Eat, Drink and Be Merry at the Bellevue Wine Estate Restaurant

Bellevue Wine Estate is one of those true hidden gems of the Cape Winelands.  The understated entrance and driveway fools you with its simplicity but leads to a hidden oasis. The original Cape Dutch homestead built in 1803, was declared a National Monument and is a sight to behold for an old architecture lover like myself.

We visited the newly renovated Bellevue Wine estate restaurant on a beautiful Cape Town summers day to try their menu and delicious Bellevue wines.

Bellevue Wine Tasting

First up was the Bellevue wine tasting. Their tasting room was part of the recent renovations and now has beautiful modern and elegant finishes. It’s also big enough to accommodate large groups. Our tasting was conducted by Josh who is very friendly and puts a fun spin to the wine tasting notes by not making it too technical. My favourites were the fruity and fresh Sauvignon Blanc 2017 and the buttery medium bodied Cinsaut 2015 which I also purchased!

The flagship 1953 Pinotage (does not form part of the set tasting) owes its name to farmers, Paul Sauer and PK Morkel, who were the first to plant Pinotage on a commercial farm in 1953. You are however, more than welcome to purchase a bottle to either take home or enjoy with your restaurant meal. Although we didn’t order any, the Charcuterie and Cheese platters passing our table looked delicious and are the perfect accompaniment to the wines on offer.

Tasting room times: Monday – Sunday from 09:00 to 17:00 | Fridays from 09:00 to 19:00 | Contact: +27 21 865 2054

The Bellevue Wine Estate Restaurant

The Bellevue Wine Estate restaurant is headed up by Chef Eddie and is well-known for its wood-fired pizzas. The restaurant menu is fuss-free and features South African food favourites like fish and chips, steak, ribs and burgers – we had the latter. The portions are so generous that I had to swop plates with my husband midway through as I couldn’t finish the ribs! The flies are a bit pesky but Chef Eddie assured us that they’re in the process of sorting the little buggers out.

The star attractions of the Bellevue restaurant menu are their pizzas which are also named after their wines. The pizza and wine pairing platter is also quite popular so be sure to book a table if you’re planning on visiting during peak times such as weekends and public holidays. We didn’t have dessert (unbelievable, I know) but the Whole Baked Camembert with honey and walnuts comes highly recommended by the staff. You also receive a complimentary cup of Nespresso caramel or vanilla coffee with all desserts!

Moms and dads will be happy to hear that the restaurant is child-friendly. The outdoor veranda seating overlooks the lawn and jungle gym play area. The Bellevue Wine Farm is situated on Bottelary road, Stellenbosch.

Restaurant times: Tuesday – Sunday from 09:00 to 17:00 | Fridays from 09:00 to 19:00 | www.bellevue.co.za | Contact: chef@bellevue.co.za

**We were invited to review the Bellevue Wine Estate restaurant. As always, all opinions are honest and uninfluenced.