Spot Jean Rene Onyangunga with his chow chows on an early morning weekday walk, and it’s a lucky thing. He and his wife Ansie van der Mescht own the fab Da Baba Eatery in Melville and that keeps them more than occupied. Add a business making brilliant clothing and accessories into the mix, and he’s a busy, busy guy. Here’s his take on life and work.
What’s the best book you’ve read in the past year? And why?
My wife and I opened a bakery this year. Let me tell you, it’s not the type of business that lends itself to reading before bedtime. We’re lucky if we remember to turn the light off before we fall asleep. But I have learnt to make the perfect focaccia this year. And that’s a bit like reading, isn’t it?
How do you keep fit?
I wait tables, carry bags of flour around, dress mannequins and go fabric shopping.
Weekday, lowkey restaurant go-to? What do you order?
De Baba Eatery, and literally anything the chefs throw my way.
What is the one artwork you’ll always love, and why?
It’s a song by Franco Luambo and TPOK jazz called Mario. I listen to this song frequently and have been since I was a young child. It’s an elaborate story told in a song. And I love listening to the story over and over, and experiencing it every time. It’s about a woman who is telling Mario how sick she is of him, and it’s told with the drama of a Congolese storyteller.
What do you regret most?
I’m not a regretter by nature.
The one unusual item you can’t live without?
A size 13 spanner.
Who was your high school celeb crush?
Barbra Streisand.
Three songs that you’d take to a desert island?
Juicy – Notorious B.I.G; Lovefool – The Cardigans; and Hurricane – Bob Dylan.
Top image: Jean Rene Onyangunga. Image supplied
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