Between U & I is setting a smaller table. Its new Between The Toast series swaps sweeping landscapes for three wines, a plate of tapas and the story behind the bottle — starting 15 August at Wild Tree Place.
By Gazette Reporter
There is a new table being set in Gaborone, and this one is deliberately smaller, slower and built entirely around what is in the glass.
Between U & I, the outfit behind the roving Long Table Experience, launches Between The Toast on 15 August at Wild Tree Place — an intimate afternoon of wine, tapas and conversation at P750 a seat.
PRODUCT LED
The Long Table has carried guests from Mogobane to Maun, Chobe and Mokolodi, revealing the country through setting and scale. Between The Toast turns the lens inward. “Where the Long Table is largely destination-led, Between The Toast is product-led,” says founder Uyapo Ketogetswe, describing the format as closer to a pop-up restaurant: fewer people, considered pairings and access to the people who can tell the story behind what is being served. It frees the team to build an entire experience around a single brand, chef or ingredient.
FIRST POUR
The debut partner is Rupert & Rothschild Vignerons, the Franschhoek estate born of two dynasties — the Ruperts of Stellenbosch and the Rothschilds of Bordeaux. Three wines carry the afternoon. Baroness Nadine Chardonnay opens, refined and built for food. Classique sits in the middle, approachable but complex enough to keep a table talking. Baron Edmond closes as what Ketogetswe calls the crescendo, structured enough to make guests slow down. Hosting is Carla Malherbe, the estate’s Global Sales and Marketing Manager, in from the vineyards with the stories to match.
NO CLASSROOM
The tapas are not incidental. Each dish is built to reveal something specific in the glass — acidity, texture, richness, structure. What Ketogetswe is avoiding is the lecture. “Wine can sometimes be presented in a way that makes people feel they need to know the correct terminology before they are allowed to enjoy it,” the founder says. “We want to remove that barrier.” Taste the wine. Taste it with the dish. Notice what changes. Ask why.
WHAT NEXT
The ambition runs past one afternoon: a series of intimate encounters with wine estates, spirit houses, chefs and producers from Botswana and beyond, and a firmer gastronomy culture to go with the country’s landscapes.
Seats are secured by filling in the guest form at https://forms.gle/uH6XsbJT1UsKm1pEA, making payment and sending proof of payment, with your name, to betweenuandibw@gmail.com.