The Slug and Lettuce, Stellenbosch

When you're in your final year of study (fingers crossed) you tend to think about the things that you wanted to experience while you were still a (almost) carefree student in a beautiful student town with your like-minded friends that you will see much less next year. That is why a few of my fellow engineering student friends and I decided to broaden our horizons beyond our faculty cafeteria and eat lunch away from campus once in a while. This week we decided to give The Slug and Lettuce a try.

The Slug and Lettuce is situated close to the town's center  in the Devonshire house. The Devonshire House is situated on the oldest street corner of Stellenbosch and was erected there in about 1861. It was a double-storeyed townhouse in the early Victorian Style that was transformed into the Devonshire hotel and a few surrounding restaurants. The decor of The Slug and Lettuce honors the building's heritage. The big chandelier and Victorian style picture frames in the entrance hall are quite dramatic and gives the slug and lettuce a creative, vibey, but vintage, atmosphere. You can sit in front of the restaurants, under the trees and enjoy the beautiful scenery of Stellenbosch or enjoy a more private table in a small open air area in the back.

It is the small details that takes a dining experience from ordinary to extraordinary. The Slug and Lettuce's "details" include the pickle, rosa tomato and pickled cucumber pinned to their burger's bun instead of a standard side salad, their own freshly made hamburger buns and their homemade burger patties that are grilled to perfection.

I ordered the chunks of pork belly in our Cantonese marinade sosatie for R59, while my two friends each opted for a burger (+-R55). The portions are a decent size at a reasonable price. The pork belly was succulent, while the crackling was crispy, just the way it should be. I would recommend ordering something from their grill as The Slug and Lettuce is owned by the same owners of the Hussar Grill group that is well-known for their steaks.

The Slug and Lettuce also offers a  range of pizzas (+-R65) and a selection of "Slug and Lettuce Favourites" that include roast chicken pie, pork bangers and chicken Schnitzel. The Slug and Lettuce's platters also look impressive, with The Winelands Platter (Homemade beef biltong, boerewors bites, droewors, Stellenbosch Mission olives, flatbread and farm butter) only R79. They have quite an extensive winelist, ranging from R25 to R55 for a glass of wine, while their drinks menu are quite standard.

Overall, I can't think about anything that could have made my Slug and Lettuce experience more enjoyable. The service was also excellent and I will be back to sample their pizza and chicken pie.

Unfortunately I did not have my camera handy, so the photos in this post are from their website: http://www.slugandlettuce.co.za/index.html