These days dining out is not only about delicious meals and services. But also dining settings or that cosy atmosphere. Personally, I check the restaurant settings even before I book for reservation or visit. And I know I’m not the only one who does that. There are plenty of people out there who do the same and you happen to be one of them, that is why you are on this page. Everyone enjoys great dining, but choosing where to eat first can be difficult in a city with so many possibilities. There are more than just 50 fine dining restaurants in Johannesburg you can choose from but it should be a good choice.
Johannesburg is known as the golden city. Some of the richest people on the continent live and conduct business in this area, which was built in the 1880s as a result of the South African gold rush. Rich, leafy neighbourhoods are dotted with extravagant and modest mansions, posh private schools, five-star hotels, and fine-dining establishments. With this, it is sure you are going to get plenty of fine dining restaurants in Johannesburg that you would love to try.
In this post, Mrpocu.com will list some of the top fine-dining restaurants in Johannesburg to choose from. From some of the popular places to some of the budget-friendly fine dining restaurants in the city of Johannesburg.
Fine Dining Restaurants in Johannesburg
Browns of Beverly Hills
Browns of Beverly Hills in Johannesburg‘s bustling epicentre of Sandton gives a touch of South African tranquillity. This classy eatery has over three decades of delicious cuisine under its belt and has long possessed one of the best wine collections in the nation. It used to be located in a large, spacious venue in Fourways, but it was formerly housed in an old farmhouse in Rivonia. Private gardens, a dining room inside, and a patio outside with lovely views of the landscaped greenery are all provided by Browns. Although Browns is undoubtedly large, it still has a cosy, romantic atmosphere that makes it a favourite for celebrations, date nights, family get-togethers, and meals with business partners. The restaurant also includes a Lapa, which has space for up to 200 people, and a pool area.
The menu is extensive and has many mouthwatering choices. Starters can include snails in a blue cheese or garlic sauce, duck and black cherry spring rolls, smoked salmon terrine, or venison carpaccio. The Greek halloumi tart, whole prawns, Cape seafood curry, tender Falklands calamari, Scottish salmon fillet, oven-roasted duck, braised lamb shank, steaks, and fish of the day are available as main courses. Dessert options include cheesecake, crème brulée, and chocolate torte with berry compote, should you have any room left.
Dw Eleven-13
The exquisite Dw eleven-13 in Johannesburg stands out from the competition for its creative approach to fine dining and dedication to giving customers an exploration into taste, texture, and culinary heaven. The Dunkeld Shopping Centre’s Dw eleven-13, which opened in 2009 and is situated at the intersection of Jan Smuts and Bompas Roads, has a well-deserved reputation for serving only the best and most daring flavour combinations. As new and exciting foodie trends emerge, the menu and the environment are constantly changing and reinventing themselves. The restaurant is one of the popular Fine Dining Restaurants in Johannesburg.
An a-la-carte option, a degustation menu, and a vegetarian tasting option are available. The a-la-carte menu is quite interesting and diversified. Starters include smoked duck, duck confit, langoustine, corn purée, gnocchi, tarragon, velouté sauce, and bacon powder; prawn, avocado, corn sorbet, and poppy seed tuile; seared salmon with ketchup, charred cucumber, apple, salmon roe, and oyster coulis. In the main courses, you can choose from dishes like pork chop with apple, parsley gel, smoked potato, cabbage, and pork jus, kingklip with celeriac, ponzu, orange gel, tempura celery, and miso sauce, or Bonsmara rump with smoked bone marrow, mushroom purée, onion cream, and carrots.
The Grazing Room, a division of Dw eleven–13, emphasizes the Spanish tapas method of meal preparation. The diners are allowed to move among the prepared plates, tasting the robust flavours and the more delicate undertones of each dish. On occasion, wine tastings are held here.
Arque Champagne Crescent
The Arque Champagne Crescent and the luxurious French champagne house Perrier-Jout have partnered to provide sparkling connoisseurs with the best in bubbly delicacy and a unique experience. With a history that stretches back to 1811, Perrier-Jouet is the ideal partner for the exquisite food that is standard fare at Arque. An innovative, contemporary approach to food preparation and crisp, fresh flavours are hallmarks of the executive chef’s menu. To make the dishes even more magnificent on the palate, they have been gradually infused with champagne flavours.
Additionally, Arque has a remarkable selection of some of the finest champagnes from around the globe that have all been chosen in accordance with a rigid set of standards. The Perrier-Jouet, on the other hand, is only available at the Arque Champagne Crescent and is sold by the glass. A wooden bar with an oval shape in the middle and low-hanging light fixtures provide a beautiful contrast to the muted pastel pinks and nudes. The Arque Champagne Crescent opens daily at 9:00 a.m. (Monday through Sunday) for breakfast and closes once customers have had their fill of fun and thoroughly enjoyed the upscale ambience.
Winehouse at Ten Bompas
The double-storey wine cellar at the aptly named Winehouse is sure to impress if the contemporary art and laid-back atmosphere aren’t enough to impress you. The restaurant has a patio that faces the sun; since Johannesburg’s dry winter falls during the prime safari season, you can enjoy the African sun while eating lunch here.
The cuisine features French and contemporary components that are meant to be enjoyed over three courses. Although the menu frequently varies, examples of meals include quail with walnut stuffing, cauliflower, and sherry caramel; barramundi with squash, basil, and aubergine caviar; and celeriac tortellini with truffle and parmesan. There is also a nine-course tasting menu available for special events like honeymoons or anniversaries.
Qunu, The Saxon Hotel
Qunu, which offers modern takes on traditional South African fare, is named after the village where former president Nelson Mandela was born. Enjoy the subtle African touches like traditional ebony masks, woven lampshades, and enormous earthenware pots while live music is being played in the background. A wide variety of diners will enjoy Qunu, and there are vegan, Sunday brunch, and breakfast menus available. Produce from Sarapana, the dedicated kitchen garden, is used to create unusual dishes like duck with tamarind, butternut, and cherries; guava sorbet; and mushroom and hemp. The restaurant is some of the top hotels Fine Dining Restaurants in Johannesburg.
Marble
The word “marble” refers to the greatest beef that has been finely marbled with fat, giving it unrivalled tenderness and flavour. Here, a classic Argentinian grill with influences from the Mediterranean or South-East Asia is the main attraction. The unique flame-grill, which is perched on a rooftop in Rosebank’s hip Keyes Art Mile, is used to cook everything from classic rib-eye and enormous prawns to springbok loin and tuna. Take some earl grey tea ice cream, whiskey mousse, or pickled pumpkin for dessert.
The View At Four Season Hotel
A hole has been cut into the kitchen wall so that diners can observe the chefs as they peel, slice, chop, and stir their way to produce outstanding seasonal cuisine. The restaurant also boasts lovely views over the abundance of trees in Westcliff, Johannesburg, which is known as the world’s largest man-made forest due to all the trees that have been planted over decades. Ingredients with a strong South African connection could include foraged mushrooms, exquisite fynbos, and Karoo lamb. For a special occasion, choose the “festive menu,” which is divided into sections based on the type of diner. The “tasting” and “degustation” menus, which are available in vegetarian and pescatarian variations, are sure to please foodies, while the “jacaranda lunch,” so named for the city’s famous purple-flowered trees, is ideal for a weekend.
The Culinary Table
Some people might be surprised by the Culinary Table’s rustic charm given that it is a bakery, deli, and restaurant situated in the crowded Lanseria neighbourhood of Johannesburg, close to Randburg and Sandton. It is one of the best Fine Dining Restaurants in Johannesburg you can find in Sandton. The abundance of the garden is celebrated with true culinary appreciation, and fresh ingredients are of the utmost importance. A kitchen garden that belongs to The Culinary Table provides fresh herbs, small fruit trees, and a variety of organic vegetables that are picked straight from the ground. Every day, products are gathered, resulting in a dynamic menu that changes frequently to reflect what is available, particularly in terms of seasonality. All of the produce is pesticide-free and, by luring birds and insects, helps preserve biodiversity.
Since they don’t contain any harmful substances like hormones or antibiotics, free-range meats are a big selling point. All of the meat used at The Culinary Table comes from local farmers who take good care of the animals they raise and the meat they provide. To guarantee that everything complies with the criteria of the Culinary Table, the butchering is done on-site. For the hungry and discerning eater, there are steaks, sausages, burgers, and chicken dishes available. The bakery and deli are essential. The deli is well stocked with delicious bread, pastries, patés, cheeses, meats, and preserves. Imported products such as hams, Jamón Serrano, Bellota pata negra, acorn-fed speck, lonzino, pancetta, and salamis are among the cured meats.
AtholPlace Restaurant
Dinner is the major event at this restaurant; the fixed menu changes seasonally and is based on what is in season and readily accessible. Consider dishes like dry-aged beef with paprika and chocolate or squid with kimchi and mirin gel. If you don’t want to spend the money on the tasting menu, they also serve elegant breakfasts, such as a Continental buffet with a variety of pastries, bread, gorgeous homemade granola, yoghurts, and fruit platters.
Don’t forgo the hot breakfasts if you’re going all out because they elevate the experience further. Although lunches are inexpensive and informal, the ambience and the service give them a more upscale feel. A small, bistro-style lunch menu featuring burgers, pan-fried line fish, colourful tagliatelle pasta, wraps, and sandwiches is available. Simple but very effective.
Solo Restaurant At Sandton
This is what happens when two friends open a restaurant in Sandton, Tumelo Maepa and Hlompho Chauke. a modern dining area that also serves as a culinary adventure. In the upscale establishment, everything South African is celebrated, but there is always an intriguing twist added for good measure. This includes decorative accents like vintage mirrors, dried plants, and wood wall cladding that serve as a constant reminder that you are in Africa’s richest square mile.
The unexpected and elegant graffiti is the twist—a touch you might not typically associate with such a posh restaurant and bar. The artwork by local artist African Ginger flawlessly completes the aesthetic. There are three unique areas in the eating room: a traditional sit-down area, a hip sushi bar, and the Nest Lounge, a smoky den where you may get up to mischief like impressing a date with your expertise in Cuban cigars. Since taking over the kitchen almost three months ago, resident chef Ashley Murison-Johnson has infused his straightforward but humorous personality into the recently updated menu.
Level Seven
The OR Tambo Radisson Hotel’s seventh floor is where you’d anticipate finding Level Seven Restaurant and Sky Bar. The views are magnificent because it is on the sixth floor, which also happens to be the highest floor. Desmond Mabuza, a Johannesburg restaurateur and owner of the upscale Signature restaurant in Morningside, Sandton, has brought the same elegance and opulence to the Bredell neighbourhood in Kempton Park. Given the extraordinary quality of culinary delights available, chef Loyiso Mnduzulwana must rank among the best chefs in all of Johannesburg, not just the East Rand.
His ostrich carpaccio and Beetroot goat’s cheese dishes, as well as his duck leg confit (R325), are simply unequalled (R165). Mduzulwana is an artist whose primary medium is food. He appeals to your sense of smell, sight, and taste when he presents dishes like the (R245) Grilled Sole, which is seasoned with sea salt and served with sauteed new potatoes, pea and red onion ragout, and salsa verde. You feel overpowered by the delicately balanced flavour, wondering if the parties in your mouth have been underwhelming your entire life.
1947 on Vilakazi
One of the main tourist destinations in the nation is Vilakazi Street, which is well-known for being the only street in the world where two Nobel Peace Prize winners—Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu—have resided. The street is lined with original four-room homes, curio shops, the Nelson Mandela home, which is now a museum, crafty street vendors selling their wares, and a variety of charming restaurants that offer an authentic township culinary experience, including tshisa nyama (Braai), Mogodu (Tripe) kota, and more, drawing both locals and tourists.
One of the most recent restaurants to open is 1947 on Vilakazi Street, a two-story venue with multiple sections, located at the top of the street. It is a little finer than its competitors but is nonetheless fundamental to the character of the lively neighbourhood. The entrance to the restaurant creates a nostalgic atmosphere with walls adorned with framed black and white images of the couple it honours. The restaurant’s name is an ode to the Sowetan-born and raised owner, Naomi Ratsheko’s parents, who were respected members of Sowetan society (their birth years). The décor is also not skimpy, with simple but colourful interiors from the benches, large mirrors at the bottom of the staircase, and vividly wallpapered restrooms (including one that is wheelchair accessible) giving the area a distinguished aspect.
Fermier
At Fermier, “fine dining” and “farm-style” are not mutually exclusive concepts. Reservations are required at this exclusive restaurant, where the 9-course set menu is seasonal, produced-based, and inspired by the chef. Each variation of red meat, poultry, offal, venison, and fish should be matched by a thoughtfully chosen and frequently unexpected selection of South African wines. This sustainable “nose-to-tail” philosophy is reflected in the architecture, furnishings, and even the silverware and dinnerware. Rammed earth was used to create the walls, a master carpenter built the furniture, and Karoo Yard artisans created everything else.
Restaurant Mosaic
Entering Mosaic is like stepping into the glitzy early 1900s Belle Epoque when Paris was the centre of café society. The interiors were influenced by the traditional tendrils, flowing lines, and opulent glitter of Art Nouveau. Every dish has an expressive name, and the menu is similarly unique and amusing. Set a table for “Flavours of Indochine” (suckling pig in star anise and coconut curry) or “Fishkraal” (Senegalese sole with a citrus velouté). Finish with “The Road to Rocamadour,” a heady concoction of dark chocolate and passion fruit, or “Heffalumps and Woozles,” a delightful concoction of almonds, vanilla, and “snowflakes” that might sound like something out of Dr Seuss.
Farro At lllovo
Despite being located inside a mall, Alex and Eloise Windebank’s informal fine dining establishment offers outstanding meals in a cosy setting. The fried lamb shoulder is a delightful surprise for the main course. It is served off the bone and wrapped in bread crumbs. Pearl barley serves as a bed for it, and a pesto-like sauce is given on the side. Along with long shards of pork crackling, the softest pockets of gnocchi, and slightly sour and crunchy apple relish, the pork belly is also full of unexpected textural delights. Small-batch wines dominate the wine list, and there are also some excellent cocktails.