jichana is apparently a swahili slang word meaning “eating well”. i didn’t know that; and to see the restaurant décor, branding and menu, you’d not expect anything vaguely “swahili” about it. as a matter of fact, when we walked in, i guessed the place to be more of a cuban fusion jazz joint. not that there is anything wrong with it, mind you, just didn’t know where the swahili element fitted in.
jichana grill is also located on the ground floor of the elangeni (tsogo sun) hotel (next to daruma japanese restaurant and teppan yaki which we were fortunate to visit the night before). just off to the side street, the solid metal door with lightbox branding above gives the impression of a nightclub entrance and since we were on time, were a little confused about getting in through that door at all since so many restaurants we had visited were still prepping at 6pm. but mr burly-man let us in and we were shown to our table, past the temperature controlled glass wall enclosed wine cellar and little humidor (you see why i thought the place cuban). our server was pleasant and informative and made every effort to make our dinner an enjoyable one although his knowledge of the menu adequate.
our meal included a beef carpaccio with watercress, balsamic vinegar reduction, fresh citrus squeezed over, and i am sure i detected a hint of truffle oil. you can’t really go wrong with carpaccio but i will say that the portion size was nice and the accompanying flavours fresh and well suited.
grill jichana is getting to be well known for their steak dishes. 500g rump steak ordered bleu with 20 ingredient café de paris butter and a side order of fries. now i will introduce you to the very reason why we have decided to stop booking our dinners at 6pm and opting for 8pm. being the first people ordering, my hunk of meat was pulled out of the fridge and slapped immediately onto the grill. now a bleu steak can’t be cooked directly from fridge cold because it leaves the inside, well, cold. so it was with regret that i had to inform our server of the chilly situation and see how he would handle it. absolutely no excuses or arguments, my plate was returned to the kitchen to be inspected by the chef and subsequently replaced with a perfectly bleu grilled steak exactly to my liking.
the pan seared tuna steak with red peppers showed off excellent quality ingredients and superior skill in preparation. simple flavours and presented with style. although grill jichana is making a name for themselves with their beef, it would be remiss of me not to mention the excellent quality of the fish too.
ourdessertof homemade crème brule was simple and creamy with half a strawberry on the side with a little berry coulis again made a meeting of angels on the taste buds. very nice.
on leaving grill jichana you will most likely be handed a business card with a tripadvisor link on the back with a request to rate or review the restaurant. very proactive and an excellent way for them to keep things at the highest standard possible.