Swallows Inn
Address: 6 Commissioner Street, CBD. Tel: (011) 838 2946
This is Jhb’s oldest surviving Chinese restaurants and was founded around the 1940’s. I was referred here by friends who said that the food was amazing and reasonably priced. So we trekked down Commissioner Street one Friday night. Parking on the road but there was a security guard who meanders the pavements. You can’t miss the entrance, some vivid green is happening there.
They have an upstairs (we sat here) and a downstairs. The downstairs is for hardcore Chinese food eaters- the tables are more family sized and we saw lots of cute Chinese kids running around. We had a great meal and they also do take-away!
Bismillah
Address: 82 Mint Street, Fordsburg. Tel: (011) 838 6429
So we headed through during Ramadan and the place was just a massive family gathering. One big, extended reunion. Mothers and daughters walking out with giant pots to celebrate the end of day. Apparently you can do that there, bring your pot, top up and head out. It was amazing. We shared samosas to start and then a chicken bunny chow and mutton briyani. We ended the evening with a “Bombay Crush”. The bunny chow was by far the best bunny I’ve had in years and Mint Street was alive with kids playing foosball and locals walking around. My kind of spot.
Canteen
Address: Arts on Main (you don’t need an address)
We love this place! And not just because one of us lives in the building down the road. Canteen was discovered on 10 April 2010 and it has shown its worth for coffees, lunches and dinners time and time again. The menu is small but I get overwhelmed by too many pages and over one year later, I am still working my way through the menu. Coffee is great and so are the cocktails. They make Pimms which made me happy.
A favourite to eat is the Canteen Burger which is a deconstructed burger served on a chopping board.
