Malingani - Thohoyandou

Everything was fine but the waitors ignored us. We had to call them to come to our table and serve us. It wasn't even busy on day. So customer service is not great.

So we decided to visit this place on Christmas day, bad idea. Firstly the restaurant is very small, pictures online are deceiving. There is no service at this Restaurant, you will show up and wait outside like a lost sheep, they did not have enough staff working on the day, Only 3 Waiters were working. The tables are undecorated and empty you won't find salt and pepper and cutlery at the tables you will have to go on the hunt of your lives for those amenities. You don't feel like you are in a Hotel restaurant, it feels like a food court in a mall were you get food, eat and leave. The Ala carte Menu was not available and we were advised only a menu with selected items was available. My mother went for the Christmas Buffet option which was a disaster to say the least. They waited In line for 30 minutes for the food to be brought out as the restaurant did not cook enough food. I sat at the table and waited hopelessly to be assisted with the separate menu as there were no waiters, me and a customer next to me eventually got a waitress to assist us with our orders. She really tried and was friendly but overwhelmed because she was running around helping nearly everyone in the restaurant. The wine I ordered came with a champagne glass because they no longer had wine glasses, how does a restaurant not have enough wine glasses . Pleasse carry some snacks to nibble on as you wait for your food because you will be waiting for at least an hour for your meal. The food is okay but the service is truly poor and there isn't enough staff at this place to manage the needs of customers, overall it was dissapointing going here, you would be better off heading to hotels in Polokwane as you might get better options and service than hotels in Thohoyandou (personal experience) , they don't seem to care about customer service and ensuring that customers are comfortable and served accordingly.

I did not enjoy the food from the buffet, be it that the malva pudding was under cooked,the soup was bitter tasting and had a sort of tomatoe paste flavour. The service from the waiters was not bad and so I give you 2 stars based on that.and the food options were alot, but point still being the flavours of their food is not of the best quality

I first asked the staff what are they having on the buffet and they showed no energy and less interest in luring me as a customer and at least give an impression that I’ll have a pleasurable experience. I was just told to check what was available at the buffet and come back to the front if I did not like it. Actually the whole experience was a disaster and I haven’t even mentioned the kids running around and screaming for a good hour while I was there. I can’t blame them cause the restaurant should at least make means to be child friendly and ensure customers have a peaceful dinner I ordered a lamb chop rib or what ever they call it. What I got where different parts of the lamb except the rib of cause. You would expect the lamb to at least have some flavour and to be well grilled but none of that came on my plate. Some lightly salted charred lamp is some basing they never mentioned and didn’t even ask for. It was just hard and unpleasant. I’ve cooked much better food than what I got served. There was no cooking skills displayed on my plate. There is no creativity or at least a signature dish worthy of the effort to leave your house for anything on the menu. I was ready to forgive the previous incident of a rotten smell lamb shank they served me almost a year ago but this proves the incompetence of the restaurant supported by the lack of competition around the area. I’m truly dissatisfied and disappointed in the standard of this restaurant

The Malingani restaurant is a stunning, vibrant, and stylish establishment with a touch of tradition (the Venda culture shines through). The ambiance is reminiscent of a boutique hotel, with an air of elegance throughout.