The Legend of Emily Moon

There is a magical place in Plettenberg Bay called The Emily Moon River Lodge.   Eugene and I visited this place where legend swirls and where fiction and fact are so closely interwoven that reality becomes blurred.

We dined in the bewitching Emily's Restaurant.  But first, in order to tell the tale and to set the scene, I shall describe our first impressions as we entered this extraordinary world.

We entered through a stone portal complete with a sculpture of a reclining maiden.  Beyond, a beautiful space and the sound of running water.  A waterfall trickles down stones into a pool partly surrounded by foliage.  A deck with big comfy sofas and chairs is a prelude to the wondrous surprises that await within.

Through carved Indian porticos into the restaurant where candles twinkle in silver candelabra and are reflected in ornately framed mirrors.  Red walls and ceilings with wooden beams and Casablanca fans are the back drop for an assortment of styles of wooden tables and mismatched chairs.  But it is the treasure of art and artifacts everywhere that stops one in one's tracks.  Stone sculptures of Zambezi goddesses, carved elephants, African masks and horns and antlers mounted on the wall.  A beaded Yoruba chair and traditional baskets filled to overflowing with exciting and interesting objects.  Exquisitely framed mirrors and pictures of family and friends and famous people.  At every turn another piece, another surprise.  Glamour comes easily to Africa and its aura is reflected in the Lodge.
 
We were shown to our table by a friendly and courteous waiter, who brought us menus, delicious warm homemade bread and glasses of bubbly that we had ordered.
It is a small menu  and many of the choices depend on what is fresh and available that day.  The kitchen is tiny, incredibly efficient and the food  superb.  I ordered oysters to start and then marinated linefish served with an artichoke and goats cheese salad.  Eugene chose tuna spring rolls and the linefish.

While studying the wine list, I found, printed on an inside page,  messages of love and loneliness exchanged between unknown lovers.  My first encounter with the 'Legend of Emily Moon."

'Oh Emily,
I have found paradise,
As I stand here overlooking
the beautiful wetlands and
Bitou River - I see
you in every bird that flies.
It's all yours Come!
Your everlasting
Harry

Oh Harry
It sounds marvellous
the perfect place
- I long to come
Emily.

What wonderful images of mysterious liaisons, romance and unrequited love are conjured up by those words.  Who is the mysterious Emily and how could this tale be left untold?

We enjoyed a superb meal.   Everything beautifully prepared and beautifully presented.  Larry Steenkamp is the maestro in the kitchen and has been with the Valentine family for 18 years.  We rounded off the meal with a delicate chocolate fondant and excellent coffee.  But I was determined to learn more about this fascinating place.  We booked for lunch a day later and arranged to speak to Werner Kruger who shares his time between managing and cooking.

By day, the setting of the restaurant and the view beyond is breathtaking.  We arrived for lunch with hearty appetites and a burning curiosity.   Werner showed us to a table on the wooden veranda that overlooks a wetland valley and the meandering Bitou river.   In the distance, blue mountains go on forever.  We could have been anywhere in Africa overlooking wetlands.  A lunch guest could be any one of the world-weary characters from 'White Mischief' or possibly Karen Blixen would stop awhile.  We were transported to a bygone era of colonial Africa. 

Werner introduced us to Simon and Di Valentine, the parents of the laird.   And then we were told the story.
Their son Mark Valentine and his wife Christine are the trail-blazers who dreamed up the concept of the Lodge and the myth.  They have adventured in Africa and India and are collectors and international dealers in African and Indian artifacts and collectibles.   Their gallery in Johannesburg, Amatuli Fine Art is a mecca for interior designers from all over the world.  They have spent the last 20 years travelling the length and breadth of Africa and into India searching for the treasures and rare artifacts they love.

They envisioned a lodge, that would reflect their love of Africa and all the legend and myth that Africa evokes.   They presented Simon Valentine with a seemingly impossible task.  Build the lodge as quickly as possible and when it opens it must look 20 years old.  Work started on the 1st of April 2005 and opened on the 15th November of the same year.  The impossible had been achieved.  Simon and Di  run the lodge, while Mark and Christine remain involved with their gallery and their international  interests.

And the legend?  Well that was dreamed up by Mark and Christine. Harry Mallard, their creation, was a 19th century aristocrat, adventurer, big game hunter and lover of women and cut quite a swathe with the ladies.  Africa was his hunting ground and in the course of his travels he met Emily Moon, a fellow traveller and adventurer.  He fell hopelessly and forever in love with this elusive, lovely woman.  He built a lodge for her where she could come and settle her restless spirit.  But she never came.  Illness claimed her and she died.  Harry loved her till the end of his days.  The legend is kept alive at the Emily Moon River Lodge.  When visitors come to stay in any one of the Lodge's wonderful accommodations,  they find a love letter on their pillow, purportedly from Harry to Emily.  Does it matter that reality and fiction are all bound up in one gorgeous whimsical tale?  Of course not.  It is the romance of Africa that captures the imagination.

We enjoyed a delicious lunch that day on the verandah.  We chose a lunchtime favourite, fish and chips.  Beautifully deep fried fish with a crispy batter, Belgian fries and a crisp organic salad.   The lunch menu that day reflected summer tastes.  A thai beef salad; a fig and gorgonzola salad, greek salad and a piquant Portuguese calamari salad. A grilled rump steak served with a herbed mash for meat eaters and prawns either grilled or served with a chorizo and clam pasta. 

It was a pleasure meeting Simon and Di Valentine, the fascinating parents of equally fascinating Mark Valentine.  Mark and Christine Valentine's history is just as intriguing as that of their creation Harry Mallard.   After 10 years in the bush as a game ranger, Mark met Christine while on a safari.  Fortunately their story is a happy one, unlike the star-crossed lovers of their imagination.  I like to believe that the spirit of Harry Mallard exists and that on fine moonlit nights he might pace the verandah waiting for his Emily.

The Emily Restaurant is open for Lunch Tuesday to Sunday
                                                            Dinner Monday to Sunday
Booking is essential, especially in the evening.

Tel:  +27 (0)44 533 2982
Fax: +27 (0)44 533 0687
Email:     info@emilymoon.co.za
Website: www.emilymoon.co.za

Eugene and I love eating out.   We always pay for our meals whenever and wherever we go.