Cape Town - One associates “bush and beach” travel packages with Kruger and the Eastern seaboard, but food routes – SA’s first online foodie holidays and tour service – have wonderful “wine, dine and recline” culinary journeys at other top spots.
It would be hard to better the Cape duo of Abalone House and Spa in Paternoster on the West coast and Bartholomeus Klip under the mountains near Bo Hermon.
Vivacious Leigh Longden welcomed me with two accommodation choices at Abalone House and Spa – a swish courtyard suite or a rooftop room above the fabulous Reuben’s restaurant – not normally offered to guests.
With its balcony toward the sea and sunset, large skylights in the thatch roof, the rooftop room with its sheltered sundeck and Jacuzzi outside was too charming to resist. (I may have let out a hoot or two of delight).
Once settled, I enjoyed a scrumptious tea in the lattice-roofed outside dining area, also overlooking the Atlantic.
Superb savoury treats on one beautifully presented platter and sweet treats on another made me glad I skipped lunch.
On a cold afternoon I was soon warmed in the Healing Earth Spa, enjoying an expert massage from diminutive, yet powerful Yunna Suleiman before heading out re-energised in the First Car Rental Nissan Juke which loved the dirt roads almost as much as I loved the sights: surging seas and white sands shimmering under the sun, and bays fringed by colourful fishing boats and whitewashed, shuttered houses.
It was appropriate that Reuben’s must-have offerings included seafood, including West Coast sole. The prawn salad was a winner, as was the superb chilli herb squid – sweet with two creamy sauces, loads of rocket, mint, watercress and radish. The pork belly stole the show, however, as it was the best I’ve had.
I’m not normally fond of fruit-based desserts, but “oh my word” was my reaction to the rooibos-poached pears. Only the deep bowl and nearby diners prevented me from licking it clean.
Five-star Abalone is lavishly designed with an air of quirky bohemian decadence. Its eclectic flamboyance is a counterpoint to the West Coast scenery, which in winter is either cold and clear or wrapped in fog; hence the shipwrecks and lighthouse within the nearby Cape Columbine Nature Reserve.
I journeyed up the coast past Stompneusbaai as far as St Helena Bay and down to Saldanha and Langebaan, returning for wonderful food and some interesting company before it was time to head inland.
It’s a beautiful drive to Bartholomeus Klip, just past the charming village of Riebeek Kasteel. Bartholomeus Klip is on one of the biggest wheat and sheep farms in the Western Cape and includes a 10 000ha private nature reserve below the mountains.
Stunning setting aside, identical twins Lesley and Louise Gillett and their fantastic staff are reason enough to visit.
This Victorian farmhouse, with adjacent Olive Cottage, is exquisite and the attention to detail outstanding.
The food, served in the lovely conservatory, is equally so. The sisters released award-winning Life on a Cape Farm last year.
“Country cooking at its best” states the cover and indeed it is. I spent some happy time with Louise in the kitchen, learning variations of our previous night’s four-course feast: a delicious pumpkin risotto; oats, bacon, marinated ostrich fillets, shiitake mushrooms and more all came together in a fabulous way, accompanied by baby potatoes roasted with apple puree and topped off with a wonderful beer pana cotta.
The Bartholomeus Klip Rouge, by exclusive Mullineux wines, was also outstanding, and high teas were decadent affairs. A few bike rides and long walks were necessary, as well as canoeing on the stunning dam.
The deckhouse at the dam’s edge is ideal for chilling. Extensive gardens and a salt water pool invite peaceful relaxation in the hot summers.
The period-style farmhouse bedrooms and bathrooms are lovely, with beautiful linen and modern amentities.
I was in three-bedroomed Olive House, since a birthday group had booked the farmhouse. I had a family pack of mountain bikes, swimming pool, a guest cottage, underfloor heating, airconditioning and super self-catering facilities.
I couldn’t have been happier and was uncharacteristically up at dawn to take in the beauty from the large veranda before exploring the reserve.
The fynbos is alive with herds of antelope, the mountains are silhouetted at dawn, pink at sunset, and I so wish I could be there for the Terroir to Table Braai Day on September 13, when Reuben Riffel and Louise combine their considerable talents.
Contact Food Routes: 082 542 7566, [email protected] and visit www.foodroutes.co.za
Sunday Tribune