#ThrowbackThursday: That Time We Went To Zanzibar

So, being the middle of the month, we are a bit cash strapped and have held ourselves back from dining out for a while.

But fear not, as I am delighted to share a review on a place I visited a while back.

I would love to go there again, bank balance permitting. ;)

The place I'm reviewing this #ThrowbackThursday is Zanzibar, a restaurant situated at Westwood Mall.

The restaurant had just reopened under new management, and the lovely owner Steven offered a few people complimentary dinner, so we could try out the place and determine whether the food and service had improved since the previous owners.

It was a weekday. We had a booking for 7.30pm but arrived a little early. We were greeted by a young gentleman, who, as soon as I mentioned my name, knew exactly where to seat me. 

Our waiter for the evening was Byson, a lovely young gentleman with an infectious smile. He immediately greeted us and offered to take our drinks order. Our drinks for 4 arrived in 5 minutes. 

The owner Steven came through to our table, introduced himself and had a lovely chat with us. The restaurant itself was half full, but had a lovely ambiance and soft music.

We were then ready to order. It was a lovely 3 course menu with a variety of dishes. For starters I had the Butternut and Cinnamon soup with toasted baguette. The cinnamon was a little overpowering for my liking but was edible.

My husband Ashley, his uncle and aunt had Fried Baby Calamari, with spicy coconut peanut dressing, toasted sesame seeds and fresh coriander. They could not stop raving about it. They did mention that it was a little hot in terms of spice, but still enjoyed it. Other starter options were Chicken and Prawn Samosas, Vegetable Chilli Fritters (Bahji) and Nutmeg Infused Chicken Liver Pate'.

Once we were done, our table was promptly cleared and Byson was ready to take our Main Course orders. 

I had Beef Masala Curry, served in a cute little potjie pot, with sambals, rice and a poppadom. I love curry, and this definitely hit the spot. The pot was filled with meat (no decoys like massive potatoes).

Ashley and his uncle had the Moroccan Rib and Wing Plate which consisted of 400g 5 spiced glazed pork ribs, 3 spiced and crumbed chicken wings with chili chips and onion rings. They kept going on about how the meat just fell off the bone.

Ashley's aunt had Thai Red Chicken Curry with ginger and lemongrass in a red curry coconut sauce with basmati rice and toasted coconut. I sampled some of this and can say it was devine. She enjoyed it as well. Other dishes on the menu were Zanzi Island Tempura Fish and 5 Spice Glazed Pork Belly.

We all had to recover a little as we were now properly full. But how could we not complete the trilogy that is a 3 Course meal. 

So we trudged on after much sighing and belly rubbing. Us two ladies had Banana and White Chocolate Spring Rolls with caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream. We didn't quite enjoy the banana consistency but gobbled up the ice cream. The men had Chocolate Sundae's with chocolate biscuits, nuts, ice cream and caramel sauce. They loved every bit of it!

A wonderful evening had by all! I gave Zanzibar a rating of 9/10 for the Service and Food. 

I hope to visit again soon, to see if they've kept up the great standards.

For more information on Zanzibar, you can visit their Facebook page.

Happy Munching!

Bron xoxo