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Holy crêpe, Cape Town’s Swan Café has been around for 5 years

May 18, 2023 (Last Updated: May 17, 2023)

You can’t put crêpes and Cape Town in the same sentence without mentioning this crêperie gem. Situated in the heart of Cape Town’s bustling city centre, Swan Café offers a decadent and authentic French-inspired experience to satisfy your cravings – whether sweet or savoury.

Since opening its doors, almost exactly five years ago, Swan Café has not only been deemed second to none when it comes to taste by many who have left this quaint little café. It’s also bagged a handful of local and international accolades along the way.

Just a few days ago, it featured in LuxeBook’s ‘9 most beautiful cafés in the world’ alongside renowned cafés such as Budapest’s New York Café, Paris’ Café de la Prix and Venice’s Caffé Florian.

It’s been voted in the ’10 Most Instagrammable Cafés in the World’ by Lifestyle Asia, listed in Inside Guide‘s ‘Best Breakfast Spots’ for four consecutive years, and included in Eat Out‘s ‘Where to be seen: SA’s most Insta-worthy restaurants’.

Swan Café brings the magic of Paris to the Mother City, serving a combination of sweet, authentic French crêpes and savoury galettes made with gluten-free buckwheat flour.

And if you’re in the mood for brunch but, for some odd reason, are not craving crêpes, there’s an option of salads or sourdough toast with a selection of toppings. Choose between Beet-licious (beetroot hummus, avo, feta, pomegranate, parsley and mint), Green-Chick (smashed avo, Chickpeas Our Way, toasted seeds and wild rocket) or Croque Monsieur (gypsy ham, bechamel, Emmental & Gruberg and herbes de provence).

Catering to sweet tooths who find themselves in the city centre, Swan Café offers all the classic flavours like cinnamon, sugar with lemon, nutella, homemade salted caramel, homemade lemon curd, and fresh thyme. Add a dollop of artisanal vanilla ice cream or fresh Chantilly cream, and your tummy will thank you in the end.

For a little je ne sais quoi, there’s a selection of sweet swan speciality crêpes with toppings ranging from cinnamon and white wine poached pear, caramelised apples and mixed berry compote to Ferrero Rocher and Kit Kat.

Those that prefer something a little saltier can dig into galette classic favourite toppings range from crispy bacon and egg, lemon & herb chicken with mushrooms and seasons potatoes to roasted baby tomatoes with fresh basil and toasted pine nuts, as well as smoked trout ribbons with cream cheese and more.

And for a salty je ne sais quoi, you could opt for galette specialities topped with a selection of carnivorous toppings including proscuitto or meat balls; or vegetarian toppings such as goats’ cheese with caramelised apple, ratatouille, as well as roasted cauliflower with pine nuts and wild rocket.

The perfect pairing to any crêpe or galette, according to French tradition, is a cider served in a little bowl. If that doesn’t suit your palette, Swan Café is also quite well-known for its mimosas. If all else fails, what could be more French than a crêpe and a glass of bubbly on the side?

To accentuate it all, the cafe offers artisanal coffee hand-sourced from ‘the best micro artisanal roaster on the False Bay Coast’, and exclusively blended teas steeped in the fragrance of Paris with names like French Kiss, Paris Je T’aime, Tent de Pêche and Royal Rouge.