Wild Time

Cape sorrel, sea mussels and indigenous

mint may sound like something that you would find at your local delicatessen, but they’re just some of the produce that you would discover when joining the chefs of Table Bay hotel for a foraging tour around the mountains and coastline of Cape Town.

The chefs who have helped put The Table Bay hotel’s restaurant Camissa firmly on the city’s fine-dining map are keen to highlight South Africa’s own produce. Each week guests can join one of these masters of the kitchen

for a tour of the countryside and coastline of Cape Town to discover South Africa’s flora and fauna. Guests are then invited to return with the chef to the kitchen, where he or she will reveal how the team use these ingredients in their dishes. The guests will then receive a treat for all their hard foraging as the chef will then cook them a three-course meal with some of the produce they found.

Executive chef Jocelyn Myers-Adam, who was brought up on a farm in Canada, has long embraced the idea of farm-to-fork dining, but now she is focusing on fieldto-fork dining to give each dish its own original South African twist. “The Cape’s exquisite ecosystem boasts a diverse array of native plants that can be used creatively to enhance the flavours of food and even define dishes,” says Myers-Adam. “It is great to be able to highlight South African cuisine by sourcing beautiful local products and creating dishes that will showcase them in their full glory.”

“The Cape boasts an array of native plants that can be used creatively to enhance the flavours of food and even define dishes”

UNIQUE THINGS TO DO

VISIT AFRICA’S MOMA

The Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa has now thrown open its doors to visitors. The not-for profit museum houses the Zeitz Collection owned by the ex- CEO of Puma Jochen Zeitz, which is said to be one of the world’s best collections of contemporary African art.

ENJOY LOCAL VINTAGES

Sample award-winning wines among the vines of Constantia and Stellenbosch.

GO FOR A HORSEBACK RIDE

For a sightseeing tour with a difference, saddle up and enjoy a horseback ride through the South African countryside.

Guests who join the Table Bay chefs on their tours will not only get to see more off-the-beaten track areas of Cape Town, but they will be given the chance to taste foods that they have not tried before. Depending on the season, the foragers could be wandering from the slopes of Lion Head or Signal Hill to the coastline of Cape Point, where the Indian Ocean meets the Atlantic. “Each experience is unique and will leave lasting memories,” says Joanne Selby, General Manager at The Table Bay hotel.

As Myers-Adam chooses to base her menu on indigenous produce, it means that what she creates changes with the seasons. But the challenge seems to only boost her creative juices. She has added num-nums (wild berries) found on the V&A Waterfront to her signature pork belly dish and cranberry-tasting hibiscus blooms to salads. She also adds buchu, which is famed for its medicinal properties to her cuisine. “Its leaves release an amazing aroma similar to blackcurrant which adds a unique flavour to savoury and sweet dishes,” she explains.

The foraging expeditions are run for groups of four people and more. They are available for all Table Bay hotel guests subject to availability. So pull on your boots and go for a walk on the wild side.