What to Expect Dining at The Elephant Cafe in Zambia

The best experiences are often the ones you stumble into. I was scrolling through the list of activities offered by SafPar (Safari Par Excellence) while trying to figure out what to do on my first afternoon in Livingstone when the Elephant Cafe caught my eye. I had booked two nights at the Victoria Falls Waterfront Lodge, where SafPar is based, and my flight got in early enough that I had a full day to fill before the real exploring began.

I was visiting in May. The Zambezi was brimming, the Falls were full, and several low-water season activities were still on pause. Dining at the Elephant Cafe seemed like the perfect way to spend the afternoon. I was right.

Getting your Booking in Order

When I reached out to SafPar by email, I opted for the high tea experience. Their website listed a minimum of two people for dinner, and at the time, no other bookings were on the books. After following up, I was told that a couple had tentatively signed up, which was enough to secure my spot. By the time I checked in and went to make payment, a few more people had joined.

The experience can fill up while you’re still in Livingstone, so if you’re serious about going, I recommend not leaving it for the last minute.

The Ride Out: Road vs. Boat Transfer

At 4 pm, I walked to the David Livingstone hotel reception to await pickup. SafPar offers a three-tiered experience: arrival by jetboat or road transfer, an elephant interaction with the rescued herd, and a five-star gourmet meal. The fee covers everything end-to-end: the pickup and return, the meal, drinks, the elephant interaction, and an on-site photographer to document the whole thing. That last touch was a very lovely, thoughtful detail.

SafPar gives you two arrival options. I went with the road option, which takes about 20 minutes and costs a little less. However, if I go back during the dry season, I am absolutely taking the boat. Travelling by river with the chance of spotting wild elephants, giraffes, hippos, and crocodiles on the banks of the Zambezi feels like a free safari!

Meeting the Rescued Herd

Our bus arrived before the boat group. We were welcomed with fresh, cold drinks, then invited inside for a quick briefing and to sign an indemnity form while we waited for the river group to arrive. Once everyone was together, a staff member led us out to meet the elephants and their dedicated handlers.

Before getting close, we received a short briefing on how to safely interact with them. We were given bags of healthy treats and fed them either through their trunks or directly into their mouths, with handlers expertly guiding every step of the process.

A Brief History of the Elephant Cafe & Its Sanctuary

The Elephant Cafe seats only 24 people at a time and sits on a gorgeous wooden deck over the Zambezi River. This beautiful riverside location has a deep history, serving as a sanctuary for this specific herd of hand-reared elephants for decades. It is currently the only restaurant in the region where guests can interact with elephants while dining on world-class, locally sourced food.

The Origins of the Rescue Herd

The foundation of the entire experience is its resident herd. They are an eclectic family consisting of three generations of rescued, orphaned, or displaced elephants, each carrying a unique backstory:

• The Zimbabwe Roots (2002): The oldest members of the herd – such as the massive bulls Danny and Bop – were originally rescued as calves during severe culls and droughts in Zimbabwe in the 1960s and 1980s. They were raised by the late conservationist Clem Coetzee. In 2002, as Zimbabwe faced significant political and economic challenges, the herd and several of their trusted handlers were moved to Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in Zambia, where Safari Par Excellence assumed responsibility for their care.
• The Next Generation: Other younger elephants have since been born into the herd or have naturally assimilated from the wild. This includes Sekuti, a wild calf who chose to leave his wild herd to follow this resident family onto the grounds from a nearby island.

The Shift to Ethical Eco-Tourism (2016)

Historically, the operation’s primary source of revenue came from elephant-back safaris and guided walks through the surrounding bush. As conservation practices and animal welfare standards evolved, however, both Zambia and Safari Par Excellence phased out elephant riding in favour of a better ethical tourism model.

Caring for a resident elephant herd is an enormous undertaking, requiring significant resources to provide food, veterinary care, and long-term protection. To help fund these efforts, the Elephant Café was established in 2016.

The interactions now are calm, gentle, and closely supervised, but there is no escaping the raw scale of the animal before you.

The Meal…

When the interactions wrapped up, we washed our hands and walked back to the restaurant to find champagne waiting. Always a good sign!

The head waiter gave us a thorough and clearly passionate overview of both the cafe and the elephants. He spoke about the history of how each animal came to be there, how the cafe was founded, and how they approach the menu. The setting felt less like a restaurant and more like a dinner party.

All of the ingredients are sourced from within twenty kilometres of the Elephant Cafe itself. The kitchen uses wild edibles that the elephants also eat, including Mongongo nuts, which are turned into ice cream for guests. The menu changes with the seasons and whatever the chefs can source fresh on the day.

On the night I visited, the four courses were a bowl of nuts as an appetiser, a soup starter, a main, and dessert. Every plate looked like it had been given proper attention, and the portions were satisfying. After all the hype from the waiter, I was convinced the food couldn’t possibly live up to expectations. Somehow, it did. It was genuinely good.

When dinner was done, we climbed into separate buses heading back to our different hotels. Full stomachs, good company for a few hours, and memories that would certainly not fade away quickly.

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Elephant Cafe FAQ

If you’re spending time in Livingstone and wondering whether visiting the Elephant Cafe is worth the price of admission, the answer is yes! Go. Book early, take the boat if you can, and say hello to the oldest bull from me.