They say it is unfair to judge a restaurant based only on one visit. They also say you should not do things in the heat of the moment. So - two visits, and a healthy delay between writing this review and posting it. My first visit to Emoyeni was late in 2014 - a year-end Sunday brunch for our company. The view is stunning, the old Randlord house charming. The quality of the buffet was quite good. But the service was shockingly bad. We arrived here on time as booked, to be informed that they had a wedding reception that ran very late the pervious night. So we had a loooong wait for our table, and very inattentive service. By very inattentive I mean repeatedly asking for extra glasses, orange juice and bubbly, with many in our party not receiving anything until we were seated, an hour later. Many wines out of stock, no sparkling water. The restaurant also has a general air of neglect and there were many shabby touches (e.g. A4 paper stuck to walls with Prestick to show where the buffet was). But the view - and the jazz band - (and maybe the wine that we were finally able to order) soothed me. And I'm a sucker for old houses with history. So I took my family there again two weeks ago for a Sunday brunch. We called twice to confirm that a band would be playing. Upon our arrival, we were casually informed that there was no band (too few guests). At our table, we were informed that there was no buffet, again because there were too few guests. We had booked for the buffet and the live music, they knew this, yet never called us to let us know. When the fairly ordinary breakfast that we then ordered arrived, it looked terrible. And then we found that the sorry-looking "potato stacks" and clumps of bacon were COLD inside. Not just "not warm", but fridge cold. Who can't cook bacon to order? What decent restaurant would re-heat bacon and potato stacks? The view was still beautiful when we left, the old house charming but neglected, the restaurant still shabby, and our food untouched. The service was much better though, but maybe that was related to the fact that there were only two tables to be served. I hope one day to return, when a new restaurant opens here. I don't think it will be a long wait.

I recently hosted an event in September at Emoyeni Estate for two evenings of 60 people and let me tell you these guys have upped their game! I have read some of their reviews here on Trip Advisor and it saddens me that these reviews are the 'face' of Emoyeni when Googled.

I am from Cape Town and I often do events in Johannesburg. Please do have a look at my blog www.comewinewithus.co.za to see that I am actually legit :-) What I find most frustrating when scouting around in Johannesburg for locations that is all in one is that there is a lack of it in Johanneburg. Let me tell you if I ought to get married or need to do another big event in Johannesbur I would definitely choose Emoyeni as my No.1 location.

Secondly I find the staff fantastic to work with and they really upped their game with new management as well. The Chefs were more than capable and creative when we needed to put a menu together and they were very open to my ideas. On the evenings of my events waiters where professional, friendly and efficient.

My clients thoroughly enjoyed the evening and I had fantastic feedback. They are busy looking at starting a breakfast and lunch a la carte menu which I think will do fantastic. The Sunday jazz evenings I will definitely attend when I am back in Johannesburg next time.

They are busy restoring and refurbishing all the rooms of the house so everything is definitely getting a new facelift.Have a look at my pics to give you an idea of how the evenings went.

Keep it up Thandi and Zodwa! You guys rock and I know that you are sitting on a real Joburg gem!

We had a treat-of-a-Sunday-brunch at Emoyeni to celebrate my husband's birthday. I generally loathe and avoid anything 'buffet' but this one was recommended and lived up to its 'exceptionally good' reputation. We don't eat meat or chicken so usually find our options limited but not here. The quality (and quantity) of the smoked salmon was exceptional and we have not had tuna sashimi-style so deliciously fresh since we were in Indonesia. The brunch buffet spanned both breakfast and lunch (good scrambled eggs even in a bain-marie) and our guests who ate the Beef Wellington and duck said that both were perfectly cooked, tender and very tasty. Veggie options were creative and the cheese 'display' was varied with many interesting and irresistible options. Deserts were plentiful from healthy exotic fruits to decadent chocolate 'bombs' and melt-in-the-mouth mousses. Service was delightfully friendly and very attentive but little could beat the view. Emoyeni is one of the charming old Randlord mansions on Parktown Ridge and we were lucky to be there on a sunny winter's day; from the terrace you can literally see Jhb north stretching to the Magaliesburg. Even when the wind ensured that the establishment lived up to its name, the glass surround kept us warm without interfering with the glorious view. There are many reasons that Emoyeni is one of Jhb's treasures which will have us returning time and again.

We had my daughter's wedding at Emoyeni this past weekend.
It was fabulous.The food was excellent, the waiters so friendly and efficient. And the table settings quite beautiful.
So many people had never heard of it and will be back for your brunches.

This was hands down the worst dining experience I have ever had. We had to beg for every thing.. Cold dry food, no service, bad attitude from management. people in the lounges loitering like it was a seedy back packers lodge. You would have a better service and experience in the drive through at Mc Donald's! Just horrible,