Restaurant review: Marble, Johannesburg

Chef David Higg’s long-awaited new restaurant Marble has recently opened. The top chef fires up the grill to flame-cook everything from steak to sugar cane, writes Andrew Unsworth

28 August 2016 - 02:00 By Andrew Unsworth

David Higgs, formerly of Five Hundred at The Saxon and Rust en Vrede in Stellenbosch, is obviously one of South Africa's best chefs, and his new restaurant, Marble, in Rosebank, Johannesburg, promises something new for "meat and flame enthusiasts": food cooked over fire. This is internationally trendy, but Higgs also says that he sees flame cooking as the key thing that makes South African food unique.
He is a brave man if he thinks he can take on a few million self-proclaimed braai experts in the suburbs, townships and farmyards, but he has a good chance of winning because not many of them are decent cooks. Here I must confess to a blasphemy: a braai is not my idea of a good meal. Even in South African cuisine, there are a lot of more interesting things than indigestible lumps of charred meat.
But Higgs is a great cook, and I was eager to be converted.
Marble's decor is a talking point. Pulled together from different designers and artists by Irene Kyriacou, wife of co-owner Gary Kyriacou, it is simple, spacious and modern with the occasional lavishly patterned detail. There is an expansive view across the suburbs to Northcliff, which must be even better at night. The American grill range, preparation and plating area is right there for diners to watch. It must be hot work for the chefs.
The wine list is extensive enough to please anyone, and includes imported wines and spirits. The menu has meat, seafood and vegetarian options.
We had oysters with spicy cucumber and crackling (R85), just two but excellent and fresh, not overwhelmed by the sauce. I had no idea what the crackling was and feared it was a bit of sea sand. The fired prawns with lime, honey and a sugar cane stick (grilled on the fire, R165), were the best of our starters, three large ones perfectly grilled with a great braai taste. It came with a "spicy cabbage", which was close to kimchi. My colleague loved her salted kudu (R95) with lightly pickled gherkin, a smoked soft-boiled egg and beetroot mayonnaise. It was slightly seared but raw, slightly thicker than carpaccio.
For mains I had lamb cutlets with chimichurri, carrots, crisp potato skins and labneh (R265). The chops were perfectly medium as ordered, the whole dish superb. My colleague had tuna with broccoli, anchovy, grilled cucumber and coal-roasted salsa (R245). She asked if she could specify how much it should be cooked, and was told it comes as it comes. It was well done, she would have wanted it seared, but the restaurant is only in its second week and the otherwise good waiter simply got it wrong. No offence.
We both really enjoyed our meals, and agreed that the side vegetables practically stole the show: all were grilled and delicious.
For dessert the grilled pineapple with coconut espuma, coconut shavings, candied chilli and mint (R95) disappointed: it was hard to cut and the accompanying caramelia streusel seemed to have escaped from a granola box. My passion fruit parfait (R95) was good, the candied yuzu a surprise and the elderflower jelly just brilliant, but there was a bit too much blocked sponge cake.
• Marble, 3rd floor Trumpet Building, 19 Keyes Avenue, Rosebank, corner Jan Smuts. Tel: 010-594-5550..

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