Marble: Wine & food destination with a new look

After six years of bringing award-winning, international-level luxury to Johannesburg, Marble in Rosebank’s Keyes Art Mile, the city’s top live fire restaurant for food and wine has had a nip-and-tuck. Guests can now experience pops of gold and playful light worked into the entire space, all from the considered eye of Interior Director, Irene Kyriacou.

Marble’s interior decorator, Irene Kyriacou

Keen attention to detail

A new look

The new additions further contribute to Marble’s elevated dining experience which is both luxurious but also comfortable. Marble opened in 2016 and has firmly established itself as one of the most sought-after dining experiences for local and international guests.

Gorgeous interior topped with a breathtaking view

A modern and sophisticated new look

The bar at Marble

Wikus Human, Head Sommelier, The Marble Group says the bar at Marble is the start and end for many of their guests. It is the perfect place to start your journey at Marble – with a glass of bubbles on the balcony to watch the sunset, enjoy an unusual wine after dinner or even a great dessert wine by the glass.

Wikus Human, Head Sommelier, The Marble Group

The balcony

Irene explains that for this reason, “we’ve brought in four spectacular dome lights by La Grange and added a beautiful illuminated Arabesco marble countertop – the patchwork pop of light brings some real playfulness into the bar and reminds us of the fire at the heart of Marble.”

For the furniture, the Casamento couches have been reupholstered with gold ribbon and embroidery, and teal ottomans added to the space for a pop of color.

The ultra chic bar

The wines

The cellars at Marble and its sister venues, Saint and Zioux, boast the finest range of local and international wines. The sommelier team has individually selected each to complement the menus and highlight some of the industry’s most talented makers. There is also a strong focus on boutique wineries and older vintages are regularly sourced.

The wine list has anything between 200 and 400 wines at a time. Some wines are not on the wine list due to their rarity and limited allocations.

Wikus says the wine list change regularly. “We are constantly tasting new wines and vintages. As our wine list is digital, we can update it once to twice weekly. The entire sommelier team does the selection, and we taste regularly with winemakers and come to a consensus about a listing.”

Stocked with exceptional wines and older vintages

Although the group does not host wine pairing evenings, they do have several high-quality, and exclusive wines, available by the glass. This allows the sommeliers to pair up multiple wines with dishes from the menu and will enable guests to try more than one vintage or varietal.

Wicus says “Alongside great food and service at Marble, we like to ensure that our wines not only elevate the dishes on the menu but match the mood of the customer and make for something exceptional. We thus regularly sit with winemakers to taste their new vintage releases to create these moments.”

A fresh look

The fresh look restaurant now features a brass bulkhead, treated to look antique, reflects in shades of shimmering bronze and gold, and reflects the orange light of the Joburg sunset in the afternoon.

The brass kitchen bulkhead

Grillworks and Mervyn Gers tiles

The floors and furniture have been sanded and resealed, and a fresh coat of paint and stucco wall finishes added. New fabrics for the seating and the lighting in the ceiling alcoves changed to LED adding a golden hue to the custom-illustrated cornices by Sarita Immelman from GRID.

One of the diners’ favorite areas, the Chef’s Table – which runs along the side of the kitchen and gives diners a front-row seat to the theatre of cooking – is now a plush and cozy corner. Arabesco back-lit marble has been fitted on the lower-seating area, with new chairs by David Krynauw and bar stools refurbished by Guideline. The area has been carpeted with a custom rug also designed by Sarita Immelman and manufactured by MONN Rugs.

The chef’s table

Sarita also designed the custom carpeting in the raised dining area. The added luxury and softness underfoot are beautifully matched with a custom chandelier by Thabisa at Mash T – finished with beads of teal, brass and black. There is also an antique finish mirror installed on the main wall of the area with flecks of gold, adding space and dimension to this area.

The raised dining area

A bathroom made to be famous

The bathrooms, famous for mirror selfies, are one of the areas that have been revamped. In keeping with Marble’s location in the Keyes art precinct and appreciation of local artists and artisans, each of the cubicles now features work from a South African artist.

The bathroom and reception area

Let’s get outdoorsy

The two outdoor areas – the reception patio and main balcony, are ready for summer. The reception patio has been retiled and fitted with new standing bar counters and the main outside balcony has a custom wood bench from Neil Grantham Studios.

The outdoor patio

Wines on offer

For a glass of wine after work or a bottle with a dining experience like no other, try some of Marble’s rarest wines or vintages from the likes of:

Lamb Cutlets with chimichurri served with roasted baby veg and crispy potato skins, alongside labneh and jus

Try this delectable dish from the team at Marble.

Lamb Cutlets with chimichurri

5 servings

Ingredients

1.25kg lamb cutlets

225ml chimichurri

10 roasted baby carrots

5 roasted parsnips, cut in half

3 potatoes, skins

150g labneh cheese

150ml jus

The Flavour Combinations

Chimichurri

180g olive oil

75ml red wine vinegar

5g oregano

½ head garlic

40g parsley

10ml chilli flakes

Stock first stage

5kg lamb bones

5kg chicken bones

5kg beef bones

250g leeks

250g onions

250g celery

250g carrots

1 tin whole peeled tomato

2 garlic heads

1 handfuls thyme

Stock second stage

1kg meat offcuts

1kg chicken wings

125g leeks

125g onion

125g celery

125g carrots

1 tin whole peeled tomatoes

1.5L red wine

Method

For the chimichurri, chop the herbs and garlic finely. Add the rest of the ingredients and whisk.

For the stock (stage 1), brown the veg, brown the bones. Deglaze veg with tomatoes, add the bones, add cold water, garlic, and thyme. Simmer, 8 hours and skim with ladle constantly.

For the stock (stage 2), brown the veg, brown wings and offcuts. Deglaze with red wine and whole peeled tomatoes. Add the wine and offcuts. Add the stock. Boil and skim with a ladle constantly.

For the lamb, cut the lamb into individual cutlets, cook on a grill until cooked to your desired temperature.

For plating, place all the ingredients nicely onto a plate and spoon the chimichurri over the lamb, garnish with the crispy potato skins.

Chef David Higgs & Co-founder Gary Kyriacou

Co-founder Gary Kyriacou & Chef David Higgs

Coming to Cape Town

Good news for those visiting Cape Town. Marble is gearing up to set the mother city alight. It will open at the V&A Waterfront in late 2023. The rooftop space, framed almost entirely by glass, will allow guests to not only savor one of the best dining experiences in the country, but also take in a nearly-unbroken view of iconic Cape Town scenery – Table Mountain, the V&A Waterfront harbor, and the Atlantic Ocean. Discover another iconic Cape Town restaurant here.

Artwork by Krisjan Rossouw

We say this could be the perfect spot to welcome the new year at. Shop wines from around the world here and follow Sip & Read to learn about the hottest wine destinations around the globe. Cheers!

BY Maryke Roberts | December 16, 2022

Maryke is an award-winning, Cape Winelands based journalist who has been writing about local and international wine and travel for over three decades. When she's home, her days are almost exclusively concluded with a walk on the beach and a glass of South African fine wine or spirits.