Stirlings at the Ibis
Roasted wild garlic ice cream pretty much sums up the experimental nature of the entirely new cuisine that is evolving at this low-key gourmet-with-a-difference restaurant attached to The Ibis guesthouse. Barbara Weitz has been inspired by the abundance of little-known and underhyped medicinal plants that grow wild in the Karoo, and while she makes all kinds of teas with some of what she forages in the veld and grows in her garden, she has been inspired to go one step further and create never-tried-before dishes using ingredients you will never have come across anywhere and will probably never taste again. Barbara even mills her own flour for the various breads she bakes and serves with homemade jams and preserves. You can sit in the courtyard under the stars, or find shelter from the cold inside, but as you work your way through the one-of-a-kind tasting menu (a vegetarian version is possible), you will marvel at the variety of new tastes that Barbara has coaxed from the seemingly strange produce—she harvests such herbs as wild mint, lemon verbena, African wormwood, kankerbos (cancer bush), and olive leaf, many of which she uses for teas, but which also find their way into recipes, for which she's always experimenting. If you've never heard of thistle and dandelion pasta or want to find out what a pickled agave blossom tastes like, you'll want to look for this experience. The restaurant also offers a reduced a la carte menu for lunch, with a few similarly unimaginable dishes. Whatever you do, though, don't pass up the garlic ice cream.
