Friday 10 August 2012

At The Table | Joburg Newest Styling Spot


























Joburgers are invited to join the conversation at a new neighbourhood initiative that is aimed at getting locals meeting, creating and interacting.

At The Table is located in one of Parkhurst’s landmark buildings on the corner of Second Avenue and Ninth Street, with plenty of secure, off-street parking. It brings a multi-purpose venue into Joburg’s ‘The Parks’ – an area of the city that is home to some of the country’s most interesting and innovative individuals, including writers, artists, journalists, designers and more.

The brainchild of sisters, Hermi King and Elmi Le Roux, the main focus of At The Table will be regular events where guests – many of whom live in the area – will converse over hearty homecooked meals and drinks and around the big table that forms the centrepiece of the venue.

Already, the ball has started rolling with the first At The Table event featuring writer, theorist and multimedia practitioner James Sey talking about The Spear. Over homemade bread and soup, Sey lead a discussion with 14 other guests that proved as relaxing as it was inspiring.

“The real beauty of At The Table is the intimacy that the space affords”, says King. “This means that it really is a conversation, as opposed to a presentation.”

With just 16 guests able to fit around the table, Le Roux points out that the connections that are made by strangers with an interest in a particular topic are another key aspect to the vision these two Joburg creative have for At The Table.

“It’s almost in a way recreating that ‘Kitchen Table Wisdom’ that defined communities over the centuries,” she says. “So it’s about getting someone to share their experience, knowledge, insights and opinions and then getting everyone at the table to both gain from that and also contribute to the conversation.”

Designed with a feel of luxury and exclusivity, At The Table is never pretentious. For both King and Le Roux, offering a welcoming environment for Joburgers and visitors to the city to have meaningful conversations is the main aim.

Alongside newsworthy and current topics, like The Spear, At The Table will cover a broad range including books, art, fashion, technology, trends, craft and more. Cooking will also be an integral part of At The Table given Le Roux’s expertise and passion for this increasingly important part of people’s lifestyles. 

Le Roux and King are currently planning the calendar for the rest of the year and are aiming to have children’s activities (crafts, nature, art and more) in the afternoons as part of At The Table’s community offerings.

At The Table is also available for bookings for individuals or groups. So whether it’s a fashion designer launching a new range, hosting a pop up store or a company that wants an off-site brainstorming location that’s conducive to creative thinking or a research space, the venue is a natural fit.

The emphasis, however, is always on community and neighbourliness.

“Parkhurst and its surrounding neighbourhood is a rich environment of opinion leaders, mavericks and interesting people and this is a way of connecting with each other, outside the Twittersphere and Facebook,” attests King.

That said, with its welcoming atmosphere, At The Table is open to anyone who is desperately seeking a return to good, old-fashioned, face-to-face conversation.


At The Table
Twitter @AtTheTableSA / www.facebook.com/@thetable

Book At The Table
sit@athetable.co.za | 011 788 9994

For more information:
Hermi@atthetable.co.za | 083 289 4186
Elmi@atthetable.co.za | 083 364 3387
Bev@atthetable.co.za | 071 855 9115

Locate At The Table
Corner Second Avenue and Ninth Street| Parkhurst | Johannesburg
(secure parking in second avenue)


Gatherings At The Table
Upcoming in August is our Celebration of Women month when we have a series of special evenings planned. We kick-start the month with a champagne and cupcake kids fashion launch on the 4th August 2012 presented by Sam Sam clothing. We will host acclaimed actress Gretha Brazelle presenting an Afrikaans Poetry evening and James Say sharing  his appreciation of musical divas. As part of the private school holidays we will host kids activities like create your own storybook and tech toys. See our calender for more information.

In September we celebrate Spring and we have a Bring your Orchid to At the Table evening where we will educate you on how to care for your plant. To lighten your house and help you spring clean we have a declutter short course with Kate Emmerson. Lets get bloody with writer Deon Potgieter, author of Rose of Soweto and James Say who will discuss the role of boxing in popular culture.  Los Angeles based Helena Kriel, screenwriter of wellknown films like Tsotsi, Kama Sutra and Skin will be presenting a 2 day screenwriter workshop in September.

Regular events that are hosted At the Table includes Short Film Friday evenings where we host the writer an/or director of a short film and a viewing of the film followed by an in-depth discussion about it. On Wednesdays we have our foodie club that meet to swop menus, discuss foodie trends and bring along an interesting array of food for tasting. We also have our “Adventure in the Arts” evenings designed to both educate and create conversation about local and international art trends. To connect and meet your neighbour we have our Kinfolk evening where we host interesting people.

For more information on each event follow us on Facebook and Twitter or send us an email.

About At The Table

Started in mid-2012 by sisters, Hermi King and Elmi Le Roux, At The Table is a warm, intimate space located in the Johannesburg suburb of Parkhurst. Built around a big table, with a kitchen on hand for great food and drinks, At The Table puts real conversation around a huge variety of topics within the easy reach of individuals looking for a counterpoint to the remote connectedness of the digital age.

From The Desk Of:  Sam Manclark  | @sammanclark | sam@speakerscorner.co.za

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