News24 | SEE | Inside Ellerman House’s Curate: An obsessively-local fine dining experience honouring SA’s best

Chef Kieran Whyte and his team have turned to their diverse heritage and South African identity to create the fine dining menu at Curate, a new experience at Ellerman House in Cape Town.

• Ellerman House’s fine-dining restaurant, Curate, offers an exclusive and immersive culinary experience that celebrates South African heritage, wine, art, and sustainability.
• Led by Chef Kieran Whyte, the hyperlocal menu recreates traditional South African dishes and features luxurious, locally sourced ingredients.
• Housed within the Wine Gallery, the restaurant enhances the sensory journey with bespoke wine pairings.

On the hillside below Lion’s Head, perched above the Atlantic Ocean in Bantry Bay, Ellerman House’s fine-dining restaurant, Curate, offers an intimate culinary journey where South African heritage meets contemporary artistry in one of Cape Town’s most exclusive settings.

The inaugural sitting of the dining experience will take place on 16 May.

Ellerman House CEO Carol Kohne describes Curate as the next chapter in the evolution of the almost 120-year-old Edwardian mansion’s food journey.

The boutique hotel, recently named #1 City Hotel in Africa by Condé Nast’s Travel + Leisure, has transformed its Wine Gallery into a refined dining space where art and cuisine converge.

Since its establishment in 1988, Ellerman House has drawn inspiration from South Africa by celebrating its indigenous gardens, art collections, local cuisine, and unique hospitality.

A Relais & Châteaux member since the 1990s, the hotel prides itself on setting standards for luxury experiential hospitality in South Africa.

“This is a natural evolution of our commitment to innovation and excellence,” Kohne explains. “With Curate, we reaffirm our dedication to providing multi-sensory experiences that reflect the soul of South Africa.”

Art, wine, and local ingredients

Curate is housed within the Wine Gallery, designed by South African sculptor Angus Taylor. The restaurant is surrounded by artistic elements celebrating the country’s winemaking heritage, which dates back to 1659. Nell Harris and Natalie Haarhof, of Just Design, have blended natural textures with refined aesthetics to craft this immersive dining environment.

Wine plays a pivotal role in the Curate experience. Expert wine stewards use Ellerman House’s collection of 10 000 bottles to curate bespoke pairings that enhance Chef Kieran Whyte’s culinary creations, ensuring every bite and sip tells a story of heritage and modern food fare.

A refined African dream

Each dish celebrates the land, its seasons, and the voices behind it, drawing inspiration from South African cultural traditions while incorporating refined techniques and presentations.

“Zanele, one of our chefs, recently bought a house. While watching the celebration video, I saw them making the umqobothi, and although I’ve never experienced it, I have known about it,” Whyte says. “I asked if we make it? Let’s see how it goes.”

The result is a clarified pineapple umqombothi that honours traditional celebration rituals.

South African staples, such as pap, also receive unique reinterpretations on his menu.

Whyte describes one dessert as “a white chocolate pap served warm, styled like porridge, and finished with frozen raspberries and popping candy”.

Local, luxurious, and sustainable

Whyte’s path to becoming Ellerman House’s head chef began humbly.

“I grew up watching the Food Network when DSTV first introduced it,” he recalls. “I started experimenting with recipes I’d see on TV, like making macaroni and cheese, and recipes from the box of Fatti’s and Monies lasagne.”

Whyte’s journey led him to the Silwood School of Cookery, where he completed three years of training.

He spent seven years working at Greenhouse under FYN’s Peter Tempelhoof after his graduation.

READ | Cape Town restaurant makes history by earning first three-star sustainable rating in Africa

Whyte joined Ellerman House four years ago, overseeing its OneEighty restaurant.

It is known for seasonal à la carte offerings served amid South African art or on ocean-view patios.

Concepts of sustainability and provenance are not gimmicks or buzzwords on his menu; he believes this should be a general principle in fine dining.

He tells News24 Food that Curate’s menu is committed to showcasing the continent’s bounty of luxurious, high-end ingredients, such as caviar from Madagascar and truffles from Durban.

“We’ve set a rule - no soy sauce unless we make it ourselves and no imported products, except chocolate and coffee from Africa, since they’re unavailable locally.”

The menu includes creative reinterpretations of local delicacies, such as amagwinya or vetkoek paired with smoked snoek pâté, apricot from the braai, and caviar from Madagascar.

With limited seating, Curate accepts reservations through Dineplan and its website. The restaurant operates from Wednesday to Saturday. The tasting experience is priced at R1 800 per person.