Chef Mike Shier is coming home. Having helped earn and retain a Michelin star in London, he is bringing a flavour-first approach to SCAPE, the bistro at VONDELING at Vrymansfontein on the slopes of Paarl Mountain.

"London has been wildly formative beyond my dreams, but the plan has always been to come home to South Africa, where family and friends are," he says. "I feel there's a certain responsibility being South African, having gone abroad and being exposed to so much, to bring that back and share it with a new generation of chefs."

The fact that we have such phenomenal produce to work with here makes this an even more natural and exciting move for me.

— Mike Shier

London experience, Cape instinct

At Notting Hill's Dorian, Mike worked alongside Executive Chef Max Coen, rising to Head Chef as part of the leadership team that earned and kept a Michelin star. In 2026, Dorian ranked third in the UK at the National Restaurant Awards. The restaurant is known for confident cooking and a lively neighbourhood atmosphere, a balance of exacting standards and the easy pleasure of dining out that will inform Mike's approach at SCAPE.

Before Dorian, Mike worked with the South African-inspired Kudu Collective. He was Head Chef at the popular Kudu restaurant in Peckham, then part of the team that launched the fire-based Kudu Grill. Before that, he led the kitchen at Cape Town's Hog House Brewing Company, where he developed his skills in smoking, barbecue and wood-fired cooking.

A bistro with a view

SCAPE sits on a working almond farm, looking across a sweeping landscape to the Simonsberg and Table Mountain. From the covered terrace, big skies, farmland and distant mountain silhouettes open up. Inside, the considered design draws on the colours and textures of the surrounding countryside.

It is a place to take in the view, order another glass and give lunch the afternoon it deserves. With Vondeling wines on the table and the Winelands stretching out beyond, the setting gives Mike's cooking a strong sense of place.

Bistronomy with room to explore

What draws Mike to bistro cooking is its freedom: the chance to follow an ingredient, test an idea and let a menu evolve naturally. He wants food that is delicious, flavour-forward and moreish, built on classical foundations but open to influences wherever they make a dish better. Bistronomy, serious and technically accomplished cooking served with the ease of a bistro, is a fitting description of that philosophy.

My background means there will always be classical technique in the cooking, but I also draw inspiration from much further afield. I'm just as comfortable working with shio koji or garum as I am with waterblommetjies, bokkoms or rooibos. Ultimately, it comes down to whether it makes the food taste better.

— Mike Shier
Smeul

The region's farms, orchards, coastline and wild landscapes will feed the menu. A planned Cape Pantry will capture ingredients at their seasonal best, with vinegars, konfyt, ferments, atchars, cordials, pickles and preserves carrying those flavours into the months ahead. A frequent forager during his years in the UK, Mike is also keen to explore local wild ingredients.

Fire will remain part of his repertoire, too. "I love the primal and analogue nature of cooking with fire, but it also requires a lot more skill to work with it successfully, particularly in a restaurant," he says.

For guests, the promise is thoughtful food with character in a welcoming, relaxed atmosphere, whether for a long lunch with friends or dinner with a favourite bottle.

A homecoming with purpose

Mike's ambitions go beyond the menu. He wants to share his experience, develop young chefs and build a kitchen where curiosity is encouraged and people feel valued.

"Leadership is a huge part of running a successful restaurant. I want Vondeling at Vrymansfontein to be a place that attracts those who want to learn, cook great food and feel valued as individuals and team members," he says.

His arrival brings fresh momentum to the estate, pairing a chef returning with experience and ideas to a remarkable landscape and a restaurant ready to give those ambitions a home.

Mike Shier's SCAPE menu launches on 13 November 2026. To reserve a table and find out more about VONDELING at Vrymansfontein, visit www.vondeling.com.

Vondeling and Vrymansfontein have always shared one story, and now Vondeling's wines and Vrymansfontein's hospitality share one name. The wines are made at the sister estate in the Voor-Paardeberg, about 25 kilometres away, while Vrymansfontein is the home of hospitality in the Paarl Valley, encompassing SCAPE, Tree Bar, The Shed, Vondeling Cellar Door and private gatherings.