Mornings Before your Bush Adventures

The day begins early and gently. Fresh, hot coffee and hand-crafted biscuits are ready before the first game drive, just enough to take the edge off a pre-dawn start without rushing it. By the time you're back from the morning's tracking and ready for something more substantial, a hearty continental spread and a cooked-to-order breakfast are waiting. After that, it's a good time to take a moment to slow down, to watch the Timbavati riverbed from your suite or the pool deck with coffee in hand, keeping half an eye out in case an elephant, a nyala, or an impala wanders past while you eat.

An African Table

Mid-afternoon usually means lunch: a gourmet spread of African-inspired light bites and tempting treats, a little unexpected, designed to see you through the heat of the day before heading out on the afternoon drive. Evenings turn more considered. Our experience in-house chefs from the local community are masters of home-made recipes. Using local inspiration they craft quietly confident menus, build an indulgent three-course dinner that leans into rustic, home-cooked flavour with a touch of fine-dining brilliance, small details rather than showy ones. With advance notice, our chefs will do their best to go above and beyond for almost any dietary requirement, so a guest never feels like a special case rather than simply a guest.

Dinner Under an African Sky

Depending on the evening, dinner is served around the boma fire or at the dining area on the deck, both looking out over the reserve. If it's cold or raining, we'll move indoors. There's no set formula to which one you'll get: some nights call for the deck's quiet and a clear view of the riverbed, others for the boma's fire and the particular kind of conversation that tends to happen around it after dark. Either way, it's a meal shaped by the bush around it, not scheduled despite it, the unhurried pace that runs through the rest of a stay at Shimungwe.

If good food matters to how you experience a safari, we'd be glad to talk you through a typical day at the table. Get in touch and we'll help you plan your stay. If you have particular dietary requirements, please notify us in advance and our chefs will do their best to go above and beyond to suit most dietary requests and requirements.