Nothing beats a ‘Kahuna’ burger

Traverse a series of road humps and potholes shaded by flamboyant trees, and you’ll see smooth green verges and well-tended gardens, perhaps catching a glimpse behind security gates and palisades of a gracious house or well-loved home.
An apricot-coloured villa, rising out of hillside sculpted gardens, and resembling Jay Gatsby’s mansion in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, hosts infrequent all-night raves: on these occasions revellers’ parked cars will line Kew Drive’s grassy verges for as far as the eye can see.
Closer to the busy highway of Ridgeway North, a handful of anonymous businesses operate in a discreet fashion.
Mid-way between the swimming pool and the villa is the entrance to the newly–opened Garden Café, open Monday to Saturday, for breakfast, tea, coffee and lunch.
Last Saturday, George, Elise and I arrived for lunch at the Garden Café.
There was no signpost, but a friendly person from a wedding hire company pointed us in the right direction, down a flight of steps.
We sat within view of an inviting blue swimming pool, in the shade of Palm trees and Melaluccas.  
We were welcomed by Sif Zilawe, connoisseur of fine food, cook and part-time graphic artist, who is running a family business at the Garden Café with his two sisters, Masi and Star.
Sif’s speciality is pasta, prepared in a variety of styles, but also on the menu were spicy Mozambican chicken served with roasted red and green peppers and mbambaira, and a 200 gramme hamburger served with chips.
Garden Café does not have a liquor licence, but George had cannily brought along a holdall containing cokes, beers and a bottle of rum.
Doing duty as both waiter and chef, Sif obligingly poured out our drinks and retired to the kitchen to prepare one spicy chicken and two Big Kahuna burgers and chips.
Judging by the rustic tables and slightly uncomfortable upright dining chairs, I might have expected a run-of-the-mill burger or a fast-food version of the grilled chicken always available in Harare’s CBD.
 But the Big Kahuna was large, luscious and delicious and the first ever serious rival to John Travolta’s ‘royale with cheese’ burger in Pulp Fiction.
Prepared from steak mince, resting on a bed of caramelised onion, and topped with fresh, sautéed tomato and a thin but tasty slice of cheese, the burger was surrounded by a large, fresh whole-wheat bun. Hot French fries were tastefully garnished with fresh Basil leaves.
George’s spicy Mozambican chicken was tasty and flavoursome and surrounded with roasted green peppers, brilliant red cherry tomatoes and mellow sweet potatoes, the ultimate comfort food.
Any chef with a couple of Michelin stars under his belt would be proud to claim this dish as his.
Dessert was Sif’s delicious lemon-flavoured version of tiramisu, lightly sprinkled with lemon zest. Other options include cheesecake and home made ice cream.
These are early days for the Garden Café, and a state-of-the-art kitchen is yet to be installed.
As tales of Sif’s culinary expertise are passed on and hungry patrons continue to arrive, I suspect that this budding chef will spend less and less time with the graphic arts and longer hours thinking about food and cooking up a storm in his kitchen.
As mid-day approaches and thoughts of sustenance float in and out of my mind, I can recall the taste of that delicious burger.
Consulting my diary I ponder a return visit to Garden Café. Should I order the burger again? Or perhaps check out Sif’s take on spaghetti. Hmmmm.
The Garden Café is fully booked for Valentine’s Day.
The Garden Café, 16 Kew Drive, Highlands.
Tel: 498386
l Comments to cmalakoff@gmail.com