The Service Station Wine Bar

The Service Station Wine Bar is a small paradise in an isolated corner of the Free State. A full service restaurant with slow food based on local ingredients—wherever possible—crafted with love and subtlety. Full meals as well as snack platters and tapas style dishes.

There is an extensive wine list of well-chosen South Africa wines at good prices—the wine cellar is located in the station’s old mechanics pit. We also offer a cocktail menu and an extensive spirits list of artisanal spirits from South Africa’s best craft distillers. Look out for our collection of Canadian whisky’s—South Africa’s largest. In total there are 31 whiskys from Scotland, Ireland, Japan and the US.

Events venue
The Service Station is available as an events venue that can accommodate numbers large and small. We can host large private parties, weddings, sporting and other events. Be in touch to discuss your needs.

Hours:

Fridays: 2-9PM (kitchen closes)
Saturdays: 12-9PM
Sundays: 12-9PM
Monday-Wednesday: 3PM - 7PM (order in menu)
Thursdays: Closed. Or by appointment

A mechanic’s shop and service station was built on this site in 1958, primarily to service farm machinery. The transition from animal drawn to mechanised agriculture in the Rosendal area was nearly complete at this time after most farmers had acquired their first tractors by the mid 1950s. A blacksmith’s shop, located at the back of this property in an old stone barn since the early 1900s, also ceased business around this time, marking the turn of the technological cycle. The mechanic’s shop was one of three such businesses in town, although these shut in the 1980s as Rosendal entered prolonged commercial decline. The service station finally closed its doors in 2000 with the passing of its last proprietor, Gerrit Van Biljon; his wife, Mosele, was a frequent visitor here. Since then the building has had various uses, including as a design studio, a museum and now a wine bar.