Sushi On Menu Gives Diners Another Reason To Visit African Swiss Restaurant!
Thursday 14 January 2010
By Hartie Eater

that I have never been disappointed with the food, indeed it’s always been of an exceptional standard. And that is what one expects from the Swiss! Add to that a passion for food, an uncompromising use of only the best ingredients and exciting additions to the menu such as sourdough pizza, and now sushi, to suit different tastes, and owner Mike Manegold still has a winning formula. Testimony to that is the fact that besides his local fans, regular customers travel from Sandton and Pretoria to eat at his restaurant. There is also a local delivery service for their extremely popular pizzas.

On the Wednesday night before Christmas we decided to celebrate the festive season with two friends and had dinner at African Swiss. Being a Wednesday, there was Minx on the violin to add some soothing melodies to the atmosphere, all in complete harmony with the culinary offerings. Being a typical calm starlit African night, we opted to sit outdoors. My partner is a great sushi fan and knowing Mike as a perfectionist, the sushi we knew would be as good as it gets. I, never an aficionado of raw fish, was willing to give it a go and our friends also opted for the sushi as starter. I must admit I could be converted into a sushi fan if it were all like this. A sushi platter for four served as a perfect starter for everybody.

Besides all the main dishes on the menu that we have known and still love, there was Scottish Salmon, directly imported, on ice which one of our friends decided to have, succulent pork ribs for the constant carnivore among us, Veal Cordon Bleu and I had the Gnocchi Moussaka.

Fresh ingredients
As mentioned before in another write up, Mike purchases his own animals and has them raised to his exacting standards so that he knows their provenance exactly. This is one of the very few restaurants in South Africa to serve veal - most are simply substitutes - presented as the real thing! Fresh ingredients, organically grown and free range poultry and eggs make dining out here more than just a pleasant experience! Mike’s motto is: Eat less, but eat good fresh food made from the best ingredients. Breads are baked on the premises and sauces freshly made. There wasn’t a morsel of food left on any of our plates after the mains but as always, two of us had desserts, I won’t say which two. These were the black cherry and Waldorf ice creams, made by the ice cream maker in Magaliesberg which is the closest you’ll get to home made hand made ice cream - they were simply scrumptious as well. The other two who opted out of dessert had cappuccino and Dom Pedro.

So often one eats out, only to be bitterly disappointed as for instance we

were in Franschoek at the highly acclaimed Le Quartier Francaise. (Whoever was responsible for what we experienced there, should book in at African Swiss for master classes.) Often one returns to a good restaurant only to be disappointed by one of the offerings which is not up to standard. But never here, and its success can be ascribed to talent, enthusiasm, a thorough grounding in the culinary arts, always under the control of a hands-on presence. African Swiss is one of the few restaurants where we’ve always had superb food. Thank you Mike!

The Bill:
Drinks: 3 Bells whisky, 2 Still Water, 1 Juice, 2 Rietvallei Chardonnay: R323
Food: 2 Complete Sushi Menus to share between four: R276
1 Scottish Salmon R120
1 Pork Ribs: R96
1 Veal Cordon Bleu: R89
1 Gnocchi Moussaka: R68
1 Waldorf, 1 Black Cherry Ice Cream: R50
2 Dom Pedro: R 56
1 Cappuccino: R18

African Swiss is in Broederstroom on the R512 above Pecanwood. Open 7 Days A Week for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Tel: 083 476 0507