Over the past weekend, former president Jacob Zuma was seen out on the town at one of Durban’s newly opened restaurants – Zuma restaurant.
Situated at the Pearls of uMhlanga, when pictures from the restaurant launch dropped on social media, many people thought it was owned by the former president.
But businessman and restaurateur David Manal cleared the confusion and told IOL that Zuma had nothing to do with the restaurant, but had been invited as a guest to its official opening.
Manal said naming his restaurant Zuma was a marketing strategy designed to attract public figures as the eatery caters to celebrities.
“Zuma restaurant is a well-known brand internationally, there are more than 11 such restaurants around the world, and Zuma is a trademark.
“South African ‘Zuma’ is solely owned and trademarked by myself. ‘Zuma’ restaurant is a contemporary infusion, of Mediterranean and Asian (Mediterranean). We had the honour to have our former president be part of our opening,” he said.
What did the guests eat?
According to the restaurant website, Zuma restaurant has Mediterranean and Asian styles of food presentation which centres around izakaya – the generous sharing of a variety of delicious foods infused with a medley of smokey flavours.
They note that this unique concept is centred around the sharing of food in a peaceful, soulful environment, pairing varieties of bold, intense flavours with selected alcoholic beverages to enhance the taste buds.
They offer a variety of smoked meats charcoal-grilled to perfection, wagyu beef, flambéed sushi, and mouthwatering desserts.
Their sushi menu includes fresh oysters, tempura cucumber, and sashimi, and the chef's signature sushi menu offers beef tataki, prawn bombs, and hotate spicy scallops.
In the mains section, there is grilled de-boned half chicken, wagyu beef, sous-vide lamb neck, omurice (a Japanese dish consisting of an omelette made with fried rice and thin, fried scrambled eggs, usually topped with ketchup), duck confit, pasta, and more. When it comes to desserts, they offer chocolate and almond brownies, Zuma deep-fried ice cream, crêpes Suzette, and more.
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