Eat, drink, have fun!
DO, WANDER, SHOP
Enjoy the area on foot or by bicycle Kleinmond is situated in the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve (a recognised Unesco World Biosphere Reserve), and is surrounded by the Kogelberg Nature Reserve and the Rooisand Nature Reserve, which has a famous herd of wild horses that roam between the town and the Bot River Lagoon. This is a paradise for plant and animal lovers, as well as anyone who loves to explore nature on foot, by bicycle or in a 4x4. Many hiking routes crisscross the surrounding mountains – buy the excellent Kleinmond Walks map book, which covers 25 routes, at the tourism office. We only had time for the 2,6 km circular route around Jean’s Hill (189 m high), which starts in the small parking area at the top of 15th Avenue and offers a lovely view over the town and the coast from Hangklip to Hawston. The concrete path that follows the coast for about 2,5 km from the harbour to Sandown Bay is the easiest pedestrian route. There’s a good chance that you will spot whales between May and October.
If you enjoy cold water, take a dip at the popular Sandown Beach, which enjoys Blue Flag status (the adjacent lagoon is perfect for children). But the busy holiday season sees the locals escaping to the quieter beach at Palmiet. kleinmondtourism.co.za
capenature.co.za
Explore “the Waterfront”
Harbour Road is Kleinmond’s waterfront and it offers six eateries, plenty of place to park and a host of charming little shops selling everything from art, crafts, ceramics and décor to secondhand books and clothing. We thought that Dirk Ace Records, selling LPs and second-hand clothes, was a great find.
harbourroad.co.za 083 414 0503
MOM, I’M HUNGRY!
For its size, Kleinmond has a great variety of restaurants and coffee shops but few of them do business at night, and many kitchens are closed by 8pm during the week. (A resident told Platteland that on a Thursday evening she couldn’t find an open restaurant at 19:20). It simply wasn’t possible for us to visit every eatery, so we have listed places that we did manage to visit, along with those that many of the locals recommended to us.
Seafood and sushi – and mountain and sea views – await you at the main beach at Sandown Blues Restaurant,
situated at 4 Strand Street. Sandown Blues Restaurant 082 566 4368. Or head to the harbour area for good fish, seafood and burgers at KabelJoe’s,
an old, informal family favourite at 35 Harbour Road, where the terrace offers harbour views. kabeljoesseafood. co.za KabelJoe’s Seafood Restaurant
028 271 3336. A little further along, down the slipway towards the harbour parking area, and right next door to Sunset Café (a busy jumble of a place, but essential for soft-serve ice cream
082 333 6700), is Vannie Hoek, >
where you can enjoy fresh fish and chips in one of the wooden boats outside as you take in views of the harbour.
Vannie Hoek 063 464 5749
Wild Horse at 2 Main Road is a bar and restaurant offering cocktails, bar fare, pizzas, burgers and steaks. Wild Horse Kleinmond
028 271 4872
Carry me Home Deli
Residents love gathering at Frans and Mariaan Groenewald’s restaurant and deli at 4C Harbour Road. It’s a busy, happy place with an extensive breakfast and lunch menu, good coffee and a range of convenience foods, treats and ingredients to take home… and there’s free wifi. Carry Me Home Restaurant & Deli Kleinmond 082 871 7982
Kleinmond Central Café
In 2018, winemaker Krige Visser and his life partner, Erika Janse van Rensburg, opened a coffee shop with a difference – a kind of steampunk-inspired retro living room – at 2 Bot River Street. Interesting and eccentric residents (and their dogs and parrots) gather here to socialise and enjoy the good food. It’s also a venue for music shows and bookrelated events, and Friday is pizza night.
When we walked in on a Friday evening and saw that there wasn’t even space to squeeze in a mouse, Erika greeted us with: “Of course there’s still room! But be warned, you’ll have to chat to a few strangers.” This was indeed the case – and it was good. Kleinmond Central Café 082 413 6719
Bistro 14
Ceramicist Corinne de Haas started her studio and workshop at 14 Harbour Road (still a gravel road back then) more than 32 years ago. Today, this modern building not only houses her head office, studio, factory, ovens, The Potter’s
Gallery and a small nursery, but also the solar-powered restaurant Bistro 14. Here, everything is served in, and on, Corinne’s functional designs – seven days a week. The courtyard is a peaceful place and although we wanted to order everything on the menu, we only had room for coffee and the moist and wellspiced carrot cake (which was packed with nuts). corinnedehaas.com
Bistro 14 028 271 4213
Broodstories
We had barely met many of the residents before they were asking: “Have you visited our fantastic bakery yet?” Hilda van Wyk started baking sourdough at home during the lockdown and she opened Broodstories at 52 Main Road in February 2022. Between 150 and 200 sourdough loaves – white, wholegrain, rye, smoked paprika-and-cheese and focaccias – are baked here daily, along with pastries such as (highly addictive) cinnamon buns, palmiers, amsterdammetjies and babkas. During the holidays, between 600 and 800 loaves are sold a day, with streams of cars starting to arrive from 08:00! BroodStories Kleinmond
071 439 4011
Ground Central and Farm to Plate
Marquin Brikkels makes great coffee at Strauss Odendaal’s coffee shop at 25 2nd Street. It’s sometimes a venue for performing artists and there’s a range of bakes and deli products on offer. Also visit the Farm to Plate concept store next door (the first in the Western Cape). You’ll find goodquality meat and chicken supplied by The Country Chic in Riebeek-Kasteel (featured in the Winter 2023 issue of Platteland) – all stock is purchased directly from farmers. Ground Central Kleinmond farmtoplate.co.za
082 415 2837
ACCOMMODATION
Unless it’s high season, there’s no shortage of weekend and holiday accommodation, including B&Bs, guesthouses, self-catering cottages and flats… or the luxurious Arabella Country Estate ( arabellacountryestate.co.za) if you’re feeling flush. Plenty of options are listed at booking.com, safarinow. com, lekkeslaap.co.za and airbnb.com.
Platteland found affordable, spacious, well-equipped and comfortable accommodation at Unit 1, Kleinmond Self-catering, two blocks from the sea at 12 2nd Street. kleimondselfcatering. co.za 083 407 0274