They have a collection of South African candy bars, roiboos tea and various curry sauces, the latter being a legacy of the Indian migrants in South Africa.
The chatty owner of this place, Alex, is happy to explain the various specialties and offers some samples of biltong, a type of dried, spiced meat. But don't call it jerky. "Calling it jerky is an insult," warns Alex. The store also has boerwors ("farmer sausage" in Africaans), a type of spiced sausage based on old Dutch recipes.
The store gets a steady stream of South Africans coming to get nostalgic brands from their homeland--some South Africans live in Thornhill, while others live farther afield, in Pickering and other outlying communities.
Where is Alex from? Turns out he's from Turkey, and has never been to Africa. He got into this line of business after buying a store selling South African goods a few years back.
- Share your own thoughts on Memories of Africa in the comments field below.
- Follow Spice City Toronto on Twitter.
- Recommend a place for Spice City to visit at SpiceCityTO @ gmail.com
View Larger Map
I like what this guy is doing for the Southern African community..it is very noble work indeed. If you are an artist DJ/Singer/Dancer etc he even provides the provision to sell tickets at his location on your behalf at a nominal fee of course. I wish he could get a liquor licence to sell Klipdrift and Coke, Castle Pilstener /Lion Lager but thats a crack heads dream with the monopoly of the LCBO..Love the Boerwors and Tong :)
ReplyDelete