First, forget the safari. From the future-facing heart of contemporary Cape Town to the winelands of Stellenbosch and Bot River, this is a weeklong journey across one of the most naturally abundant and culturally complex places on this planet. A place where, despite deep racial divides, an astounding food culture blends Malaysian, Indian, Zulu, and European culinary influences with indigenous traditions stretching back to the dawn of our species.
Our culinary guide is none other than Reuben Riffel, one of the country’s most celebrated chefs whose success would have been unimaginable under the Apartheid system into which he was born. Joined by Roads & Kingdoms cofounder Nathan Thornburgh and the Angolan writer Cláudio Silva, Reuben will bring us behind the scenes of his culinary world. From vanguard Afrikaner and Xhosa chefs, visionary urban farmers, and under-the-radar vintners turning out some of the best wines we have ever tasted, we’ll hear a story of plunder, liberation, and endless reinvention—culminating in a hilltop Braai at sunset with descendants of southern Africa’s first people.
