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It’s little wonder that PRIMI Eastgate is regarded as one of Bedfordview’s best restaurants.
PRIMI was pioneered in Cape Town in 1999 by entrepreneurs Peter Castle and Francesco Zanasi with a vision to create a world-class restaurant brand, synonymous with delicious and superior quality food, exceptional service and value for money.
In March this year PRIMI in the Eastgate Mall was purchased by Toniah and Bongani Khumalo who were over the moon to become part of PRIMI franchise family.
Toniah explains why: “We are delighted to be transforming the restaurant into a must visit culinary and cultural hub. The decision to enter the culinary space was both strategic and personal as we both wanted to build something that reflects who we are – visionary, resilient and people centred. We also decided to enter the Porcupine Ridge Pizzeria Challenge for the first time because we are proud of what we are doing here and wanted to showcase this.
“PRIMI is an Italian-inspired eatery with significant African influence. While rooted in Italian tradition with Mediterranean-inspired dishes and Italian ingredients, the overall dining experience is shaped by its African context, offering a ‘taste of Italy made in Africa’. PRIMI’s menu has always been eclectic – featuring an array of Italian classics as well as contemporary starters and a-la-carte mains,” she continues.
“Our pizza is the kind to be savoured and eaten slowly. Gooey cheese, fresh garlic and tangy tomato undertones will greet you first, and our sizes are very generous so one pizza is good to share.”
She says all the pizzas are wood fire baked with thin and crispy bases. One of the restaurant’s best-sellers is The Californian, which comprises chicken or bacon, served with Danish feta, salsa Pomodoro, mozzarella and avocado.
The Moroccan has African influences with spicy harissa chicken, tomato and mozzarella topped with Persian salad, creamy yoghurt relish and fresh coriander while The Mexican features slow cooked ground beef, a mix of piquanté and jalapeno slices, paprika, pineapple and mozzarella cheese. Murder By Meat is spicy chorizo, peppers, gypsy ham, bacon, tomato, mozzarella and salami while the classic Margherita is tomato, basil and premium Arla Fior di Latte, a premium cheese made from cow’s milk, rich in protein, calcium and Vitamin B12.
The Khumalo’s restaurant is also renowned for its expertly made cocktails and its outdoor deck which has stunning views of the Joburg skyline.
Toniah says her favourite pizza topping is seafood and she doesn’t believe that there’s anything that should never be on a pizza: “Pizza is art … explore!”
The restaurant is currently running a Wednesday special (sit down only) where two pizzas and a bottle of wine goes for R275 (valid on selected items only).
PRIMI Eastgate is open daily from 09h00 to 22h00, and is located at Shop 11, Rooftop at Eastgate Shopping Centre, 43 Bradford Road, Bedfordview, Johannesburg. To book, telephone 011 622 1234 or 072 330 4801 or via email on eastgate@primi-restaurants.com. Visit the restaurant’s website for more information, or follow its social media pages: Facebook – facebook.com/PrimiWorld; X – https://x.com/PRIMIworld; Instagram – instagram.com/primiworld and TikTok –tiktok.com/@primieastgate.
Now in its fifth year, the Porcupine Ridge Pizzeria Challenge sees the public voting for their favourite local pizzeria via a dedicated website. The restaurant with the most votes will be crowned South Africa’s favourite pizzeria, picking up the ultimate bragging rights as well as wine and marketing collateral to the value of R40 000. The Top 10 restaurants will win
R1 800 in vouchers plus three cases of wine to award to their top servers.
Consumers voting for their favourite venue can win a weekly prize of six bottles of Porcupine Ridge wines and EarthFire pizza accessories, with one voter selected Grand Prize Winner at the end of the competition and receiving an EarthFire Tabletop Pizza Oven, pizza for a year (to the value of R2 000) and five cases of Porcupine Ridge Wines, for a combined value of R10 000.
The last day of voting is October 31, with the winner and the top 9 announced in mid-November.