HOME TRUTHS

At her Joburg eatery, established in the iconic former Women's Jail at Constitution Hill, Mpho Phalane has worked to create a space that both honours the historic site and feels like home. She spoke to Khanya Mzongwana about the food journey that brought her here.

- KHANYA MZONGWANA

IT'S MONDAY AND FOOD I LOVE YOU KITCHEN IS CLOSED TO CUSTOMERS, SO MPHO PHALANE IS HOSTING SOME of her favourite people for lunch. "Technicolor" by Sunni Colon plays softly through the Marshall speaker mingling with the chatter, laughter and gentle gurgle of wine being poured. Two long teak tables seat old friends, close associates and family. There is always a relative at the restaurant, and Mpho prefers it that way. "My family walks with me every step of this journey." She points to an antique silver spoon in a framed glass case on a nearby shelf. "This is my grandmother's spoon, gifted to me by my mother when I opened this place. My grandmother taught me how to trust my sense of taste. This spoon is a symbol of our family's history with food." Mpho is what the food industry calls a rising star, but she rejects all labels. "I'm just like you, I love and revere food. I named my restaurant for how I feel.

"I was always pegged as the Lynn (from Girlfriends) of my friendship circle. The haphazard, creative one with all the quirks. It was my fate to be different. And now that things are beginning to take shape, I seem a little less crazy for leaving a job to pursue this food thing."