Inside Klein Jan, Tswalu Kalahari Reserve's New Restaurant in South Africa

"Set in a remote Kalahari game reserve, this restaurant feels like a cinematic discovery: diners begin with drinks and hors d'oeuvres on the terrace of a century-old farmhouse, pass through an antique-filled one-room house and down a spiral staircase to an underground brick cellar stocked with honey, produce and pickles, then emerge into a lofty dining room cut into the hillside that frames an arrestingly still desert landscape. Led by Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen — a South African chef who earned a Michelin star while based in France — the menu reimagines his Afrikaans grandmother’s Dutch-influenced farm cooking, from mieliepap presented as fritters to a vegetarian bobotie made with lentils, and highlights hyperregional ingredients such as wild tsama melons and homemade cheeses sourced locally despite the arid surroundings. The theatrical progression of spaces, refined service (white-linen tables, crystal glasses) and emphasis on storytelling make for an unexpectedly luxurious, homecoming-style dining experience in a far-flung safari setting." - Mary Holland Mary Holland Mary Holland is a writer and editor based in New York. She is the former online editor of GQ and Glamour South Africa. Her work has also appeared in The Financial Times, WSJ. Magazine, Condé Nast Traveler, Afar, and others. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines