Enjoy a private guided local market tour in Cape Town with local chef Richard. There are a number of Saturday Morning markets in Cape Town, the best for organic vegetables being the Oranjezicht City Farm Market, held between 9am and 2pm only on Saturdays (closed certain Saturdays during the Xmas festive season) just outside the V&A Waterfront. Home grown vegetable growers showcase and sell their produce through this extremely popular market. It is advisable to get there early for both parking and produce! After the market visit, you will return home to prepare a delicious meal, utilizing the ingredients you have bought.
Join Richard and Gillian in their kitchen for a Cape Town cooking experience and learn how they cook a traditional South African meal. This experience is more of an interactive cooking demonstration rather than a hands-on class but feel free to let your hosts know if you prefer more of a hands-on experience. Richard and Gillian would love to know your preference before they set the menu and would be happy to teach you dishes you are keen on learning. You may learn how to make prawn and nectarine salad and how to braai delicious rump steak or cook chicken breasts in tomato sauce with a spinach and feta stuffing. You can expect your cooking demonstration to last about an hour before you sit down at the table to enjoy the meal together. If you choose the alcohol add-on, your experience includes wine.
Food is at the center of this home, with large indoor and outdoor dining tables, a kitchen, and braai. Like most South Africans, cooking on the braai is the couple's favorite meal and social activity. Braai is cooking on a fire/barbequing which is very popular and a significant part of the culture in South Africa. Gillian and Richard have a fantastic outdoor braai where they often host. There are multitudes of different foods that are traditional to South Africa’s diverse culture (predominantly Cape Malay, Afrikaans, English, and African) from their Dutch, British, Indian and Malaysian influences. Your meal may include traditional bredie (stew), curry, roasts including lots of braai (bbq) plus salads, and will end with traditional desserts such as malva tart (sweet pudding), lemon meringue or koeksisters (a syrup-coated twisted or braided doughnut).
Please note a market experience can be booked only on Saturday and Sunday. Also Richard and Gillian have a little daschund so guests must be aware that there is a pet in the house. They are a very casual couple and enjoy having people around their dinner table.
This is just a sample menu to give you an idea of the types of dishes the host cooks. Your menu will vary according to seasonal availability.
Prawn and nectarine saladMalva pudding or lemon meringueRump steak or stuffed chicken in a tomato sauceBoth Gillian and Richard are chefs. Gillian is City and Guilds trained and Richard by experience - designing, building and running their own restaurants. They currently own a restaurant in Cape Town, called MOZAMBIK N1, situated within N1 City Mall Goodwood, and do consulting work within the hospitality and retail industry. Richard is also a garagiste winemaker, wine collector and is very knowledgeable and passionate about the local wines, which is a large part of the region's culture. Gillian is an artist and ceramicist and her beautiful artwork decorates the home, accenting their lovely living area to make you feel right at home. Gillian and Richard believe in eating and treating your body well and only use the best ingredients to prepare a meal! Being in the restaurant business for so many years, they know where and how to procure the freshest local ingredients. Gillian and Richard are extremely knowledgeable not only about the local cuisine, but also about global cuisine and the local region. He is happy to plan itineraries for guests around the Western Cape for day outings. Their home has a pool so you're welcome to swim in it during the summer months.
Their home is within an hour of the Western Cape Winelands, which is a major tourist area and grape growing region. The nearest winery is a 10-15 minute drive in case you would like to visit on your own after your Traveling Spoon experience.
"With Richard and Gillian's combined experience of chef, restaurateur, winemaker, and entrepreneur, the food they prepare is delicious and tastes that much better when accompanied by stories of where the food originated, the unique ingredients, and how the flavors come together. The first and main courses were delicious, but the dessert - a traditional apricot sponge cake called Malva Pudding served with cream and custard, was incredible! Their company is delightful and their love for sharing food with family or old and new friends alike makes you feel right at home. It would be impossible for anyone to dine here and not learn something new!"
"Hosts were extremely welcoming. So much fun to talk to and interact with. The food was
absolutely amazing!! Our grandkids got to help with meal preparation."
"We thoroughly enjoyed our evening with Richard and Gillian. Within minutes we felt like old friends at a dinner party. They were wonderful representatives of South Africa. We enjoyed learning more about the culture, the delicious food and sharing life stories. We would do this again and again."
"Our family would do this tour in every city possible if the experience was half as good as this was a highlight of our trip!"
