On our recent stay in the Elgin Valley we decided to visit the newly opened Salt at Paul Cluver Wine Estate as I’d seen tempting photos of their dishes on Instagram and was keen to experience it firsthand. We popped in for lunch and managed to nab a table even though bookings are recommended.

Their lunch menu is small with just a few options which makes choosing easier and keeps the dishes more focused and seasonal. One needs to choose between Two courses for R275 or Three courses for R340. We went for the two course option and all of our dishes were absolutely fantastic with unusual flavour combinations and beautifully plating. A wooden vessel with six different salts sits on each table so that you can also experiment with the various salts. 

The interior is cool and dark which was a heavenly escape from the summer heat however I did feel that it was a little too rustic and didn’t quite match the the high standards of the food being served. 

Afterwards take a wander around the lovely veggie garden which is where much of their greens and fresh produce comes from as well as their free range eggs.

‘Nicoise’ Main – Hake, green bean bundles, potato crisps, smoked snoek dashi, mustard puree, smoked olives and broccolini

Asparagus Starter – with poached free range egg, tomato salsa, hollandaise and buffalo mozzarella

Free Range Elgin Crown Main – roast Chicken, braised panzerotti, orange crisps, orange glazed sweet potato, orange sweet potato puree, citrus jus

All photography: Lana Kenney ©

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