News
The Slick
Restaurant Group gives the gift of sight The Slick Restaurant Group, owners of Belthazar, Balducci and Gibson’s Gourmet Burgers at the V&A Waterfront partnered with Tygerberg Hospital to assist in increasing the number of corneal transplants undertaken by the hospital’s Department of Ophthalmology. There are approximately 130 patients on the waiting list for ophthalmic surgical procedures, due to limited resources and scarcity of local donors.
g e t s a f a c e li f t
Popular Sandton restaurant
Professor David Meyer and Gladys Maistry, the recipient of the first lamellar corneal surgery at Tygerburg Hospital with Dr Leonard Heydenrych, Dr Derrick Smit, Ian Halfon of Slick Restaurant Group and Dr Kurt Maart
Lamellar corneal surgery is a new state-ofthe-art technique where the surgeon is able to replace specific layers of the cornea as opposed to all five layers. The surgery was performed at Tygerberg Hospital for the first time on 10 May thanks to a generous donation from the Slick Restaurant Group. Ian Halfon and Doron Duveen, directors of the group, became involved with the cornea transplant project at Tygerberg Hospital a few years ago. Company donations together with help from generous customers at their three restaurants assisted with the funding of the first lamellar corneal transplant at the hospital and will assist with many more after that. The group’s donation also funded a R200 000 Specular Microscope, a first of its kind at Tygerberg Hospital, that enables a surgeon to view, photograph and assess the inner cell layers of the corneas of patients. Donations to this deserving initiative can be made via the Slick Restaurant Group website. The group guarantees all funds donated go towards the cost of an operation, which includes importing cornea from abroad, expert medical attention at Tygerberg Hospital, all specialised instruments needed for each corneal transplant and the cost of theatre.
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June 2018 | Full Serv ce
The popular Johannesburg restaurant The Bull Run is getting a full refurbishment to continue to serve its loyal customers for many more years to come. The restaurant first opened in October 2000. The concept was to launch an upmarket grill room for local and international guests of the hotel, including the airline crews that frequently stayed there, as well as for business people in the area. The Bull Run is undergoing a full revamp worth R12 million. The revamp will increase capacity and create an international feel to attract new patrons and provide a change of scenery for regulars. Over 16 years of trading, the restaurant has only undergone minor, essential changes to maintain
the property, to create a more spacious entrance area to the kitchen and to create an additional entrance within the adjacent Protea Hotel by Marriott Johannesburg Balalaika Sandton. ‘Last year we decided that with a trendy new development swinging up next door, the time had come for a complete refurbishment,’ explains Jörg Zwinscher, GM of the hotel. ‘The new development, The Marc, will link directly to our hotel lobby and will be home to many major companies in two office towers as well as restaurants, retail and fashion outlets to serve the busy, trendy area.’ In order for renovations to take place, The Bull Run has closed its doors for trading but is set to re-open in early July.
An artist’s impression of the booth seating in the revamped Bull Run restaurant