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Arbour Café & Courtyard ****
64 St Andrew Street,
Birdhaven Johannesburg
Tel: 011-788-4111
Mcebisi Jonas *****
Excellent ****
Good ***
Poor **
Emmerson Mnangagwa *
— food for thought
I do love politicians. Strue’s Bob I do, even though I tend to criticise them a lot. Maybe I am just struck by a sense of wonder at their chutzpah. How do they manage to speak with forked tongue so often?
Last week Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa said he would set up a commission to investigate the killing of six opposition supporters who, on hearing that Mnangagwa’s Zanu-PF party had won the elections, had protested on the streets of Harare.
Zanu-PF is the party of Robert Mugabe, he who stayed in power for 37 years before being unseated by the army and Mnangagwa last year.
Mnangagwa said not a single word about the fact that his army had used live ammunition against protesters who had stopped and prayed beforehand — or that some of those who died were allegedly shot in the back. That’s crowd control, Zim-style: just shoot to kill.
As if that’s not hypocritical enough, he declared: "With the eyes of the world on us we delivered a free, fair and credible election."
That’s rich. The EU, for example, said Mnangagwa, who enjoyed tacit military support and control of state resources and media, benefited from an "un-level playing field".
But hey, we like a strong man in power down here in the Southern African region, no? Mugabe stole successive elections and we enthusiastically supported him. Mnangagwa has only stolen one election so why should he be picked on? Even our dear president, Cyril Ramaphosa, congratulated Mnangagwa and urged all "political leaders and the people of Zimbabwe to accept the outcome of the election and should they have challenges, they must follow legal remedies provided for in the constitution and electoral law."
He said this while leaders of the opposition MDC Alliance were in hiding from Mnangagwa’s police and army.
It is this sort of news that makes one want to seek an oasis and gather one’s thoughts. Do try Arbour Café in Birdhaven. Why hadn’t I heard of it? I had been working very hard (I do that once a year) with a bunch of extremely smart young people from Chapter One, an advisory firm that does amazing work, when their leader Rorisang Tshabalala said we should try this place.
The website says: "Hidden behind the stylish shops of Wrenrose Court you’ll find an enchanting leaf-dappled alcove, aptly named ‘Arbour Café and Courtyard’. Arbour is a French-inspired café and crêperie. It has a whimsical and elegant space that will nourish your soul as well as your stomach."
How do politicians manage to speak with forked tongue so often?
Owners like to burnish their image, but these guys are not lying. On a Tuesday midmorning, with the late winter sun full out, we settled down for breakfast in the hidden courtyard behind the restaurant. This is where you should go. It’s just, well, lovely. The clientele is made up of trendy folks, entrepreneurs and businesspeople, creative types — but mostly ladies who seem extremely happy with their financial station in life.
Cheerful Thembi attended to us. We were tired but celebratory: so Mimosas (part champagne, part orange juice) all round. We hadn’t slept much, so it was restoratory fare including salmon omelettes, full egg and bacon and macon breakfasts, a maple baguette, some teas and coffee. All excellent.
But here’s the thing. You sit in that courtyard, the sun beaming down, the food wonderful and the service magnificent, and you say: what a wonderful country!
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