Coco Safar SA

30/09/2026

The more things change, the more they stay the same 📷 

"Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose" is a powerful observation made by a French writer in 1849. It certainly fits Paris' daily lifestyle and joie de vivre over the past 100 years, with recurring scenes of daily life that today feel like déjà vus with changes of costumes and car design. Quite fascinating, wouldn't you say?

1/4  : Socializing (1920s - 1960s)

5/6  : Enduring a heatwave (1929)

7 : Tea time at the Ritz (1930)

8 :  Striking (1936)

9 : Protesting (1968)

10/11 : Being stuck in traffic (1950s)

12: Standing in the metro (1930s)

13 : Biking with a dog (1940s)

14 : Attending a show at Follies Bergères (1929 - Josephine Baker)

15/16: People watching (1920-50s)

17: Sunbathing by the Seine (1960s)

23/09/2026

Breakfast, Brunch & Benedict 

Isn't fascinating that the cherished Eggs Benedict remains an undisputed brunch favorite and breakfast of choice all over the world, despite increased local and global exposure to new food trends and expanded culinary knowledge over the past 25 years? Classic!

09/09/2026

Macaron crazy, really 👩🏻‍🍳 

We've baked a few thousands macarons over the years, and to be honest, we never thought the love for these colorful eye-candies would last as long as it did. We witnessed how crazy the demand spiked in the early 2010s, from New York to Paris, and in so many international markets in-between. We seriously thought this was just a fad that would phase out by the time we started baking in Cape Town. Can you believe that we initially decided not to make macarons?! That's until we had to come to terms with the fact that everyone wanted macarons in SA in 2018!  There's no doubt that these gems being gluten-free certainly had something to do with but still.

We were quite surprised at the continued strong demand we experienced in our stores year after year, with the need to produce more and more every week. To say this gave our team of artisans monumental headaches in an understatement... The other headache became the price of almond flour that went through the roof later on, making it double challenging to remain profitable when making high-quality macarons by hand.

Check the beauties we produced over the years! By the way, do you still love macarons?

02/09/2026

Do we launch or do we wait? 💐🌿🍹

 It was quite daunting to launch the first botanical, zero-alcohol micro-brewery in March 2018 as Cape Town was preparing for Day Zero. With water dams at a historical low after a few dry years and little rain, the water situation in the Cape was dire and every business and household was preparing for the possibility of running water being shut down or cut to a trickle.... it was actually quite inspiring and humbling to see how all Capetonians really rallied around adopting water saving habits as part of their daily life during this scary time.... but that's another story.

We decided to go with the flow (pun intended) and launched a collection of 4 botanical drinks crafted in-house - not at the scale we had hoped for - but just enough to supply our flagship store and some. These were amazing thirst-quenching coffee and rooibos-based flavor profiles that we naturally brewed with a slight sparkle to it.

We were ramping up to brew a storm in early 2020, when Covid hit and we were forced to close the micro-brewery since it was located in a retail space in Sea Point and was not allowed to operate ... but that's another story for another day. 

We did launch on 18 March 2018, and we couldn't be prouder of what we achieved on that day and beyond.

27/08/2026

Question of the day: tattoo or no tattoo?

Can you believe that visible tattoos were frowned upon for Front Of House staff when we started in the F&B and hospitality sector? It was acceptable for Back Of House kitchen staff, but an absolute no-no for a manager, maître D', server or host. Today, tattoos have become mainstream and widely accepted in several countries, but do remain a sub-culture that carries strong stigmas in some parts of the world.

Do you find visible tattoos acceptable in Front of House customer service personnel in luxurious hospitality and retail environments?

19/08/2026

Summer dreams made of strawberries and cream 🍓

There's no better fruit than sweet juicy, locally-grown strawberries that conjure up the true arrival of summer.  Grab them with gusto at your local farmers' market while you can. Our croissant waffle was designed to celebrate the simple seasonal pleasure of a strawberry shortcake that we paired with fresh Chantilly cream and jazzed up with salted caramel and a hint of chopped mint. This is what enchanting summer memories are made of! 

Dreams do come true. Why not make this for brunch this weekend? The web is full of tricks on how to prepare your own croffles or croissant waffles at home. Send us pictures of your masterpiece while you're at it. 📷

12/08/2026

10 years ago already 🦋 

August 2016 saw us busy putting the final touches to our first Coco Safar store in Cape Town, located at the Cavendish Mall, on the 'other side of the mountain'. It was a frenetic but exciting time as we visually documented every aspect along the way before opening a stunningly beautiful and innovative store on the 22nd of that month. This was quite a proud moment along our journey, to say the least. Just can't believe that 10 years have passed since!

05/08/2026

Where there's smoke, there's 🔥 

Little did we know the journey we were embarking on when we decided to include Texas-style smoked brisket in our Cape Town menu. We first fell in love with smoked brisket through our US travels, from Austin to Chicago, LA and New York. What a pleasure to rediscover quality slow cooked meat, richly smoked and textured served with a satisfying side of pickles, and casually eating it from a baking tray! We became so obsessed that we absolutely wanted smoked brisket to be served whe opened our Sea Point flagship. We were very excited to work with high-quality SA beef and went ahead and bought a smoker. 

So was our Sea Point, roof-top smoked brisket born! But never did we expect that cooking with meat that is much leaner than its North American counterpart would be such a challenge. It took quite a while, many kgs of beef and sweat to master the technique, but we eventually nailed it. 

This is how our homemade brisket burger experience boldly called the BBBW, aka the Best Brisket Burger in the World, came to life. When done right, this unique burger and Coco Safar classic truly lived up to its name

29/07/2026

Pause. Breathe. Repeat.

Coffee breaks are not always just about the caffeine. It's self-acceptance to take time for yourself, to think, reflect,  just be in the moment, guilt-free and happy. 

Make sure to adopt as part of your weekly routine. You also get to support your local espresso bars and coffee shops while you're at it 🫶

☕️

23/07/2026

Not for the faint-hearted sweet tooth!

We love it when Google reminds us of sweet things of 4 years ago 😃 What could possibly be better than a coffee and butter croissant? This totally hot chocolate experience that was simply awesome! Imagine a rich Viennese-style hot chocolate made from our decadent bonbons, served with a divine chocolate amaretti cookie and smooth marshmallow s'more  - all made by our in-house Atelier pastry team at our Artem Galleria flagship store in Sea Point. 

We sure think it could be revived in the near future. In the meantime, sweet dreams!


☕️

20/07/2026

We never cut corners when it comes to attention to details 🦋 

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together" - Vincent Van Gogh

We never cut corners when it comes to attention to details 🦋 

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together" - Vincent Van Gogh

We never cut corners when it comes to attention to details 🦋 

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together" - Vincent Van Gogh

20/07/2026

02/07/2026

Big love for our mini lemon poppy madeleines 💛

We've always been big fans of the lemon poppy flavor profile. When Coco Safar launched in Cape Town in 2016, choosing it was the obvious choice when creating a signature treat to serve along coffee and tea drinks on our bespoke board. After baking more than half a million of them over the years (and offering most of them on a complimentary basis...), we've been amazed at how much adoration these mini cakes have generated, so much so that we even baked it into a larger cake and used same profile in beloved waffles too. As they say, when life gives you lemons, why not make happiness 🍋

23/06/2026

What happens to your rooibos tea before you get to enjoy it?