South African Break Aways

WEEKEND GETAWAY – Cape Town (4)

Root 44 (Stellenbosch area)

It was a hot Sunday and definitely a great idea to get a few friends together and drive towards Root 44 – nestled in the vineyards between the towns of Stellenbosch and Somerset-West.

What happens at Root 44?

Entrance to Root 44

At Root 44 you will find a great selection of food, good wine and fresh produce … all of this, while relaxing in their beautiful gardens (outside under the umbrellas on a hot summer’s day or inside on a rainy day).

Children love this place – the green grass and water fountain are major attractions

Every weekend Root 44 hosts various artists for live entertainment and entry to this beautiful place is free … but make sure to arrive early (especially in summer) in order to find a table under an umbrella or the porch.

When we arrived a t 11:00, almost all of the tables were occupied and some people moved over to the grass to enjoy a leisurely Sunday under the umbrellas
The scenic Stellenbosch mountains – the perfect back drop at Root 44

Root 44 has recently been renovated and we found the new look quite refreshing! Before the renovation, you could also find arts and crafts here … it seems there is a section above the food stalls that are empty at the moment … hopefully they will fill this area with arts and craft stalls again at some time.

This old barn door is now part of the lovely décor at Root 44
There are plenty of sun umbrellas on the grass and visitors brought their picnic blankets to relax here
Temperatures were once again in the high 30 degrees Celsius and the misty sprinklers were most welcome

But come, let’s go inside to show you all the amazing stalls with delicious food, drinks and fresh produce …

There are more than enough wine/juice/smoothie stalls to select your favourite drink
The Bali Truck offers Indonesian food, while another stall makes sure you get a taste of Vietnam
Heavenly Burgers and The Lamb Man are popular stalls and fits the meat eater perfectly
There’s always a queue at the drinking stalls (especially on a hot day)
The Pancake Emporium is like a magnet for children (and adults)
I’m sure the Genesis Coffee Bar are very busy on a cold winter’s day
The fresh bread and different cheeses at Corne’s Deli are mouthwatering delicious
More cheeses and a huge variety of cold meats

To enjoy your glass of wine, you can either get a take away (plastic) cup or you can pay a deposit for a stylish wine glass (with Root 44’s logo). At the end of the day, you can take your wine glass back and your deposit will be refunded … or you can just take your glass home as a souvenir to remember a great day!

Plastic glasses on the left and stylish wine glasses on the right
Don’t miss out on this home-made jams and preserves
For dessert, you must visit the Fudge Kitchen
At the Rib Republic you will find great ribs, wings and burgers
And for the brave people among us … the Hot Shop offers a variety of hot (and medium) sauces
The Tunisian Delights offer a combination between Tunisian food, Middle Eastern and South African tastes

We have not even mentioned Earthfire Pizza, Dashi Poke, Sovlaking Delicious (their souvlakis are pure Greece), Sweet Dreams (oh, their Pastel de Nata’s – yummy) and so many more … you will have to come and experience it yourself!

Oh, and don’t worry … pets are also welcome (on a leash of course).

A happy doggy enjoying a day with her pet parents

As you can see, Root 44 is a great place to relax with family and friends … the food and wine is great and the setting is stunning! Don’t miss this place when you’re visiting Cape Town!

Cape Dutch houses:

To end this post, we just have to include a few images of a typical Cape Dutch house!

On our way back from Root 44, we drove past a beautiful Cape Dutch styled house. The Cape Dutch style is an architectural style found mostly in the Western Cape of South Africa (typically on wine estates).

Cape Dutch house

This style was prominent in the early days (17th century) of the Cape Colony and the name derives from the initial settlers of the Cape being primarily Dutch (Wikipedia).

A typical Cape Dutch house in the Cape Winelands

We hope you have enjoyed another day on our Weekend Getaway … we certainly did!

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wetanddustyroads

65 thoughts on “WEEKEND GETAWAY – Cape Town (4)”

    1. I think the beautiful Stellenbosch mountains in the background makes this an even more attractive place than what it already is! Oh yes, we love Vygekraal (and the West Coast Farmstall … this will features in our next post 😉).

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  2. On that road, is the Stellenbosch Flying Club. We sometimes had a great meal there, a Hercules C-130 which is a humongous breakfast for really hungry people. It is difficult to take off after that. There’s a bit of a flight museum as well.

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      4. Wel, dan’s jy op die regte pad … ek’s seker hier by Root 44 is ‘n kossmaak vir ‘n ieder en elk en die kleintjies sal hulle gate uit geniet (so tussen die pannekoek eet en rondhardlopery)!

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  4. What a brilliant place to visit and to enjoy a glass or two of wine beneath a sunshade. At European Christmas markets we need to pay a deposit for a glass and then either keep it or return to get the money back. I think it’s a good idea and I usually collect one glass or festive mug from each place though so it’s lucky we have plenty of cupboard space! I’m also fond of fudge (well to be honest, of most things really) so it would have been my perfect day out! NB A lovely spring day here today with temperatures reaching 16 degrees.

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    1. Oh yes, we also have a couple of glasses that are good indicators of where we were – we even have small shot glasses of our first Camino in Spain 😉 … a great memorabilia! There are so many good food here at Root 44 (it’s impossible to try everything), which mean we will have to go back again (and again)!
      Wow, 16 degrees … that sounds more like it! It seems then winter is busy losing its grip on you guys – probably to find its way over here 👀. Enjoy Marion 🌞.

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    1. Thanks John, yes it’s a great place for family and friends to get together … one where you’re really spoilt for food choices (and amazing wines of the area). And best of all … well, there are quite a number of these food/wine courts around the Winelands 😁.

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    1. Absolutely … when we lived in Cape Town, we went there at least once a month (and every time we tried something else to eat 😉). Now that we’re living a bit further away, it’s still nice to meet our Cape Town friends there to catch up with everyone (and of course to enjoy all the loveliness that Root 44 has to offer)!

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    1. All the fudge at the Fudge Kitchen are hand crafted and there are probably a zillion varieties!! I think everything just looks so much nicer when the sun is shining, don’t you? But yes, it’s a great place (even in winter) 😉.

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  9. This looks like a lovely spot to spend the day, especially with family and friends. That’s quite the spread of food. Mmm fudge. That’s smart that they put a deposit on the wine glasses, otherwise I can totally see that being an issue with people taking them home!

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    1. I love this place … we have visited Root 44 so many times while living in Cape Town and I still have not tasted all the food that is on offer there … but I’ve tried their fudge almost every time ☺️!
      I think they must make quite a substantial amount from the deposits for the glasses – we certainly have a complete set!

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  10. Yum! All those food options look delicious. I had to especially stop and look closely at the Tunisian stall. I lived in Tunisia for a few years as a child, so that picture brought back many happy memories 🙂

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    1. My friend had a sample of couscous salad from the Tunisian food stall and she loved it so much that she went to buy another portion (and this time we all tasted it … it was full of flavour and really good). Like I’ve said, there is literally food for every taste and you can’t go wrong at any of the food stalls!

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    1. This is great place to spent a whole day … just imagine, you’re sitting under a sun umbrella and drinking good wine and have such a great variety of food to taste … hmm, it’s hard to beat a day like this 😁.

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    1. Dit IS ‘n lekker kuierplek Aletta! Dis die eerste keer, sedert die pandemie begin het, wat ons weer hier besoek afgele het en ons het dit so geniet! Hulle kos is van uitstaande gehalte en mens kan letterlik heel dag peusel aan al die verskeidenheid lekkertes!

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    1. Yes Carolyn, I love the look of the Cape Dutch houses … there are so many of them especially in the Stellenbosch area (and one can see them on almost every wine farm).
      This was such an enjoyable day – and yes, you’re right, every food stall has something great to offer. It’s really difficult to make a decision on what to eat … but when you’re a big group of friends together, it’s clever to make sure everyone order something different – this way, you can sample from quite a lot of food stalls 😉.

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    1. Stellenbosch is one of the most beautiful towns in South Africa! It’s surrounded by wine farms and majestic mountains … we love going there! Oh yes, the food is amazing at Root 44 … whenever you get the opportunity to visit South Africa again, don’t miss Stellenbosch!

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  16. Viva Root 44! If Route 66 is where you get your kicks, then I’d say Root 44 is where you just wanna keep eating more. What a great place to have within reach. Lovely surrounds too with all that greenery and stonework. I’ve got my eye on the Fudge Kitchen.

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    1. Haha Diane 😁, in summer time it’s best to try and find a spot under those misty sprinklers! I absolutely agree, this is a great place to relax and enjoy time with friends and family!

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  21. Pingback: HOMEMADE SOUVLAKI – Wet and Dusty Roads

    1. They do have live music entertainment on weekends during the afternoon and it seems they are still in the planning fase of arts & crafts stalls … but you’re right Ruth, it’s definitely the ideal venue for something like this!

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