The Waterfront Food Market is the first destination in my seven-day Cape Town food market tour, reports Douglas Hinkel.
At a wharf on the bustling and vibrant V&A Waterfront Harbour, the market has a prime location; the setting alone differentiates it from other markets. However, a new campaign focusing on the heritage of food will seek to widen its appeal.
“I want to move towards the cultural heritage – the journey of food in SA and how it has led to the amazing culinary melting pot called SA cuisine,” said Waterfront Food Market manager, Karin Vermeulen. “We are aiming to communicate the heritage of food so people can understand why Africans eat what they do.”
The new marketing campaign will first focus on the visual aspects – posters and signs that portray the story behind food. The goal is to eventually offer a historical food tour.
There is a unique story behind each of the market’s culturally diverse and authentic food options.
For example, behind Namaste Indian Foods is a story about how Indians were initially brought to South Africa to work on sugar plantations and how their street food has since been passed down from generation to generation. Or, the story behind Como’s empanada and the breaded pastry’s journey from the coasts of Portugal and Spain to South Africa’s shores.
Authenticity and customary practices are emphasized at the Waterfront Food Market; so are “green” practices.
Vermeulen will be the first to admit that her market is far from being predominantly organic, but they are trying to entice sustainable vendors. “We will not turn an organic supplier away,” she said.
The passion Vermeulen has for attracting and promoting sustainable, organic, and authentic food production suggests a bright future for the already thriving food market.
Below is a list of the market’s most sustainable and organic producers:
Lavendar Hill – certified organic production of soaps, tea, body butter, and biscuits.
By Nature – organically certified nuts and seeds.
Stokkiedraai Biltong – artisan practices that include hormone and preservative free production of biltong and droewors.
Jean Pierre Fortain – real vanilla imported from Madagascar and artisanally produced sugar cane.
Oryx Salts – sustainably produced salt from South Afric’s Kalahari Desert.
Origin Coffee – delicious fairtrade coffee (I recommend trying the Flat White, which is similar to a cappuccino, but is less dominated by the heat and foam.)
HOURS: Mon-Sun 9:30 – 18:00
WHERE: The V&A Market on the Wharf, Dock Road, V&A Waterfront near Nobel Square. (Click here for directions.)
Promoting all things green (by design), I’m Douglas Calvin Hinkel.
