From Gatsbys to burgers, pizzas and everything in between, Mitchells Plain restaurants and take-way businesses are doing a booming trade. Local food outlets have popped up in almost every neighbourhood in the area.
The Grillfather in Westridge was one of the first burger joints to make its mark in the area when it opened in 2016. Shane and Tina Swiegelaar had no idea that their brand would quickly grow as word spread about the menu. Shane died last year and since then Tina has been running the business which includes a burger joint in Woodstock and Kuils River, which she has franchised.
She said: “Grillfather is part of the DNA in Mitchells Plain and we are part of this community from day one.” When the lockdown was first announced last year, Grillfather had to close and reopen according to the regulations.
Swiegelaar said: “Business was good, but we needed to give back so I started a weekly soup kitchen… it’s still going. My parents make the soup every Saturday and at 3pm we dish it out to the community.”
The menu is constantly growing at Grillfather and Swiegelaar said they had a delivery service in place now. “Tafelsig and Eastridge are very popular neighbourhoods for us, because deliveries are scarce and we deliver there.”
In Rocklands, Anwar and Gabriella Arendse, who started The Hood Kitchen in 2018, have a similar story of success. Their business grew from a catering event. One weekend they made burgers from their home from the leftovers of an event. It was a success.
Anwar said they have proudly built their brand: “We have the gourmet takeways, fresh and frozen foods… The company recently launched digital marketing.
He was thankful that lockdown was a surprise boost for their business: “ We have grown immensely in the past year and seen an increase in sales.”
He added: “Just this weekend I told the staff there has even been an increase in new customers. We have seen a lot of customers return and the business is more profitable. People are really buying into the local is lekker theme that we have and that is what we’re all about.”
Rihaart and Iptishaam Syms who founded M&D Pizza from their home in Colorado believe that community support has been at the heart of their success.
M&D stands for Mikhail and Dayaan, named after the couple’s two eldest children (they now have three) and their business was built on the foundation of Rihaart’s father’s legacy.
He said: “The business is built around the legacy of my father who had his own pizza business from 1990 until 2001. He owned Pizza Time and then he passed away in a robbery that went bad in 2001.”
Rihaart added: “In 2009 I decided to start this business and continue my father’s legacy. We planned it and in 2010 during the soccer World Cup we started the business.”
The businessman said it was always the support of residents that fuelled them and during the lockdown: “For the first ten years we were just trading with pizzas. Last year we built a separate space and did burgers. It’s more about everyone supporting each other and small businesses… When we started, we had only two staff (members), today we have 15 -17 staff.”
In Strandfontein, the owner of Wajid’s Chicken Tikka and Take-Aways, Wajid Rasool, is proud that his brand has expanded to three eateries including in Lentegeur, Mitchells Plain and in Grassy Park. What started in 2003 with a simple braai stand in Strandfontein has blossomed into a boom township food business.
Rasool said: “You can see the changes in the lockdown, but we are holding our heads above water and keeping our staff employed.”
He has more than 50 people working for him. “The people of Strandfontein are like a family for us and without them we wouldn’t be there,” he said.
He added: “We recently started making the roti Gatsby, a crunch burger and the club steak…a nd again we stick to big portions, quality and value for money.”
The recipe for success in Mitchells Plain is to build an authentic food business that has people at the heart of it.