Everybody has ‘their’ restaurant.

Some couples enjoy going to the movies. Some stay in for days at a time watching 20 hours of series in completion. Some are more adventurous and are members of hiking clubs. Others, salsa.

BF and I eat. And we out a lot. We most often like to try different restaurants, because we’re not afraid of cosmopolitan food. But like many couples out there, we do have ‘our’ special restaurant that we keep going back to, and that’s Cranks in Rosebank. Asian food is my first choice when eating out, and this place really has it all. In fact, Cranks was the first Thai restaurant to spring roll its way into Jo’burg. The food is gorgeously aromatic, different with every bite, and something you’ll talk about for days. 

You can’t resist the curiosity to try out the place when its kitsch décor flirts with you from the parking lot. Beautiful (or weird, whatever your taste) hanging sculptures, lanterns, and statues are sprawled all over the restaurant, so you have something colourful and interesting to look at while chomping on your chicken curry. 

Owner Eric Sangschloury lived in Thailand before deciding to move back to SA, Vietnamese wife in tow, to open one if the best Asian restaurants in town. He effortlessly glides from table to table, entertaining customers with stories from abroad and often ordering for you. Which, in my opinion, is the best way to go about it. Otherwise, the waitresses throw three or four huge laminated menus at you and expect you to choose in five minutes what you want to devour from the endless variety on offer. Often, I just close my eyes, menus before me, swirling my pointed finger around to arbitrarily land on a choice. “Okay, I’ll have the … er, Pee nanggg… – uhhh, ya that.” And hope it’s not duck’s bum I’ll land up with. 

And everything on these menus is spelt wrong – but in a funny way, not in a, “I’m a copy editor and I’m going to fine you” sort of way. The best way to eat at Cranks is to have Eric order a delicious variety of dishes for you and partner(s) to share; avoid the wine, opt for cocktails instead; and finish off with jasmine tea. And a Cornetto on the way home. The desserts are crap!