The Grand Beach & Cafe Venue Review

Cape Town

The Grand Beach & Cafe Venue

The Grand Beach & Cafe is definitely one of the most interesting wedding venues in Cape Town and surely counts under the top 10 in South Africa as well. It is set in Granger Bay, in a restored warehouse on a private beach right next to the V&A Waterfront and boasts with amazing views of Table Bay, Table Mountain and Blouberg.

What makes the “Grand Beach & Cafe” unique is that it is one of Cape Town’s only beach cafe’s, certainly one of only a few privately owned beaches in the whole of South Africa. The beach in front of the venue was wholly created from reclaimed sand, shipped in from Muizenberg!

It will appeal to…

If you are looking for a restaurant venue that has the charm and the view, look no further. The Parisian café chairs, beach, decking & umbrellas, as well as the mix of antique and modern furniture, makes it one of the most trendy and stylish spots in the mother city.

With more than 2700km of coastline you would imagine that South Africa has more beach venues, but that is not the case. In Cape Town, there are only a handful of venues situated on the beach, with the Grand Beach & Cafe certainly the closest one to the water. Standkombuis in Yzerfontein, our number 10 in the top 10 wedding venues in the Western Cape is the only other beach venue that we have worked at in Cape Town. The Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa in Camps Bay can also be counted if you ignore the road that separates it from the sea.

If you’re in search for the perfect summer wedding venue, then you might as well end your search right here.

Ceremony & Reception

Imagine a beautiful outdoor ceremony on the beach with sea sand under your feet and a light breeze cooling down the nerves on a scorching Cape Summers day. Oh, did I forget to mention the sound of little waves breaking in the background… A more romantic ceremony setting will be hard to come by!

For less friendly weather conditions, the ceremony can be accommodated under a tent on the beach deck in front of the warehouse.

Cape Town city centre is 5 minutes away – Here are a few church or chapel alternatives to choose from

Catholic – St George’s Cathedral
Catholic – St Mary’s Cathedral
Dutch Reformed – Groote Kerk
Anglican – St Barnabas on Kloof

The beach and deck area, right next to the ocean is without a doubt the best pre-dinner drinks area in the whole of the Western Cape! Here your guests can park off while watching the blue ocean and sipping on fresh cocktails made by the bar staff of Grand Beach & Cafe. The beach has two permanent champagne and bar structures that can be utilised and there are plenty of umbrellas and benches on the sand and deck should you want to rest the legs or seek a bit of relief from the African sun.

The reception venue (the warehouse) can seat up to 300 with a further 700 that can be accommodated outside – making it one of Cape Town’s biggest venues! A further bonus is that the interior needs no dressing! The Retro meets Chic look with long tables, high ceilings, beautiful custom made cement bar and Parisian

chairs have enough charm to make George Clooney look like a caveman!

Catering and Bar Services

The Grand Beach and Cafe touts themselves as Cape Town’s most desirable restaurant destination and I think they can lay full claim on this bold statement! Being a restaurant, no outside caterers are allowed, but there are plenty of menu options available. The menu focuses on the freshest possible produce that is prepared in a simple, yet elegant way. The seafood and Al Fresco platters are my favourites – masterfully prepared by Sir Greg Baverstock.

The 15m long bar inside is fully stocked with local and foreign drinks including the best French Champagne and Single Malts from Scotland. Unfortunately, you are not allowed to bring in your own alcohol, but corkage can be negotiated for wines that are not on the menu.

Photography

From a photographer’s point of view, there are lots to work with on site – the beautiful beach, blue Atlantic ocean and rocks barely 30m away as well as a host of city locations like “Die Bo-Kaap”, Greenpoint Park and the Promenade less than a 5 minute drive by car. Green Point Stadium, Signal Hill and Table Mountain all form part of the unique backdrop that makes The Grand Beach and Cafe such a great venue.

Accommodation

Being located in the Cape Town V & A Waterfront means easy access to taxi’s after a good night’s party and even within walking distance of some of the top 5-star Hotels on offer like the Cape Grace and the Table Bay Hotel. You can just imagine the multitude of bridal preparation locations to choose from in close vicinity!