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Markets and local food
Friday evening stalls under the oaks, a converted apple warehouse full of food, and farm shops on the mountain road: this is how the Helderberg eats at weekends.
Close to Villa Helderberg
Six markets and food stops, with the days they open and driving times from the villa.
Our local market, on the Lourensford wine estate: around sixty stalls of food, estate wine, craft beer, handmade goods and art, with live music and a fountain, jungle gym and mini golf for children. Entry is free and parking is a small fee.
Market website
A 1940s apple warehouse turned steampunk food hall over Sir Lowry’s Pass, with pizza, curries, Thai food, burgers and desserts, local wine and gin, and live music on a deck above the railway platform. Steam trains from Cape Town still pull in beside it at weekends.
Market website
The farm stalls at the top of Sir Lowry’s Pass are a Cape institution: pies, fresh apples and pears from the Elgin orchards, preserves, cheese and biltong. It is the natural coffee stop on the way to Hermanus or the Overberg.
Plan a day trip
Cape Town’s best-known food market, on the harbour edge at Granger Bay: small producers, organic vegetables, bread, oysters and coffee, with tables looking out at Table Mountain. Go early on a Saturday, then walk into the Waterfront.
Market website
From October to December you can pick your own strawberries on the farm, which children tend to enjoy more than any market. There are also trails, a tea garden and farm produce to take home, so it works as a half day rather than a quick stop.
Farm website
Between market days, the estates around Somerset West are the easiest place to buy local: wine at cellar door prices, olive oil, preserves and cheese platters, usually with a view. Several have delis and farm shops attached.
Our wine estate guideDriving times are approximate. Market days and hours change with the season, and some markets close in winter, so check before you go. Photos: market stalls by HelenOnline, farm stall pie and Elgin by Ossewa, Waterfront by Dietmar Rabich, strawberry picking by Kgbo, via Wikimedia Commons; some photos are illustrative.
Good to know
Markets are where you meet the Helderberg, not just where you eat.
Lourensford on a Friday evening is the local favourite: it is ten minutes from the villa, the food is good and you can walk in without booking. Weekend mornings are quieter than afternoons, and both Lourensford and Elgin get busy with families from lunchtime.
Bring a card and some cash, because a few stalls are cash only, and take a jacket for evening markets, since the temperature drops quickly once the sun is behind the mountain.
If you would rather cook at the villa, the markets and farm stalls are the best place to buy meat for the braai, bread and vegetables. Tell us and we will make sure the lapa and the braai are ready for you.
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Market days shift with the season, so tell us which weekend you are here and we will check what is open and worth the drive.
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