Visit our Garden

Cape cooking: traditional bobotie with seasonal chutney

Only 10 spaces available.

Bobotie is considered the national dish of South Africa, having been served at a special dinner by the United Nations Women’s Organisation in 1954. It is one of the most engrained recipes in traditional South African cuisine with cultural influences from all over the world, including Malaysia, France and the Netherlands. Bobotie is celebrated everywhere in South Africa – from high-end restaurants to casual eateries, and around the dinner table in many homes.

Join us in the heritage kitchen of Soetmelksvlei, a new Babylonstoren excursion, to celebrate this South African icon. Following a short ride along the picturesque slopes of Simonsberg, we’ll descend towards the historical farmyard, which represents a time when life was simpler, and craftsmanship was treasured.

Here, master baker Martjie Malan will teach you the art of making traditional bobotie alongside its classic companion. Chutney, or blatjang as it’s called in Afrikaans, is a spicy condiment cooked from a variety of Cape fruits.

After a hands-on morning in the farm air, we’ll enjoy a hearty lunch in the Old Stables Restaurant before heading back to Babylonstoren.

Discover the secret life of bees

Only 15 places available

Cape honeybees are honoured workers on Babylonstoren Farm – not only do they produce an abundance of honey for the breakfast table at Babel Restaurant, but they also play a key role in pollinating many of our garden fruits, herbs and vegetables.

We host our workshops during the warmer seasons, when the garden is buzzing with Cape honeybees, hard at work foraging for pollen and nectar. The workshop starts with a guided walk through the garden to explore the bees’ favourite spots, from nectar-filled annual flowers to pollen-rich trees. We’ll then invite you to put on your beekeeping suit and discover our collection of diverse beehives – including the traditional woven skep, the practical Langstroth with moveable frames, and the much-talked-about flow hives. Our beekeeper, Arné Stander, will share the story of the indigenous Cape honeybee and explain the basics of beekeeping.

**Note: **Please bring along your sun hat for the garden walk and closed shoes such as gumboots or wellies or high-ankle hiking boots for the practical session with beekeeping suits.

Steaming coffee from the Lekker Room is served upon arrival.
A refreshing lunch at the Greenhouse Restaurant is included.

Grow your own edible and cut flowers

Only 15 places available

Let the seasons ahead be a flower feast! Join us at the start of summer for expert help to plan your cut flower and edible flower garden with flower specialists and master gardeners Louise and Gundula.

In this hands-on workshop, guests will get to celebrate flowers for their beauty and their functionality. You’ll learn to use blooms as eye-candy as well as delightful snacks as so many flowers can be enjoyed both in a vase and on your plate. The class will give a whole different angle to skipping through the daisies this summer.

_Steaming coffee from the Lekker Room is served upon arrival.
Lunch in the Greenhouse is included. _

Pasta from scratch with mozzarella

Only 15 places available.

Join us on the farm for a morning stroll through the garden to harvest farm-fresh eggs. We’ll use these to make our own pasta dough from scratch and create a variety of flat and filled pastas to enjoy on the day. Farm foodie, Louzel Steyn, will share a few tricks on making and cooking the perfect pasta, as well as how best to pair different pasta styles with different sauces.

Our resident Italian-trained cheesemaker, Alta Eybers, will share her secrets to making the best mozzarella, using milk from Babylonstoren’s own water buffalo herd. We’ll also stir up a quick, rustic sauce with what’s available from the garden to pair with the fresh pasta. Come hungry for this one!

_Steaming coffee from the Lekker Room is served upon arrival.
Lunch in the Old Bakery is included. _