The Belly Restaurant Group:
Small Restaurants, Big impact
Find out how The Belly Restaurant Group built a culinary hub,
one small restaurant at a time.
Once a gritty stretch of Cape Town’s East City, Harrington Street has evolved into a vibrant culinary hub—largely driven by chef-restaurateurs Anouchka Horn and Neil Swart. Through The Belly Restaurant Group, the duo has systematically reshaped the upper end of the precinct with a cluster of hyper-intimate, sustainability-focused dining destinations: Belly of the Beast, Galjoen, Seebamboes, and Buri.
None of their existing spaces seat more than 35 guests. Where conventional hospitality groups expand by going bigger, Horn and Swart intentionally stay small. Each venue operates on strict zero-waste principles, whole-animal utilization, and secret tasting menus rooted deeply in South African nostalgia—from elevated braai-inspired rooi-noodleslaai with fresh local fish to Karoo lamb ribs glazed in sardine garum.
By keeping their operations within a tight two-block radius, the pair have created an anchor for urban regeneration while building a high-trust dining culture where guests surrender control for a taste of home, reimagined.
Read the Full Feature & Restaurant Profile in the Digital Edition →
Flip straight to Page 06 of Issue 57 to read about their upcoming concepts, Quagga and No Show, and their approach to sustainable kitchen culture.
