South Africa is a meat lovers’ paradise. Just ask Mzoli, the proud owner of Mzoli’s Place in Guguletu, one of Cape Town’s largest townships. Mzoli opened his place 8 years ago, and ever since it has been a Cape Town staple. The concept of Mzoli’s is simple: sell delicious meat, cook the delicious meat, and play music while people are eating the delicious meat.
It goes like this: Once you’ve arrived at Mzoli’s after a thirty minute shared taxi ride from Cape Town (just ask for Mzoli’s – no further explanation needed), the first thing you do is visit the Mzoli’s Place butchery. Depending on your hunger level (and budget), you choose between chicken, pork belly slabs, beef steaks, beef sausage, and lamb chops. The raw meat is then weighed, rolled in spices, and thrown into a large bowl. Lastly, the butcher rests a small cup of marinade on the meat.
At this point your mouth will start watering. But wait – what’s meat without side dishes? Your concerns are addressed at the register, where you can order pap (traditional maize dish), chakalaka (spicy tomato and onion salsa), and bread (cheap white bread, a delicacy). This is also your chance to purchase drinks. “Wait a minute,” you’ll say under your breath. “Where are the cold beers?”
Fear not. There are numerous neighborhood venders eager to provide the ice cold bottles of Castle, Black Label, Windhoek, and Hunter’s Dry Cider you’ve been longing for. Mzoli is a smart man. Rather than pay for a liquor license, he leaves the alcohol to others. In the process, he creates business for those around him. And it’s not only the alcohol venders that gain from Mzoli’s Place. Want some sunglasses to block the bright sun that’s making your meat hard to see? There’s a guy for that. How about some cool glasses to hold your beer or soda? No problem. Mzoli’s Place really isn’t Mzoli’s – it’s the community’s.
At this point you’re smiling: you’ve solved the beer dilemma, realized the beauty of Mzoli’s Place, and the bowl of meat you’ve had a part in creating is in your hands. Now what? Recognizing that you’re a tourist (not sure how they’re so perceptive), the patient cashier directs you to the right, down a smoky hallway. Meat bowl in hand, you walk triumphantly into the smoke. It’s a sight for sore eyes: about 10 barbeque (or “braai”) stations cooking up marinated chicken and meat. “Leave the bowl there and come back in 30 minutes,” the sweating braai master says. “Yes, sir,” you reply with a teary eyed smile.
Don’t squander those 30 minutes. This is the time to gather beverages from local venders, buy a pack of napkins (Mzoli lets you get those – and plates – yourself), and fetch the pap, chakalaka, and bread. With the stage set, you become anxious. Thankfully, though, your meat is now ready for pick-up.
It tastes better than you imagined: well-seasoned and perfectly cooked. The lack of silverware might also have something to do with it: Rithwaan, AU’s wise tour guide in Cape Town, once said that eating with your hands makes the food taste better because it releases enzymes from your fingertips. (Apparently enzymes taste good.) Enzymes aside, the meat, pap, chakalaka, bread, and beer are an unbeatable combination. Bopping your head and dancing in your chair to African house music, you are happy to be at Mzoli’s Place (and not a vegetarian).
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