GOLD RUSH
Johannesburg has for too long been little more than an overnight stop on the way to Cape Town or Kruger National Park, but a couple days here will reveal a white-hot art and design scene, plus a score of new hotels, galleries, and restaurants—By Diane Vadino
DAY 1
Johannesburg’s orderly northern suburbs provide a peaceful transition into this hyperkinetic city—and it’s now accessible from O.R. Tambo International Airport by the much-heralded Gautrain ($14; gautrain.co.za), which offers a speedy 15-minute trip to Sandton—cutting both travel time and taxi fare by about half. CHECK IN The Saxon (36 Saxon Rd; 27-11/292-6000; thesaxon.com; suites from $1000) is famous as the hotel where Nelson Mandela completed Long Walk to Freedom following his release from Victor Verster Prison; in June, it added three villas, each with a pool and butler service. A buzzier option is the Radisson Blu Hotel Sandton (Rivonia Rd. and Daisy St.; 27-11/245-8000; radissonblu.com; doubles from $300), with ten modern duplex apartments on its 23rd floor—the floor-to-ceiling windows offer better views of Joburg’s expansive manmade forest and the surrounding veld than the Top of Africa attraction above the Carlton Centre. Practically next door, Radisson Blu Gautrain (Rivonia Rd. and West St.; 27-11/286-1000; radissonblu.com; doubles from $190) opened in May, with a lower room rate and a stylish outdoor lounge overlooking the city.
LUNCH
Take the five-minute taxi ride to Moema’s (Corner of Third and Seventh Ave., Parktown; 21-11/788-7725; moemas.co.za; lunch for two $24), a popular lunch cafe and bakery. Photo-ready sweets like raspberry coulis meringues and bread-and-butter pudding are the top sellers here—but don’t skip the inventive salads, like one with broccoli with halloumi cheese and cherry tomatoes.
ART
Another quick cab ride will take you to Parkwood’s nascent gallery district, anchored by the David Krut gallery and bookshop (140 Jan Smuts Ave.; 27-11/447-0627; davidkrutpublishing.com), with the city’s best selection of art and design books. Next door is design studio Maker (142 Jan Smuts Ave.; 27-11/447-6680; makerstudio.co.za), which often has exhibitions featuring local product designers, like a recent show of ceramic pieces by local firm Dokter and Misses. Gallery on the Square (140 Jan Smuts Ave.; 27-11/447-0155; gallery2.co.za) recently relocated here from Sandton—don’t miss the vibrant wood-block prints, often of South African landscapes, by Joshua Miles, one of the gallery’s stars. The Johannesburg branch of the country’s premier Goodman Gallery (163 Jan Smuts Ave.; 27-11/788-1113; goodman-gallery.com), which represents luminaries like William Kentridge and Kudzanai Chiurai, an exiled ZImbabwean based in Joburg, is across the street. The striking Circa Gallery (2 Jellicoe Ave.; 27-11/788-4805; circaonjellicoe.com) is nearby—the nearly 400 thirty-foot-tall variegated aluminum “fins” that surround it are intended to reference the fence that demarcates a protective Zulu kraal, or livestock enclosure.
DINNER
The best bet on Parkhurst’s restaurant row, The Attic (24 Fourth Ave.; 27-11/880-6102; dinner for two $80), serves an internationally eclectic menu (French guinea fowl, Namibian mussels, Scottish salmon, pork belly with sauerkraut) in its vintage-wallpapered dining room.
DAY 2
BREAKFAST
Once a no-go zone for visitors because of crime fears, Joburg’s eastern central business district is now home to Arts on Main, a stylish retail and gallery complex that’s lured top Johannesburg artists (including South African multimedia icon William Kentridge and The Goethe Institute). Canteen (Corner of Berea and Main streets; 27-11/334-5947; brunch for two $26), which offers outdoor seating in a central courtyard, serves Joburg’s most satisfying brunch, with flapjacks, French toast, and the Canteen breakfast, with mushrooms, eggs, tomatoes, and lamb sausage.
MUSEUM
The staggering Apartheid Museum (Corner of Northern Pkwy and Gold Leaf Rd.; 27-11/309-4700; apartheidmuseum.org), located south of the city center, is the city’s must-see attraction, with exhibits examining apartheid-era race classification, the creation of the national constitution, and the 19th-century gold rush that brought prospectors from around the world to Johannesburg—all an invaluable primer for understanding the divisions of class and race that have scarred the country for decades.
LUNCH
Head back into town for lunch at the Melrose Arch location of the mini-chain Tasha’s (The Piazza at Melrose Arch; 27-11/684-1781; brunch for two $32) the liveliest cafe in Joburg—a top pick is the Golden Pear, a spring-greens salad with avocado, bacon, gorgonzola cheese, and the titular candied fruit.
SHOPPING
A vibrant, indie tweak on Joburg’s dominant mall culture, the 44 Stanley (44 Stanley Ave.; 27-11/482-4444; 44stanley.co.za) complex in Milpark has the city’s best shopping, like breezy, drapey womenswear by Tiaan Nagel (Shop G-14; 27-11/482-5012)—think Donna Karan ever-so-slightly punk rock younger sister.
DINNER
It’s 20 minutes up the M1 back to the Melrose Arch complex for a pan-African dinner at friendly, high-energy Moyo (Melrose Arch, The High Street Shop 5; 27-11/684-1477; dinner for two $120), with regular live entertainment and dinner options like South African spiced sosaties (curried, skewered beef) with apricots, braised springbok shank, and Ethiopian beef marinated in fenugreek, a clover-like herb.
DRINKS
The 102-year-old Kitchener’s Carvery Bar (Corner of Juta and DeBeer streets; 27-79/266-5077; drinks for two $10) in Braamfontein once hosted the titular commander of Britain’s Boer War force; with a dance floor, disco ball and back-to-basics drink menu (think: Castle lagers), it’s now a favorite among Joburg’s design crowd—and the best place to toast a too-brief stay in this vibrant city.