I love food. I love travel. And I love wellness. Luckily, all of these elements come together beautifully through the Angala Supper Club series.
Before I deep-dive into everything Angala has to offer, let me give you a quick overview of what the Supper Club series is all about.
In a nutshell, the Supper Club series gives you the opportunity to visit Angala, located in the picturesque mountain valleys between Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, and Paarl, for an afternoon of wellness and wine tasting, as well as an intimate dinner with one of eight talented chefs and eight local beverage brands.
Dine with the chef, engage in meaningful conversation with local winemakers and beverage producers, and enjoy an evening that promises to be as luxurious as it is magical.
The eco-pool features a living ecosystem to keep it fresh and clean
Enjoy some tea or sit back and take in the views
A Quick Look At The Supper Club Chefs
The Angala Supper Club series takes place on select dates for the rest of 2022, with each evening featuring a three-course meal by one of the talented chefs and one local beverage producer.
The dates and teams include:
- 20 August: Lozarn Wines with Chef Adele Maartens, who focuses on plant-based cuisine with a variety of influences.
- 17 September: Atlas Swift with Chef Nathalie Larsen of Earth to Plate, a classically trained plant-based chef creating dishes in the most delicious ways.
Hopefully, this will also be a continuing series for years to come!
Dining with a view at Angala. Photo credit: Expressions Photography
What Does The Angala Supper Club Cost?
Prices start from R3425 per person sharing for Deluxe Rooms, and R4375 per person sharing for Luxury Rooms.
The prices include accommodation for the night, the supper club experience, two wine tasting vouchers for 2 people, breakfast the next day, and access to all of Angala’s exclusive wellness experiences.
Supper Club attendees can also book a second-night stay at a 25% discount, including a 60-minute massage for two people.
So now that you have all the nitty-gritty, let’s take a closer look at the magic that is Angala.
We stayed in one of the Deluxe Rooms
The bathroom is spacious and luxurious
Armed with towels and a convenient carry bag, you can soak in the view at the room or head down to the pools
Introducing The Angala Sanctuary
Angala is one of those hidden treasures, tucked about 2 km beyond the entrance to Vrede & Lust. If you didn’t know it was there, you’d never have reason to venture far beyond everything Vrede & Lust has to offer.
But if you know what’s waiting for you at the end of the drive, you’ll be wanting to come back time and time again.
Angala is a five-star sanctuary that offers moments of bliss and tranquillity, insurmountable beauty, and a complete reset of the soul.
The ozone pool is great for a short swim or relaxation. Photo credit: Expressions Photography
The rooms all offer privacy and relaxation, giving you a home away from home to experience all the hydro facilities Angala has to offer.
- Relax in the revitalising eco pool that features a living ecosystem of water plants.
- Watch the stars in the heated plunge pool.
- Enjoy water therapy in their ozonated pool.
- Recharge in the infra-red sauna or hot steam room that overlook the valley beyond.
Or, even better, jump from jacuzzi to ozone pool to sauna and back again for a full-on hydro experience that will leave you feeling refreshed, recharged, and alive.
If hydrotherapy isn’t your thing, you can also simply soak up the sun on one of the many sun loungers, enjoy the views while sipping a tea (or cocktail), or head off on an adventurous mountain hike to explore the surrounding areas.
Since each room also comes with two wine tasting vouchers, you could also head off for an afternoon of tastings before heading back for the supper club experience.
This is definitely the sauna with the best views
The I Love Foodies Angala Supper Club Review
We visited Angala as part of a media retreat to try a handful of the Angala Supper Club experiences.
My sister Sabine and I arrived early afternoon to explore the facilities, after which we headed down to Vrede & Lust for an exceptional wine tasting.
The Dinner Menu
The Supper Club experience started at 18:00 and included a combo menu with a few of the featured chefs.
Nathalie Larsen’s vegan king oyster mushroom dish was fantastic
The menu for the evening included:
- A king oyster mushroom starter by Nathalie Larsen, paired with an Atlas Swift Cape South Coast Chardonnay.
- Seared kudu loin mains (vegan aubergine option available) by Lapo Magni, pared with a Leonisto Blanco coconut coriander ‘sgroppino’.
- Chocolate, rhubarb, and celeriac dessert by Julia Hattingh, paired with Black Elephant Vintners’ Cap Classique Rose enjoy as a bubbly, dessert, and music pairing.
The dishes and pairings were all exceptional, and you’d do well with choosing any one of these chefs for your experience.
Left: Lapo Magni’s exceptional kudu dish | Right: Dessert, bubbly, and music pairing by Julia Hattingh
I’ve dined with both Julia and Lapo before and can only highly recommend them – both as individual chefs and also as restauranteurs that are worth supporting.
I also really enjoyed Nathalie’s vegan dish, which actually quite surprised me, but the flavours were fantastic and I’d have this again in a heartbeat.
The Angala Hydrotherapy
All in all, it was an eventful evening of mesmerising food, great drinks, and fantastic conversation.
But that’s not where the Angala experience ends.
After dinner, while many other guests continued to celebrate or headed to bed, I hopped down to the jacuzzi for some not-to-be-missed star gazing!
The South African night sky is magical
The night sky at Angala is truly wonderful. I can highly recommend this – even if it’s a little chilly outside.
Some of the rooms even have an outdoor shower, so you can shower under the stars as well.
Angala Breakfasting
The next morning, Sabine and I woke up bright and early to head down into the sauna, which opens at 07:00.
I jumped from the steam room to the sauna to the jacuzzi and the ozone pool (not in that order) to really soak up all the hydro goodness, and left the wellness area about an hour later feeling refreshed, recharged, and wonderfully alive!
This gave me just enough time to freshen up for breakfast.
For breakfast, we enjoyed a delightful combination of fruit juice, coffee, fruit salad, granola, and yoghurt with a hot meal of your choice. Of course, in my book, that included toast, eggs, mushrooms, salami, and bacon.
Fresh fruit, nuts, seeds, and yoghurt for breakfast
You can never have too much goodness for breakfast
The Delightful Angala Experience
All in all, Angala was an absolute dream. From food to hospitality, views, and hydro experiences, this destination is as good for your heart as it is for your soul.
And with all the wellness and hiking experiences, it doesn’t even have to be bad for your waistline either!
So should you add this to your bucket list for 2022?
Yes, yes, and yes!
You’ll find all the details below.
Contact Angala
To book for the next Angala Supper Club experience, simply contact Angala directly.
Angala Luxury Hotel
Address: Corner R45 & Klapmuts Road through the Vrede en Lust farm, Simondium, Franschhoek 7670
Website: https://www.angala.co.za
E-mail: reservations@angala.co.za
Call: +27 (0)21 300 3395 or +27(0)21 874 1366
Written by Benike Palfi
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Article Date: March 2022
All information correct at the time of publication. We do not accept any liability caused by errors, including, but not limited to, changes in price, menu, opening times, address, or other contact details. We’re not medical professionals and cannot give medical advice. We only provide personal review services.
Copyright of text and all original images/videos, unless otherwise stated, belongs to I Love Foodies, and they may not be used for social media, websites, or any other form of advertising. Images are available at set rates. Please contact us for details. Marked photos courtesy of Expressions Photography.