Primal Eatery is painted a symbolic burnt orange. It stands out against the whites and greys of the Cape Town city bowl. Here, cooking almost everything over a live fire is the craft and the stated reason for the restaurant’s existence. This culinary message is strong; however, the wider philosophy is lost somewhere in the (lack of) flames.

Primal Eatery prides itself on being a “meatery”, not a steakhouse. Ironically, it won Eat Out’s Best Steakhouse Award in 2017. Nonetheless, you will find a daily “Butcher’s Cut” board to complement its à la carte menu. Almost everything is cooked on an open Rooikrans wood fire grill. A bouncer guards the wooden terrace and glass front door. Lounge music grooves away in the small, earthy-toned dining area.

The Primal Eatery has modern interiors and natural finishes such as wood, glass, metal and soft light. Photo: Food Mole

As we settled into our soft seats, our first course arrived. A complimentary breadboard of flame-toasted pita and ciabatta, hummus, a roasted red pepper and feta dip and garlic butter. Each component had a different type of smoky, char-grilled texture and flavour. It was as if we were doing a smoke tasting coupled with earthy flavours.

The complimentary breadboard is delicious and big enough to be a starter. Here it is paired with a glass of Bellingham Homestead Shiraz. Photo: Food Mole

We had hardly scooped up the gratis starter number one when our actual starter arrived. Our waiter doused the Greek kefalotyri cheese in brandy and set it alight. Luckily, he didn’t lose his eyebrows as have some waiters before him.

He snuffed the flame with lime juice and set the little cast-iron skillet down on a wooden board along with more flame-toasted pita. The cheese was soft in texture, but strong in flavour. The brandy, cheese and lime were a fresh combination that worked.

The sirloin’s crispy shell complemented the soft texture and flavour of the meat inside. The thick chunk of fat was perfectly charred. The basting was subtle enough to not overpower the meat, but strong enough that you didn’t wish you’d ordered a sauce. Dolloped on the plate was an onion and truffle mustard with crispy onions which allowed you to play with sweet and sour.

The sirloin boasted a charred band of fat. Photo: Food Mole

Oregano and smoked paprika were dusted on to old-school chips – the kind that still have the skin on but are almost sweet, they’re so soft and greasy. The halved sweet potato still bore its grill marks proudly and was fully cooked.

Dessert seemed impossible to squeeze in, but we couldn’t resist trying their take on deep-fried Oreos which came with peanut butter, strawberry jelly and braaied marshmallow ice cream. The Oreos came deep-fried in pancake batter.

The strawberry “jelly” was more like a sauce and the ice cream honestly tasted like mild mint toothpaste. When asked, the waiter said the ice cream was either the marshmallow or banana flavour. Sadly, we seemed to have missed out on both.

Dessert featuring the ice cream of indeterminate flavour. Photo: Food Mole

While the menu told a story which embraced the ancient technique of cooking over a live fire, the general execution dropped the ball. It was as though we were over for a braai at a wealthy relative’s house. We could taste that everything had been touched by flame and smoke, but we couldn’t see the sparks, ash and sweat that had gone into the flame grilling. Had our giddy uncle just reached for the Nando’s over the back-garden wall, or had he actually used his famed Weber?

To add fuel to the fire (do pardon Food Mole), the “candle” on the table turned out to be one of those artificial soft strobing lights meant to imitate a romantic fluttering flame.

It seemed ironic, and was disappointing, not to find one flame in a place which declares that sizzling steaks are “why man invented fire” – other than the brandy-flamed cheese. Food Mole could taste, smell and feel the smoky results of this way of cooking, but couldn’t see or experience their take on this technique.

The Primal Eatery logo features a lone figure with a spear. Photo: Supplied

The only signs of anything primal were a simplistic anonymous figure with a spear in the logo and a few photos of rock art stashed away along the wall next to the toilets.

The ochre hue of Primal Eatery feels symbolic. It suggests the tapping into of some “primal” world of ancient knowledge, but feels only as deep as the paint on the building. No matter how much brandy you throw on that cheese, the ancients won’t be satisfied. No matter how much you enjoy the taste, seeing is believing. DM