Traveling Spoon

Kimberly and I arrived at a quaint cottage on a farm outside of Stellenbosch, South Africa eager for our first assignment. Jaatje, Hanneke, and Willem, whom are all approximately our age, greeted us with local wine and after pleasantries and socializing, we sat down and enjoyed a traditional braai (South African for “BBQ”). Throughout the afternoon, Kimberly had a prepared list of questions for the hosts and I documented the whole event with over five hundred photos. 

Three days later, we arrived at our second assignment. In a busy neighborhood outside Cape Town, we were welcomed into the home of Gillian and Richard. Gillian is a trained chef and both are entrepreneurs with a handful of businesses and restaurants throughout the area. Our meal with Gillian and Richard was equally as delicious as our earlier meal with Jaatje, Hanneke, and Willem. Again, Kimberly asked her questions and I filled our camera’s memory card.

Willem braais pork chops,  boerwors (similar to sausage), sweet potato, and corn on the open fire. Cooking on the fire is such a big deal in South Africa that they have a National Braai Day.  

"A photo of the host serving" is one of requirements to submit for the host's profile. 

Jaatje grates for a beetroot salad.

While researching world travel and things to do in foreign countries, our appreciation for new culinary experiences caused Kimberly to stumble upon a company called Traveling Spoon. A relatively young start-up based out of San Francisco, Traveling Spoon is basically the "AirBnB of food."

Traveling Spoon was founded by two Stanford classmates, Aashi and Stephanie, whose goal is to pair travelers with local hosts for an alternative experience while traveling. Instead of staying safely on the beaten path and eating a dish that tourists have raved about on a review site, you can have a meal prepared personably, and even learn how to cook a dish in the comfort of a local’s home.

With Traveling Spoon, you simply choose one of three options: 1) have a meal cooked for you by your host 2) learn, prepare, and help cook a meal along with your host or 3) fully immerse yourself in the food and culture by visiting local markets, foraging for ingredients, and then preparing and enjoying.

Off Menu: Kimberly and I had such a good time with Jaatje and her friends that she prepared a dessert to keep us around for a bit longer. Caramelized oranges with chocolate, nuts, and seeds served with a sip of lemon liquor.  

Most Traveling Spoon hosts have a Rolodex of family recipes and use the network to share their passion, meet and entertain traveling guests, and earn some supplemental income in the process. What sets Traveling Spoon apart from other similar experiences is the host vetting process. Prior to the first guest enjoying a Thai curry in a suburban neighborhood of Singapore, a representative of Traveling Spoon will personally vet the host and make sure they, and the experience, are of the highest quality.

This is what led Kimberly and me into the homes of these wonderful people in Stellenbosch and Cape Town. Because Traveling Spoon is expanding so rapidly, Aashi and Stephanie can no longer travel the world and vet each host personally. They now use “Ambassadors” in the countries they are growing their markets to meet with the hosts, make sure the neighborhood is safe, the home and kitchen are clean, the hosts are friendly and knowledgable about the culinary culture of the area, and above all, the food is delicious.

Richard prepares a delicious Bobotie, a curried mince meat dish with an egg custard topping.

Richard and Gillian

Earlier in the year, Kimberly and I meet Aashi in San Francisco and became Ambassadors for Traveling Spoon. Part of the process was to share our travel plans and determine if there were any overlaps with future hosts. Fortunately for us, there were a couple of hosts in South Africa that were awaiting the vetting process.

In exchange for a complimentary meal and local introductions, Kimberly and I visit the hosts and provide photos and website content to Traveling Spoon. Aashi and her team then take our digital content and create a host profile for use on their website. At the moment, South Africa is not yet online but once more hosts join, our ambassadorship work will be available for the world to “travel off the eaten path.”

For more information about this awesome company or to book an experience the next time you travel, visit www.travelingspoon.com.