On a recent (read, long!) road trip from Joburg to Cape Town we decided to break our journey in Prince Albert, in the heart of the Great Karoo. Halfway between Beaufort West and Laingsburg, the winding Prince Albert Road takes you from the N1 into this picturesque little village within 30 minutes. I had always associated the hamlet with Oudsthoorn and accessing it via the spectacular, yet treacherous, Swartberg Pass, and was pleasantly surprised to discover it’s a relatively easy drive from Cape Town just four hours away.

Cradled between burnet-pink Karoo koppies, Prince Albert is a surprisingly lush dorpie boasting some wonderful Georgian and Victorian architecture, where rambling gardens are fed by ‘ communal ‘leiwater’ furrows coursing charmingly through town.

While you can easily spend a few days in town lazily cycling around the antique and mohair shops, stopping in at the myriad coffee shops for a restorative brew and sipping a G&T at the Swartberg Hotel, there’s another reason to come here for serious foodie fun.

The newest kid on the block is African Relish, a cooking school with soul. Resident chef Vanie Padayachee (previously of fu.shi in Plett and Grande Provence in Franschhoek) has made this hamlet her home and with her serious culinary cloutis set to Prince Albert on the foodie map.

The modern, open space of the cooking school sits next to a massive veggie garden, from which the likes of aubergine relish will be made, or delight in the cloudy peppery olive oil from the olive grove. Best of all, the classes are very much hands-on and you get to enjoy the spoils with a celebratory dinner afterwards.

Whether you want an intimate weekend perfecting your pastry, or are a group of friends intent on learning about tapas and celebrating life you can tailor-make your course at African Relish in consultation with Vanie – and you’re sure to be in good hands with her.

Another must-do activity is a visit to Gay’s Dairy at the end of the main road. Stock up on creamy yoghurts, a vast range of award-winning cheeses (the cheddar is particularly piquant), fresh milk, and, best of all, cream.

When we stopped by we bought litre tubs of cream, so fresh it was still warm. Thick, indulgent and naturally sweet, this is a must-do treat. In fact, ever since we’ve returned home with our stash of dairy products we’ve been dreaming up desserts and dishes that need at least two spoons of the unctuous goodness thrown in. Following Vanie’s suggestion we have even made our own ice cream from it, simply scraping in loads of fresh vanilla seeds and popping it into the freezer. Perfection!

Visit Prince Albert Tourism at www.patourism.co.za.

» Lisa van Aswegen is editor of Time Out Cape Town at New Media Publishing.

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