Maps Maponyane opens his own burger joint, Buns Out

From the outside looking in, the first week of business for media personality turned restaurateur Maps Maponyane has been a good one.

Given the fact that Maponyane and his partners are still ironing out the kinks of their business, pedants would refer to this stage as a “soft opening”, but the strong show of support from members of the public and famous faces means that they’re operating at full throttle.

Everyone, friends and family included, found out about Maponyane’s new business, called Buns Out, via social media when the star shared a snap of himself sitting in the restaurant beside his mother.

He captioned it: “Couldn’t say anything until I brought my toughest critic along, and now that she’s happy – I’m excited to share that I’ve just opened my first restaurant. A burger spot in Linden, Johannesburg called ‘Buns Out’.”

Couldn't say anything until I brought my toughest critic along, and now that she's happy – I'm Excited to share that I've just opened my first restaurant. A burger spot in Linden, Johannesburg called 'Buns Out'🍔🍟

Come through for a great quality burger! We're open every day.👊🏽 pic.twitter.com/oHUQHhAIDS

— Maps Maponyane (@MapsMaponyane) September 29, 2019

He invited everyone to “come through for a great quality burger” at the store, which is open every day, so that is exactly what The Citizen did.

The urban-industrial look and feel of the store fits right in among the trendy shops and restaurants in the section of Linden that it is in – around the corner from the popular Brian Lara Rum Eatery and across the road from the Newzroom Afrika studios.

The store’s large windows make for great lighting during the day, but things do get romantically dim in the evenings, as is the case with many of the area’s restaurants.

The menu offers burgers of the meat, vegetarian and vegan variety, as well as some bunless options, all with quirky and punny names. But the offerings on the sides menu could do with just as much variety.

The business doesn’t yet have a liquor licence, so patrons only have the option to enjoy soft drinks. But Maponyane promises to retail some delicious cocktails and cold brews once the licence is approved.

Picture: Buns Out Twitter

Maponyane expressed his love for eateries of this kind and said that his desire to open his own store had been years in the making. He wanted to go for a classic burger joint with a menu that offered enough options for burger lovers to become frequent customers.

With that said, it is a little disheartening to find that you cannot enjoy a milkshake with your favourite meal.

And now for the most important question, how is the food? It’s delicious and the store’s owners are already working on ironing out the kinks, like the structural integrity of their buns.

Given that some menu items are juicier than others, the buns that Buns Out offers do not fair too well under the pressure of the delicious juices of a freshly prepared patty.

Maponyane is looking into a new supplier to remedy this and other bottlenecks that the team has identified during their first week in business.

Maps Maponyane. Picture: Buns Out Twitter

They might also want to look into how tightly they seal the corks on their condiment bottles because opening them can prove to be a struggle on occasion.

Served on wax paper in red, woven plastic baskets, Buns Out’s portion sizes are decent. They are significant enough to get your tummy full, depending on your appetite, but not large enough that you can’t finish them.

A word to the wise would be to prepare to find the place packed, depending on what time of the day you visit the store. With that in mind, you may have to make your meal a takeaway.

Buns Out Linden is open until 10pm from Sunday to Thursday and until 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

Recommendations: the New-Baconings and the Fry’s Chicken vege burger.

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