Delicate and simplicity at its best with Aurum’s new summer menu

In the hub of Sandton lies a food destination that is not only a must see and must try but you would wonder why you never had been there. Aurum restaurant at The Leonardo building is beautifully located on the top floor. It has launched its new summer menu for 2020-21 focusing on all things fresh with tasteful simplicity.

Before we get into the food, there has to be a mention to the service of Aurum which is sublime and top class. From the minute you walk in you are catered to by the staff from the top down. The waiters are always attentive to your needs, from the manager’s apt appearance of senior partner Paulo Santo, the brainchild of this magnificent, modern contemporary restaurant, also making an appearance.

“Our new menu will not just honour a well-marbled piece of meat or a fresh fillet of fish, but through technique and careful manipulation, we have strived to hero all the accompaniments that bring the dish to life. We want our patrons to enjoy a unique and exciting experience with every bite,” Santo says. He adds that changing the menu seasonally gives their chefs a chance to deliver new expression and show their progress as a restaurant.

The appetisers to desserts cater for all, including vegans. As starters we chose West Coast mussels with spicy pork and tomato broth, pickled leeks and grilled bread. Our second option was the salmon with charred corn, gooseberry aquachile and red onions.

Aurum Salmon starter. Photo: Supplied

When our dishes came we were a little surprised with the portions, larger than the norm, but we were not complaining. The salmon was the winner. Delicately sliced, melt in the mouth and helped with acidity, the ingredients accompanying the dish, corn, red onion and gooseberries worked beautifully to create a mouth-watering dish.

As we lapped up the appetisers we couldn’t wait for the mains, picking the Springbok Loin with cauliflower, tamarind, beurre noisette and dukkah, and the Prawn Risotto.

The springbok was perfectly cooked to medium, the dukkah spice worked really well with the game meat, the beurre noisette is a kind of mousse-like butter with a nutty taste, all marrying well together.

Aurum – Springbok Loin. Photo: Pearl Mahachi

The risotto was wonderful, full of flavour and the star of the show. The prawn we didn’t struggle to find, it was distributed throughout the dish.

If you are like me, I always make space for dessert due to my massive sweet tooth no matter how tight the belt may have become during the night. Taking inspiration of the decadent ice cream bar magnum, Aurum’s Magnum like all it dishes is very picture friendly and not overly sweet.

Aurum dessert Magnum. Photo: Supplied

We also tried the brandy and date pudding with pecan nuts and vanilla crème Anglaise with apple toffee, all ideally portioned for the perfect ending to a world-class meal.

We gleefully walked out of Aurum knowing full well we will be back.

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