Cape Town - When we stayed over in Stellenbosch, spa treatments at Delaire Graff followed by a spectacular lunch were on the itinerary.
Almost directly across the road from Tokara, where we had dined the night before, Delaire is on the Helshoogte Pass, and one of the most glorious places in the Winelands.
It’s home to one of – if not the – largest private art collection in the country, including Tretchikoff’s famous Chinese Girl, a diamond boutique, luxurious lodge and spa, and two restaurants, both of which were in the Eat Out top 20 last year.
The spa, lodge and Indochine restaurant are at the top of the estate. A golf cart will shuttle you back and forth if you are not inclined to drive yourself. The spa has the usual steam room and sauna facilities, a lounge with a fireplace and interesting bookshelves for winter, and a pool with a jaw-dropping view for summer.
There is a changing room, but for extra privacy, so do the treatment rooms and suites, complete with all the robes, slippers, disposable panties in fashionable black, and toiletries. Some have their own bathtubs as well, and open out on to private courtyards. So plush and comfy, with heated beds made up with pillows and blankets, a couples’ suite is like a hotel room. Unfortunately, once your treatment is over they don’t encourage you to curl up and take a nap, although I’m sure if you have enough money you can buy that extra time.
Indochine is adjacent to the spa, and I’m told it is an Asian eating experience of note. It’s quiet, restrained, and serious. At the Delaire Graff restaurant the atmosphere is a lot more frenetic and buzzy. It was a difficult decision, but that’s where we decided to have our lunch, with our freshly pedicured toes and scrubbed faces.
The feeding that followed was simply amazing, from trout tartar inside crispy crunchy balls with a soft poached egg hiding beneath a blanket of more trout, and “slow cooked sticky happy hog pork neck”, to a dessert that is described as “crème brulee with salted caramel”, but is so much more than that. As is the beetroot cake. Even the tea, served in a clear glass pot with a timer, was divine. Every morsel was consumed, despite the presentation being so artistic you don’t know whether to admire it or eat it.
Even if you just go for a wine tasting and a stroll around the gardens, or to look at the art and the views, it’s worth a visit. If you can though, treat yourself to a bit of pampering and a meal to remember. It’s good for the soul.
l Delaire Graff, Helshoogte Road, Stellenbosch. Telephone 021 885 8160 or go to www.delaire.co.za
Weekend Argus