Eating, drinking and dancing
We've tracked down the best cafés for people-watching, the bars with the coolest cocktails, the most accomplished restaurants and the liveliest local nightlife in Garden Route & Winelands.
Restaurants
Emily Moon River Lodge
This lodge overlooking the wetlands is wonderfully atmospheric. It’s worth coming just to have a few of the excellent cocktails on the Sundowner Deck, but there’s also Emily’s restaurant, sparkling, buzzing, relaxed and intimate, with Afro-Arab decor, good food and amazing views of the wetlands.
Plettenberg Bay 6600, Western Cape, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 533 2982)
Ristorante Enrico
Location, location, location – right in front of the crashing waves, perfect for drinks at sunset followed by a simple but tasty Italian meal.
291 Main Street, Keurboomstrand, Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
(+27 (0)044 535 9818)
Cornuti al Mare
Popular Italian eatery, handy for Robberg Beach, and a great lunch spot: go for a relaxed plate of pasta, pizza, salad or steak. Get a table on the verandah if you can – sea views are a big part of the attraction.
Perestrello Street, Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 533 1277)
Bramon Restaurant
On the pioneering Bramon Wine Estate in the Crags overlooking the Tsitsikamma mountains, this family-run restaurant is a great place for a locally sourced lunch of home-made pâté, dolmades wrapped in vine leaves from the estate, Plett oysters and fresh salads. Worth booking (www.bramonwines.co.za).
Bramon Wine Estate, the Crags, Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
(+27 (0)82 871 8297)
Serendipity Restaurant
Between Hermanus and Wilderness, good places to eat are non-existent, but this local restaurant is an exception. Fresh local ingredients and South African specialities are incorporated into a set table d’hôte menu of five courses for about R220. Enthusiastic owners Lizelle and Rudolph Stolze kick things off with an aperitif overlooking the garden while they talk you through the menu, recommending wines as they go (www.serendipitywilderness.com).
Freesia Avenue, Wilderness, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 877 0433)
Le Petite Ferme
CAPE WINELANDS Excellent menu of French, African and Malay-tinged dishes and romantic views – what more could you ask for? (www.lapetiteferme.co.za)
Franschhoek Pass Road, Franschhoek 7690, South Africa
(+27 (0)21 876 3016)
Terroir
CAPE WINELANDS In the Kleine Zalze wine estate, this intimate restaurant draws on the Provençal tradition of making the most of where your food comes from, so everything is fresh, local, seasonal and perfectly matched to the Stellenbosch wines. Get a table under the oak trees for a leisurely, sensual lunch. Reservations essential (www.kleinezalze.com).
Strand Road, Stellenbosch 7600, South Africa
(+27 (0)21 880 8167)
Tokara
CAPE WINELANDS Cool, calm and contemporary restaurant on the Helshoogte pass between Franschhoek and Stellenbosch, well worth booking for lunch or dinner. Try quail with saffron sauce and salmon sashimi or grilled springbok with lobster sauce and mint oil. Closed Sundays and Mondays (www.tokararestaurant.co.za).
Uniedal 7612, Cape Winelands, South Africa
(+27 (0)21 808 5959)
Lush
Unique harbourside bar and restaurant – endearingly OTT, with oversized red and white floor tiles, dangling lights galore, studded leather walls and a cocktail menu bursting with trendy fruit combos. Good fun and great fusion food with plenty of fresh fish.
Thesen Harbour Town, Thesen Islands, Knysna, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 382 7196)
Cafés
The Lucky Store
CAPE WINELANDS Quirky-cool little café on the outskirts of Stellenbosch. Great for a snacky South African lunch of sardines on toast – or BYO from one of the vineyards and slosh it into tumblers for a super-casual dinner of venison pie with sweet potato stew, beetroot and goat’s cheese salad. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
42 Rustenburg Street (corner of Protea), Ida’s Valley, Stellenbosch, South Africa
+27 (0)72 908 2155
Country Kitchen
Within the Old Nick Village, this licensed café and bakery has a Portuguese influence and great pastries.
Old Nick Village, National Route N2, Plettenberg Bay 6600, Garden Route
(+27 (0)44 533 6016)
Pomodoro’s
Pop in for a relaxed Italian lunch – this is where Wilderness villagers come for their does of pasta, pizza and coffee.
George Road, Wilderness, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 877 1403)
The Conservatory
Squirreled away inside the Meade House Emporium, which sells a bewildering array of books and gifts (fancy clocks, floral mugs and olde-word repro pieces a speciality), this courtyard café whips up spot-on coffees and unctuous cheesecake; a bistro-style menu lists upper-crust soups, sandwiches, and heartier fare. Brilliant for Sunday brunch or afternoon tea - try jugged kippers, Moroccan lamb pie or smoked Franschhoek trout.
Meade House Emporium, 91 Meade Street, George, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 874 1938)
Ile de Pain
Locals will tell you this little deli-style bakery and café is the best place for lunch in the Southern Cape, and they’re certainly onto something: daily specials, great coffee, a fun atmosphere and heavenly, heavenly fresh-baked bread, brioche, croissants and other creations in dough.
The Boatshed, Thesen Islands, Knysna, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 302 5707)
Bars and clubs
Hemingway's
Set on the Bitou river, this is a calm, peaceful spot for a few sundowners, despite the offputting signage, which makes it look like a roadside café. There's a large alfresco terrace, but if you can, book one of the five private salas, romantically lit by candles. It's also a restaurant.
N2 Bitou, Plettenburg Bay, South Africa
(+27 (0)44 533 2488)