THE Saxon markets itself as the place where former president Nelson Mandela edited Long Walk to Freedom, but it wasn't a hotel in those days - it was the palatial home of insurance magnate Douw Steyn, now relocated to the United Kingdom.
The year was 1990, Mandela had just been released from prison and his own home wasn't ready. So he whiled away a few months in these extraordinary surroundings, finishing his book.
A decade later, the house was redesigned to become what may be Sandton's plushest hotel. It is certainly one of the more expensive all-suite hostelries, with rates ranging from R4 250 to R15 900 a night including breakfast.
Interior designer Stephen Falcke went to town on an African theme, with masks and mudcloths on the walls, scores of Ashanti akua'ba on high shelves and Yoruba ibeji in cabinets, and the odd zebra skin sprawled on the carpet. Mandela memorabilia lines the walls – drawings of Madiba in the boxing ring, in his law office, in consultation with his comrade-in-arms, Walter Sisulu. Delicate line drawings of spear points decorate the library.
The result, from the grounds planted with indigenous trees to the spacious entry hall and beyond to the dining room – built over what was an indoor swimming pool – is stunning.
You can’t drive through the gates without a reservation, either for a suite or a meal, so if exclusivity is your thing, the Saxon has that too.
And, most important, the food is good. The dining room is open seven days a week. Its kitchen is presided over by British-born chef Paul Dodsworth, who has tempered modern European cuisine with a South African influence, and changes the menu with the seasons.
There are some unusual starters: chilled peach soup with chilli, dry sherry and lime granité, for example, or three grades of caviar, served with blinis, sour cream and iced vodka. Beluga will set you back R1 100, but Sevruga only costs R450.
More conventional starters include Oriental duck consummé or smoked Scottish salmon and citrus salad. Among main dishes, chateaubriand is served for two people with béarnaise sauce, foie gras and a truffle crouton; lamb cutlets come encrusted with pistachio; there are oven-roasted crayfish tails as well as a spiced ostrich fillet, seared scallops and king prawns and - unusual for any Johannesburg restaurant - three different choices for vegetarians, all first-rate: butternut waffle stack, basil and garlic fettucine with wild mushrooms and honey-roasted sweet potato tart.
There are brunches on Sundays and public holidays with starters and soup on the buffet and hot entrées from the à la carte menu.
Brunches are available on Sundays and public holidays, with starters and soup on the buffet and hot entrées from the à la carte menu.
At all meals one may feast on what may be the world's best chocolate torte - very decadent, very rich, made from Swiss chocolate and served with citrus coulis and mascarpone cheese.
The Saxon is not inexpensive. Starters are around R80-R90 (excluding oysters, which run at R19,50 each, and of course the caviar); main courses begin at R75 for vegetarian selections but jump to around R140 for most other dishes; seafood is R240-R285 and the chateaubriand is R320. Desserts are R65; the cheese board is R85.
36 Saxon Road, Sandhurst
Telephone: 011 292 6000
Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner Mondays to Sundays
