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Top 10 Restaurants in Melville to Savour
Melville in Johannesburg is known as one of the trendiest spots in the city with its numerous bars and vibrant student culture. However, another great thing about this area is its restaurants serving local, Western, and even fusion cuisine.
From taverns, casual eateries, elegant venues, and fast food places, below are some of the best restaurants to check out when in Melville!
1. Lucky Bean Restaurant
Address: 16 7th St, Melville, Johannesburg, 2109, South Africa
Contact Number: +27 10 900 1626
Operating Hours:
- Tuesday to Sunday, 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM
- Monday 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM
If you’re in search of authentic South African dishes, then you need to check out what’s cooking at the Lucky Bean Restaurant. It has a cool and relaxed vibe with a dining cum bar area where you feast on local cuisine or drink as you groove to the DJ’s music.
The best part is that Lucky Bean Restaurant can cater to both meat eaters and vegans with its variety of food options. You can check out dishes such as Springbok pies, ostrich bobotie spring rolls, homemade burgers, and wild mushroom risotto.
| Pro Tip: Aside from starters and mains, this restaurant can also serve you unique desserts. These include amasi (yoghurt), koeksisters (fried sweet dough) (ZAR 65), maroela malva (pudding), and Amarula (cream liqueur) ice cream (ZAR 55). |
2. Have Wings
Address: 75, 4th Avenue Melville, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa, 2092
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HaveWingsSA/
Contact Number: +27645277315
Operating Hours:
- Monday to Saturday, 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM
- Sunday, 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM
Have Wings may seem like your typical chicken wing spot, but it’s definitely more than that. Aside from its amazing and varied menu items, its location has a cool and youthful food truck vibe to it making it all the more appealing to customers.
While their specialty is indeed wings and chips, they also offer beef burgers with chips and chicken burgers with chips. To make your food much more flavourful, you can add chilli garlic, chilli BBQ, or Worcestershire sauce!
| Pro Tip: Aside from the different flavours mentioned above, you can further enhance the taste of your meals here by getting their signature dips (at ZAR 18 each). You can go for creamy ranch, spicy mayo, blue cheese, or fiery hot sauce! |
3. Hell’s Kitchen
Address: 4 7th St, Melville, Johannesburg, 2109, South Africa
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hellskitchenmelville.co.za/
Contact Number: +27 79 980 9591
Operating Hours:
- Monday to Sunday, 12:00 NN to 23:00
Hell’s Kitchen is an edgy bar cum restaurant. With traditional fixtures and furniture (dark wooden couches and tables) and decor like skulls and knives, it looks bad-ass!
Their food and drink options are also fantastic, making it one of the best spots for you to hang out with your buddies!
Some of the menu items you can order here include quarter-pounder burgers served with generous amounts of fries, BBQ ribs with carbonara, and chicken wings with dips. You can also order drinks (e.g., scotch and bourbon) to cap the night off!
| Pro Tip: Before visiting Hell’s Kitchen, we suggest that you check out their social media for any upcoming events. They have guest performances by musicians or hold mini sports festivals (e.g. rugby) on certain dates. |
4. Ratz Bar + Diner
Address: 9 7th St, Melville, Johannesburg, 2092, South Africa
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ratzbar.melville/
Contact Number: +27 11 482 2414
Operating Hours:
- Monday to Sunday, 4:00 PM to 2:00 AM
Ratz Bar + Diner is a great karaoke bar that has been around for decades thanks to its wonderful sense of community, fantastic cocktails, and amazing food offerings. They feature guest DJs on specific dates, and the bar also has karaoke days!
Aside from the chill and cool vibe of this diner, you can also sample their best-selling bar food such as tacos and buffalo chicken wings. You can pair these with their signature cocktails such as the passion fruit hazelnut mixer!
| Pro Tip: Ratz Bar + Diner usually has different promotions each day, so it’s best to check out their social media feed for any updates. Some of these promotions include Taco and Tequila Tuesdays and karaoke days all throughout the week. |
5. The Anti-Social Social Club
Address: 9 7th St, Melville, Johannesburg, 2092, South Africa
Website: https://www.antisocialsocialclub.com/
Contact Number: +27 78 311 4705
Operating Hours:
- Tuesday, 1:00 PM to 12:00 AM
- Wednesday and Thursday, 1:00 PM and 11:00 PM
- Friday, 1:00 PM to 2:00 AM
- Saturday, 12:00 NN to 2:00 AM
- Sunday, 12:00 NN to 11:00 PM
- Closed on Monday
The Anti-Social Social Club might just be the coolest anti-social social club we’ve ever been to. Contrary to its name, we think it’s the ideal spot in Melville to bring your friends to share a meal and drink a cold one while catching up!
Its interiors have a bohemian and colourful look to them, and it has some of the most finger-licking finger foods this side of the city including chicken wings with cheese dip and pizza with avocado toppings. Don’t miss out on their ice-cold CBC beer on tap!
| Pro Tip: You can get value for your money if you visit during the bar’s special promo dates (check out their social media for more). They sometimes offer bottomless drinks (ZAR 100) or 2-for-1 cocktails all week! |
6. Bambanani
Address: 85 4th Ave, Melville, Johannesburg, 2109, South Africa
Website: https://www.bambanani.biz/
Contact Number: +27 11 482 2900
Operating Hours:
- Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM
- Saturday, 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM
- Sunday, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM
Bambanani is the restaurant to be in Melville if you want some wholesome family fun! It has a relaxed environment and makes heavy use of light and solid colours for its interiors—perfect if you want to bond with young kids in a safe place.
Their menu options are also ideal for families with young kids, so if you’re travelling with children, we recommend checking this place out.
You can order kiddie crumpets (ZAR 72), kiddie quesadillas (ZAR 75), and Bambanani breakfast (composed of egg, bacon, sausage, and tomato) (ZAR 125).
| Pro Tip: True to its mantra of being a family-friendly restaurant, Bambanani has awesome activities for your kids to enjoy. You can encourage your kids to explore their covered jungle gym or enjoy the children’s books at their library. |
7. Love Me So
Address: 63 4th Ave, Melville, Johannesburg, 2092, South Africa
Website: https://lovemeso.co.za/
Contact Number: +27 84 661 0739
Operating Hours:
- Tuesday and Wednesday, 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM
- Thursday to Saturday, 12:00 NN to 10:00 PM
- Sunday, 12:00 NN to 6:00 PM
- Closed on Monday
We think the name of the restaurant Love Me So fits this establishment like a glove thanks to its rustic and traditional Eastern feel that will make you fall in love with it. The interiors look like an upscale Asian bar with its solid colours and elegant fixtures.
The cuisine they offer is also quite unique, as they have Asian fusion dishes. Some of these include Korean-style beef short ribs, Japanese ramen with meat and veggies, chicken yakitori (skewers), California rolls, and sweet and sour tempura.
| Pro Tip: Love Me So occasionally hosts buffets for certain food items such as their Asian fusion tapa’nese bar (composed of tofu meatballs, ramen, tempura, and California maki) for ZAR 175. You need to reserve your slot in advance though, as these can get fully booked rather quickly! |
8. Ba-Pita
Address: Shop 2, 1 7th St, Melville, Johannesburg, 2109, South Africa
Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/login.php?next=https%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com%2Fbapitanorwood%2F&refsrc=deprecated&_rdr
Contact Number: +27 10 020 8363
Operating Hours:
- Tuesday to Sunday, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM
- Closed on Mondays
Ba-Pita is a vibrant and eclectic spot where you can get good food and drinks while hanging out with good company! They have some of the most unique interior decor in Johannesburg with chandeliers and minimalist furniture all around.
The food they serve is also something special ranging from their deli choices (e.g., marinated olives, almond bread, and pickled roasted beets) to their breakfast items (e.g., almond muhallebi (pudding), red shakshuka, spinach kale frittata, and smashed avocado sourdough).
| Pro Tip: You can also ask their wait staff how to avail of their build-your-own meals. Going for this meal allows you to sample different dishes with different sauces. We recommend going for their butternut hummus and chilli tomato dip! |
9. Le Petite Maison
Address: 1 7th St, Melville, Johannesburg, 2109, South Africa
Website: https://www.facebook.com/MaisonMelville/
Contact Number: +27 10 593 7986
Operating Hours:
- Thursday to Saturday, 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM (Lunch) and 6:30 PM to 10:30 PM (Dinner)
If you’re looking for an elegant gourmet experience in Melville, Le Petite Maison might be right up your alley. The interior of this restaurant has a classic and minimalist appeal thanks to its use of solid dark colours and traditional materials (e.g. wood).
You shouldn’t miss the unique food items on their menu, which include cold starters (e.g., fresh lobster salad, yellowtail tataki, and medium Saldanha Bay oysters) and meat mains (e.g., traditional beef tartare and grilled free-range chicken).
| Pro Tip: If you’re dining here with kids below 12 years old, then you can order from their impressive kiddie menu. Some of the food on offer here include fish strips (ZAR 95), chicken strips (ZAR 85), and homemade panko prawns (ZAR 95). |
10. Piza E Vino Melville
Address: Lothbury Rd, Auckland Park, Johannesburg, 2006, South Africa
Website: https://pizaevino.co.za/
Contact Number: +27 83 460 1464
Operating Hours:
- Tuesday to Friday, 11:30 AM to 10:00 PM
- Monday, 11:30 AM to 9:00 PM
- Saturday, 11:30 AM to 9:30 PM
- Sunday, 11:30 AM to 9:00 PM
Melville has an authentic Italian restaurant where you can get genuine pizza. Here at the Piza E Vino Melville, you can enjoy fantastic Italian cuisine while taking in the fantastic vibe with its rustic and minimalistic feel.
They have awesome pizzas like their best-seller, the Black on White Pizza, topped with feta cheese, olives, garlic, and mushrooms. However, you can also try their other Western dishes here such as burgers and steaks!
| Pro Tip: If you don’t have time to visit their branch, you can have your food delivered right to your doorstep. You can contact them via their Whatsapp number (083 460 1464) and order from their menu or go for one of their family-style meals! |
