Stepping into Leopard Lodge in Carabooda is a little like stepping into a Tardis. Not only is it bigger inside than it appears, seating fifty-five in comfort (sixty if they are close friends), but also one steps back in time and away in space. The inside is virtually a re-creation of a safari lodge in 1955 in East Africa. I grew up in Africa and while there were few restaurants that looked like Leopard Lodge, there were many private houses that looked exactly like it, complete with tribal artefacts, drums, David Shepherd prints and copperware.
The brainchild of Mark and Theresa Lawrence, Leopard Lodge has only been open for three months and although it is a fair way from anywhere is rapidly becoming a Mecca for dedicated diners.
As could be expected the menu is mainly Colonial African with a strong South African accent. (If ever in doubt ask them to say 'car park' - if it comes out 'core pork' they're South African.)
The wine list contains both local and imported wines, mostly the better South African wines and if you have never tried a South African red, you should definitely try them. Among the wines and beers, heavily nostalgic, with Castle, Amstel and Windhoek Lagers, I found a Johannesburger, a lovely crisp, fruity, Rhine wine long adopted by the Cape and of which I used to drink a certain amount forty years ago. It tasted almost exactly the same and made me feel young again, which is a lot to get from a bottle of medium-priced wine.
The menu is not huge, but pretty much all-encompassing. I began with Peri Peri Chicken Livers ($13), the livers nicely pink inside and succulently tender. The sauce is homemade by Theresa and is absolutely not for the faint-hearted. It's very chilli hot, but also very satisfying and oddly enough, the sting doesn't last and corrupt the taste of later dishes. (Peri Peri sauce is Portuguese in origin and is made by chopping Birdseye chillies in olive oil, with a little lemon juice, garlic and salt.)
Angela chose a 'Jungle Salad ($12) as her entrée, having an unnatural affection for greenery. Attractively presented in a soup bowl in a light herb and garlic dressing. James chose the Garlic Prawns ($15) which were excellent and came shelled, which is always a nice touch.
The menu specialises in steaks, not surprising in a steakhouse, and offers a wide range of sizes from 250 gram to a whole kilo of rump, Scotch fillet or T Bone. You can have your steak cooked to any degree from 'Blue' (Seared on the outside, damn near raw inside) through 'Rare', 'Medium Rare' and 'Medium' to 'Medium Well' (cooked through, no pink, no blood). Prices range from $28 to $48 for the full kilo, which is such a challenge that diners who eat one at one sitting get a Certificate of Achievement. Once you chosen size and degree of 'done-ness' two choices remain - sides and sauce.
Side dishes (select two) include roast vegetables, baked potato with sour cream, mashed potato, yellow rice, chips or mielie pap - at which my South African readers will automatically go '
Man, I remember that.' It's sort of like polenta, but isn't really - its rough crushed maize boiled until mostly dry and capable of being moulded in the fingers and dipped into a stew and eaten with relish - highly redolent of Africa.
The sauces are made on the premises by Theresa and include Mushroom Pepper, Creamed Garlic, Peri Peri, Herb and Garlic and 'Monkey Gland' (no monkeys were harmed in the making of this sauce) which is faintly like a chutney sauce and is very, very tasty indeed.
James and I both had steaks (of course) cooked exactly to specifications - magnificently charred outside and wonderfully tender and flavourful. Angela's mild Durban Curry ($28), one of the traditional South African dishes, comes with the usual yellow rice and is served in the three-legged iron pot so beloved of Zulu and African cookery. It's known as a potje (small pot) and is intensely familiar to anyone who has ever visited South Africa. It also comes with a selection of coconut, banana and a tomato and onion mix known in Natal as 'hotters'.
For sweets James had vanilla ice cream with Mars bar sauce. Served in a tall parfait glass, it was as good as it sounds. Angela ordered a slice of lemon meringue pie, I was much too full to even contemplate pudding - until I saw Angela's portion arrive and had immediately to order one for myself. Homemade with just the right balance of sweetness and tartness held within a crumbly buttery base, it was outstanding.
Future plans for the Leopard Lodge include luxury camping tents a la safari and an outside eating area surrounded by a fence of rough-hewn tree planks, called a boma. It will be wonderful to dine out there of a summer evening, lit by hurricane lamps surrounded by the soft dark sounds of frogs and under the glittering canopy of night. Then to retire to comfortable seclusion within canvas walls, knowing that a buffet breakfast awaits on the morrow. I'm looking forward to that, as indeed I am already planning my next visit to Leopard Lodge.
Very highly recommended.
