FROM FORAGED
TO FIVE-STAR
ANCIENT FLAVOURS, MODERN FIRE. SOUTH AFRICA’ S CHEFS ARE REWRITING MENUS WITH INGREDIENTS OLDER THAN AGRICULTURE.
South Africa’ s hospitality and F & B sector is in the midst of a flavourful revival. Ingredients that once lived on the fringes of mainstream cuisine are re-emerging – as vital expressions of heritage, ecology and identity.
A return to the roots of flavour
At Vergenoegd Löw, Executive Chef Michelle Theron has reimagined the estate’ s Indigenous Tasting – a celebration of South Africa’ s overlooked ingredients, from spekboom and bokkoms to Dexter biltong, roosterkoek, kaiings, amasi and vivid Kei apple. Paired with estate-grown wines expressive of the farm’ s merroir( of the sea), the experience reconnects diners to the landscapes and histories that shaped these flavours.
At Beyond, the menu is inspired by their Origins of Flavour culinary philosophy, bringing diners a menu that journeys back to a time when the first Homo sapiens roamed the Cape Coast, foraging many of the same wild plants still found there today.
Created collaboratively with Dr Jan de Vynck( researcher and forager), it reframes ancient ingredients as catalysts for both survival and cognitive evolution.“ These ingredients not only fed and inspired our ancestors, but also shaped who we are today,” says Dr de Vynck.
30 TRADE & TASTE / 2026