Review: 44 on Ennis Guest Lodge & Restaurant, Ermelo, Mapumalanga

Can you even remember what we did before TripAdvisor and Booking.com? – and one has to wonder, how did small, good hostelries get the promotion they deserved? A case in point is 44 on Ennis, where we spent one night en route to a wedding in Modimolle (previously Nylstroom).

Though it’s my first visit to Ermelo – and probably the last, to be honest – I do have a link to the area. My maternal grandmother, Christina Painter, née Louwrens (“Stienie” to her peers, “Ma” to us), grew up on a farm in nearby Amsterdam in the early 1900s, along with 12 older siblings, before her parents retired to the small town of Newcastle in what is now KwaZulu-Natal. So I was keen on visiting Amsterdam (around 77km from Ermelo), but our B&B host, Peter Maherry, most earnestly advised us not to; it has a church, a liquor store and one stop street, he warned; “You will be disappointed.”

This is the only photograph I have of my maternal grandmother, Ma, as a young woman; she grew up on a farm in Amsterdam, near Ermelo. This was taken circa 1931 with my grandfather, Jack Painter — This is the only photograph I have of my maternal grandmother as a young woman; she grew up on a farm in Amsterdam, near Ermelo. This was taken *circa* 1931 with my grandfather, Jack Painter

Peter and his wife, Nikki, built the place themselves about six-and-a-half years ago. It’s a pleasing hotchpotch of pebbles – lots of pebbles! – slate, tile and glass mosaic; she’s an artist, and all the paintings are her work.

Apart from the food, it’s the extraordinary intimacy of Peter and Nikki’s service that makes 44 on Ennis so memorable. After pre-dinner drinks with several other guests in front of a cosy fire in the courtyard, the couple cook and serve everything themselves from a short but interesting menu that changes every two days.

Sanele is an accountant who's developed a passion for the kitchen - and for customer service — Sanele (right) came to 44 on Ennis as an accountant, but soon developed a passion for the kitchen – and for customer service, says Peter

There's nothing like a sundowner G&T in front of a crackling fire — There’s nothing like a sundowner G&T in front of a crackling fire

Eating

My super-thick fillet of beef tenderloin (R189, US$14) is cooked directly on the courtyard fire along with its coal-baked jacket potato, and comes perfectly medium rare, just as ordered. Roy’s kingklip* (R220) is baked to just-done perfection in the West Coast oven – similar to a pizza oven, and built around a 50-gallon drum – that is Peter’s latest baby. Both dishes come with a gorgeously rich tagine of mixed vegetables. (Other main course options include an innovative rooibos-smoked sole, and flame-grilled prawns.)

*Kingklip is a distinctive local fish, a member of the eel family, that was virtually fished out for a couple of decades before it made its recent comeback to sustainability

I photograph food only in daylight – it tends to look drecky otherwise, unless you’ve got proper lighting equipment. So you’ll have to be content with this breakfast photo (below): poached eggs, bobotie (a traditional South African-Malay dish of minced meat, onions and breadcrumbs flavoured with dried fruit and spices and baked with a creamy egg topping) and baked beans with fresh basil. Splendid!

For breakfast, you "build your own feast" - mine is poached eggs, bobotie, and baked beans with basil — For breakfast, you “build your own feast” – mine is poached eggs, bobotie, and baked beans with fresh basil

Accommodation

A big, comfortable room with two beds; perfect for the partners of blanket-hoggers

Our spacious room (number 4) had two double beds, a proper wardrobe, two comfortable armchairs, a desk and a shower-room. The free Wi-Fi worked well, including in our room. Maintenance could be improved, however: non-functional electric adaptors fixed or replaced; noisy plumbing attended to, and loose tap fittings made secure. Air-conditioning would be nice, and we’d also suggest thicker curtains to block out the bright security lights outside.

Value

Excellent: R625 (US$45) for the room; R750 for our G&Ts, two courses each and a nice bottle of red; and R75 for two breakfasts!