Skip to main content
Gate8 GLOBAL 🇿🇦Your destinationSouth Africa▾
Home› South Africa›Food

South African Food & Wine — What to Eat and What It Costs

Braai culture, Cape Malay spice, and some of the best-value wine on Earth.

South African food centers on the braai (a backyard barbecue that's more social ritual than cooking method), Cape Malay dishes like bobotie and koeksisters from Bo-Kaap, and biltong (dried cured meat, sold everywhere as a snack). A casual meal runs $8-15, a nice dinner $20-40. Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, both under an hour from Cape Town, offer world-class wine tastings for $5-15 per flight — genuinely some of the best value in global wine tourism.

South African food doesn't get the global reputation it deserves, probably because so much of the best of it happens at someone's house, not a restaurant. Here's what to actually order, what a proper braai is really about, and why the wine country twenty minutes outside Cape Town competes with Napa or Bordeaux at a third of the price.

South African Food & Wine: What to Eat and What It Costs
Food

South African Food & Wine: What to Eat and What It Costs

Braai culture, Cape Malay spice, and world-class wine at a third of the price.

Questions people actually ask

What is a braai, exactly?
It's a South African barbecue, but calling it 'just a barbecue' undersells how central it is culturally — a braai is a whole social event built around the fire, usually running for hours, with boerewors (a coiled spiced sausage), steak, and chicken as the main proteins. If you get invited to one, go.
Is South African wine actually good?
Yes, genuinely — Stellenbosch and Franschhoek produce internationally competitive Cabernet, Chenin Blanc, and Pinotage (South Africa's own signature red grape) at a fraction of Napa or Bordeaux prices. A tasting flight of 4-5 wines typically runs $5-15 at most estates.
Can vegetarians and vegans eat well in South Africa?
Yes in cities and wine country — Cape Town has a strong plant-based restaurant scene and most menus mark vegetarian options clearly. It gets harder at remote safari lodges, which lean heavily on meat-based menus by default, so mention dietary needs (vegetarian, vegan, halal, or allergies) when you book, not when you arrive.