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It’s officially time to take it easy – forget the diet plans and focus on the post-supper sweet treats. In our final edition of 2025, we reflect on the year’s culinary trends, dive into the matcha craze, and celebrate Mpho Phalene’s collab with Nando’s. Back in Midrand, new arrivals like Baglios and The Whippet are making the foodie trek a thing of the past. For the festive season, we’re sharing a few kitchen essentials every host will love, plus unmissable seasonal offers. And in case you missed it: your furry friend can tag along on coffee runs, you can explore Africa through Chef Coco’s kitchen, or tuck into something yummy at The Linden Market.
1. Where we landed with 2025 culinary trends
Photo: @paulshomemadeicecream.
MIXED REVIEWS: SPACE SNACKS
Once the domain of astronauts, now having a moment in pop culture, freeze-dried treats were the "it" snack of 2025. But in Joburg? Apart from the fruity offerings in Woolies' check-out aisles, they’ve been pretty MIA… until now. It all started with a pack of freeze-dried sour worms – cute, but nothing to write home about. Then Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream slid into the group chat with freeze-dried versions of their iconic flavours, teaming up with Lucky Issue to drop Oreo Chocolate and Birthday Cake cubes. Texture-wise, think honeycomb – this writer is here for the Birthday Cake version (seriously, next level) though our team was split: some said it’s more like polystyrene with sprinkles. Love it or hate it, it's worth trying at least once.
SLAM DUNK: SAVOURY COCKTAILS
2025 saw savoury and spicy cocktails take over local bars, with mixologists experimenting with flavours like wasabi and coriander alongside your usual margaritas and martinis. Once you’ve tried a few, you might never see cocktails the same way again. During a roaming office adventure at The Peech Hotel in Melrose, we sampled The Pot Luck Club’s Thai Green Curry cocktail – a symphony of litchi, coconut, and chilli-infused vodka. The silence at the table after that first sip said it all: we had found our cocktail of the year. A solid 10/10.
WE ALL LOVE A SARMIE: BEYOND THE BASICS
Albany, Sasko, and Blue Ribbon will always have a place in South African kitchens, but sourdough, rye, ciabatta, and paninis with creative fillings have quietly changed the sandwich game. Around Joburg, inventive flavour combos have kept us coming back for more. Here’s our list of favourite sandwich spots we tried this year.
ON THE FENCE: DUBAI'S SWEET TREAT
In 2024, a chocolate bar from FIX Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai – filled with crispy kataifi pastry, pistachio cream, and tahini – sent the internet into a frenzy. The flavour combo was a winner, but it was really the exclusivity and steep price that drove demand. Soon enough, DIY tutorials, taste-test videos, and ASMR clips were flooding social media. In 2025, the closest we got to the hype was Lindt’s version. It didn’t quite justify its R250 price tag, but compared to the R700 FIX original – which you can still grab at Relish in Parkwood if you’re feeling adventurous – it felt a little more reasonable.
2. Matcha: Are you mad about it?
Is green the new brown? Matcha is popping up in cafés across the city. Made by grinding specially grown tea leaves into a fine powder and whisking it with hot water, matcha is most often served as a latte, sometimes with flavour twists like strawberry, mango, or coconut. The taste is grassy, earthy, and surprisingly pleasant. For some, the appeal is driven by TikTok trends, but for many, it’s become a genuine everyday go-to.
In Joburg, reliable spots to pick up your daily fix include Naked Coffee, Here.Joburg, and Motherland Coffee Company. It's also available in chains like Starbucks and Vida e Caffè. Our top matcha spot is Kohi by Ifuku at 44 Stanley. They serve ceremonial-grade matcha, made from tender, shade-grown, hand-picked leaves that are stone-ground into vivid green powder. The result is naturally sweet, rich in umami, and beautifully smooth – especially in their Japanese-style café setting.
3. Mpho Phalene gets saucy with Nando's
Photo: @mpho_deane_phalane via Instagram.
Like a naartjie, Joburg is bright, zesty, and full of layers – a perfect inspiration for Nando’s limited-edition Jozi Street Sauce, a naartjie atchaar created with Mpho Phalene, founder of FoodILoveYou at Constitution Hill. What started as a kitchen experiment now lands on shelves at Big Five Duty Free in OR Tambo International Airport, letting visitors carry a taste of the city home. Here’s hoping it expands to retail so everyone can try it.
On a related note, Johannesburg In Your Pocket teamed up with Nando’s for its most ambitious project yet: Jo, our first GPT model and your personal guide to Joburg's local hotspots, neighbourhoods, and experiences. Check it out: jhbinyourpocketgpt.com
4. What's cooking in Midrand
Midrand folk used to have to go on a trek to satisfy their cravings. Good news: that’s changing. Baglios has opened at the new Mushroom Farm Centre in Waterfall – meaning a scoop of Mango and Pistachio gelato for dinner is now a completely reasonable life choice. The Whippet, Linden’s beloved café, has also set up shop; we popped by recently and, in true Linden style (if you know, you know), it was so packed we couldn’t get a table. Rest assured, we'll be back to try it soon.
5. Setting the table: On our Xmas wishlist
For some of us, the festive season is synonymous with the kitchen. It’s not truly Christmas until the table is dressed to the nines and stacked with all our favourite chow. Beyond the food, we’re here for the serving dishes that have been hiding all year, the tableware finally getting its moment, and any cute take-home treats for guests. Here are our top three gifting picks to make your table stand out.KITCHEN COUTURE
You can’t escape the charm of bold prints and quality cotton. Proudly local, ALoveSupreme’s aprons, tablecloths, and tea towels – spotted at Tapenade and Friends in Rand Steam Shopping Centre – bring a pop of quirky cool to everyday cooking and hosting. Functional yet fun, these pieces turn any kitchen into an instant feel-good space.
MAXHOSA X WOOLIES
Photo: @woolworths_sa via Instagram.
Retail giant Woolworths and iconic South African brand MaXhosa Lifestyle have joined forces to launch a heritage-inspired collection, arriving in select stores on Tue, Nov 25, 2025. The lineup features 11 curated lifestyle pieces, including a loose-leaf Wupperthal Rooibos tea tin, a double-walled stainless-steel vacuum bottle adorned with iconic MaXhosa prints, extra-virgin cold-pressed olive oil in a ceramic bottle, an organic Arabica coffee tin, a premium wine carrier, traditional buttermilk rusks, and a floral bouquet.
SURREAL DESIGN
Designed in collaboration with Portuguese jeweller and concept artist Sebastião Lobo, the Spirale Serving Set adds a surreal, elegant touch to any table. Its twisted spiral handles, inspired by American sculptor Alexander Calder, are finished in L’OBJET’s signature 24k gold plating. Sculptural yet functional, the set transforms every cocktail or dessert into an exquisite experience. Available online or in-store at Botanicus, Hyde Park Corner.
6. Worth checking out
GLORIOUS DIM SUM
Chase bold flavours at Glory with their Flight of the Dim Sum set menus, served as dinner on Wed or lunch from Thu – Sat. The menus may be small in size, but they pack big attitude: dumplings (cured tomato, chicken Caesar, prawn), ricotta and mint pea or guanciale wontons, kimchi tofu gyoza, tempura cauliflower with morning glory leaves, daikon bao, and fresh ceviche or olive tacos. Perfect solo, but even better shared. Follow @gloryjoburg on Instagram for the details.
SHAKE THINGS UP
At Irene Farm, milkshakes return to their pastoral roots with weekday tasting experiences. The line-up features five flavours, each named after common South African cow herds and made with farm-fresh milk: the Friesland’s comforting vanilla and Oreo, the Ayshire’s bright mix of berries, honey and macadamia praline, the Nguni with Kit Kat crumble, the Afrikaner’s fudge and marshmallow, and the Brahman’s iced hot chocolate layered with peanut praline. Tastings run Mon – Fri, excluding public holidays. Book here.
GET LUCKY IN THE KITCHEN
Photo: @miss_luckypony via Instagram.
"Eat cake, because it’s somebody’s birthday somewhere!" says content creator Angie Batis Durrant, aka @miss_luckypony, author of The Lucky Kitchen. This cosy, family-focused cookbook is full of easy, fun recipes you can make with kids. It mixes comforting meals, sweet treats, and a touch of Greek tradition, all with a personal, lived-in feel. If you've heard about her hitherto top-secret Wolves Cafe red velvet cake recipe, now's the time to grab your copy.
7. In case you missed it...
10 MINUTES WITH CHEF COCO
“We’re not reinventing Africa, we’re revealing its sophistication,” Chef Coco Reinharz of Épicure at ONE tells us. We sat down with the chef-patron to talk about transcendent flavours, how food builds community, and the heartbeat of Joburg’s culinary scene. Read the Q&A.
OUR FAVE DOG-FRIENDLY CAFES
If there are two things most Joburgers take seriously, it’s their coffee and their pets. With our comprehensive guide to the best dog-friendly cafés and coffee shops in the city, you’ll never have to choose between them again. Get the full list here.
MARKET BITES
Craving pancakes, tatoyaki balls, and dumpling bows all at once? The Linden Market Festive Edition touches down at Johannesburg Botanical Gardens on Sat, Nov 29 and Sun, Nov 30, 2025. Not only does it have handcrafted, local goods galore, it's also a food-lover's paradise. Buy your tickets now.
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