A Long Weekend in Stanford

"It is only in the coun­try that we can get to know a per­son or a book" — Cyril Connolly, The Unquiet Grave, 1945

Described as the place that time for­got, Stanford vil­lage in the Overberg, is only one and a half hours from Cape Town, yet is worlds away. Its dusty roads and weathered his­tor­ical cot­tages seen from the high road on the way to some place else, are only a mis­lead­ing facade, for this quaint vil­lage evokes the poet in every weary man's heart and stills the roaming.

Floating slowly down the river on a sum­mers after­noon, you'll real­ise why the lan­guish­ing coun­try bug is so catchy, that most week­end vis­it­ors to the small town end up leav­ing own­ing a piece of real estate.

In Stanford, after­noon teas are a treas­ured daily med­it­a­tion and books are still favoured to tele­vi­sion, walk­ing is a daily activ­ity and bicyles are the favoured means of trans­port­a­tion. With beau­ti­ful scenes around every corner, Stanford is cer­tainly one of the most aes­thet­ic­ally pleas­ing towns in the Western Cape region and world class coun­try res­taur­ants and antique stores draw people from Cape Town through to the interior.

Marianas Deli has won many awards, includ­ing 'Best Country Restaurant,' where the estab­lish­ments name­sake, Mariana Esterhuizen, not only spends most of her time pro­du­cing fresh ingredi­ents and deli items for the res­taur­ant from her herb and veget­able garden, but also finds time to con­trib­ute monthly to Woolworth's 'Taste' magazine. Marianas hus­band, Pieter, is the front-of-house per­son­al­ity who will explain the sump­tu­ous delights on offer for the day while you're entranced by the aroma of roast lamb shanks waft­ing through from the kitchen.

The Klein Rivier Cafe at the Stanford Courtyard on the main road, is the new­est kid on the block, attract­ing a steady stream of pat­rons since its open­ing day. A tran­quil atmo­sphere is cre­ated in this alfresco set­ting, shaded by the leaves of a gigantic weep­ing wil­low, with jazz tunes and a water fea­ture bub­bling over in the european style court­yard. Offering deli style break­fasts and lunches, the venue is also sur­roun­ded by quaint shops includ­ing Reche, which spe­cial­ises in selling antiques that have been restored with spe­cial­ist paint tech­niques. Klein Rivier Cafe makes the trans­ition indoors grace­fully in the winter, with an open fire and vin­tage set­ting cre­at­ing an invit­ing place to be in the colder months.

Madre's Kitchen is pos­sibly the best fam­ily friendly deli style res­taur­ant in the Western Cape, set on a farm just out­side of the town, sur­roun­ded by vine­yards, dams and green­ery and owned by the young and tal­en­ted entre­pren­eur, Madre. The menu is rich with delight­ful offer­ings of nou­veau coun­try cook­ing and fresh break­fast and lunch options. Seating arrange­ments are inside and out­side, on the banks of a nat­ural pool, and kids can tire them­selves out on the jungle gym and sunken tram­po­line while you enjoy a cap­puccino and the morn­ing paper, or a browse through the vin­tage inspired gift shop.

Havercrofts is also just out­side the main town near Madre's Kitchen and is a rus­tic old farm­house over­look­ing a horse farm with stun­ning views of the moun­tains. Owned by hus­band and wife team, Innes and Brydon Havercroft, this res­taur­ant offers legendary Sunday lunches, which include their fam­ous Yorkshire pudding!

Raka Wines, Klein Rivier Dairy and Birkenhead Micro Brewery, are three of the most pop­u­lar attrac­tions in the area, prompt­ing vis­it­ors to Stanford to com­pare it to the renowned gast­ro­nomic town of Franschhoek, for its fine wines, inter­na­tional award win­ning cheeses and upmar­ket res­taur­ants. Typical of Stanford, the unas­sum­ing gem, Oom Steyn's Wine Shop loc­ated next to the Stanford Hotel, has a plent­ful selec­tion of estate wine and French Champagne impor­ted from a private fam­ily estate in France.

The New Junk Shop, Stanford Trading Store and Sir Robert Stanford Antique Shop are three must see antique shops and the Art Cafe square offers a vin­tage and book shop, cof­fee shop and art gal­lery for the cul­tural explorer.

A renowned bird sanc­tu­ary, the river is home to more spe­cies of birds than any other place in the south­ern region of South Africa, attract­ing bird watch­ers from all over the world. Platanna, African Queen and the River Rat are guided boat tours which take you down the Klein Rivier. Platanna spe­cial­ises in bird­ing river trips for all ages, with pic­nics on request at Klein Rivier Cafe.

Whether you want a want a break from city life to recharge your bat­ter­ies, an act­ive week­end spent on the river, or a dose of cul­ture, food and wine com­par­able to the best in the coun­try, Stanford will enchant the most weary trav­el­ler and will undoubtedly have you com­ing back eagerly for a second helping.

Desirable Digits:

• Find: Stanford Accommodation
• Find: Things to Do in Stanford
• Marianas Deli & Bistro: Open Fri, Sat & Sun ~ Booking essen­tial +27 (0)28 341 0272
• Klein Rivier Café & Oom Steyn’s Wine Shop: +27 (0)28 341 0900
• Madre’s Kitchen: +27 (0)28 341 0647
• Klein River Dairy: +27 (0)28 341 0693
• Birkenhead Microbrewery: +27 (0)28 341 0183
• Raka Wine Farm: +27 (0)28 341 0676
• New Junk Shop: +27 (0)28 341 0797
• Stanford Galleries & Art Café: +27 (0)28 341 0591
• African Queen Boat Cruises: +27 (0)82 732 1284
• Platanna River Cruises: +27 (0)84 583 5389
• River Rat Boat Cruise & Kayak/Canoe Hire: +27 (0)83 310 0952

Useful Stanford Links:
Stanford Attractions
Things to Do in Stanford
Stanford Accommodation
Western Cape Accommodation