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You are here: Home / Restaurants / South Africa restaurants / Spur Steak Ranches

Spur Steak Ranches

by Jeanne Horak on May 10, 2010 9 Comments in South Africa restaurants

Spur steak ranch

It isn’t often that a chain of restaurants (other than those of the drive-through, happy meal variety!!) survives and thrives for over 40 years.  When one does, it’s hardly surprising that it enters the national consciousness of a country, which is exactly what Spur Steak Ranches have done in South Africa.

Ask any South African if they have a Spur memory, and I can guarantee that they will come up with a couple.  Some of you reading this had their first date at the local Spur as the restaurants were prime first date territory for the more discerning South African teenager in the 1980s.  Some of you will remember going to the Spur for birthday parties, where the kitchen staff would always appear at the table at the end of the meal bearing a cake with sparklers and singing happy birthday to the squirming delight of the birthday boy or girl. My brother still has one of the cumbersome but quite iconic wooden boards that the restaurants use to print menus on to this day.  I remember having my first addictive taste of Tex-mex food at the Spur, back in the days when they had to add a pronounciation guide to the menu (“kes-a-DEE-a” as opposed to “kwes-a-DILL-a” and “ha-la-PEH-noh” instead of “ja-la-PEE-no”).  I fondly remember sitting at the Grahamstown Spur preparing for court cases and drinking one bottomless cup of coffee all afternoon.  And show me a South African who does not go a little misty-eyed at the mention of Spur onion rings and Spur pink sauce!

The first Spur Steak ranch was opened by Allen Ambor (who is still the company’s executive chairman) in Cape Town in 1967.  Since then, 240 South African and 29 international franchises (including some in London, to my utter joy!) have opened and the company continues to go from strength to strength.  They have proclaimed themselves the “official restaurant of the South African family” and if you are looking for a kid-friendly sit-down restaurant with an unchallenging menu (and excellent steaks!), you will struggle to do better in South Africa.  Most (if not all) the Spurs have an enclosed kiddies play area and will provide crayons and colouring-in pictures for children.  There is also a children’s menu available and the decor is also likely to provide the kids with some amusement.

Yes, the decor.  What is slightly surprising (even disconcerting for first-time visitors!) is that the theme of these restaurants is… ersatz native American, rather than even vaguely African.  From the restaurant names (Flaming Arrow, Apache, Big Creek, Silver Eagle) to the decor (cowhide print leathrette banquettes, adobe-style walls, vaguely Aztec-themed light fittings) to the logo (a native American in a feathered headdress) to the menu (aforementioned Tex-Mex) – it all has a native American slant to it.  Most South Africans have long stopped seeing the inherent weirdness in this, but first-time-visitors may be bemused!  But let’s face it, we don’t come for the decor – we come for the food!

SpurSteakWeb

The menu ranges from starters such as peri-peri chicken livers, nachos, buffalo wings and their famous crumbed mushrooms, to Spur burgers (the cheese, bacon and guacamole is my favourite), to Tex-Mex (faijitas and quesadillas) to schnitzels and outstanding ribs. But the main reason we go to the Spur every time we go home is the steaks.  There is a full range from T-bone to sirloin to fillet to the premium lazy-aged rump, all basted in Spur basting sauce and cooked to perfection – these guys really do know their stuff when it comes to steak.  A steak also provides the perfect opportunity to try out some classic Spur sauces, such as monkeygland, cheddamelt and peppamelt.  But don’t despair if you’re not big on red meat – there  is also a selection of excellent seafood (including the butter-soft calamari pctured below) and salads, with my personal faourite being the Salad Valley salad buffet (my plate if pictured at the top of this post) which also includes bread and hot vegetable dishes.  And if you still have room after all that, Spur’s chocolate brownies and log cabin waffles are justifiably famous – and there’s always a Don Pedro for the not-so-hungry.

SpurCalamariWeb

Portions are generous and prices, although relatively higher than they were when I was a student, remain competitive and are positively cheap by European standards.  A steak will set you back about ZAR90 and a burger about ZAR60 (all come with chips/rice/baked potato and onion rings).  I have often joked that Spur service is the best-trained in South Africa and although this may no longer be strictly true, Spur does stand out as being a company that puts all their waitstaff through a structured training programme, ensuring that the standard of service is consistent across all the branches.  Managers are also always on the floor and visible, should you wish to speak to them.  The service may seem a little over-familiar to those used to more European (read: stand-offish) service, but Americans will feel right at home 🙂

So you have a “taste for life” (as the company logo says), or just a taste for a good steak or burger at a reasonable price, the local Spur is definitely worth a visit.

Spur Steak ranches
To find a branch near you, use the
Spur branch locator.

 

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  1. Kerri says

    May 10, 2010 at 3:00 pm

    I made Stephen take me to Spur when we went to Cape Town because I’d heard so much about it! I loved it, the food was brilliant, much better than any chain steakhouse over here. Never been to the UK branch but I have a craving now so might have to address that soon.

    Reply
  2. Marisa says

    May 10, 2010 at 3:00 pm

    Good old Spur! I must confess I abhor that pink sauce, but I always try to steal my fellow diner’s onion rings – they are just so delightfully crispy and oily (in a good way). I remember my best friend from varsity and I used to go sit at the Spur and order a side-plate of chips – to share! How times have changed…

    Reply
  3. bellini valli says

    May 10, 2010 at 4:08 pm

    I don’t know of a similar place here in Canada that still exists. Here in BC we have Triple O’s which has been here for over 50 years, but we are talking burgers and fries… but darn good burgers and fries:D

    Reply
  4. Gill says

    May 10, 2010 at 4:40 pm

    Gotta love Spur! Hate to break it to you, but in KZN (don’t know about the rest of the country) some of the Spurs have done away with the salad valley! Shock, horror!

    Reply
  5. Kit says

    May 10, 2010 at 6:38 pm

    We’ve just come home from the dentist, each child proudly bearing a Spur Award for Bravery = a voucher for one free burger and soda at Spur, as long as an adult buys a meal too, so I guess we’ll be going soon! Looking forward to that steak!

    Reply
  6. Manggy says

    May 11, 2010 at 6:11 am

    Thanks for showing us a little bit more of home – maybe I should show you our steakhouses too, though there’s no World Cup here, hehe. Love all the food, though that first salad will be hard to mix with no more room on the plate!

    Reply
  7. mademarian says

    May 11, 2010 at 8:16 pm

    Rumour has it on this day
    You are having your birthday
    Say Yo!
    Say yay!
    Happy birthday from Spur today,
    Now eat your inverted ice cream cone masquerading as a clown.

    Reply
  8. Super Sarah says

    May 17, 2010 at 11:47 am

    You have made me seriously homesick! I waitressed at the Spur in Grahamstown all through my days at Rhodes. It was both brilliant and mortifying all at the same time. I proudly wore my stripey shirt, braces and badges and yes, I sang Happy Birthday loudly at the end of the table after lighting the sparklers. There is a Spur here in Sydney but its a long drive away from where we live. I have still requested it as my birthday meal next month, can’t wait. How to decide what to have? I used to love the chips with seasoning salt and a side of cheese sauce. Mmmm, food memory heaven!

    Reply
  9. jodie says

    February 7, 2012 at 3:31 am

    coming from Australia, my sister and i had a stop over in jo’berg and stayed at a hotel close to the airport (about 10 minutes away). In the hotel there was an Irish Pub and a Spur Steakhouse. On our first night in Africa we ate at Spur’s and i still remember it as one of my finest dining moments. Obviously i’m not a food snob, but whilst i do enjoy a bit of fine dining every now and then, i usually like my food big, flavourful and fun. Being wing lovers we had to try the buffalo wings that we always hear about but had never tried. YUM. I think we both had steak, loved the fried onion on the side. I loved the feel and the friendliness (and is it just me or are south african men some of the hottest in Africa). I still remember our waiter’s friendly face, and how kid friendly it was. Someone at another table had a birthday and the staff came out singing and dancing and i was in love with the place. On our way home we were peeing in anticipation of spending another evening at Spurs. I don’t know if it was just that the Spurs we went to was super great, or if all Spurs are created equal, or if it was just a couple of Aussies so excited to be on African soil that our first…..(and last..on the way home) dining experience was so wonderful for us. But i freakin’ loved the place.

    Reply
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Jeanne Horak is a freelance food and travel writer; recipe developer and photographer. South African by birth and Londoner by choice, Jeanne has been writing about food and travel on Cooksister since 2004. She is a popular speaker on food photography and writing has also contributed articles, recipes and photos to a number of online and print publications. Jeanne has also worked with a number of destination marketers to promote their city or region. Please get in touch to work with her Read More…

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