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Stan Higgins
Harare residents have become very fond of coffee shops, which in essence are small restaurants offering all-day opportunities for anything from a cup of coffee to a small-to-medium meal.
There now appear to be a great many of these around the city and I have to say some of them leave a lot to be desired in terms of their position, design, service or content. In fact, given that the various regulatory authorities are frequent to the point of harassing in their attention to the well-established and well-run dining venues in town, I wonder how some of these manage to open, let alone run for periods of time.
I’m glad to say I tried out one of Harare’s newer coffee shops for this week’s column and found it to be everything that one needs in such a venue, quite the opposite of the ones I have referred to. It is Café de Paris in the fairly new Highland Park shopping centre, on the corner of ED Mnangagwa and Arcturus roads in Highlands.
This the second venue of such name, the first Café de Paris having operated on Churchill Avenue in Alexandra Park for the past six or seven years, I think. Both are operated by Marc Banville and both are styled on the traditional French patisserie café. It is this French infusion of content and style that give both venues an ambience different from so many other coffee shops, positively so.
Café de Paris at Highland Park Shopping Centre in Harare is styled on the traditional French patisserie café.
As I commented when I first went to the Churchill Avenue venue, one often thinks of a traditional café as being a sidewalk-style venue, from where one can watch the passing parade of people and vehicles, usually in a busy urban setting. The new Café de Paris is just such a venue and it is indeed fascinating to watch the passing parade at his increasingly busy shopping complex.
My guest and I had lunch there and enjoyed the ambience of the outdoor seating. The menu is small but delightfully varied. I ordered and enjoyed a pepper steak pie with salad and my guest had a rump steak prepared on the sidewalk grill to her specification, accompanied by a Greek salad.
We also had desserts: millefeuille (often called vanilla slice or custard slice, and sometimes Napoleon in North America) for my guest and crepes with cinnamon, sugar and lemon for me, accompanied by espressos for both of us. It was an excellent set of choices and we found pricing to be reasonable and content to be top quality.
At both cafés customers are not only those folk who come to sit and enjoy food and beverages there but a steady flow of people buying the various baked delights, from croissants to cakes. I know Marc to be a charming host, but he was not there that day and so we enjoyed delightful service from William Makwete, whom I remember from his Meikles Hotel days of some time ago.
The Highland Park shopping centre has quickly become a busy place and there is substantial construction work taking place north of the current buildings for a second phases, which I hear will host an even greater range of retail and dining establishments.
We found parking easy and close and the relaxed and orderly nature of the complex added to our enjoyment of a super lunchtime experience.
Café de Paris at Highland Park is open daily from 7am to 8.30pm (5.30pm on Sundays and Mondays), while that at 47 Churchill Road, Alexandra Park, is open daily from 7am to late afternoon. The Highland Park venue is licensed for alcohol while Churchill Road is not. They are charming and friendly and suitable for all ages. Call 0778 078801 for information.
•Feedback on your favourite venues and your experiences – good and otherwise – are welcome. E-mail [email protected].
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