It’s Byalways been chaps wearing humourous sauce-stained aprons possessed of arms like railway sleepers and large stomachs who are to be seen fretting over portable smoke pits as though their lives depended upon it. Welcome to the down and dirty macho world of grilled meats – it seems only men get off on this full-on man-on-meat action over an open fire, with us women folk preferring to wait fearfully for the arrival of the ubiquitous externally charred (and raw inside) chicken leg.
The Lodge is the newest restaurant on the Paphos block and promotes the art of Braai, which to a South African means charcoal grilling and so popular is this form of cooking that Archbishop Desmond Tutu is patron of National Braai Day, which takes place every September 24.
It’s a sure fire no go area for any vegetarian who innocently passes through The Lodge portals, they will all end up cowering under their napkins as plates of meat the size of elephants’ ears parade proudly past their table.
Now the whole concept is South African but reassuringly the menu is minus any dodgy exotica or dishes prepared from any endangered species, no loin of lion, marinated antelope steaks or spicy crocodile liver pate, just chicken, prawns, and good, old fashioned, fresh, dry-aged beef that has been home hung for up to 21 days.
Then there’s the unique seasonings, most of which are owed to the culinary delights gleaned from Mozambique, Portuguese, and Cape Malays with some of these spices able to render instant paralysis to your taste-buds, or can offer just a fluttering of flavour sufficient to one’s needs, and this is why you should really consult the exceedingly helpful and efficient waiting staff all of whom are there to gently guide you through the various heat levels that can emanate from a South African kitchen.
I started with a calamari dish, which after the first bite rendered me into a wasabi style numbness but that was all my fault for not having heeded the waiter’s sage advice to go for ‘less’ rather than more chilli. The optional starter or main course dish of Boerewors sausage was thick of girth and so unlike the twig of sausages we are used to.
My partner plumped for fillet steak served with Madagascan green peppercorn sauce, silence ensued after his first bite, believing he had been rendered speechless due to an over enthusiastic peppering I solicitously inquired if he was okay. ‘Fine,’ was the response – he then remained silent until he had consumed the entire lump of protein, a very contented carnivore. I played safe with peri peri prawns and they were as good as they come – with just the right amount of cooking plus an extra bowl of sauce just in case I was tempted to stray into helping myself to additional helpings of the somewhat lethal yet decidedly tasty Peri Peri sauce.
Those with a frail constitution can always play safe with prawns in a lemon butter sauce or have a flat basted grilled chicken with not double, but triple fried chips.
Here the Head tong masters are genetically primed to handle the Braai with Australian Jason Partridge having been born to the role, as is his fellow chef Steve Demosthenous who, since reaching puberty in South Africa, has been confidently clicking his Barbie tongs and fiercely honing his fire skills.
My only complaint has to be the seating: large, solid wood chairs that make for serious buttock-searing numbness, but hopefully they will have fixed this acute problem after suggesting they throw in a dozen or so zebra simulated cushions. Otherwise, the place in summer is an airy outdoors secret garden totally sheltered from the main tourist drag, the only drawback being that customers cannot see this busy backyard from the street so a greeter has to be on hand to explain to passing trade that it’s not just a long corridor to an empty eatery, but even with that disadvantage the night we went the place was very busy.
The lodge isn’t offering haute cuisine in fact it’s the opposite and that’s the whole point, what it is though is a good example of how ethnic daily food has improved here in Paphos and the fervent hope has to be that the owners don’t take the well travelled route of opening up well, then going off sharply as they become more popular.
VITAL STATISTICS
SPECIALITY grilled meats South African style
PRICE €15 to €25
WHERE next to the Paphos Amathus Hotel
CONTACT 70006673
