THIS summer, Upper Union is bringing a fresh, spice-led interpretation of the South African Seven Colours Sunday to its shared table.
For chefs Amori Burger and Jason Jonker, the starting point for the Cape Town restaurant’s new summer menu is the food they grew up eating: the colourful, abundant tables prepared by mothers, grandmothers and the women who fed their families. Think South Africa’s familiar “seven colours”, reimagined through the bold, spice-led lens that has become Upper Union’s signature.
The result is summer and Cape Town on a plate: lamb takes centre stage, while a distinctly fruit-forward approach brings sweetness, acidity and freshness to the menu. Pineapple, spanspek and crisp Granny Smith apples sit alongside an abundance of fresh herbs, as the deep, warming flavours of winter give way to food that is brighter, cleaner and lighter on the palate.
“We kept coming back to the food we grew up with and those Sunday tables where there was never just one thing on the plate,” says executive chef Amori Burger. “There was colour, abundance, meat at the centre, vegetables, salads, relishes – and everything was made to be shared. For summer, we wanted to capture that feeling but make it unmistakably Upper Union: lots of herbs, freshness, acidity and, of course, a bit of a kick.”
It is a natural fit for Burger, whose own cooking philosophy has long been shaped by family gatherings and the pursuit of the “perfect bite” – something she traces back to childhood weekends spent carefully constructing sandwiches with her sisters so that every mouthful contained a little of everything.
True to Upper Union form, the chefs have taken familiar South African references and sent them travelling. North and South African flavours meet Turkish, Mexican, Cuban and Indian influences, while a new collection of condiments brings the chilli, acidity and complexity that characterised the restaurant’s winter menu into decidedly sunnier territory.
Among them is salsa macha, the Mexican chilli condiment that brings heat and texture to the menu; bright, citrus-driven Cuban mojo; North African matbucha and chermoula; and a South Indian sambar transformed from stew into a punchy tomato topping.
“We haven’t lost the intensity of flavour that people associate with Upper Union,” says head chef Jason Jonker. “We’ve just changed the balance. The food is fresher and cleaner, with more herbs, fruit and acidity, but then you’ll get a chilli crunch, a fermented mustard or a really punchy relish that changes the whole bite. It should feel exciting without feeling heavy – the kind of food you want to eat outside on a Cape Town summer afternoon.”
It is an approach well suited to Jonker, whose cooking is grounded in flavour first and particularly influenced by the interplay of spice, acidity, sweetness and heat found in Indian cooking.
One of the clearest expressions of the new menu is the Pork Oepsie, Upper Union’s playful take on a South African braai favourite. The nostalgic maraschino-cherry-and-bacon combination is reworked using pork belly and pomegranate molasses, still cooked over fire, before adding fresh chilli and pineapple.
Then there is Pofadder, the lamb kidney-and-liver sausage associated with the Lowveld. Amori and Jason make their own version with a house blend of spices and serve it with fermented mustard made with Black Label.
The charred beefsteak tomato illustrates just how far a vegetable can travel on a single plate. It is served with tomato sambar, North African matbucha and green chermoula, then finished with a fresh herb salad and Belnori Kilimanjaro cheese from Bapsfontein.
The same root-to-leaf thinking drives the beetroot: smoked beetroot is joined by pickled stems and fresh leaves, salsa macha and a four-month-old Paardekraal Tomme from Graaff-Reinet.
Lamb provides one of the menu’s centrepieces. A rolled lamb saddle is stuffed with a Turkish kebab farce and served with a pomegranate molasses jus that takes three days to prepare – an example of the considerable work happening behind a dish that arrives at the table looking deceptively simple.
Fruit is used throughout not simply for sweetness, but to bring acidity, freshness and contrast to the menu, often playing against richer elements such as lamb and pork. Alongside generous handfuls of mint, dill and parsley, it helps shift Upper Union’s flavour profile into its lighter summer register.
Upper Union’s approach to communal dining grew from Burger’s memories of Sunday lunches with her own family – the moment when food arrives, glasses are raised, conversation starts and people linger around the table.
“This menu feels joyful,” Burger adds. “It has all those memories of South African summer lunches in it, but there are also flavours from all over the place. That’s how Jason and I like to cook. We can start with something we remember from childhood and then ask: how do we make it fresher, punchier, more interesting? How do we make you want another bite?”
PHOTO CREDIT: Jan Ras Photography
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