moyo

lovely setting in the heart of lush gardens but what a disappointing dining experience. our waiter was disorganised and got my drink order wrong. everything was excruciatingly slow which was upsetting because the restaurant wasn’t busy. my friend and i ordered lamb shanks with mash which came with a side salad - the lamb was hard and under seasoned and the mash underdone as well. my friend and her twin were celebrating their birthday and the experience was ruined by the slow service and average food.

didn’t have a pleasant experience.

i was at moyo on sunday the 26th of april. i paid the bill at approximately at 4:14pm with the fake slip being process at 4:12pm. i was seated at table 38 i think. the table was out on the deck by the river beside me.

your waiter was probably working with another waiter with dreadlocks. i am saying this because i remember my waiter asking him for a card machine. he then produced a black card machine and processed to swipe away vigorously even though i have a chip card. he eventually put my card in the machine and i proceeded to enter my pin. at this time i received the fake slip which said communication error. this is how your waiter cloned my card and got my pin. he then went inside the restaurant and brought out a green card machine, which is the second slip. this went thru without any issues.

on wednesday while i was home with my family i was notified that r1000.00 was withdrawn from my account. i immediately cancelled my card and traced my transactions.

the following day i called moyo kirstenbosch no fewer than 50 times with no successes. i got thru once to an african man claiming to be the manager, when i explained what happened he immediately put the phone down and i could not get thru after that. i tried calling the head office as well and once again i was unsuccessful.

yesterday i called and asked for the manager and i heard him in the background saying "who the hell is randall"

now i am really not happy about this. first your establishment clones my card, then puts the phone down on me and the i hear a manager say the above about me. is this really the impression you want to give out and how you treat customers?

lovely atmosphere with very friendly and helpful staff. the food was, as was expected, authentically south african which delivered on the promise of the restaurant and cuisine description.

the buffet food was tasteless and meat over cooked. very disappointed. chakala was like tomato sauce. food was cold. over priced for the food. the decor & ambiance was nice. ☹

service was speedy and super efficient. the location is at kirstenbosch, so everything is beautiful!! i enjoyed the whole experience - the warm reception, the amazing interior of the restaurant, the friendly waiters and of course, the entire meal & presentation thereof.

the only downside for me was with the food - i haven't been to moyo in 5 years (last @stellenbosch) and i honestly feel they've lost a lot of the "traditional south african" element that made them so inviting in the first place; and instead, exchanged it for a more "tourist-trappy" type of experience.

i was expecting hearty lamb stews, with sweet, savoury "traditional" dumplings/kluitjies, melt-off-the-bone chicken, etc. ... you know ... warm, deep, rich and friendly south african food we all know... as south africans?  it just wasn't there anymore. 

nothing i had was any better than the food i could prepare in my own kitchen, for my friends... which saddened me a bit... especially considering what the meals cost.

still, a visit is definitely in order. it is well worth the entire experience :)

the quality of food was not good enough compared to the value. service was also very poor. for example staff walked off in the middle when we were ordering. when i pointed out the kids value meal was not added correctly, i was told it’s only a small difference! overall they didn’t seem to care about our poor experience

close to perfect setting in kirstenbosch botanical gardens. warm and welcoming african ambiance with friendly waiters. went with a party of 7 for a late afternoon lunch and service was quick and efficient.

food was excellent. i had the chicken date tagine with moroccan rice. this was well presented and delicious with a fusion of tastes and spices. chicken was on the bone but well cooked and flaked away easily.

my wife had the kraal grill 300g sirloin with potato wedges that she found tasty and cooked exactly as requested.

everyone else was completely satisfied and enjoyed their meals.

all in all a thoroughly enjoyable experience and certainly a restaurant that i can recommend.

although they cater for the pensioners, when it comes to the regular menu, they most definitely cater for the foreigners. the food is extremely overpriced!

however, that being said, their decor is stunning and very consistent throughout, in keeping with the african theme. furthermore their portion sizes (especially their potato chips) is humungous. their “light meals” are most definitely not light.

i had their beef burger which was well prepared and had a distinct homemade taste to it but i struggled to finish it as it was just too much!

their service is incredible - extremely fast and efficient but i’m not sure if my budget will allow me to be back anytime soon.

had lunch at moyo kirstenbosch today. went with a group of colleagues. i had the oxtail pot with steamed bread / dumplings, which was delicious! we ordered the mopane worms as a dare. i didnt really like it. ugh. 2 colleagues had the buffet, which looked like good value for money, but i was quite happy with my fall off the bone oxtail. it was a very hot day, and the place got quite hot, but the setting was so beautiful. pretty nice experience.

such a treat visiting moyo for lunch today! the pathway leading to the restaurant is littered with numerous flowers and geese swimming in the pond while the sunny backdrop with the mountains was the cherry on top! i liked the free face painting too; thought it was a nice touch and made the experience more memorable! my friend and i both ordered sandwiches. she opted for the simply vegetarian sandwich on seed bread and i opted for the prego steak sandwich on pumpkin bread. my sandwich was average. the meat had a lot of fat still on it and the bread was slightly hard. i did enjoy the sauce they put on there though and thought that the chili gave it a nice kick. but in all honesty the sandwiches are overpriced and very plain. i will admit that the relaxed atmosphere of the restaurant made for a lovely lunch with a view. service was also pleasant mostly due the fact that the waitress who served us was very friendly.

beautiful setting with wonderful friendly service- just a pity about the food. i ordered the moyo burger , probably the worst burger i've ever eaten- dodgy tasting meat that was completely raw when it first came out. the rest of our party ordered brisket sandwiches and the kids had sliders and crumbed chicken. i cant honestly say that anyone really enjoyed the meal. it was just pretty average which one wouldn't expect at those prices!

we came here for our 2017 res formal, and i was pleasantly surprised with how great the whole experience was.

the food was great and the portions were generous.

for starters there was a lovely salad and for mains i had a spinach and ricotta pasta, while my date opted for the prawns.

the desert was by far my favourite part though: custard, mouse and petite four.

i would like to come back here for a normal meal just because of how spectacular the view is, but also the service was excellent considering how big our group was.

set in a magnificent location. the service was friendly and prompt service. the food was good, but i was hoping for fresh soft pumpkin bread. heaters would have been welcome today.

an upmarket modern african restaurant in the beautiful settings of kirstenbosch botanical gardens. the decor was great and the ambience, with a large fireplace in the main dining area, makes it feel very homey. service was average and so was the food.

went for the buffet on fathers day. the location in the gardens is beautiful, it's a good way to walk off the food after the amazing by meal. the soup starter was really amazing. the draw card for the adventurous eater is definitely be the crocodile. each course was amazing, the roast veg lacked a bit of flavour. the cocktails were a perfect addition to the meal. the decor is great and the staff is very friendly.