Megaplex Newsletter 2022 October: Shopping in Sandton

Shopping in Sandton – October 2022

Welcome to Megaplex's monthly newsletter! We alert the up-market shopper to the new and interesting in Sandton and Bryanston. This month we reveal  the best place to renew your Driver's Licence. Phala Phala: Was it a burglary or a robbery? Or both?   We have news from Hobart Grove. There are the usual openings and closures, and plenty of humour (at least that's what we call it).  Feel free to support our advertisers!  To subscribe, see our subscription page.

Contents:
Welcome
New Shops
Civic Tip
Shops Closed
Inspiration ~ The Checkout

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SMS, WhatsApp or phone
082 412 5152
 
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Links to Other Pages:
Megaplex Home – Overview of Shops, Facilities, and Accommodation in Northern Sandton.

Accommodation in Rivonia

Shopping Centres in Sunninghill:
The Square
Sunninghill Village
Sunhill Shopping Centre
Chilli Lane Shopping Centre
Chilli on Top Centre
The Core

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Meet Tues 8 & 22 Nov 2022 at 17:50 for 18:00 online via Zoom or in person. WhatsApp Rick on 082 389 3482 or email

Shopping Centres in and near Bryanston::
Cramerview Village
Nicolway Shopping Centre
Coachman's Crossing
Grosvenor Crossing
Hobart Grove Centre
Bryanston Shopping Centre
Riverside Shopping Centre
Hurlingham Pick 'n Pay Centre
Bryanpark Shopping Centre
Epsom Downs
Sloane Square

Shopping Centres in the Woodmead area:
Wendywood Centre
Woodmead Value Mart
Woodmead Super Value Centre
Woodmead Commercial Park
Woodmead Retail Park
Woodmead Square
Dunwoody Centre
Kelvin Village
The Bridge, Buccleuch
Other Shops and Shopping in Woodmead

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Shopping Centres in Central Sandton:
Grayston Shopping Centre
Atholl Square Shopping Centre
Sandhurst Centre, Rivonia Rd

Shopping in and around Rivonia:
Rivonia Central
Rivonia Village Centre
Rivonia Junction
Mutual Mews
Early Dawn Mall
Shops in Central Rivonia
Shops in Northern Rivonia
Cambridge Crossing
Petervale Shopping Centre

Shopping Centres in
Greater Morningside:

Morningside Shopping Centre
The Wedge, Morningside
Morning Glen Mall
90 Degrees on Rivonia
Morning View
Sandton Court
Benmore Gardens
Shops in the Morningside Area

Almost all of us will one day need a blood transfusion

– Yet only 1% of people donate blood!

Make a difference to society! Donate at The Colony,  cor Jan Smuts & Rothesay Avenues, Craighall.  Phone:
011 447-6665
011 880-4994

Accommodation & Restaurants:
Accommodation in Rivonia,
Restaurants in Rivonia,
Rivonia Restaurant reviews,
Sandton Restaurant reviews,
Morningside Restaurant reviews.

Other Places of Interest:
Sandspruit Hiking Trail,
Ernest Ullmann Park Recreation Centre,
Montrose Nursery Garden Centre and Gia's Coffee Shop

Furnished Morningside Room to Let 1 November 2022

Single Room with private half bathroom (shower, basin, toilet), in house in Morningside Manor.  Wi-Fi.  Carpeted, fully furnished and serviced including laundry. Close to shops and bus routes.  R4000/month.  Call 082 389 3482, e-mail us, or click here.

News from Hobart Grove Shopping Centre

There have been some changes at Hobart Grove, Bryanston, listed in more detail in Shops New and Closed below.

There seems to be a custom at Hobart Grove: Whenever they get bored, they bash something down and rebuild. Currently, the central restaurant block is being rebuilt. Perron Mexican restaurant, Simply Asia, Barazza and Wombles have closed. Doppio Zero and Rockets remain open and unaffected on either side. The Indian restaurant on Hobart Road has been replaced by a Motherland Coffee.

Upstairs, in block H above West Pack Express around half the shops have gone. Bryanston Physiotherapy has moved from one upstairs to another: From block H to Studio B roughly above Fruits & Roots.

It is often difficult to tell: Has a shop been replaced by another very similar one, or have they just rebranded?  Dis-Chem Pharmacy has replaced Medicare, but kept the same phone number.  Similarly with Cheveux Stylists, replaced by (or turned into?) Damn Straight Hairdressers.  And Re-Pair Gienius Smartphone Repairs and Accessories has been superseded by the similar Quick Fix Cellular, who at least can spell.

Odd Jobs:  Back to top

I’m trying to organise a hide-and-seek championship, but good players are remarkably hard to find.

Do You Use Excel?  Making Mistakes is Easy!

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Another Mondegreen

"See that girl, watch her scream, kicking the dancing queen".

...

Correct lyric:

"See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen" from ABBA’s ‘Dancing Queen’.

New on the Block, Movers and Shakers  Back to top

  • Serendipity Collection, Shop 07, Ground in Chilli Lane Shopping Centre Sunninghill – Handbags, fashion accessories, heels and Summer dresses personally selected and imported by the owner.
  • C&A Kiddies Hair Salon, Shop 22, Ground in Chilli Lane Shopping Centre Sunninghill – Children's Hair: Brush cut, blow cut, cornrows, braids, etc.
  • India Waale Spices & Groceries, Shop 26, Mezzanine in The Square Sunninghill – Authentic one-stop store for all Indian grocery & spices.
  • The Treat Bryanston, Ground in Coachman's Crossing – Gel nails, manicure, pedicure, bio sculpture, acrylic nails, massages, waxing (women & men), tint, kiddies treatments. Free Wi-Fi.
  • Hi-Q Bryanston, Shop 19, Lower Level in Grosvenor Crossing – Tyres, batteries, shocks, brakes, rims, exhausts, towbars, wheel balancing, wheel alignment, 10-point safety check, tyre repairs, nitrogen, wheel rotation, car servicing and mechanical repairs.
  • Damn Straight Hair, Shop F08b, Main Square in Hobart Grove Centre – Hairdressers.
  • Dischem Grosvenor Pharmacy, Shop F07, Main Square in Hobart Grove Centre – Pharmacy and cosmetics.
  • Copa Habana, Main Square in Hobart Grove Centre – Premium cigars and coffee. Coffee machines. Accessories: Lighters, ashtrays, candles, pocket knives. Humidors. Pipes. Fire extinguishers (joke!).
  • Quick Fix Cellular, Shop C08, Hobart Road in Hobart Grove Centre – Repairs to smartphones and tablets. Gadgets, gaming accessories and consoles. Sales of IT equipment.
  • Motherland Coffee, Shop C06/C07, Hobart Road in Hobart Grove Centre – Coffee shop that champions African coffee,.
  • Lurra Life, Shop H03, Upper Level in Hobart Grove Centre – Healthy products to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
  • Julopart, Shop H11, Upper Level in Hobart Grove Centre – there is no indication of what they do.

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Phala Phala: A Burglary or a Robbery? (or Don't Journalists Know the Difference?)

"Phala-Phala farm alleged robbery under investigation ... The Justice Ministry has confirmed that the burglary at President Cyril Ramaphosa's game farm and its alleged cover-up is still under investigation..." --SABC News, 01 Sept 2022.

"Phala-Phala farm robbery..." --702 Eye-Witness News, 27 October.

"2020 Phala Phala Robbery" --Article headline in Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia. "2020 alleged burglary" -- subhead in the same article.

Much of the newsmedia seems to have decided it was a burglary. But there are still plenty who talk of a robbery. And many more, like the SABC, and apparently even Wikipedia, who don't appear to know the difference.

For a journalist who reports on crime not to know the difference between burglary and robbery is like a sports reporter who doesn't know the score for a try in Rugby. Or a political  reporter who doesn't know who the British Prime Minister is (last week they could have been forgiven).

For the record, there is a big difference between the two. Reporting a burglary as a robbery, or vice versa, is tantamount to misinformation and lying.

Burglary is “illegal entry of a building with intent to commit a crime, especially theft.”

Robbery is “the crime of taking property unlawfully from a person or place by force or threat of force.”

The element of violence makes robbery a much more serious crime than burglary. And causes it to carry a much heavier sentence.

All indications are that the Phala Phala incident was a burglary and theft, not a robbery.

So now you know.

Thought for the Week: For Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak...

The Early Bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

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4,679 subscribers, many of them dedicated Sandton Shoppers! e-mail us, or click here. (*Non-top banner for one year paid in advance, includes VAT, less discount)

Entered the Sweet Hereafter:  Back to top

  • Cell C Sunninghill, Shop 07 in Chilli Lane Shopping Centre Sunninghill – Cellphones, prepaid, accounts and contracts, cell phone accessories.
  • Barazza Restaurant, Shop C01 in Hobart Grove Centre – "Barazza" means "meeting place" in Swahili. The menu celebrated cross-continental cuisine, inspired by the owner’s passion for pairing unique flavours. Was on Hobart Road.
  • Wombles Steakhouse Restaurant & Bar Lounge, Shop C02 in Hobart Grove Centre – Amatuli style colonial, booked up every night. Expensive (few dishes under R100) but reputedly worth it! Was on Hobart Road.
  • Simply Asia Thai Food & Noodle Bar, Shop D02 in Hobart Grove Centre – Restaurant: Simple Thai cuisine. Was Main Square Northwest.
  • Perron Mexican Restaurant, Shop D03 in Hobart Grove Centre – Popular Mexican Restaurant, opened 14 March 2016. Was Main Square Northwest.
  • Renaissance Hair Design, Shop C04 in Hobart Grove Centre – Hairdressers, Was on Hobart Road.
  • Cheveux Stylists, Shop F08b in Hobart Grove Centre – Hairdressers. Was on Main Square.
  • Medicare Pharmacy, Shop F07 in Hobart Grove Centre – Pharmacy and cosmetics. Was on Main Square.
  • Re-Pair - Gienius Smartphone Repairs and Accessories, Shop C08 in Hobart Grove Centre – Repairs to Apple, Samsung and Blackberry smartphones and tablets. Gadgets, gaming accessories and consoles. On-site support, Server Installations and maintenance, Network Support, Cabling and network points, Sales on all IT equipment. Training. Was on Hobart Road.
  • Zen Hot Yoga World, Shop H01 in Hobart Grove Centre – Opened 29 June 2016. Yoga and Meditation. Hot yoga is a series of 26 Bikram Yoga postures. Flow yoga links postures together using the breath. Was Upper Level.
  • Core-Barre, Shop H03 in Hobart Grove Centre – Boutique studio for men and women. Unique, tranquil environment. Equipment and mat-based Rehabilitative Pilates, BootyBarre and Barre Fusion to improve core strength & fitness. Was Upper Level.
  • Hand Therapy Consulting, Shop H03 in Hobart Grove Centre – Hand Therapist: specialist assessment and treatment of conditions of the hand and arm that may have occurred through injury or disease. Was Upper Level.
  • Rakoma Travel in Hobart Grove Centre – Travel agency providing affordable, personalised travel management services to clients. Services Included Flights, Accommodation, Car Hire, Visa Assistance, Corporate Travel.
  • Cutting Room in Hobart Grove Centre – Professional hairdressers, highly creative personalities, and a salon experience that apparently did not stand out enough from the crowd.
  • Rubicon Persona Clinic, Shop H05 upstairs in Hobart Grove Centre – "Alternative Healing Clinic" offering a range of placebo products, alleged diagnoses like Iridology and Kinesiology, and bogus treatments like Ozone Colon Hydrotherapy and Detoxing. Was Upper Level.

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Waterfall is the Future of Renewing Drivers' Licenses

My driver's license expires in December. I was mentally preparing for the ordeal at Marlboro Licensing Department. We've seen horror stories of people queuing all day, watching as others pay outrageous bribes to get shunted to the front of the line by corrupt officials.

I went for a free eye test certificate from Rivonia Optometrists. They recommended the licensing department at Waterfall in Midrand. I booked online, where in fact Waterfall was the only licensing department anywhere near me with vacancies. And there were plenty of them: I booked a convenient time in the next week.

They sent me a confirmation email.

Officially called the RTMC DLTC Waterfall Park, they are at 256 Howick Close, Waterfall Office Park, Bekker Road, Midrand. It was as well I used Google Maps to get there: They are well hidden. However, once in the office park, it was almost a case of following the other cars. Most seemed to be going to RTMC DLTC.  Not surprisingly!  Their fame has spread far and wide. There were people there from as far as Boksburg and Brakpan.

The email said to arrive 15 minutes early for my appointment on 14 September. “Late arrival may result in delays.”  I arrived half an hour early. There was a fast-moving sitting queue of about a dozen; the friendly supervisor took me to the front because of my age.

They have half a dozen workstations with computers. Each has a linked fingerprint reader, eye-testing device, camera, and credit card machine. What a pleasure! They were so efficient I actually left them at the time I had booked for my appointment, 9:12.

Be aware that they do not take cash, only cards. I had deliberately drawn cash!

They also don't tell you in advance what the licence costs: R228.

One thing wasn't immediate: I now have a wait of 6-8 weeks for my Driving Licence Card.

Overheard at the Checkout

"Thank the gods Diwali is over for another year!"

"Ah yes, the Festival of Loud Noise and Bad-Neighbourliness, when normally-nice people try to outdo each other showing off how much money they can waste to terrify wildlife and other people's pets."

"Folk do odd things for religion."

"Indeed.  It's almost as weird as people walking around with tiny replicas of a tortured corpse hanging around their necks!"

Your name in print!  Would you like to contribute a lockdown tip, a less obscure joke, or something else for this Newsletter?  Please e-mail us.  You will get full credit (unless you want anonymity).  Reach 4,679 shoppers and shop-owners: Advertise in this newsletter!  Editor: Rick Raubenheimer.


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Newsletter Issued 30 October 2022 – Page Last Updated: 22 December 2022. – Contact us..