A new initiative – Unexplored Cape Town – has been launched to showcase the city’s food tours with particular focus on heritage food shaped by various African cultures.
Unexplored Cape Town was founded by food writer and social entrepreneur Dennis Molewa with the goal of bringing attention to under-represented, authentic African cuisine.
“While there’s no shortage of high-end, Euro-centric dining experiences in the city, our commitment is to show you the hole-in-the-wall kitchens, the informal food traders, the vibrant food markets that offer a mix of Eastern to Western African diaspora cuisines and all the history tied within these flavours. These are very honest food tours,” said Molewa.
Throughout the food tours, the guides and restaurant owners focus on educating tourists about how Cape Town’s history, urban development, migration patterns and colonial legacy have shaped local culinary experiences.
The collective offers various tours, ranging from a Somalian experience in the suburb of Bellville to a Two Sides of Cape Town tour that explores the connection between the formal and informal food systems of the city’s CBD. The most extensive tour is the African Food & Storytelling Experience, which includes 12 stops at inner-city small businesses, including three food stops.
