My earliest memory of cuisine in Johannesburg is a vetkoek (dough fried in oil) shaped into a perfect sphere roughly the size of a miner’s fist. The vetkoek travelled over a mountain of steaming pap (maize meal cooked to perfection) when the vendor passed it to me. Next to the pap was a sea of onion and tomato relish and next to that a pyramid of Russian sausages.

Present-day Joburg offers the average palate a bit more. The city is awash with restaurants offering fusions of African stalwarts with foods from across the globe. Sit down for the distinctly South African oxtail tart served on the distinctly Mexican polenta paste at King’s Kraal, or feast your eyes on the grand wood-fired grill imported from Grill Works in the United States at Marble Restaurant – an ambitious hardware fusion of the South African braai and the American barbeque.

The sheer size of Johannesburg means there is a new culinary discovery waiting around the the corner on any given day. Neigbourhoods like Linden offer Argentine bakeries and deli’s and you won’t have to look far (just look up) for a classy rooftop restaurant to watch the best African sunset from, cocktail in hand. On LekkeEet, you’ll find the usual classics plus hidden gems operating under the radar. Explore the best restaurants in Johannesburg for your next great eat out experience.