Chakalaka

Chakalaka is based on Oldham Street, just down from Caribbean restaurant Turtle Bay, but this independent restaurant is all about adventurous diners looking for something a little less mainstream. Here, you’ll find an impressively uncompromising range of dishes, largely built around imported ingredients and authentic recipes. 

That doesn’t mean there aren’t a few crowd-pleasing dishes in there – the chicken wings are slow-cooked and soft as it gets, the meat sliding off the bone with a single slurp. But everything comes with a Cape-inspired twist: these wings are covered in what the menu cheerfully calls ‘monkey gland sauce’. 

No, it’s not what you think, no monkeys were milked in the making of this meal. It’s Chakalaka’s own take on the popular South African glaze – a thick, sort-of-sweet, sort-of-tangy sauce, very sticky, totally delicious. The origin of the name? Some mad Russian scientist in the 1920s was convinced monkey glands could slow the ageing process, and, well, that’s about as much detail as we’re allowed to go into.

On an entirely unrelated note, the plum-sized cheesy balls are another superb starter. Made with maize, gooey cheese and zingy paprika batter, they come on a bed of the eponymous chakalaka – a sauce so good, they named the place after it. This hearty relish is all about bold, spicy flavours, chunks of vegetables and beans, soused in secret seasonings you’re not going to find down your local Aldi. 

The braai, aka barbecue, is an important part of South African culture, so grilled meat is a must. Go for the meat sosatie – a heavily spiced mix of pork and beef, cooked on a skewer until the outside goes crispy and darkened, while the meat inside is soft, tender and smoky. 

The quality of the meat is up there with the best of them, but it’s all about those aromatic spices – fiery, earthy and peppery. Scoop some up in a handful of pap (a mash-like maize-based carb) then sit back and dream of Cape Town. 

The most memorable and eye-catching dish has to be the bunny chow. Again, no bunnies were harmed in the making. But some cute little lambs were – it’s a hollowed-out loaf of bread, filled with lamb curry. The quarter-loaf bread is gloriously soft – ripping off a piece to dip into the gravy is one of life’s great pleasures – while the curry is deeply rich and pleasingly packed with chunks of slow-cooked ovine. 

But this is a small selection of a wide-ranging, exciting menu that practically demands repeat visits – not least for one of the zingy, well-priced cocktails. Chakalaka is one of the Northern Quarter’s more unique restaurants, offering the very best of South African cuisine in an intimate, friendly space.