Flaunt - The Deli.

Flaunt, the eatery, has been around for a while now as one of the more pleasant (as in outdoor) breakfast and lunch options at Maerua Mall. A couple of months ago the people behind the project expanded into the shop next door to open a takeaway deli for all of us too hungry to travel to other parts of town but not willing to put up with the not-so-cosy parking lot location of the café. I guess you can still call it alfresco if you like, yet with an industrial twist. So, if that's not for you, head for the deli instead to browse through the shelves of artisan muesli, picnic bars, cheese, charcuterie and cake, to name but a few, and fill your basket with whatever you feel like. We can highly recommend the fresh farm bread as well as irresistible cupcakes that come in various favourite flavours from carrot to choc. Then, make off for greener pastures and enjoy!

http://www.flauntnam.com/#!the-deli/cuye

Seawork.

Summer is the time for fish and a good bottle of chilled white, enjoyed with family and friends in a no-frills setting. Alas, Windhoek is far from the sea and the number of recommendable seafood eateries is minuscule. Enter the guys from Seawork who supply the capital with the ocean's frozen goodness for delicious home-cooked feasts. At their small shop in Southern Industrial you get everything from from green-lipped mussels to hake fillets and from tiger prawns to calamari tubes. Seawork also stocks a selection of ready-to-cook and expertly seasoned fish from the wonderful Fish Deli, bringing the flavours of our favourite Swakopmund seafood restaurant to your doorstep. They even have fresh fish straight from Walvis Bay every Friday, but make sure you order well in advance as supplies are limited and in high demand.

Pure & Simple.

In the Namibian retail landscape, dominated by big players from South Africa, it's hard to find shops that make an effort to stock beautiful things made in Namibia. Enter Pure & Simple. The airy shop-cum-café in Garten St just around the corner from Sardinia Restaurant awaits with a whole range of household and beauty products, most of them sourced locally. The space is divided into four colour sections to make it easy for customers to find things in their favourite shades. They also serve and stock Slowtown coffee beans and will treat you to a yummy muffin to go with it if you ask nicely. A changing exhibition by Namibian artists rounds off the Pure & Simple experience, so make sure you bring some time to exlore everything on offer.

www.pureandsimpleshop.net

MoiYa Artisan Deli.

The Namibian culinary scene is developing rapidly! The latest addition to the foodie world is MoiYa Artisan Deli, which was launched with a fest of artisan bread, cheese and tapenades. Even Camelthorn Brewery was there to help the crowd wash down all delicacies with their refreshing sundowner beer until late after sunset. Now MoiYa's spanking new premises at the Village on Liliencron are open for daily business. They have a small and changing lunch menu every day for guests to enjoy in their beautiful garden setting. Food is well-priced and tasty and just the right portion for lunch. Being a true deli, however, they offer a large variety of hand-crafted chocolates, single-variety olives and olive oil, fresh produce from the Organic Box, and bread freshly baked on site. All is set for this intimate place to become Windhoek's new hotbed of epicurean delights. Let's only hope the team manages to find more Namibian suppliers; and that they start having second thoughts about the deli pricing structure, which doesn't seem to go down too well even with foodies prepared to fork out considerable amounts of money for their daily bread.

Otto's Antiques.

Tucked away in an alley in Southern Industrial you'll find the very unusual antiques and backyard junk dealer Otto's. The huge shop in a colonial era theatre building houses everything you can imagine from the fashionable and useful to the utterly useless and kitsch. An eclectic mix of furniture, china, books and other paraphernalia that spans more than a century of design waits to be discovered. You will surely find the odd polka dot teapot or cosy rocking chair to enhance your home with things that have a story to tell. And while Otto's is living proof that things were not necessarily better back in the days, it definitely shows that quality was much higher up on the agenda than today.

Because the guys at Otto's know that you will be quite exhausted after hours of browsing and shopping, they have set up a neat little cafe outside in the yard. Order a refreshing lemon and mint cooler and a crispy cheese and tomato sandwich and make plans for a more simple life with less frills, good quality, honest service and things that are re-used again and again instead of being discarded only weeks after purchase.

Fruit & Veg.

Admittedly a bit on the pricey side of the retail spectrum when it comes to dairy, drinks and dry stuff, Fruit & Veg, aka the Footlover's Market, is THE place to go to for fresh produce. There are shelves and shelves laden with everything from avos to parsley and butternut to bananas, making it the grocer with probably the broadest selection of vegetables and fruit you get anywhere in the country. And it's not only imported things. The procurement department apparently makes an effort to source locally where possible. To complete the shopping experience they also have an entire wall with containers of exotic nuts, dried fruit and treats. The bakery section is a destination of its own, as is the in-store butchery and biltong station.
Head for their downtown branch if you are a fan of buzz, or drive out to Kleine Kuppe in case you like it more tranquil. The Swakopmund branch was revamped recently.

http://www.fruitandvegcity.co.za

Flowered Earth.

Get yourself a hint of summer this winter with some fresh and beautifully arranged flowers from Amanda at Flowered Earth, Windhoek's most charming florist. We love to pay the guys a visit every now and then to check out the wonderful yet simple and natural arrangements from unpretentious tulips to majestic Proteas. It's always an inspiration, because their small space at the Maerua Lifestyle Centre doubles as a gift and decor shop with a well-curated selection of pottery, pots and other paraphernalia for the design enthusiast. There are few places in Namibia where so much effort goes into creating a feel-good shopping experience like here at Flowered Earth. Wouldn't it be nice to see more dull offices and homes around town brighten up with some floral freshness? Even if it's only a bunch of sunflowers.

Slowtown Coffee Roasters.

Swakopmund is Namibia's laid-back weekend getaway. For days on end you can while away the time, doing nothing in particular. Come Sunday lunchtime and you wonder what you have been doing for the past 48 hours. Bliss. Now, Swakop has its very own and aptly named coffee roaster, Slowtown. The moment you enter the small workshop-cum-cafe, you know you have arrived in barista heaven. The air is filled with the delicate smell of freshly ground Ethiopian Yirgachefe and the espresso machine is humming in the background. Grab a hot cup of Americano, find yourself a seat on one of their cosy benches outside under the palm trees and, well, while the morning away with a good newspaper. Did you see the black cat dozing behind you on the window sill? We can't wait for cafes and restaurants in the capital to switch to one of Slowtown's great roasts made in Namibia.

www.slowtowncoffee.com

Die Muschel - Book & Art.

A sanctuary of tranquility, refined taste and contemporary literature, that's Namibia's premier bookshop »Die Muschel« in Swakopmund. The moment you enter the small space on the fringes of the Brauhaus Arcade, you know that you are as removed from anything brauhaus-ish as can be. Be enveloped by classical music and that very distinct smell of new books and browse the impressive array of English and German literature, including a whole section of art books from Cologne-based TASCHEN publishers. A real treat.