Themed dinners in the Sky

T
HE Southern Sun
Elangeni & Maharani
complex in Durban
has opened a new venue
on the 31st floor, called
Sky. The venue used to be
in operation in the 1980s,
says John Aritho, gm of the
Maharani Tower. “It was
called Raffles and used to
be the hottest nightclub in
town but when we started
to conceptualise the venue
we knew we wanted to offer
something different and
versatile. Based on that we
decided to start themed
supper nights.”
The themes currently
on offer include ‘Vegas’
and ‘Brazil Carnival’. The
events take place during
the last weekend of the
month but the venue can
be hired on an exclusiveuse
basis during the rest
of the month.
A big focus is placed
on the cuisine and the
Southern Sun Elangeni
& Maharani complex
executive chef, Shaun
Munro, incorporates the
themes into the menu.
“We have a dedicated and
creative team of chefs
who have travelled the
world and been exposed
to various styles of food,”
says John. The benefit of
taking a table at one of the
themed evenings is that
the food and entertainment
are taken care of by the
team at the Maharani
Towers. This can provide
a ‘no-stress’ solution for
entertaining clients or
staff. John says, so far, the
themed supper clubs have
been almost sold out every
time.
He says many conference
clients choose to include
a themed dinner in place
of a traditional gala dinner
after meetings held on site
earlier in the day.
Clients also have the
option of booking the
venue on an exclusive-use
basis and, in this case,
can adapt the décor and
entertainment to suit
their needs.
“There is a huge stage
that allows clients to
include a performance to
supplement the theme,
as well as full sound
and projection, which is
included in the rate,” says
John.