Stellenbosch has always been known for wine, and over the past decade the town has built a reputation as a food destination in its own right, a shift being formalised through Taste Stellenbosch, the town’s celebration of food, restaurants, eateries and makers which kicked off at the beginning of August.
The event brings together restaurants, chefs, wine farms, accommodation providers and food producers, with a programme that includes chef collaborations, long-table lunches and wine pairings.
The clearest structural shift in this evolution was wine farms opening their own restaurants, says chair of Taste Stellenbosch, Daniel Kriel. That simply wasn’t happening when his father opened De Volkskombuis back in 1976; restaurants on wine estates and in town were rare. Since then, restaurants have multiplied in town and across the farms, and that growth, combined with local chefs earning recognition, has been the main driver of Stellenbosch’s culinary identity. In his view, food and wine have always been part of the town’s culture; it just took time for that to translate into a national reputation.
The next big step, according to Kriel, is reviving a full food festival built around a market format, something closer to the old Voedsel-en Wynfees. Founded in 1973, the festival was the first of its kind to cultivate a food and wine culture in Stellenbosch, with close associations to the Stellenbosch Fynproewergilde and the Stellenbosch Wine Route, two South African brands heavily involved in the Afrikaans food and wine festival circuit.
The plan for next year’s edition of Taste Stellenbosch is a month of related programming, culminating in a weekend-long food festival based at the town hall. The programme will involve stalls, tastings and foot traffic through the town centre, with something that functions as a proper public market, rather than a series of restaurant promotions.
Last year’s first edition of Taste Stellenbosch, Kriel says, was a clear success. There was strong feedback from restaurant owners and a noticeable increase in visitors, including more locals, not only Stellenbosch residents but also people travelling in from the Northern Suburbs and Cape Town.
For the second edition, the aim is to firmly establish Stellenbosch as the food and wine capital of South Africa and to do so by encouraging collaboration between the wine industry and hospitality more broadly — restaurants, guesthouses, and hotels working together rather than promoting themselves separately.
There have been a few high-profile culinary arrivals in the town over the past year: Chef Liam Tomlin opened a branch of Chef’s Warehouse. The team behind Stellenbosch’s award-winning MERTIA opened TERRA, an all-day restaurant with a more casual, accessible approach. Chef Callan Austin (of DUSK) and Orlando Reid opened Plenitude at Majeka House. Chef Peter Tempelhoff opened Arum at Boschendal, and chef Michelle Theron (previously of Pierneef à la Motte and Hazendal) is now running Vergenoegd Löw.
This year’s long-table launch dinner deliberately avoids the town’s most famous “rock star” chefs in favour of the next tier of talent, to show the depth of what’s available. Kriel hints that a few chefs are working on new projects he isn’t yet able to disclose.
Across the way, Franschhoek also markets itself as a culinary capital. So, are the two towns in competition?
Kriel doesn’t see it that way. The whole of the Western Cape, including Cape Town, is a strong food destination collectively, and he says it benefits everyone if visitors spend time across all three. Where he does draw a distinction is character: Stellenbosch is a university town first, which gives it a different energy and a less tourist-driven economy than somewhere like Franschhoek.
As someone who has lived in Stellenbosch for most of his life — a stretch broken only by national service and about a decade working in Johannesburg — Kriel has watched the town grow and been instrumental in that growth. Aside from his role as chair of Taste Stellenbosch, he owns De Warenmarkt, a restaurant housed in an 18th-century heritage building in the centre of town.
He recalls growing up that the town’s economy rested on three pillars: Rembrandt, the university, and agriculture, particularly the old Stellenbosch Farmers’ Winery, which later became part of Distell. Today that base has broadened, with the addition of tech and innovation hubs, a growing financial services presence and, increasingly, a hospitality industry with an identity of its own.
The wine farms aren’t going anywhere, of course. But increasingly, what you eat between tastings might be as important as what’s being poured into the glass.
Taste Stellenbosch will run until September 20 2026. View the full schedule and participating venues at taste.visitstellenbosch.org or via Dineplan.
Wanted
