FAST FACTS  

Restaurant Name: Al-Hamra (Previously Daawat) 

Address: 70 Mint Road, Fordsburg, Johannesburg 

Telephone: 011 837 8615 

Opening and closing times: Monday to Thursday 10am to 10pm; Friday and Saturday 10am to 11pm 

Average price of a main course: R100 

Corkage: No BYO 

Parking situation: Kerbside parking 

Food type: Asian 

 Best for: Casual lunch and dinner, takeaways 

Food  

Apart from the struggle with the name change (from Daawat to Al-Hamra), the restaurant easily tops the list for an authentic South Asian cuisine experience. The food is very flavourful with generous portions making this restaurant a great place for sharing meals. The restaurant is not too busy, as such there is no need to make a reservation ahead of time.  

 The overall menu needs to be more descriptive of flavours, ingredients and allergens. 

Drinks 

The drinks menu is very underwhelming, with only soft drinks on offer. The restaurant does serve some of the drinks in 1.25litre glass bottles which creates some nostalgia of meals shared with family or friends. The drinks menu could use a revamp. 

Service

There was a slight language barrier – the English spoken by the staff was not too fluent. The waiter who did the welcoming into the restaurant doubled as a waiter – but his understanding of the meals was sufficient. 

Ambience

Although it was a dinner service, the lighting was slightly dim. The overall decor of the restaurant was somewhat dated and muted – but did have accents of traditional South Asian inspiration. 

Eat Out critics dine unannounced and pay for their meals in full. Read our full editorial policy here.