The Ocean Terrace — Restaurant in KwaZulu-Natal

I don't usually take the time to write a review, however based on my experience and the reviews I checked before booking, I thought today would be that day.

First and foremost, I cant take anything away from the waiters and waitresses, they were fantastic and attentive and the service was wonderful.

I know, that dining at the Oyster Box means you're going to pay higher prices and I understand and accept that, but if I'm going to pay R800 for a dinner (for myself alone), I'd like to think I'm going to be entirely satisfied at the end of it. I am not.

At R70 a glass for a sweet wine, which i checked online out of curiosity, sells for R29.95 a bottle, I expected more than half a glass.

I opted for the Prawn Salad, luckily as a starter because the price was similar to a few main meals at R220 (more expensive than a large pizza from their menu), I would have starved had it been the only meal I ate. With very little sauce and 6 small prawns, it was bland and disappointing.

On suggestion I went with the Line Princess for main which consisted of Cape Salmon, roast veg, which reminded me of the frozen roast veg you buy at the supermarket, and very aldente potatoes, along with a very runny tomato based sauce.

Again, I was a little disappointed given my expectations. I know it's not the "award winning" grill, but I would have assumed that food served by any restaurant at this hotel would have been really enjoyable.

I may not be a food critic, and I may not be a Michelin star chef but I can tell when food has been cooked without any passion or interest.

For dessert I went with the Crème Brûlèe (spelling) and, I love most sweet desserts but couldn't get through more than half. It was served in what I felt was a completely unnecessary dish that made it challenging to even spoon and the ice cream also offered very little flavour in comparison to the sickly sweet brûlèe itself.

It had an overpowering ginger flavour which I found odd considering the description on the menu.

Overall I really didn't enjoy my food and would rather have eaten out had I known...

Food Review: Ocean Terrace – Where the Pizza is Divine, but the Service is… Meh

Ah, Ocean Terrace at The Oyster Box Hotel—a place of culinary excellence, where the pizza is heavenly and the wine flows freely, but the service? Well… let’s just say it needs a personality transplant.

The Food – ★★★★☆

Let’s start with the highlight: the pizza. It was absolutely, absolutely delicious—so good that if I could write poetry about pizza, I would. Thin, crispy, perfectly topped, and paired with a fantastic selection of wine that made the experience even better. Naturally, we took some bottles home because when life gives you great wine, you don’t leave it behind.

The Service – ★★☆☆☆ (and that's generous)

Now, about the service… If you ever wanted to feel like you're being appraised like a luxury handbag in a pawn shop, this is the place for you. It was painfully obvious that we were being judged from head to toe—not for our love of fine dining, but for whether we "belonged" in their establishment. Newsflash: If I’m paying premium prices, I expect premium service, not side-eye.

The Atmosphere – ★★★☆☆

For the amount of money you’re dropping, you’d expect the atmosphere to be warm, inviting, and dripping in luxury. Instead, it felt a bit stuffy, as if the air itself had been filtered to remove any sense of fun. The place is undeniably beautiful, but when the vibe feels like an audition for the "Are You Rich Enough?" club, it kind of kills the magic.

Final Verdict:

Would I return? For the pizza and wine? Absolutely. Would I expect warm, welcoming service? Not a chance. Would I dress up next time just to mess with them? Oh, 100%.

If you’re after top-tier food and wine, Ocean Terrace delivers. But if you also value friendly, attentive service, you might want to mentally prepare—or just grab...

Very disappointed with my experience at Ocean Terrace in Feb 2025.

Went there on a Saturday evening for dinner without a booking. Ocean terrace is off course a very popular destination in uMhlanga and the outside seating area especially with sea views were booked out and we were given a seat at a corner close to the closet. That I understand as we did go without a booking but we told the floor manager Byron that if any table opens up with a sea view if we could move there and he said he would. We checked in multiple times with him that evening and every time we asked he said that no tables were available. What was interesting was about 1.5 hours of our arrival a young white couple walked in opposite us and as soon as they were seated, Byron came and asked them if they were enjoying their seat and if they would like to move to a sea view table. This was 5 minutes after us asking him the question about moving and his response being no tables are available. The couple were moved to a nicer table 5 minutes later.

When I confronted Byron about this he said they had a prior booking which is clearly not true as I heard the whole conversation of them being walk in diners like us. If something like this can happen 31 years after the advent of democracy, surely patrons who are not white should not be visiting this establishment. Any consumer based business measures their success on repeat business and average life time value of the customer. In both cases they will score 0 from me in the future.

Coming to the food, tried the curry buffet which at R 695 per person is not worth it, as while the quality of the food is good but the flavour profiles are very tempered down again to suit the palate of a specific demographic.

Not recommended...