Aubergine is something of a Cape Town icon. Hidden on narrow Barnet Street in Gardens, the fine dining restaurant is housed in a venerable old building said to date back to 1830, and the tall ceilings and thick, cool walls are evidence of this heritage. There’s a homespun elegance to the décor - it’s comfortable yet refined – and as the man at the helm is a collector of contemporary fine art, plenty of arresting paintings are positioned throughout the eatery.