Robert Klitgaard
June 2010
Eighty kilometers from Cape Town is the idyllic village of Franschhoek, population 6000. Surrounded on three sides by scenic mountains, it is the home to some of South Africa’s best restaurants and wineries. The air is clean, the views magnificent. I tell American friends it’s like Aspen with vineyards—and without Aspen’s altitude (here, only 223 meters) or attitude (no Armani or Versace, though Franschhoek has interesting boutiques). True, no snowboarding here either. But I’m in love with Franschhoek!
On my first visit here eighteen years ago, my parents and I drove down the Franschhoek Pass early one morning. The expansive views of the magnificent valley and mountains made us stop and exclaim. Instant infatuation. Since then, my wife Elaine and our children and I have returned on several short trips, and now we’re spending six months here on sabbatical leave from my university in the United States. The longer we’re in Franschhoek, the more we feel it's us.
To encourage you to become similarly enthralled, here is one rendition of three perfect days in Franschhoek.
Friday
Let’s assume that you’re driving from Cape Town on the N1. Leave early and have breakfast burritos at Cosecha, the restaurant at Noble Hill Wine Estate (R45, Simondium Farm Rd., 021-874-3844; all telephone numbers hereafter are 021). The spectacular setting is well-served by a beautiful open-sided dining area with Latin American décor. The closed side has a huge glass wall with gorgeous views of Kanonkop and the vineyards. Good Mexican food is hard to find in this part of the world, and Cosecha’s burritos and guacamole are world class. Kathleen Tillery and her staff, including the aptly named Action Moyo, extend friendly service. A few paces away is the beautiful tasting room for Noble Hill wines, but it’s too early for that.
Or is it? Twenty minutes later, on your way into Franschhoek on the R45, stop to sample sparkling wine at Graham Beck’s sparkling tasting room (874-1258).
Thus uplifted, check in before lunch wherever you’re staying. Our family rented a home in Franschhoek, and you might do that, even for a few days (Franschhoek Cottages, 079-955-3113). We have no recommendation about hotels or guest houses, except this: make sure you get a view. Luxury lodgings include La Petite Ferme (Franschhoek Pass, 876-3016), Mont Rochelle Hotel (Dassenberg Rd., 876-2770), and Le Franschhoek Hotel and Spa (Keerweder Farm Minor Rd. 16, 876-8900).
Lunch: Mon Plaisir, Uitkyk St. (876-2393), across from Chamonix Winery. If your favorite French words include “sauce béarnaise” and “crème brulée,” this is for you. Nice views, a friendly welcome, and places for kids to play.
Then how about a brisk workout at the Franschhoek Health Club (corner Cabrière and Fabriek, 876-3233). This small but cutting-edge gym is a model that CEO Theo Beyers uses to show companies and universities what can be done with the latest equipment. André Kotzé or Yolande Hill can show you around the facilities, including exercise machines I’ve never encountered in America.
After freshening up, come back to the village and take a leisurely walk down the main street. You’ll see lots of fun, quirky shops and plenty of places to stop for refreshment. At the comfy Essence Coffee Shop and Restaurant (28 Huguenot Rd., 876-4135), owner Tim Adams and chief of staff Chantal Jephtha greet you with good cheer and dish up excellent Illy coffee and espresso.
Enjoy an early dinner at Le Bon Vivant (22 Dirkie Uys St., 876-2712). If it’s warm you can sit in the garden. If not, enjoy the lovely dining room, with its quirky but appealing chandeliers made of things like graters and whisks. The presentations are spectacular, and the food every bit the match. The “surprise menu,” a degustation selection, can be had with or without the chef’s choice of accompanying wines.
After dinner: If you’re lucky, there may be a play at the Bridge House School (Waterfall Rd., just off R45, 874-8100), perhaps one directed by the gifted Coba-Maryn Wilsenuch, such as her recent triumph with student actors in “Laughing Wild.”
If soccer or rugby or cricket are on, you may want to catch the match with a crowd of friendly locals at The Station Pub and Grill (4 Main Rd., 876-3938). Alternatively, in the intimate surroundings of the Screening Room at Le Quartier Français, you can watch a film while enjoying a glass of local wine (16 Huguenot St., 876-2151, x500; the film schedule is available online at www.lequartier.co.za.)
Saturday
Breakfast: If you’re up early, so are the folks at BICCCS (29a Huguenot Rd., 876-3333). Starting at 7:00 you’ll find a smiling staff, lots of newspapers and magazines and comfortable couches, fabulous croissants, and proper coffees. For a heartier breakfast, visit Le Quartier Français (16 Huguenot St., 876-2151), where for reasonable fixed price you can select as many dishes as you want from a pleasing tableful of yogurts, fruits, and pastries. You can add egg dishes for an additional sum.
After breakfast, visit the small Saturday-only Franschhoek Farmers’ Market, by the NG Kerk (29 Huguenot Rd.). Try and buy the lemon-cured olives, the many sauces and patinades, and the sourdough bread from Salmonbar at the Yard. And if you still haven’t eaten, for R35 you can get a farmer’s breakfast with homemade boerewors hot off the grill and bottomless coffee.
Now, are you ready to taste some wine? Silly question. Drive to Boekenhoutskloof at the southwestern corner of the valley, 4 km past the Huguenot Monument on Excelsior Rd. (876-3320). The estate’s brick driveway leads you past flowers and large trees to rolling vineyards and big views. The spectacular vertical mountains to the south recall, to us Californians at least, the sheer faces of Yosemite. The modern tasting room offers award-winning wines (though not the winery’s five-star flagships). You can regard longingly the home of cellarmaster Marc Kent and his wife Brigitte Kent, who incidentally runs Franschhoek’s best beauty salon (Kymric Hall, corner Berg and Wilhelmina, 876-2487). The Kents’ beautiful home in this amazing setting immediately qualifies for my list of “Five Places in the World I’d Live in a Heartbeat.” (At Mont Rochelle—see today’s lunch—the owner’s home alongside the tasting room merits an honorable mention.)
On the way back to Franschhoek, about 1 km from the Huguenot Monument stop at Colmant (072-368-4942), where from 11:30 to 1:30 you can sample Jean-Philippe and Isabelle Colmant’s exceptional sparkling wines. A rustic driveway, bordered on both sides with trees and vineyards, leads you to the lovely white manse whose shutters and doors are painted creatively in vintage periwinkle. Colmant’s three cap classiques are my favorites in South Africa. If you stopped at Graham Beck after breakfast at Cosecha, the five sparkling wines you tasted there gave you an excellent baseline for comparison. (For another benchmark, toward dusk drive up the Franschhoek Pass to Haute Cabrière Cellar and Restaurant (876-3688) and take one of their superb sparkling wines outside for a transfixing view of the valley and mountains.)
Lunch: Back in Franschhoek, take a left on Reservoir St. and follow the signs to the Country Kitchen at Mont Rochelle (Dassenberg Rd, 876-3000). You can pre-order elegant picnics or enjoy the restaurant’s table menu, as well as wine tasting, while taking in panoramic views. You can play pétanque down below, and there’s plenty of room on the lawns and the paths for children (or adults) to run around.
After lunch, you may wish to visit the Huguenot Memorial Museum and Monument you’ve now driven past several times (Lambrechts St., at the end of Huguenot St., 876-2532). Franschhoek is a valley of history; in addition to the celebrated French settlers, at various times bushmen, elephants, and Charles Darwin walked here. You can take your own walk (get maps and permits from Franschhoek Wine Valley Tourist Association, Village Centre, Huguenot Rd., 876-3603) or take the aerial route via tandem paragliding (arrange in advance with Stef Juncker of Parapax, 082-881-4724).
If you want to purchase wine to take back, La Cotte Inn Wine Sales (31 Main Rd., 876-3775) has a full selection at prices equal to those at the wineries (and in one instance I know, less). La Cotte also has Cuban cigars and lots of great cheeses. For meat, including many homemade products, don’t miss the Franschhoek Slaghuis (30 Huguenot St., 876-2064), where proprietor Charlie Webb and butcher extraordinaire Mario Jones can guide you to great choices. What are said to be the best chocolates in South Africa are available at Huguenot Fine Chocolates (62 Hugenot St., 876-4096).
After visiting these last three places, you may decide to take their wares to your room and eat in tonight. But if not, then dine at the charming Monneaux Restaurant at Franschhoek Country House and Villas (Main Rd., 876-3386). I recommend the delectable seared scallops and one of the delicious carpaccios, along with Saronsberg wine. The crème brulée is so good that after Elaine and I first had it on a romantic dinner out, two nights later we brought the children for them to try it, too. Their verdict (and ours): the best!
Sunday
Shofar Christian Church (7 Lambrecht St., 876-3348) is happy, multicultural, and distinctive. First reverence, then belief.
Have breakfast at Café Bon Bon at La Petite Dauphine (Excelsior Rd., 876-2679). This is a dream estate, and while you eat heartily you can watch the tablecloth clouds try to crest their way over the cliffs. They roll relentlessly yet make no progress against the updrafts, a vaporous version of the stone of Sisyphus.
Most stores on Huguenot St. are open on Sundays, so you can do a little shopping if you like. You can explore the noncommercial parts of the village on foot or in your car, enjoying the beautiful old estates on Cabrière St., the hearty vintage homes on Akademie St., and the modern masterpieces on Roux St. And all around you are views of the mountains and the ever-changing clouds.
On your drive home, stop for lunch at the Bread & Wine Restaurant at Môreson Wine Estate (Happy Valley Road, 876-3692). At their nice shop you can pick up homemade salamis, local olive oil, and a souvenir picture book on Franschhoek.
Then make a quick visit the Franschhoek Motor Museum at L’Ormarins Wine Farm (open Sundays from 10 to 4, with the last admittance at 3:00 p.m., 874-9000). The collection numbers over 220 vehicles, of which about 80 are on view at any one time. You may be lucky and get to see the exotic 2003 Ferrari Enzo or the gorgeous 1956 Aston Martin DB2/4 prototype, one of two produced.
On your way to Cape Town and for a long time hence, you’ll look back at three days of great flavors, great scenes, and (if you’re like me) great love.
Formerly a professor at Harvard and Yale, Robert Klitgaard is a University Professor at Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA. robert.klitgaard@gmail.com.
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