Guide · Beachfront dining

Camps Bay restaurants: eating between the mountains and the sea

Camps Bay restaurants line the road across from a white beach under the Twelve Apostles. Most of the meal is the view; here is how to pick a table, a time and a season.

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Editorial team, foodtourcapetown.comUpdated October 26, 2026Reading time about 6 minutes13 sources

On this topic: the tour Walking food tour in Cape Town 4.9 (510 reviews) 4 hours10+ tastings, drinks includedUp to 12 per group from$141per person Check availabilityFree cancellation up to 24 hrs before

Quick answer, for a beach day

01Where they are: Sidewalk restaurants and cafes across the road from Camps Bay Beach.¹
02The starred one: Salsify at the Roundhouse holds three Eat Out stars in 2026.²
03Best moment: Sunset: people cross from the sand for drinks as the sun sets.³
04Watch out for: The southeaster wind, and limited parking.⁴ ⁵
05Rule of thumb: Book the sunset table, or eat early and watch the sunset from the beach.

A beach with a row of tables

Camps Bay is the city's postcard beach. The City of Cape Town describes its white sand and blue water on the Atlantic coast, with Table Mountain and the Twelve Apostles towering above it.⁶ Across the road, it says, there are many sidewalk restaurants and cafes for meals and sundowners.¹

Wesgro paints the same picture from the other side: the beach is backed by busy Victoria Road, with restaurants, cafes, shops and a nightclub close by, and many beach lovers spend the day on the sand before crossing the road for drinks as the sun slips into the Atlantic.³ That is the rhythm of Camps Bay restaurants: the sand by day, the terraces at dusk.

South African Tourism lists the beachfront at Camps Bay among the city's restaurant strips, alongside Long Street, Kloof Street and the center.⁷ The difference here is that the setting does much of the work, and a simple plate of fish and a cold drink can feel like an occasion. It is also a place where people dress up a little for dinner, so pack something smarter than beachwear if you plan to stay into the evening.

A Camps Bay day

From the sand to the last drink

Morning

On the beach

Lifeguards are on duty through the summer months.⁵
Lunch

A terrace table

Restaurants and cafes line the road across from the sand.¹
Afternoon

Watch the wind

Camps Bay can be exposed to the southeaster.⁴
Sunset

Maiden's Cove

A popular place to watch the sun go down.⁸
Evening

Dinner

A sundowner, then dinner as the mountains go dark.³

What the beachfront strip is like

Expect a promenade of terraces facing the sea, with menus built for a beach crowd: something light at lunch, something to share at dusk, and a drinks list that matters as much as the food. The tables with the clearest view of the water are the ones everyone wants at sunset.

Prices on the strip reflect the view, so read the menu before you sit down, and do not expect a quiet meal on a summer weekend. We do not list prices for these restaurants, because no official source states them, and they change with the season.

The strip is at its best for a long, unhurried lunch or an early dinner. Go late in the afternoon, order a drink first, and let the light change. If the terraces are full, the cafes a block back from the beach are calmer and often just as good. A seat with a partial view and a relaxed waiter can make a better evening than a front-row table where you are hurried along.

Light and rain by month

When the evenings are long, and when it rains

Hours without sunDays with precipitationSeason

Daylight is our own mid-month calculation for the city; NOAA's record for station CPT airport, Cape Town, 1991 to 2020 with 1971 to 2020, gives the number of days with 2.5 mm of rain or more.⁹

Your options

Ways to eat in Camps Bay

Option	Best for	Note
Beachfront terraces	Lunch & sundowners	Across from the beach
Award-listed dinner	A special occasion	Three Eat Out stars
Cafe a block back	A calmer meal	Away from the crowds
Sunset from the sand	Sunset on a budget	No booking needed

The beachfront and the starred restaurant as the City of Cape Town, Wesgro and the Eat Out awards describe them.¹ ³ ²

Three moments

Pick your time of day

Quiet

Late breakfast

Coffee facing the sea

Crowds: Low
Light: Bright
Booking: Rarely needed

Plan the day

Relaxed

Long lunch

After a morning on the sand

Crowds: Busy in summer
Light: High sun
Booking: Helpful

Plan the day

Book ahead

Sunset dinner

The view everyone wants

Crowds: Busiest
Light: Golden
Booking: Essential in summer

Plan the day

Decision helper

Which Camps Bay meal suits you?

Choose the line closest to your plans.

I want the best food, full stop I want the view and a drink I want to avoid the crowds It is windy today I want Cape Town's own cooking

The starred room

Three Eat Out stars, the top level.²

A sunset terrace

People cross from the sand for drinks as the sun sets.³

A winter lunch

June is the wettest month, so pick a cozy room.⁹

An indoor table

The southeaster can blow across the beach.⁴

A city food walk

It starts in the Bo-Kaap with 10+ tastings.

Backed by busy Victoria Road, there are plenty of restaurants, cafés, shops and nightclub close by. Many beach lovers spend the day on the sand, then simply cross the road for drinks at one of the many vibey cafés and to watch the sun slip into the Atlantic.

WesgroSource 3

The best Camps Bay restaurants, by the award list

If you want the best Camps Bay restaurants by a public yardstick, the answer is short. In the 2026 Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant Awards, Salsify at the Roundhouse holds three stars, the top level, given for a score over 90 out of 100.² ¹⁰

That puts it among the few three-star restaurants within Cape Town, with Fyn, La Colombe and Pier.¹¹ Plan it as the main event of a day, not a quick bite after the beach, and check its own site for bookings and opening days.

The rest of the strip is about atmosphere rather than awards. That is not a criticism: a sundowner on a terrace facing the Atlantic is a fine reason to come to Cape Town in itself. Just choose with your eyes open, and if food is the priority, book the starred room.

Checklist

Before you head to Camps Bay

Bring

Sunscreen and a hat for the beach
A light jacket for the evening wind
A card for the bill and a tip

Plan

Book a sunset table on summer weekends
A taxi rather than the car: parking is limited
Check the sunset time for your dates

Price check

What a food day costs your group

Pair a city tasting with the coast.

City food walk4 hoursfrom $141 Cruise and lunch2.5 hoursfrom $43 Sunset cruise1.5 hoursfrom $46

People 2

Total from$282

from, per person $141

Check availabilityfree cancellation

Every line takes the cheapest fare per guest that Viator or GetYourGuide shows for that trip, times your number of guests, converted with the European Central Bank's reference rate. The seller's own checkout shows the exact total.

Video

A walk along the Camps Bay beachfront

Until you tap play, the video stays unloaded.

Sunset, wind and the seasons

Sunset is the reason to be here, and nearby Maiden's Cove, also in Camps Bay, is a popular place to watch it, the City says.⁸ Mid-December gives 14.4 hours of sun above the horizon, so a sunset dinner is a late one; in June it is up for 9.9 hours, and dinner and sunset arrive together.⁹

Wind matters more than temperature. Wesgro notes that Camps Bay can be somewhat exposed to the southeaster, and on a windy day a sheltered table inside beats the best terrace.⁴ Conditions can change within an afternoon along this coast, so keep a plan B indoors.

Summer brings the crowds and the long evenings: February averages a high of 28.2 °C at the airport station.⁹ Winter is quieter, with the wettest month, June, bringing 88 mm of rain, and you may find a good table without a booking.⁹ Spring and autumn often give the best balance: warm enough to sit outside, with fewer people on the beach road.

Getting there and parking

Camps Bay sits on the Atlantic side of the mountain, a short drive from the city center over the hill or along the coast. The restaurants are on Victoria Road, the beach road the City gives as the beach's address.⁶

Parking is limited, the City warns, and it fills fast at busy times.⁵ A taxi or ride-hailing car is the easier choice, and it also means you can share a bottle of wine at dinner without a driver to worry about.

If you want to swim before you eat, lifeguards are on duty through the summer months, and the Blue Flag season runs daily from 10:00 to 18:00 in summer, Wesgro says.⁵ ¹² Combine a morning on the sand with lunch, and you have the classic Camps Bay day. In the evening, a taxi back over the hill takes you to the city in time for a late drink on Bree Street or in De Waterkant, if you still have the energy.

Food beyond the beachfront

Camps Bay is a place to eat with a view, not the place to understand Cape Town's own cooking. For that, head back over the hill to the Bo-Kaap and the city center, where Cape Malay kitchens, family shops and the city's best-known restaurant streets are.¹³ ⁷

The walking food tour this site books starts in the Bo-Kaap and spends an hour each in four parts of the city, with 10+ tastings and every drink covered at its drink stops, from $141. It ends in De Waterkant in the afternoon on most days, which still leaves time to reach Camps Bay for sunset.

If you would rather see the coast from the water with a meal, a 1-hour coastal cruise from the V&A Waterfront followed by a 2-course lunch ashore is a food-and-sea combination worth a look. Then save Camps Bay for the evening, when it is at its best.

Making the most of a Camps Bay meal

Book ahead for sunset on summer weekends, and ask for a table with a view of the water when you call. If you cannot get one, eat early and walk down to the sand as the light goes; the view is free.

Dress for the wind, not the temperature. A light jacket or a scarf makes the difference between a terrace you enjoy and one you leave after the main course, especially when the southeaster picks up in the late afternoon.⁴

Keep the evening simple. Camps Bay is not a place for a long food crawl; it is a place for one good meal, a walk along the promenade and a last drink as the mountains go dark behind you. Leave the elaborate tasting menus for the city, and let this be the meal where the view does the talking.

Book your afternoon