Babel at Babylonstoren
Babel
The farm-to-table restaurant at Babylonstoren estate. Its menu changes daily with the garden harvest, and there is time to tour the estate's famous kitchen garden.
Babel is the main restaurant at Babylonstoren estate, in Simondium between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. The building was converted from a Cape Dutch farmhouse and feels like a bright barn, with mountain views through the windows. The menu changes each day with the estate's garden harvest, and the ingredients are simple: buffalo mozzarella made at the estate's own dairy, garden-picked peas and waterblommetjies, a water flower native to the Cape. Lunch opens with sourdough and farm butter, followed by a choice of two- or three-course menus. Signature dishes include heirloom tomatoes with buffalo mozzarella, raw beef tartare with raw egg yolk, and the catch of the day with onion sauce. Reviews are mostly positive, though some diners are disappointed. It is very popular and requires advance booking. The atmosphere is best in the late afternoon, when there are fewer visitors.
Opening hours
Lunch and dinner, reservations required; check the official website
Nearby sights
- Babylonstoren
- Fairview Wine and Cheese
- Afrikaans Language Monument
- Boschendal
- Paarl Mountain Nature Reserve
- Drakenstein Correctional Centre
- Delaire Graff Estate
- Paarl