Get out of the city for great food and beautiful scenery on Mother’s Day.
What better way to spoil your mom next Sunday for Mother’s Day than with a special lunch somewhere beautiful. Family time, no cooking and gorgeous scenery, creating memories together for the family album.
Waverley Hills
Enjoy a family day out at organic wine estate Waverley Hills, on a wild mountainside near Wolesley in the Tulbagh Valley. Kids love exploring the winding paths, lawns and play area in the indigenous fynbos garden while adults linger in the comfortable family-friendly restaurant over generous dishes made with locally sourced ingredients. Chef Francois du Toit has created a three-course Mother’s Day menu including crunchy crumbed prawns with an Asian twist of ginger and pops of soy caviar, chorizo-spiced springbok carpaccio, rich and tender rosemary-infused lamb shank, or a delicate salmon in broth and light vegetable noodles. Kids can tuck into substantial burgers, grilled chicken, hand-cut chips and home-made ice cream. Add in a wine-tasting or take home the estate’s excellent olive products for an extra treat.
Lust Bistro
Another family-friendly destination is Lust Bistro on Vrede en Lust wine estate in the Franschhoek Valley. Known for the huge wood oven baking Jean-Pierre Smith’s artisan breads, a seasonal chalkboard menu of bistro dishes, and generous Sunday buffet lunches, chef Johan van Schalkwyk is going all out for Mother’s Day with both a breakfast and a lunch buffet. On the lunch menu you can find slow-roasted lamb with figs and olives, a seafood and saffron baked risotto, lemon thyme chicken, and much more. This is followed by tempting fruit cake tiramisu, peach and white chocolate trifle and pear and ginger sponge, plus a complimentary glass of Vrede en Lust sparkling wine for moms. 
Grande Provence
The fine-dining Mother’s Day celebration is back on the cards. At Grande Provence in Franschhoek, chef Darren Badenhorst has recently launched his new winter menu with gems such as the ocean umami risotto, slow-cooked beef cheek with foraged local mushrooms, linefish in pork crackling with pea sprout salad and samphire, and many more exciting taste experiences. Moms are made to feel extra special with a gift of a rose and a complimentary dessert of an almond and orange calisson with rose water parfait that is a feast for the eye and the palate.
Taste for yourself:
- Waverley Hills | 023 231 0002 | waverleyhills.co.za
- Lust Bistro | 021 874 1456 | lustbistro.com
- Grande Provence | 021 876 8600 | grandeprovence.co.za
This article originally appeared in Neighbourhood, Sunday Times.
