Cape Town is a melting pot of cultures and culinary influences, but one continent’s food in particular has really captured the heart and stomach of our hungry little city - and that’s Asian cuisine.

Cape Town is home to some of the finest Asian cuisine, outside of the continent itself. Everyone’s doing it and everyone’s doing it well. Lucky us! However, when it comes to a flawless umami zing and flavours of the East, a few places are taking things to new levels of tasty. And we know them off by heart!

I present to you… my list of the very best Asian eateries in and around Cape Town!

BODEGA RAMEN

Beautiful location and even better ramen! Book in advance, arrive early for drinks at the Gin Bar below & great some desert at Honest Chocolate on the way out the building...talk about a one stop shop! This beautiful old building has it all!

Maps: Bodega

SOUTH CHINA DIM SUM BAR

A pared-back hole in the wall starring an open kitchen, chinese paper lanterns, wooden stools, chalkboard menus and vintage Bruce Lee film posters.

The set menu is straightforward (dim sum, noodles and rice bowls, steamed buns and rice cakes) but the flavours are anything but. The portions are small so you can have a couple of dishes without feeling like a piggy. As the name would suggest, the dim sums are unmatched. Their cocktails are also a thing of beauty.

Maps: South China Dim Sum

TOMSON

A pavement diner that packs a flavour punch.

A pocket-sized restaurant on Bree Street that serves a small but punchy offering of Cantonese-style street food. Think wontons with pork and shrimp or shiitake and tofu all doused in a vibrant chilli sauce, or sliced Sichuan pork with a kick of kimchi.

Your table is a few plastic chairs on the pavement. It’s a vibe.

Maps: Tomson

BAO DOWN

The love child of Asian cuisine and American cooking.

Up an unassuming flight of stairs, former head chef of one of Cape Town most beloved restaurants, Chefs Warehouse, Graham Oldfield, has devised a concise menu of some of the best bao buns and small plates South of the Chinese border.

Pick between Korean fried chicken bao, pork belly bao, squid ink lobster rolls, prawn toast, beef tataki, charred broccoli, and a couple other standouts. The space is just as yummy on the eyes - Picture soft-pink walls and ceilings, exposed brick, vintage exotic-bird prints, antique mirrors and mosaic table tops.

They say big things come in small packages. This is certainly the case for this culinary gem.

Maps: Bao Down

TJING TJING

Located in a Cape Dutch-style attic on Longmarket Street, Tjing Tjing’s Rooftop is everything your eyes, mouth and ears could ever dream of.

A cosy loft furnished with Indigo-blue vinyl covered lounge seating, bar-height tables, luxurious wallpaper with bathing Macaque monkeys embroidered upon it, and traditional wooden dolls dotted around infusing layers of Japanese subculture.

Upon your bum first touching a seat, you’ll be coaxed out of your drinking comfort zone and into the magical world of sake sours, umami bombs and spicy Kasai whiskey tipples.

The menu will transport you straight to the neon-lit streets of Tokyo with yakitori and okonomiyaki fries (fat-cut fries with okonomiyaki sauce, kewpie mayo, nori, sesame and bonito flakes), cauliflower katsu, edamame beans in burnt garlic oil and togarashi (mixed spices) and tebasaki (deep-fried chicken wings). To name just a few.

Maps: Tjing Tjing

DOWNTOWN RAMEN

Locals have been flooding this grungy, no-fuss ramen bar for years. The rough-and-ready decor and tavern-like seating is all part of its appeal but, there’s no denying, the ramen is the main event!

This hip little gem offers a small selection of punchy ramen bowls: shoyu pork-belly ramen (with a light broth); kimiko tofu ramen with bok choy (a thick, sweet broth); braised-beef ramen (with spicy miso) and a chicken laksa ramen. I’d be doing you a disservice if I didn't also mention their bao buns are a revelation.

Maps: Downtown Ramen

THREE WISE MONKEYS

This informal Japanese gastropub and ramen bar is an Atlantic Seaboard treasure. Most nights, the narrow eatery bursts at the seams with locals popping in after a sunset stroll along the nearby promenade, friends catching up, and travelers intrigued to see what all the hype is about.

An illustration of Kid Goku from Dragon Ball Z is plastered above the open kitchen, setting the mood. Grab a seat at the pavement-facing counters to enjoy a steaming bowl of ramen, fresh sushi, bao buns or poke bowls.

Maps: Three Wise Monkey's

YEN'S

A busy Green Point eatery that’ll transport you straight to the streetside cafes of Vietnam.

Patches of exposed brick, vintage posters and newspaper clippings plastered to the yellow walls give this gem its traditional charm, while greenery hanging from the ceilings give it an exotic, tropical feel.

The menu is simple but what few dishes they do, they do flawlessly! They’re famous around town for their pho (a flavourful broth, rice noodles, herbs and meat bowl). However, you need to start with a couple of rice paper rolls with either chicken, pork belly, prawn, salmon, avo and tofu, or a couple of dim sums and bao buns.

Maps: Yen's

MR CHAN

You know a Chinese restaurant is doing something right when Asian locals and tourists make up the majority of their customers every day.

Conveniently situated on Sea Point’s bustling Main Road, Mr. Chan consistently serves up arguably some of the best Cantonese style Chinese food in the city. Think delectable dishes like chilli ribs, orange duck, kung bo beef, fried lobster.

In true fashion, the decor is zero. A couple of pictures on the wall and some lobsters in a tank. But with food this good nobody even minds.

Maps: Mr Chan

RAMENHEAD

The new kids on the bloc. Some of the best, handmade, Japanese Ramen I've ever had! Quality, cool aesthetic. Great for date night!

Maps: Ramenhead

There you go! My list of the very best Eastern restaurants in and around Cape Town!

While every eatery on this list brings its own unique charm, flavour and specialities to the table, at the end of the day what they all have in common is menu upon menu of flawless Asian dishes that’ll have you planning your return before you’ve even asked for the bill.

So consult your tummy, take your pick and get out there. An entire continent of flavours awaits you.

I hope you enjoy!

Savor the Flavors of Asia: Your Ultimate Guide to Cape Town's Best Asian Eateries