Local Grill (from October 2003)

[randomness]

I was walking around Melville, one of the many neighborhoods in Johannesburg that have nightlife, sidewalk cafes, and plenty of street-side security to make it all possible. As I walked down the street past bars that reminded me of Georgetown, and funky shops that reminded me of Melrose in LA, I stopped to look at the menu of the Local Grill, a serious-looking steakhouse.

The manager came out and pointed out a few highlights of the menu. I noticed they weren't open yet and asked what time they'd start serving dinner, and he asked if I wanted to book a table. "I'll be back," I said, meaning it, because steak now sounded like a great idea.

I went around the corner to a used bookstore that also had internet. While killing some time I decided I'd check the reviews for the place. They were uniformly excellent.

Well, I thought, I know where I'm having dinner.

Local Grill
corner 3rd Avenue and 7th Street
Melville, Johannesburg 2092
Gauteng, South Africa
tel: +27.11.726.2890/740.9250
fax: +27.11.726.2247
email: localgrill@global.co.za
M-F: lunch
M-Sa: dinner (starts around 1800)
closed Sunday

menu visible at: http://www.eating-out.co.za/member_menu.asp?MemberID=2208
(private parking available on 3rd Ave, or guarded street parking available on 7th St.)

This is a first-rate steakhouse. The grain-fed beef is aged on the premises, and the staff know their business. The waiters are helpful and polite in explaining the differences between the different cuts of beef. While the menu is simple, it was still extremely useful to have such details explained. The wine steward was equally knowlegable and helpful. She produced a nice local red that really went well with the excellent steak.

I started with their ostrich salad (R38, $5.50), which was much larger than I'd expected. Nonetheless, it was a fine start. After a bit of consultation with the waiter I decided on the 1/3 kg rump steak (R72, $10.25). This was one of the best steaks I have ever eaten. The wine was one of their showcase wines, and a glass was under R15 ($2.15).

Be sure to try their spice-herb rub, a specialty of the house. They sent me home with a small jar of it.

Truly, this was an amazing meal. It easily could have cost double or triple the price back home.

People ask me why I spent so much time in Johannesburg. Go to this restaurant and have dinner. Then you tell me.

Comments

[lordjulius.livejournal.com]

Hey Randomness, it's Z from dino. I'm gonna be traveling in Europe for two months soon (Aprilish) and I was wondering if you had any perspective on how an Asian-American is treated over there. I noticed you comment on racism during your travels occasionally. Did you ever have problems in Europe?

[r-ness.livejournal.com]

Heya, Z. Good to hear from you.

Did you ever have problems in Europe?

So, the only place I remember running into trouble was in the UK. And that may have been because I was walking with a white woman (another American, as it turned out, but the guys who shouted racial comments didn't know that). Nothing overt has ever happened to me anywhere else, not even in places which have a reputation for being racist, like Eastern Germany or parts of Russia. And I've certainly never gotten beaten up, like one of my white friends was, in St. Petersburg.

Wait, there were some comments in the Netherlands, but again, that was because I was with a white woman.

I guess some European racists are kinda touchy about that.

[lordjulius.livejournal.com]

Thanks! That's reassuring.