Cafe Nush goes Organiks

OUT AND ABOUT

I have heard good things about Café Nush Organiks — sharing space with a newish Skin Spa in a refurbished double storey on Hindhead corner of Dacomb in Chisipite. The restaurant is on the upper floor occupying one inside room and a pretty white balcony overlooking a lovely long swimming pool — with, unfortunately, a large NO SWIMMING sign — next to it. Could have been an added attraction on a hot day!

Nush Organiks specialises in salads and sandwiches including burwiches — cross between a burger and a sandwich and a schnitzwich — a schnitzel sandwich? Food crosses seem to be the latest food trend. Sampled the fabled cronut in Johannesburg — a doughnut/croissant hybrid — though theoretically cannot be called a cronut as the name is trademarked by creator New York pastry chef Domnique Ansel. My Joburg non-cronut was a nice enough confection — airy layers of croissant pastry filled with cream and with a chocolate donut topping — but wouldn’t get me out of bed queuing at 5am like in NYC.
Other trendy hybrids include Doritos Locos — a taco with a shell made from Doritos, KFCs double down — two fried chicken patties cradling bacon and cheese and Mcdonalds’s McRib — a pork sandwich.  ometimes one is thankful not to be exposed to all the super fast food chains.

Iranian influence is not at all evident at Nush Organiks. Scarce enough at the Avondale outlet, Chisipite café is Nush in name only and maybe also nominally organic.  If not, there is no effort to draw attention to the organic nature of product or produce though there is an emphasis on health with different fresh breads (some homebaked), juices pressed to order and preservative free muffins and cakes.
Salad selection is tempting with interesting combinations and it is possible to order either half or full portions. Choices included slow roasted chicken with avocado and basil green goddess slaw (US$8), beef carpaccio with parmesan and rocket (US$10), thai beef with sprouts and asian greens (US$12) and runchy (sic) prawn and rice noodles (US$13). We chose a ‘new’ item on the menu — smoked salmon and prawn cocktail on greens (US$15 full U$$10 half. We shared a full portion which was nicely served on two plates). Salmon was delicious and plentiful but neither of us liked the warm prawn cocktail — felt a bit off on a hot day — and it would have been nice to have more imaginative greens than just shredded iceberg and butter lettuce.

House speciality is a nice range of fresh juices (US$3) almost a meal in themselves and a good midday vitamin boost! True Blood Beetle Juice (beetroot, apples and melon), Healthy Punch (spinach, ginger, lemon and apple) Mexican Stand-Off (chilie, carrot and pineapple) and Veggie Mary (tomato, horseradish, carrots and lemon) are some of the fresh cocktails. Veggie Mary was refreshing and lemony but I would have preferred more horseradish oomph.

The neighbouring spa makes it more of a ladies’ lunching place — there was only one man in the restaurant when we were there —but sandwiches and burwiches are substantial — Americano burwich, or cheesemelt burwich (US$12), S.A.L.T — steak, avo, lettuce and tomato (US$12) and a new one on me M.A.L.T — macon, avo, lettuce and tomato (US$10). Wikipedia told me macon is a food item prepared from mutton, cured by salting and smoking in a similar manner to bacon.  Worth a try next time.

Menu also features pasta — ranging from US$8 for chicken and mushroom to US$14 for prawns and salmon. Gluten free comes at US$2 extra. We finished off with a lovely, light blueberry cheesecake (US$3).
– g.jeke@yahoo.com