Despite awareness of healthier diets and lifestyle, South Africans still enjoy a good hunk of flame-grilled meat. Kim Maxwell, Tracy Gielink and Andrea Burgener found out whether South African steaks make the cut...

We all have favourite neighbourhood eateries that serve enjoyable steaks; the sort that deliver a comforting meal where diners don't have to think too hard. Yet sometimes we want a little carnivorous dinner drama to send the tastebuds sizzling.

We tracked down restaurants with good reputations and grilled them about their beefy offerings.

Criterion?

The criterion for inclusion was a solid reputation on the plate. While some steakhouses joined the list, our search went wider: a flavourful beef steak in a wine-friendly environment was an essential requirement.

Maturation processes, cuts offered and signature steaks were relevant.

We looked at bastings and sauces and the type of starch options served on the side. Then, using a shortlist, our independent visits measured how each establishment lived up to its hype.

Ageing techniques that affect steak flavour were considered. Dry ageing at controlled temperatures shrinks meat protein through loss of moisture and the breakdown of connective tissue, increasing flavour and tenderness for cuts on the bone. It's a pricier process than the more standard wet-ageing, relevant to a restaurant industry that charges by weight.

Asking around, it was obvious that taste was integrally linked to how the beef was reared.

Grassfed versus grainfed

Former chef Andrea Burgener is pretty clued up on grassfed versus grainfed arguments. She explains that most beef sold locally is grainfed, which means the cows are grassfed for a short time (differing from producer to producer) then moved into feedlots. The cow's alkaline digestive system is naturally suited to grass whereas the unnatural corn diet negatively affects the cow's digestive system, making frequent use of antibiotics unavoidable.

Also, synthetic growth hormone is given to most (though not all) grainfed cows to reach slaughter weight faster.

While antibiotics are occasionally needed by grassfed cows, this beef has been shown to be nutritionally superior to grainfed, especially in terms of the meat's fatty acid profile.

Free range and grassfed usually mean the same thing. Grey areas include grassfed beef finished on grain which, while not ideal, is better than feedlot all the way.

There seems to be a strong case for free-range, grassfed beef having an upper hand in the quality and flavour stakes. Keep in mind that stringent certification requirements prevent many quality meat suppliers from being certified as organic.

Cape Town restaurateur Giorgio Nava has established his own herds to ensure a quality supply of free-range, grassfed beef, and his Italian Romagnola bulls crossed with Nguni and Afrikaner cows respectively feed on Karoo grasses.

Certainly a beef export business was the lure, but it must be pleasing to have a hand in your free-range, grassfed beef, from long before butchering stage to the table.

Three or four Gauteng restaurants laud Greenfields Free Range beef in Mooi River for supplying steaks of superior flavour.

Problematic distribution — and the added cost — means it's hard for restaurateurs based elsewhere to secure grassfed beef even if they want to.

Greenfields herds (a Bovelder-Angus cross) are raised on grass in summer; rye grass pastures and hay in winter. After processing in a small abattoir, the beef is butchered on the farm.

Greenfields owners Adam and Cathy Kethro report that grassfed beef is such a niche market that despite being a small producer they're considered one of the bigger players. Their beef is not grain-finished, doesn't require a long hang time and is completely hormone-free (cows on antibiotics are taken out of the programme temporarily).

To quote Cathy: "We found a little piece of the steak market and it's working incredibly well for us."

Cape Town and vicinity

96 Winery Road
Expect a contemporary country menu that more than stacks up on the steak front too. Cuts (rump, sirloin, T-bone) are shown and explained to diners. Specialities include the Hollandse fillet with pepper sauce flamed at the table, and the prime rib. Impressively, it's all grassfed beef from a family-run Riebeek Valley farm butchery, dry- and wet-aged (the latter in the restaurant), and cut to order. The prime rib can range from 350 to 800g, and the smallest on the day (450g) was nicely marbled and delivered tasty charring from its basting sauce when eaten plain. Béarnaise made a decent sauce partner; soggy tempura side vegetables were the only regret. With informed, hospitable service and good prices, this venue is a deserved steak contender.
Wines: comprehensive South African plus international list from cellar on site. Corkage R30.
Somerset West. Tel +27 21 842 2020. Lunch and dinner daily except Sun dinner. Steaks R85–R140.

Belthazar Restaurant
Winning awards for steaks since opening in 2003, educated wait-staff offer a slick steak experience at Belthazar. Using grainfed A-grade Karan beef, most steaks are wet-aged (including the sirloin, a decent mouthful). The T-bone, Chicago and prime rib — all 500g — are the serious contenders: wet- and dry-aged for six weeks, using Waterfront cold storage facilities. Six sauces are offered, but bringing complimentary sausage in spicy sauce with homemade bread for nibbling on, a waitress was confident that the flagship Chicago steak (ribeye on the bone) was sufficiently tasty with only the house basting. The flavour didn't disappoint but paying R195 for more sinew and fat than seemed reasonable for this cut was hugely disappointing compared to previous impressive versions eaten here.
Wines: 600 wines, including 250 by the glass, plenty of steak-friendly options. No BYO.
Waterfront. Tel +27 21 421 3753. Lunch and dinner daily. Steaks R138–R195.

Carne SA
Amazing variety punctuates a menu of meaty Italian specialities inside a modern industrial venue. In steaks, quality is unparalleled with grassfed export quality beef (crossed Italian-South African breeds) from Giorgio Nava's two Karoo farms. Unusually, the beef is dry-aged as a whole carcass (20 to 30 days) and individual cuts matured longer. La Fiorentina for two grabs the limelight; the hefty 1.2kg T-bone meat sliced, with one of the sharing duo receiving the bone. Unusual Lombatello hangar steak (250g), a darker textured cut near the diaphragm, was interesting to try, but its intense flavour won’t be to everyone's taste. I will return for the 300g rib-eye, offering outstanding flavour and marbling. Robust ribeye on the forequarter rib bone (800–900g) also looks tasty, sliced for two. True, the sauce selection is limited and "thicker" thin chips aren't available (my shoestring fries crisped into ultra-thin bits). But in steaks displayed beforehand, pricier maturation delivered exceptional flavour when grilled with olive oil and rosemary.
Wines: walk-in cellar offering a meat- and pocket-friendly list. Corkage R40.
Cape Town CBD. Tel +27 21 424 3460. Dinner Mon to Sat. Steaks R95 – R130.

Headquarters
The signage says it all: salad, sirloin, chips. It's brave to open a restaurant — classy as it looks — and serve only one steak. But the quality-orientated Caveau boys know a little about what customers like, drawing a loyal clientele at their other venues. At long banquette tables, diners are served salad (cos and iceberg, toasted pinenuts, vinaigrette and parmesan) and a 250g sirloin with Café de Paris butter. It's a steak-friendly match (17 ingredients in this herby butter) although I requested my sauce separately to properly taste the certified organic, grassfed Namibian steak, wet-aged for 35 days. Grid marks had been seared with olive oil, the plain steak tasty and cooked to order. Rested meat juices seeped alongside perky Belgian-style chips, a tepid serving temperature my only complaint.
Wines: interesting list of 58 wines, all by the glass. No BYO.
Cape Town CBD. Tel +27 21 424 6373. Lunch and dinner Mon to Sat. Steak R140.

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