Chefs Warehouse at Tintswalo Atlantic. Here, the dining experience is suspended between mountain and sea, with the untamed Atlantic just metres beyond the glass. The restaurant’s recent transformation leans into this rare location, framing rather than competing with the drama outside.
The redesign folds the former pergola space into the main restaurant, creating a continuous, light-filled expanse anchored by a newly installed long bar at the entrance. The effect is both open and intimate, with distinct zones for casual drinks, private celebrations, and oceanfront dining. A sliding panelled feature wall discreetly separates the restaurant from the adjoining hotel, preserving the rhythm of service while keeping the view uninterrupted.
Interiors, led by designer Laurence Holmes, draw directly from the surrounding landscape. The palette rests in quiet neutrals: the driftwood tones of oak tables, the earthy greens of plush banquettes, the muted grey of woven chairs. Light fixtures and laser-cut panels carry organic, pebble-like forms, a subtle nod to the shoreline boulders scattered below. Even the custom ceramics echo the ripples and striations of tidal rock pools.
Floor-to-ceiling glass panels now enclose the space entirely, allowing guests to dine year-round without losing the sensory immersion of salt air, shifting light, and the hiss of waves on stone. Seating is arranged to maximise the vista, from intimate two-tops at the balcony edge to larger tables set for gatherings, each one aligned with the horizon.
In this renewed setting, Head Chef Cameron Luke Smith continues the Chefs Warehouse tradition of a four-course small plates menu to share, rooted in local ingredients and global technique. The experience begins with the restaurant’s signature brioche and savoury butters and unfolds in a series of textural, flavour-driven compositions that mirror the layered beauty of the view.
The result is a space where architecture, design, and gastronomy converge, offering a glass-framed capsule of Cape coastal life that invites guests to linger as the sea shifts from silver dawn to gold-streaked dusk.
