Serendipity Country House & Restaurant

The location was lovely and the waitress was very friendly and welcoming. However, the food is presented and priced as fine dining with lengthy explanations about the uniqueness of each ingredient, while in reality it’s well below average. The amounts are so small that we were still hungry after the 5 courses. The fish and the malva pudding were scandalously dry and the malva had no custard, which makes you wonder how it can even be considered malva pudding. We were surprised that this place has such good reviews.

What an incredible experience! We were fortunate to stay two unforgettable nights in beautiful Serendipity. From the minute we came into this family run Guest House, we felt at home. The beautiful, specious, and cozy room, with a terrace overlooking the river, had everything we could have wished for, and more (thank you for the tasty treats). The whole team was attentive and so kind, taking care of all our wishes and giving us great tips about what to do around Wilderness. But without a doubt, the absolute highlight of our stay was the Restaurant! In one word: Wow! Chef Lizelle is a real master of her craft. Every South African inspired dish was on point, tasty, and beautifully presented. We were so lucky to have the opportunity to eat here two nights in a row, and have different dishes from Chef Lizette’s creation on each day. The wine pairing was perfect as well. We tried many different wines from their great collection, and learned a lot from the knowledgeable and attentive restaurant team. Thank you so much, to the whole Serendipity team for making our stay here so magical! We Hope that one day we will visit again…

Seriously, what an absolute "not so hidden gem" in Wilderness, on our beloved Garden Route! Rudolph, Carmen and the rest of the incredible Serendipity team, I take my hat off to you all... A phenomenal culinary delight and extravaganza. Kudos to you all and highly recommended... One of the best fine dining experiences of my life! Thank you!

This is a special place, no question about it! Cannot comment on the rooms as we only went for dinner, but that was a 5 star golden memory! 🙏 The food was an absolute symphony of flavours, all perfectly balanced. The staff are fantastic and a special thanks to Chantè for her assistance and welcome - you are a Champ🏆 Chef Supreme, Lizelle, thank you so much for a wonderful meal and for sharing so freely of your knowledge and experience. The entire team (Sorry I don't have all your names) joined together to share a very special evening with us..... Thank you and may you go from strength to strength! ❤️ Bill and Nancy

We have stayed at the guest house and tried the restaurant. I wouldn’t recommend for the following reasons: - it is loud until quite late 10 pm+ as the rooms are directly above the dining room of the restaurant and from mid-afternoon the room smelling like you’re in the kitchen which is not great in my opinion - it took way too long before we had our first course 45 min + after arriving with the hearing multiple times the drinks explanation and the explanation in detail of each course, i personally prefer when each course is explained as we get them otherwise I struggle to retain all the information - some course I didn’t like the pork, too intense and fatty, not balanced, the amuse bouche, the cinammon in the soup - I didn’t like most wines on the pairing and also the fact it started with red and then went to a white effervescent sweet wine - the bed comfortable but very bouncy whenever there was the slightest movement Some things I liked: - the springbok course was very good - the desert wine pairing with the desert - it’s nice to be so close if you go to the restaurant and want to have a few drinks but I don’t recommend unless it is for 1 night only - the breakfast they serve included is good

Disappointing Experience from Start to Finish I rarely leave reviews, but this experience was frustrating enough to deserve one. When I arrived, I was seated in a beautifully styled living room and invited to order an aperitif. The waitress spent several minutes passionately describing four “exceptional” cocktails, and I ordered her recommendation. It was incredibly sweet, completely tasteless, and had no detectable alcohol. New guests continued to arrive and were seated in the same lounge space. I had to endure the same long cocktail pitch 5 or 6 times, like I was stuck in a marketing loop. It became irritating very quickly. After 40+ minutes, the chef finally came out to describe the menu in painstaking detail—including where each ingredient was sourced—for nearly 30 more minutes. Only then was I escorted to the dining room, well over an hour after arrival. The food? Sadly, just as disappointing. • Bread: greasy, with bland butter. • Appetizer: Fish was over-fried and drowning in tomato sauce. • Soup: Pumpkin soup was the only halfway decent course. • Sorbet: Tasteless and forgettable. • Main: Cold fish that was inexplicably tough. • Dessert: Baked apple ruined by a rock-hard cookie and zero balance of flavor. To top it all off, each course was silently dropped off by a server in a headscarf—not a single word, no description, no warmth. For a place that tries to sell an “immersive culinary journey,” this felt more like a silent, overpriced wait in purgatory. Would not return or recommend. Beautiful setting, but food and service were well below expectations.

We celebrated our wedding anniversary and had a fabulous time. Staying over was an excellent choice. We had the tasting menu and wine pairing. This is truly fine dining!

This is a review for the restaurant. My guests (I’m a local) treated me to a dinner here which was supposed to be the highlight of their trip. I was so embarrassed by the experience. They talk the food up so much causing the let down to feel that much worse when tiny morsels arrive. Malva pudding was a square of dried sponge cake. I think they forgot the syrup step. Placing a pumpkin fritter into a butternut soup is just so wrong- it obviously loses its crispiness and becomes a blob of dough when presented. Main course of springbok was good, except very small portion. We were embarrassed and so was our guest who footed the bill. Very awkward.