Spur Corporation (
doing business as
A trade name, trading name, or business name, is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is a "fictitious" business name. Registering the fictitious name w ...
Spur Steak Ranches) () is a
steakhouse
A steakhouse, steak house, or chophouse refers to a restaurant that specializes in steaks and chops, found mainly in North America. Modern steakhouses may also carry other cuts of meat including poultry, roast prime rib, and veal, as well as f ...
franchise
Franchise may refer to:
Business and law
* Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees
* Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...
restaurant
A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...
chain originating from
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
with a focus on
family dining. The head office of Spur Corporation is situated in
Century City
Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of Downtown Los Angeles, Century City is one of ...
,
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
. Although the founding and flagship brand is the Spur steakhouse restaurants, the company owns a number of other, predominantly South African, restaurant brands. Spur Steak Ranches is a themed South African family favourite and is fondly known as "the official restaurant of the South African family"; as such, most Spur restaurants include a children's play area.
History and growth
In 1967 founder and executive chairman, Allen Ambor, opened the Golden Spur on Dean Street in
Newlands
Newlands may refer to:
Places Australia
* Newlands, Queensland, a locality in the Whitsunday Region
New Zealand
* Newlands, Wellington, a suburb of Wellington
South Africa
* Newlands, Cape Town, a suburb of Cape Town
* Newlands, Johannesbur ...
,
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
in South Africa. Ambor started the first restaurant with R2,000 of his own money, R4,000 from his father and an additional R5,000 from a partner who was eventually bought out; amounting to a total starting capital of R11,000.
The restaurant was opened on the 24 October 1967.
The original restaurant moved to a new location at the corner of Dean and Main Road in the 2000s and closed in 2020.
A second Spur, the Seven Spur, was opened in
Sea Point
Sea Point (Afrikaans: ''Seepunt'') is one of Cape Town's most affluent and densely populated suburbs, situated between Signal Hill and the Atlantic Ocean, a few kilometres to the west of Cape Town's Central Business District (CBD). Moving from ...
, Cape Town soon after the 1967 opening. After the success of the second Spur Ambor decided on a
franchise
Franchise may refer to:
Business and law
* Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees
* Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...
model to facilitate the spread of the restaurants across the country.
The Spur Group consists of Spur International, Spur Steak Ranches, Panarottis Pizza Pasta, John Dory’s Fish Grill Sushi, Captain Dorego's, The Hussar Grill, RocoMamas, Spur Grill & Go, Nikos Coalgrill Greek and Casa Bella. It currently has 569 outlets worldwide, with restaurants in various parts of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
,
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
, the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
and
Australasia
Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...
. In March 2018, Spur Corporation sold Captain Dorego's.
Operations
Spur Steak Ranches is a subsidiary of Spur Corporation, one of the largest restaurant companies in South Africa.
It has its headquarters in Century City, Cape Town, with regional offices in
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
and
Durban
Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...
as well as an international office in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
, the
Netherlands
)
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, supporting the company’s international operations.
Spur Steak Ranches’ contribution to Spur Corporation’s restaurant turnover i
61%
Restaurants are owned by franchisees or directly by the company. As of 31 December 2018, Spur Steak Ranches had 323 stores located in 15 countries. The total restaurants in South Africa is 284 with 39 in other countries.
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
and Mauritius
*
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
*
Eswatini
Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...
*
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
*
Kenya
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*
Lesotho
Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked country, landlocked as an Enclave and exclave, enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the Thabana Ntlenyana, highest mountains in Sou ...
*
Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
*
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
*
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
*
*
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
*
*
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
*
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
*
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...
*
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
Australasia
*
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
*
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
In 2020, the chain was forced to temporarily close all of restaurants amidst the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
Products
Spur Steak Ranches’ core product offering consists of steaks, ribs and burgers. In addition to these, the brand also sells chicken, schnitzels, seafood, wraps, sandwiches, salads, desserts, breakfasts and a dedicated children’s menu. The burgers have four options: beef, chicken, soya and rib. Furthermore, there are many plant based options available including the
Beyond Burger
Beyond Meat, Inc. is a Los Angeles–based producer of plant-based meat substitutes founded in 2009 by Ethan Brown. The company's initial products were launched in the United States in 2012. History Founding
Ethan Brown founded the company in ...
.
Spur Steak Ranches also sells food to takeaway, delivering in some locations.
Procurement, manufacturing and distribution
Spur Steak Ranches operates a sauce manufacturing facility that supplies franchisees with the brand’s sauces. Its sauces and marinades are also retailed in major South African retailers, along with certain products, which are externally manufactured under licence, such as frozen ribs and burger patties.
Panarottis Pizza Pasta
The company also owns the
Panarottis
Spur Corporation (doing business as Spur Steak Ranches) () is a steakhouse franchise restaurant chain originating from South Africa with a focus on family dining. The head office of Spur Corporation is situated in Century City, Cape Town. Altho ...
pizza
Pizza (, ) is a dish of Italian origin consisting of a usually round, flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomatoes, cheese, and often various other ingredients (such as various types of sausage, anchovies, mushrooms, onions ...
and
pasta
Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, are som ...
restaurant chain. This chain was started in 1990
[New Tourism Ventures: An Entrepreneurial and Managerial Approach](_blank)
p. 77. and has 84 outlets.
In addition, the Spur Group purchased a 60% shareholding in ''John Dory’s Fish and Grill'' in 2004.
John Dory's is a
KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...
-based franchise with 54 outlets.
Controversy
In March 2017, a racially charged incident occurred between two customers in a South African Spur Steak Ranch restaurant when a black African family got into an expletive-filled argument with a white Afrikaner family, after the black child reportedly hit the white child. The restaurant banned the white family, but not the black family. White Afrikaners criticised and ultimately boycotted the restaurant, which was staffed by black Africans, for siding with the black family, as well as for not doing more to break up the fight. The restaurant chain also received criticism for its slow official response, which was judged inadequate.
See also
*
List of restaurants in South Africa
This is a list of notable restaurants in South Africa.
List of restaurants
B
* Burger King
C
* Chicken Licken
D
* Dulce Café
* Dominos pizza
* Debonairs Pizza
H
* The Hussar Grill
J
* John Dory's
K
* KFC
* Krispy Kreme
* Kauai ...
References
External links
Official websiteSpur Corporation
{{EngvarB, date=July 2020
Restaurants established in 1967
Companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
Food and drink companies based in Cape Town
Restaurant franchises
Restaurant chains in South Africa
Steakhouses
1967 establishments in South Africa
Restaurants
Restaurants in South Africa
Newlands, Cape Town