The quirky South African restaurant group started by a famous rock musician

When the small, eccentric brunch spot Pablo Eggs-go-Bar opened its doors in the hip Johannesburg suburb, Melville, in 2016, it was hard to imagine it reaching the level of success it achieved. 

In 2016, Louis Roux, bassist from the band Shadowclub, and his wife Leigh Hofmeyer Roux opened the doors of Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar, with an extensive breakfast menu, signature delicious coffee and blues music gently playing in the background. 

Speaking to Your Neighbourhood, Roux said the restaurant was a long-term dream for him. 

“I’d been thinking about opening a venue for a couple of years, but it was always a long-term dream as I was fully involved with recording and touring with my band, Shadowclub,” he said. 

Later, speaking to a friend of his, Roux said he was joking about how many eggs he goes through in a week, and his friend made a joke about “dealing eggs” like “Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar.”

And so the name was born. The restaurant concept was based on an egg-themed all-day menu. 

The Melville spot quickly became a success, with many regular customers returning for Roux’s signature Shakshuka.

The retro-style, restaurant blended in perfectly with its surroundings on 7th Street, surrounded by thrift stores and antique shops. Its floor-to-ceiling windows made it the perfect spot to watch the world go by outside.

“I wanted to create a space that would make our customers feel like they’d been transported to another space and time, and the Art Deco and geometric theme resonated with me in this way,” said Roux.

At its height, the restaurant had about 40 employees and often had queues snaking outside as customers waited to be seated on busy days. 

However, the restaurant’s success was surprisingly short-lived. The Roux couple also owned and operated Pablo House, a hotel in Melville, and Pablo Dos Manos, the hotel restaurant.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck South Africa in 2020, Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar became financially unfeasible. 

From ‘Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar’ to ‘Pablo Sandton’

The couple said on social media that the closure was necessary to consolidate their financial exposure during the uncertain times. 

Roux told News24 that the three businesses took about R800,000 monthly to continue operating, and even when restaurants partially reopened in level 3 of the lockdown, Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar was not breaking even. 

The Pablo House and Pablo Dos Manos remained open. The boutique hotel and restaurant are located on a steep ridge in Melville overlooking the Melville Koppies. 

Each of the eight rooms at Pablo House is carefully decorated to create a feeling of “bohemian luxury”, according to the owners, with art collected from local artists. 

Roux told Johannesburg in Your Pocket that the couple purchased the property for the hotel and restaurant in 2016.

“When we walked into the house the view slapped myself and Leigh immediately and that was that. We offered the sellers more than they were asking because we knew we wanted it,” he said. 

“Actually,” he added, “we were a little tipsy from drinking Tequila all afternoon, but either way, we made it happen.”

When the original restaurant was forced to close, Roux promised it was not the last of Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar: “We will rise again.”

The musician stayed true to his word; only a few weeks after closing the iconic Melville hotspot, a new restaurant, Pablo, opened in the Mint Hotel in Sandton. 

The restaurant opened with an expanded menu and longer trading hours than the original venue, adding dinner options to its familiar breakfast and brunch selection.

“It was heartbreaking to close the Melville location, but we feel very privileged and excited to host our Pablo familia at this new location with a new and improved offering,” said Roux.

The couple made sure to keep its staples from the original Pablo Eggs-Go-Bar in its breakfast menu, including its signature eggs Benedict dishes, shakshuka, and a wide range of breakfast options.

---

More Photos from Pablo, Pablo Dos Manos and Pablo House: