We opened Deer Park Cafe in 2004 with the intention of providing delicious and nourishing meals, made from scratch with quality ingredients, ethically and local sourced, and presented with minimal fuss. During lock down we started delivering meals as well as homemade dips, pasta sauces and curry pastes, and a selection of our carefully sourced meats, cheese, breads and pantry basics. The Café reop
ened in September but at the end of January 2021 closed for Signatura’s redevelopment of Deer Park Place. Deer Park Cafe will reopen on the park in 2022; till then we continue to cook from home, working on a weekly changing menu that is delivered every Thursday. Our philosophy – that good quality, ethically sourced ingredients are the essential basis for great tasting meals – remains unchanged. We still believe in cooking vegan meals so delicious even carnivores come back for more. We continue to provide delectable children’s meals, cooked from scratch for busy parents. We will always love cooking authentic Indian – not just the predictable North Indian fare but delighting in the unique, fresh, complex flavours of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Goa...
Who's in the Kitchen? Carin: Trained in macrobiotic cooking in New York, then returned to Cape Town to run the vegetarian kitchen at Fields, the city's iconic health shop, and established it's reputation for the best vegetarian fare in the City. A brief hiatus as a mother followed before 17 years at the helm of Deer Park Cafe with partner Roger. Favourite travel destination....? Ashton: Raised in Goa and taught to cook by his grandmother and mother, he first mastered the unique blend of Indian and Portuguese cuisine influences typical to this tropical Indian state. Trained professionally at IHM, worked in 5-star hotels then traveled the subcontinent, sampling recipes from Shimla and Kolkata to Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
