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About
Our listed hours is seating times. Gaaitjie is open 7 days a week since we added the beach bar, Gaaitjie UNPLUGGED. We are open for you to enjoy local beers, West Coast & Swartland wines and cocktails all day. You can sit at the beach and watch the tide come in or go out. We bring you an unique dining experience. Explore the Paternoster beach and nestled among the rocks, you will find a simple white-washed fisherman's cottage. This 100+ year old building, known as 'Gaaitjie' has a warm, nostalgic atmosphere. This unique atmosphere of tradition and comfort has inspired an eclectic menu featuring local produce, fused with contemporary and Asian influences. Our food is unpretentious and made with
Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly, Vegan Options, Gluten Free Options
Meals
Lunch, Dinner, Drinks
CUISINES
Seafood
FEATURES
Outdoor Seating, Parking Available, Free off-street parking, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Wine and Beer, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Reservations, Seating, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service, Waterfront, Beach, Gift Cards Available
Reviews (1 250)
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1 078 results
Traveller rating
649
273
100
35
21
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LanguageEnglish
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Traveller rating
649
273
100
35
21
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Reviewed 2 days ago via mobile

The setting was beautiful - we were literally right on the beach. The food was amazing. My husband thoroughly enjoyed the tuna steak and the prawns were perfectly cooked with a bit of a cape Malay curry sauce. We shared the bobotie angelfish spring rolls...- they were awesome. The service was also great, so altogether a lovely experience. The views were truly stunning. Highly recommended.More

Date of visit: December 2023
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Reviewed 2 weeks ago

Recommended by our host at Oystercatcher Haven, we made a reservation and walked down to the beach front restaurant and had a table overlooking the lovely bay. The menu had lots of choice, but after reading the excellent reviews I chose the monkfish dish which...was superb and I don't normally order fish dishes. My husband also enjoyed his hake dish. The staff were lovely and friendly and the restaurant had a great atmosphere. Highly recommended. In fact today we have met a couple in Clanwilliam who are visiting Paternoster in a few days and advised them to call and see you.More

Date of visit: November 2023
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Reviewed 2 weeks ago

Early evening supper. Great seaside location with good service. Excellent angelfish bobotie spring roll and calamari starters. Hake main course was equally good though the cob was over sauced. Overall, a fine supper!

Date of visit: November 2023
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Reviewed 3 weeks ago

Absolutely superb seafood but all slightly different. The angel fish bobotie spring roll my wife had was lovely and I have never tried smoked snoek before and it was delicious. Our main courses were really special. I had the masala prawns and my wife had...monk fish. Both utterly divine. Service was friendly and it’s in a beautiful location. Hopefully come back one day !More

Date of visit: November 2023
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Reviewed 13 October 2023

Best view, great food and friendly service, everything we wanted!! Portions just perfect in size and as stated on mene you can see that thought has gone into choosing ingredients.

Date of visit: October 2023
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Reviewed 23 September 2023 via mobile

We found this restaurant way too expensive for what we had. My fish and chips was R190-00! And I got 4 chips. My wife’s Creation Chardonnay at R62-50 per glass was also a bit over the top. Her line fish of the day was tasty...but also expensive. Definitely a one off visit for us. We won’t be returning in a hurry.More

Date of visit: September 2023
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Reviewed 28 August 2023

Fish cakes mushy hake , calamari starter good, hake over battered - nice location but overpriced for mediocre food.

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?2  
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Reviewed 23 August 2023

We had a great dinner evening at this place. You need to make a reservation as this restaurant is well known and there is a reason for. We had the best Monkfish in our life - unbelievable !!!

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?1  
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Reviewed 30 May 2023 via mobile

We were here on a wet and chilly Monday night, welcomed with a big smile and ushered into a cosy and warm ‘nook’ with a crackling fire. We shared amazingly fat and tasty oysters to start (possibly the best we’ve every had) and then the...seared tuna and masala prawns; I really have no words. Let’s just say I licked the last bit of sauce out of my tuna plate while (I think) no-one was looking, and my wife wasn’t prepared to share even a morsel of her prawns with me…..need we say more? The dinner was sublime, portion sizes great and the location and atmosphere special. A restaurant you should really make the effort to visit.More

Date of visit: May 2023
Helpful?1  
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Reviewed 1 May 2023

Very average meal with poor service. The location and views are great, but we found the food mediocre and the service struggled. We booked online and at the prompt selected indoor seating, but they seated us outside on a freezing evening (bad start). We had...to wait for a long time for cocktails and wine and the place just lacks the caring and attentive feel I would expect.More

Date of visit: April 2023
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Reviewed 18 April 2023 via mobile

Mussels with homemade bread…Incredible! Hake incredible! Calamari … delicious and all so fresh you can taste the sea! View incredible! Friendly honest staff. Won’t easily be beaten! Thank you Litha

Date of visit: April 2023
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gaaitjie Restaurant, Owner at Gaaitjie Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 21 April 2023

We are delighted that you had an overall good experience at Gaaitjie on your visit. Thank you for the beautiful review. We do hope to welcome you back soon.

Reviewed 16 April 2023 via mobile

Had a great dinner here, the biggest oysters I ever ate in my life, followed with monkfish with crispy veggies and a curry like sauce. It was well balanced and paired with great wines. The view of the terrace is stunning, especially at sunset!

Date of visit: April 2023
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gaaitjie Restaurant, Owner at Gaaitjie Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 21 April 2023

Thank you for the kind words, we appreciate that you enjoyed your dinner with us. Hope to see you back in Paternoster soon.

Reviewed 8 April 2023

Was there for 15 mins, manager on duty came to us twice and didn't bother to take our drinks order, said our waiter would come through To take our order. No one came after 15 mins. Bad service and they were not even busy!!!

Date of visit: April 2023
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 20 March 2023

Important to get the right table in this rather over-crowded restaurant (which speaks to its popularity). You need to book well ahead in summer anyway. Paternoster is tremendously popular these days. Service a bit on the slow side as there didn't appear to be enough...staff the night we went. But the food was good and the ambience lively and welcoming. Recommended.More

Date of visit: February 2023
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 11 February 2023

Gaaitjie is one of those iconic Paternoster restaurants with a stunning setting! Advice is to book well in advance, particularly if you would like a sea-view placement. The food is wonderful, but don't expect too much from the portion size, which isn't huge. Very tasty...though!More

Date of visit: January 2023
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Questions & Answers
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Ayub I
8 November 2020|
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Response from mariskaduplessis | Reviewed this property |
Yes, they do.
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Livi4P
9 April 2017|
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Response from Kruger F | Property representative |
Yes we are dog friendly.
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Henriette B
13 March 2017|
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Response from GaaitjieRestaurant | Property representative |
Hi Henriette. We would love to host you for this special event. Please send me your details to the gaaitjie reservations e-mail so we can organize this special day. Kind regards, Valmé
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Gaaitjie Restaurant, Paternoster - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Gaaitjie Restaurant

Yes, Gaaitjie Restaurant is taking precautions against COVID-19. A full list is available within the "safety precautions" section of this page.

Gaaitjie Restaurant is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 4.5
  • Service: 4.5
  • Value: 4
  • Atmosphere: 4.5