Bucket Scene: Lupa Osteria - Ballito

Ballito, once a small coastal town which predominately was cane fields once upon a time, is now one of the fastest growing towns in KwaZulu Natal. With the growth brings about new opportunities for business and while this town already has some gem of eateries, it's ready to welcome another and we went down to try it out. Lupa Osteria, is no stranger to the Durban restaurant scene, having already established stores in Hillcrest, Westville and Durban North, it was time the Dolphin Coast got a taste of what they're cooking. The name coming from Italian origins with Lupa being the immortal Roman wolf goddess who helped establish the city of Rome and Osteria originally meaning a place that serves wine and simple food, it has now been taken up a notch with a bit more that is catered. The masterminds behind the brand are Chef and Owner Chris Black and Owner/ Entrepreneur Guy Clever, they've built the restaurants name up in a tricky Durban market and has become a popular destination for families and friends to gather around for some good food, as they offer a great variety to suit even the fussiest of eater and have a great range of beverages. 

Lupa Ballito opened its doors to the public last Friday and last night I was invited to come dine at the new venue. Located in Ballito Lifestyle center, one of the original go-to malls up the coast has undergone a drastic revamp and a much needed one. The strip mall is now more lifestyle orientated has a great new food market and restaurant layout, Lupa Osteria is located at the key front side location and features an outdoor deck area as well as an outdoor bar area which is all soon to be open. The interior is decorated superbly, with a rustic Italian feel and the pasta making area concealed in glass at the entrance of the shop. The bar is magnificent with green marble tops, and a wide selection of wines, spirits, beers and craft beers. 

On entering we were warmly greeted by the host and seated promptly, our waiter was soon at our table telling us their range of drinks, I opted for the house brew on tap, called Wolf Lager, appropriately named for the restaurant, it is brewed by Cape Brewing Company exclusively for Lupa Osteria. This golden lager is crisp, refreshing, easy on the palate and fruity notes, perfect for a summers day and perfect for a meal. Having frequented the other Lupa's before, I wanted to try something different for a starter, something that I haven't already tried so I opted for the Italian Nachos. Now while we're all used to getting crispy tortilla chips drenched in cheese, avo and sour cream, these ones were a bit different. On the plate laid crispy fried ravioli, filled with 3 cheeses with a fiery arrabbiata dipping sauce to accompany it. Normally ravioli is a bit dry but these was the total opposite, the filling was moist and flavorful, the panko coating was crisp to perfection and the frying didn't take away the moisture of the pasta. Overall, it was superb and a great starter to have on your own or to share. 

Being an Italian restaurant, I wanted to keep the theme going, deciding whether to go for a pizza or a pasta was my hardest decision but being seated close to the pasta prep area, I couldn't help but want to try out their freshly made pasta. I went for the Fettuccine Con Pollo, which on the menu is described as "Chicken and a mix of mushrooms, light cream, garlic, white wine and toasted pine nuts". I'm a sucker for fries and one of the sides were parmesan fries, even though we were having pasta, I needed to try these! After having a shot of the house made lemoncello, it was the perfect palate cleaner to prepare us for the mains, I was keen to try the house made pasta, I haven't had freshly made pasta before and really was looking forward to it. Lupa say that their pasta is extruded through a die cutter made from bronze creating a rougher texture on the surface, thus allowing the pasta to grip more of the sauce. This was evident from every bit of my main. The pasta was cooked al dente, it was light but captured all the flavours on the plate. The meal was light but filling at the same time, the toasted pine nuts added great texture to the dish, normally I am a fan of added extra chili and garlic to my pasta dishes but for this it was not needed. 

Having devoured the entire mains, little space remained for dessert but having a look at the menu, Lupa has a good few options for those with a sweet tooth, one that sticks our for me is the chocolate and caramel fondant which is served with ice-cream but I settled for a scoop of gelato. With five flavours to choose from, I went with the caramel, served in either a bowl or a cone, the scoop is a rather generous portion but with every spoonful leaving your mouth wanting more, it wasn't an effort to finish. The bowl option comes with a sugar cone slice in it, so you sort of get the best of both worlds if you want a cone purely to eat but don't want to deal with the rest of it. The gelato itself is light and creamy, the flavour not too overpowering and definitely a favourite for all ages. 

Overall, I can only see Lupa Osteria in Ballito being as successful as the other branches, apart from offering a wide variety of cuisine, the laid back atmosphere, attentive staff and great location will make it a popular spot for most locals and holiday makers. I'll definitely be returning to try out more things on that menu soon and to see the rest of the restaurant take shape when the deck and outdoor bar is open and running. 

Bucket Scene: Lupa Osteria - Westville

There was much fanfare about this place "Lupa" that the people up the hill kept raving about, for most of you who don't know, the expression "up the hill" means the climb up that dreaded Fields Hill to Kloof and Hillcrest. Many who reside there don't venture down the hill apart from work reasons and many who reside down the hill don't head up for any reason! Now there are a host of top restaurants up there but the one that kept coming up in conversations was Lupa. So much so it enticed many to venture up the hill to try it out for them self and they were not disappointed.

Though if you were like me, lazy to make the travel, we were in luck as owners Chris Black and Guy Cluver decided to expand their eatery or "Osteria" as they call themselves, which in Italian means a place that serves wine and simple food, to pastures down the hill in close proximity to us, good thing to as I've been there 3 times since and each time provided something different so I thought I'd share my experiences.

The Westville branch opened late last year and was an instant hit in the area with most of the nights being fully booked. So after many attempts I finally managed to get a booking before the end of last year, albeit a stand by booking for myself and a couple of mates. Being on the waiting list we were asked to wait at the bar, but in truth I could spend the entire evening there with a pizza and a cold beverage. The setup is quite funky with low lighting, high tables and stools, classy bar setup with a variety of craft beers, commercial beers, an assortment of spirits and great selection of local wines. They also have a cocktail menu but for me, just a double whisky on the rocks whilst we waited.

Now I like to look at a restaurants menu prior to visiting, luckily Lupa have the entire menu on their website but even though I probably spent a few hours going through the menu on the website in my own time I still wasn't sure what to order once we were seated. I eventually settled for the Marinara Pasta. A selection of prawns, mussels and calamari, served in a rich tomato, chili and fennel sauce with a home made pasta of your choice, I chose the spaghetti. The meal was good, not great but good. The flavour from all the seafood was evident, none being overcooked, none over powering and it was a great melody tied up with that fantastic sauce. It didn't blow me away though but I did enjoy it, hence I thought that's why they called it "Osteria", simple food. The serving was quite large, so it definitely justified the price.

Upon my second visit I was tempted to try something from their Secondi Menu, I was sold on their Chicken Marsala. A crumbed chicken fillet, pan fried with a sauce of mushrooms, Marsala wine, Gorgonzola and cream. I'm one for fried foods so this was right up my alley, for my sides I decided against going for the usual starch of potatoes, though their Tuscan style potatoes are damn good! But I opted for the creamy parmesan fettuccine. I cannot begin to tell you how well it worked with the main. The chicken was done to perfection, crispy on the outside, soft and moist on the inside. The sauce was legendary and has me salivating for it as I type this. The fettuccine as I said was the perfect partner for this dish. All the elements blew me away and it was then I realised what the people from the top of the hill were talking about all this while! and all that for a R100 seemed like a steal compared to other eateries.

My third visit came not to long ago as I decided to have one of my many birthday dinner celebrations at Lupa Westville. It was my birthday so what the hell, went all out for 3 courses. To start, I shared the Rotolo of Spinach, with ricotta, mushrooms and a brown sage butter. Seeing that I was going to have a meat as my main I might as well balance it out with the veg starter. I love spinach and ricotta pies and this was very similar to that, the sage butter was the cherry on the top.

For mains I went for a combo, half a chicken peri-peri roasted in their wood fired pizza oven with pretzel dusted calamari. Priding themselves on organic chickens, I expected it to be on the smallish side but I was wrong, it was a healthy half a chicken with an equally healthy serving of calamari tubes.The calamari was excellent, I'm one for crumbed and fried but the pretzel dust proved to be a welcomed difference to the norm. The chicken was superb as well, strong peri- peri flavours and perfectly roasted in that wood fired oven. Again, instead of opting for potatoes as a side I went for the Zucchini fries. a healthy and tasty alternative. All that for R110, portions were more than adequate and could easily satisfy anyone without having starters or desert.

Speaking of which, desert, there was a lot to chose from, a salted caramel popcorn sundae caught my eye but being stuffed from the previous two courses  I opted for something small. Always been a fan of creme brule so I settled for just that. Many places stuff up on the sugar, some being too thick or too burnt but a layer as thin as film, crystallised just right as you break through to the soft, creamy cool creme underneath. It along with a cup of cappuccino was the perfect way to end the night. 

Out of my 3 visits to Lupa Westville I was never left disappointed, from the decor to the food and the service, it leaves one satisfied after getting good quality and a keen price. Which brings me back to the name Osteria and its meaning, "simple food and wine", yes while the food may be simple, it is great food and of good value, their vast selection of wines to chose from make the name apt. After the success of Westville they have recently ventured further to Durban North, which I understand is packed on a daily occurence. Another thing thats new to Lupa is that they now serve breakfast, another thing for me to try soon!

Various branches

• Hillcrest: 140 Old Main Road - 031 765 3059 - hillcrest@lupa.co.za
• Westville: 124 Jan Hofmeyer Drive - 031 266 8793 - westville@lupa.co.za
• Durban North: 6-12 Swapo Road - 031 941 1181

Website: www.lupa.co.za

Twitter: @lupa_osteria

Instagram: lupa_osteria
Facebook: LupaOsteriaSouthAfrica