New restaurant opens in Braam

by | Apr 6, 2021 | Lifestyle

Faouzi branches out, with its first franchise in Johannesburg.  

The Uncle Faouzi franchise expanded its family of four on the 31st of March, launching its fifth restaurant on corner Juta and De Beer streets in Braamfontein. 

Bradley Dube, manager of Uncle Faouzi,Naledi Motaung and Akona Buthelezi, waiters at Uncle Faouzi Braamfontien. Photo: Dumisani Mnisi

The Halaal restaurant known for its Lebanese cuisine, also serves as the perfect spot to relax or smoke hookah with some friends. “We wanted to create a space that feels like home for everyone,” says Bradley Dube, the manager of Uncle Faouzi. The menu includes beef and chicken burgers, salads, a range of platters and several vegetarian dishes. “Our menu is exactly the same as our Pretoria restaurants and very cost-efficient,” says Dube.  

The restaurant was set to launch mid-March 2021 but due to covid-19 there were some supply delays. “Certain companies were shut down because of the lockdown [therefore] material was delayed” says Dube. He adds that they had to train all the new franchise staff in Pretoria which further contributed to pushing back the initial launch date. 

Speaking to the location of this particular franchise, Dube says, “We wanted to provide a different experience. The space was vacant and for us it made sense to seize the opportunity.”  The restaurant is surrounded by student accommodations, learning institutions, restaurants, and bars. The area is always bustling with people throughout the day, so it is the perfect spot for a restaurant. What sets Uncle Faouzi apart from other restaurants in the area, is the ‘convenience store’ section inside the restaurant which will be open 24 hours once lockdown restrictions are eased.  

Anqobile, a Wits student  told Wits Vuvuzela that she loves the taste of the food and that everything is easily accessible. “I’ve been to their Pretoria restaurants and I liked the food” she adds. “This is actually our first time here, we live around the corner and it sells things we enjoy.” commented Tshepo, a Rosebank Collage student while buying lunch at the restaurant. 

You will also be able to order Uncle Faouzi from the comfort of your home. It will be available on Uber Eats and Mr Delivery and you can also order-in by calling the restaurant directly. “Our menu is simple but broad, we are like a tuckshop that also sells really good quality food” says Dube. 

FEATURED IMAGE: The interior of the newly opened Uncle Faouzi franchise in Braamfontein. Photo: Dumisani Mnisi

RELATED ARTICLES:

 

Wits graduate directs fashion documentary

by | Apr 6, 2021 | Lifestyle

Recent Wits urban and regional planning graduate, Francesco Mbele (20), directs Universal Elixir, a behind-the-scenes documentary on a short film come fashion show, Banyoloyi a Bosigo (Ultimate Midnight Angels).  

The short film for Thebe Magugu’s  Autumn/Winter 2021 Paris Fashion Week show works in tandem with his collection Alchemy, described by the designer as an “exploration of the changing face of African Spirituality.” The documentary premiered on Magugu’s YouTube channel on the 25th of March 2021 and the short film on the 2nd of March. 

Shot in the style of 70s Japanese Pink Films, the short film and documentary follow the same unique editing style personal to Francesco’s general  filmmaking aesthetic. He describes the film as a heart-warming, emotive and sincere compliment to the short film. “In considering the magnitude of the film for South African fashion, especially “post ’94, we really have to tell our stories, telling the story of how the film was produced was something in its own right, which had to be broadcast to the world” says Francesco. 

Cast members on the third day of filming in looks from Alchemy PHOTO: Francesco Mbele

In discussing location and set, he mentions shooting the river side scenes on the second day at the Cradle Moon Lakeside Game Lodge as challenging. Together with the film’s director, Kristin-Lee Moolman, Francesco works around these challenges with different filming techniques and breaking away from their original vision for the documentary.  

On the third day of shooting, the location was a mine dump in the South West of Johannesburg, which becomes the stage, on which a big battle scene occurs. Francesco climbed and navigated himself around the mounds of yellow and white sand dunes, using the height to his advantage in capturing wonderful long shots the young documentarian loves to shoot.

Shot in chronological order, Universal Elixir differs from the progression of events in  Banyoloyi a Bosigo. To differentiate the two, Francesco sequences and edits shots to form a narrative in the documentary that is not relative to the short film. Having worked as a photographer and creative director on previous projects with Magugu, Francesco wanted a position in the background for      this documentary, providing him with a unique viewpoint to “create the story behind the story” concludes Francesco. 

FEATURED IMAGE:  Universal Elixir documentarian Francesco Mbele PHOTO: Francesco Mbele