Is Roger the new Henri? Hopefully. Roughly a decade ago when Joburg’s happy and gay district on Henri Street, Braamfontein, closed all it’s doors, we thought we were doomed to the northern suburbs forever. Now Roger Road in Selby, on the southern side of the CBD, is home to two new gay bars, Rawbar and SimplyBlue. Nestled in between CitrusLounge and Lemon8, Rawbar is a welcome and stylish addition to Joburg’s rather flaccid gay scene (which includes Risque in Fourways). The CitrusLounge crew have again shown their skills at creating spaces that are conducive to, um, crowded and fun times. Promoted as an “all male cruise and booze bar”, this place isn’t for girls. Or sissies.
If your idea of nightlife is about nineties nostalgia then The Oxford on Oxford Road, Illovo is the place for you. If you’re impressed by heavily made-up bottle blondes and mammoth bouncers in ’smart’ shoes, then this club will be right up your alley. Problem is – it’s not up an alley. It’s in a office block/car-park/restaurant court. You even have to exit the club and face the fluorescent lighting of the centre to get to the loo. Clubbing in Johannesburg is best when it’s about downtown discos, sublime djs, sexy views and no pretension. The Oxford feels more like a pop-up club with dated trimmings. Thumbs down.
Ko’s Spotong have got it very right. Using the true nature of the inner city (ie the hippest African vibe), add a chain of bar/restaurants around the city and you needn’t bother pretending you’re anywhere else except in Africa. The real Africa, not the one where you feel as if you’re in a theme park and you need to get your face painted in little white dots and flowers to convince yourself, aka Moyo.
While at the same time it also manages to be quite different from Jobusy favourites like Mamas Shebeen and Mama Tembos in that it’s far less conceptual, it’s just itself. No funny business.
The concept is simple; get a bunch of happy people drunk, and then only play the best sing-along songs. A little on the expensive side, but the customers are encouraged to dance on the tables…
If I had one night to entertain a foreigner that was young and hip like myself, I wouldn’t think twice about taking them to a place like Mama’s Shebeen.
Not to be confused with Mama Tembos in Linden. Both are of a similar concept and both equally as cool. Mama’s Shebeen is smack in the middle of the Greenside Strip.
The style is one that successfully recreates a typical bar within a South African township. For the foreign folk reading this, this type of bar is commonly known as a Shebeen. The hand-painted product placement and bright mismatched furniture are just some of the aesthetics we’ve come to celebrate as unique South African design. They often have live music, and I’ve seen some makeshift dancefloor action. What’s truly great however, is its middle positioning between Gin and Tokyo Star. This serves as an airy pit-stop between the sweat and smoke, as well a great chance to bump into people you know mid bar hop.
PS: don’t bother eating here though.
found on the Greenside Strip on Gleneagles Ave. Here’s their official site
For the large part, Fratelli is a good old-school reliable family restaurant. The menu the simple, unpretentious Italian. In the early evening on weekdays, expect families with little kids running around. It’s happy and pleasant. As night falls, and the weekend rolls around , the strip’s party excess spills over into Fratelli. This is especially the case with the upstairs balcony area.
Fratelli is notorious for its cocktail jugs. Get your hands on monster Mojitos, Caipirinhas and most other dangerous-sounding cocktails. All for half price on Sundays too… They are also well enjoyed when accompanied by some live music.
Circle bar is effectively the lobby bar of the new and improved Rosebank Hotel. Immediately appealing are the booths shown in the image above. Whats not appealing is the price you gonna have to pay for the beer you’re drinking. But if you ok with that, you’ll have a great time, because a lot sits in its favour.
The design is great (check out the menu and you’ll understand) as well as the back of the bar has used some great images of the city. So you really feel like your inside a Johannesburg cocktail bar, and not anywhere else. Why I personally enjoy it, is that Rosebank as a shopping district, seems to have a somewhat early closing hour (we’re talking round 11 ish) so when you still feel like that one last drink, you know that Circle bar will accommodate you for a couple of extra hours.
Following the momentum of Twist, and Mapungubwe Hotel, Darkie Cafe blossoms as another reason to have faith in the inner city regeneration. Also en suite to another world class hotel, Darkie Cafe is all kinds of classy. Found just up the road from the Mapungubwe, the Banking district of town is shaping up to be like New York’s Upper East Side. Great food, and all around great in shaping a positive image of Johannesburg for all the foreigners coming to stay in the Hotel. Having personally worked on the streets of the banking district long after sunset (shooting a film, not working the streets), I can proudly report on the area’s safety. You find guards on almost every corner, and the area is kept clean.
Great spot on the 7th Street strip. Up at the top of the street. The place is themed to be a little bit of Mozambique right here in Jozi. I strongly recommend ordering a Laurentina as your beer of choice. Everytime Im there Im taken back to my days trawling Maputo, buying sea food at the fish market, running into policemen, and playing capoeira until the sun sets!
Originally in Greenside, Mama Tembo’s can now be found in the somewhat underrated suburb of Linden. There’s a little bit of strip happening there, and apart from the recently added Cantina Tequila, at night the party is found in and out of these two venues. But this being said, its doing really well. they host an open mic night every sunday from 3pm, where they welcome buskers. Apart from that, they’re open every day from 10am till late, and all products you inside you can purchase.
The idea is simple. In order to truly love something, you first have to understand it. Johannesburg is no different in this regard.
Connect with the real city through those who live and play here. The result? A catalogue of Johannesburg like no other.
