Lumo Lounge and Living in Ruimsig serves food that reflects one’s soul
By Funeka Bambalele
With a chef like Thato Shaun Matsaung who is brimming with confidence and ideas, it’s no surprise that Lumo Lounge and Living in Ruimsig, west of Johannesburg gets all the praises on social media for its cuisine.
Lumo which means light in Latin language opened its doors in June this year and it was officially launched recently. The launch night attracted famous people like Simphiwe Majola, Amon Mokoena, Tshegofatso Tladi, Tebogo Ramokgadi, TT MBha and Musa Sukwene.
From the moment you step-in you get whipped by simply captivating ambience. Its satin aesthetic, with warm earthy tones and minimalist designs, creates a cosy yet modern vibe. From furniture to the design, it sums up a serene ambience that invites you to unwind and indulge while listening to soft music. The more you grow wiser, you realise that peace and serene matters which is what Lumo offers.
The restaurant describes itself as an abstract spiritual expression curated for the curious and creative. It is driven by a vision of creating a unique dining experience which blends African food with French cuisine with a contemporary flair.
On the launch night, important guests who were chosen to be part of the special occasion enjoyed a fusion of flavours and vibrant ambiance paired with great music.
The young chef from Alexandra was on the mark on the launch night. As he explains each meal, one could tell his passion about cooking as he fuses his creativity, signature style and class.
Matsaung’s philosophy as a chef, “I believe that food should reflect one’s soul. Every dish that leaves my kitchen is a testament to my creativity, dedication, and love for the craft. I’m not just cooking for the sake of sustenance. I’m crafting experiences that evoke emotions, spark memories, and bring people together. When you taste my food, I want you to feel the love, care, and passion that goes into every bite.”
He curated the launch menu which consisted of refined cuisine that left you licking your fingers. To kick things off, the starter was themed Metthew 6:11 which means ‘give us our daily bread”. It consisted of Lumo oven baked bread/dumpling compound buttered with sundried tomato dip or batter, depending on your mood.
This really set the mood and whet our appetite. The second meal was a choice between Beetroot (V)(N) horseradish crème fraiche which was paired with orange fluid gel, orange, pine nuts and onions. The contrasting flavours made this meal a meal of the day for yours truly. The meal was pleasurable. Beetroot was a better choice for me over Springbok Carpiccio which was served with black garlic aioli, marinated berries, parmesan snow with rocket.
For 3rd cuisine, yourstruly and many others settled for Pollo Involtini which is thinly cut chicken breasts laced with Prosciutto, herbs and cheese then rolled tightly into involtini. It was paired with carrots, red pepper and sundried sauce, spinach and feta. The real meat lovers went for a beef fillet on exotic mushrooms, potato dauphioise, mustard crema and beef jus. Those who tested this one could not stop bragging about its taste.
As much as the portion was tiny, sadly, yourstruly was full for dessert. For dessert, the chef prepared what he called a Sweet Treat which was Tiramisu served on the day as a tribute to chef Robert “loli” Linguanotto, the creator of one of the most cherished Italian desserts of all time. He died at the age of 81. It was vanilla and Amarula mascarpone, together with coffee fluid gel, cocoa and savoiardi biscuits.
Lumo Lounge and Living is a brainchild of Lucky Mphilo, a young man who cut his teeth in PR. In the past five years he has been involved in the food and hospitality sector partnering with others to run Brown Sugar at Maponya Mall, St Tropez in North Riding and White House in Bryanston.
“I sold my shares in those restaurants to focus on Lumo, which I own alone. The place is both a showroom area and a restaurant. This means the furniture that you see you can place an order if you like it ‘and it will be created for you. The plan was to open a place to enjoy great food while music playing in the background.”