Ladies and gentlemen .... it’s Showtime!
Iwas yesterday years-old when I discovered that the recent live music events I have been seeing advertised are hosted at Molapo Crossing at a venue called The Showcase. I called on a friend to enquire about the restaurant there for my next review and she enlighten me to say, it’s now The Showcase Café and they host live events. I must admit I was slightly confused at what this set up might be. It just so happened I had a date night to go watch one of All Things Musical instalments, Obizzy Live at Showcase. Super excited for the gig, it was phenomenal to experience the venue from that standpoint. Showcase is about showcasing a myriad of things, culinary, beverage, performance and theatrical. Catering for all levels of art and performance. Is how the management describes it and this is achieved by having one space that provides different opportunities, Molapo Crossing; Showcase Piazza, Showcase Theatre, Showcase Café and Showcase Bar.
We enjoyed an incredible first half of the show, lots of love and homage paid to Hip Hop and Motswako. An outstanding exhibition of art by Obbizy and the band. They absolutely brought the house down. Hip Hop is everything; it brings people together and fuses different genres to create and advocate for change and hope. Waitresses diligently took drink orders during the show and we enjoyed refreshments until the intermission where one has an opportunity to grab something to eat.
After seeing and sharing pleasantries, I made my way over to the counter to assess the menu; they have one for food and one for drinks. My eyes often gravitate towards prices before seeing what is on offer, its best to appreciate if you can afford offerings, the prices are accessible.
The design and layout is just perfect; it communicates what the venue is, very smart I thought, the vision to channel art and culture presents itself through everything. Openers, which are breakfasts, Boosters with Light Meals and Fillers, which are slightly heavier with burgers, all show lingo. I was introduced to Chef Thabang who took me through his menu with a recommendation of the Mosutlhane and Spicy Chicken Bowl, a fusion of Tswana cuisine and Mexican cuisine.
We also ordered a Beef Burger, which we would later hear great feedback of from patrons who had enjoyed both the Chicken and Beef burgers before. They thought the Beef burger has a large patty, which is still juicy and is cooked really well. He also spoke highly of the crisp in the crispy chicken burger and was adamant you have to have it at the restaurant; equally tasty as a takeaway the crisp may reduce. The chef accounts this to the packaging and also believes its best enjoyed live. I enjoyed my Mosutlhane and Spicy Chicken Bowl before chatting a little bit to chef. I have mentioned in the past I am a huge fan of Mexican food so this meal defiantly got my attention. I have probably had this Tswana grain three times before and so I was anxiously curious. I am very aware of its health benefits, which many overlook and that it falls in the same group as your couscous’ and quinoa. I couldn’t fault the dish, my only concern as a huge avo fan was that avocado is seasonal and it is a significant part of the dish in that it adds to the technicolour presentation and balances the spicy notes. This bowl is palatable, the different elements pop with flavours, sweet corn, relish it all brings this traditional grain to life. Its commendable I add that there is a version with Tofu. I shared my bowl with my photographer for the evening Batho Motlhake of Chocolate Brown. He thought it was a beautiful meal; nice, light but bursting with flavour. The chicken breast was nicely grilled with a sauce. The Mosutlhane was beautifully cooked and quite wholesome. The avo, beetroot, mealies and vegetables on the side added to the flavour. A good light meal, which could go down with a chilled chardonnay.
The chef is self-taught and has been in the industry for a couple years. He loves to experiment and his vision is to bring Tswana Cuisine and Fine Dinning together. A great “act”. A noble deed indeed, a lot of Setswana food is very healthy but is cooked ‘traditionally’. Its high time like chef we start to appreciate dijo tsa setso and be excited to experiment with them. He is very intentional with his vision and I believe this young chef is going to wow a lot of us as he continues to develop this menu.
The café is open at 7am10pm Tuesday through Sunday. Don’t let this curtain go down without you seeing this show.