Julia’s road stall at Masisi an international hit

Date: 23 October 2020 By: 

The informal road stall of Julia Siwadawada may be located in one of the most remote areas of the country, but it has gained international popularity. Her traditional Vhavenda cuisine has attracted praise from visitors from across the globe.

Siwadawada’s road stall is situated at the Masisi taxi rank, some 100km east of Musina. The makeshift stall is proudly decorated with minwenda or Tshivenda traditional cloths to show everyone that she is proud of her culture and tradition.

Julia said she started her cooking business some years ago, just to keep the wolf from the door. She specialises in traditional food because she believes keeping her culture alive is important. “Apart from cooking traditional food, I also make provision for modern food to accommodate those who do not enjoy traditional food,” she explained.

She thanks local tourism establishments that refer their visitors to her stall. “Sometimes they give me orders to prepare food for their visitors in bulk. I prepare food my own way, so that the tourists can feel that they are eating something that is different from their usual menu. It puts a smile on my face to see people from different races enjoying the food that has been traditionally prepared with firewood.” 

One such tourism operator is Maria Venter, who owns Nthakheni Bush and River Camp with her husband Kobus at Nkotswi village, just outside Masisi. Maria said that when she received tourists from as far as Cape Town, Gauteng, Durban, Mpumalanga, and Bloemfontein, she usually took them to Julia’s stall to enjoy Tshivenda traditional food. She said before the Covid-19 lockdown, she used to receive tourists from across the world who had also enjoyed Julia’s food.

Venter said every tourist who tasted Julia’s mouth-watering traditional food never stopped talking about her.  She added: “Julia is absolutely a star and an excellent business lady. She is very professional, friendly and she always gives her best. Her food is divine, and we love her so much. She is surely an asset to Masisi and the surrounding economy.”

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