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Mpho Phalane

@mpho_deane_phalane

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Founder & Creative Steward @foodiloveyou_
Let’s create something beautiful together! [email protected]

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Chef, entrepreneur and culinary curator Mpho Phalane (@mpho_deane_phalane) is reimagining South African food culture through local ingredients, forgotten flavours and the power of gathering.

Through Food, I Love You (@foodiloveyou_), Phalane has built a culinary practice rooted in connection and belonging. Her former Constitution Hill restaurant became a space where food, heritage and storytelling came together, creating memorable experiences around the table.

While that chapter has closed, the spirit of Food, I Love You lives on. And as Mpho looks towards what’s next, we’re excited to see where her ever-evolving culinary journey takes her.

#ManorAfrica #WomenWhoShapeCulture #FoodILoveYou by @mpho_deane_phalane

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2 months ago

Nourishment extends far beyond what we eat. It lives in the practices, people and experiences that sustain how we work, create, gather and become.

This Wednesday, our weekly salon series welcomes Mpho Phalane, Founder and Creative Steward of Food, I Love You, for How We Feed Ourselves — a lecture exploring food as a practice rather than simply an output, and the courage required to remain curious enough to expand that practice.

Moving through memory, experience, pain and joy, Mpho reflects on what sustains us — our work, our sense of self, our creative practices and the spaces we create to gather, connect and keep becoming.

Join us for an evening of reflection, ideas and conversation.

🗓️26 August
⏰17:00–21:00
📍& Friends
5 De Beer Street, Braamfontein

Our Bao Bar and drinks bar will be open throughout the evening.

RSVP link in bio.

#MamakashakaAndFriends #andfriends #thesalonseries #mphophalane by @mpho_deane_phalane

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2 months ago

To the women who are building something bigger than themselves. The @veuveclicquot Bold Woman Awards celebrated extraordinary founders, but what stayed with me was everything we don’t see… the years of choosing the harder road, trusting the process, and believing in a vision before the world does. Some things simply cannot be rushed.
Here’s to everyone in the quiet chapter.
The chapter where no one is clapping yet.
The chapter where your faith has to be louder than your fear.
Time, sit with me.
Our moment is coming. But whilst you on the journey, remember to call joy to accompany you, always ☺️🥂 by @mpho_deane_phalane

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3 months ago

Good vibes and goodbyes to our home. Let’s gather for lunch this weekend @constitution_hill #eatlovethrive by @mpho_deane_phalane

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7 months ago

It has been my greatest honour to shape this space into what it has become. To be able to transform it into something so special, something restorative, generous, and full of possibility.
Food, I Love You Kitchen has always been about more than a space.
It has been an idea, a feeling, a way of gathering and honouring people.
And while this chapter at Constitution Hill comes to an end, the work continues evolving us, expanding, and finding new forms. We leave this space with full hearts and deep gratitude, and a quiet knowing that what was built here will live on in the people who have passed through it.
This is not an ending.
It is a becoming.
Thank you for being part of this journey.
More to come.
With love,
Mpho by @mpho_deane_phalane

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7 months ago

Our founder and host, Nandi Dlepu, had the pleasure of interviewing Mpho Phalane for House & Leisure, Volume 18 (Embrace).

As Editor at Large, Nandi explored how food can hold story, identity, and care through Mpho’s space, Food I Love You, located at Constitution Hill. Once a former prison kitchen, the space has been softened through warmth, intention, and nourishment — holding history gently while making room for what’s next.

From inherited recipes and intuitive cooking to an environment that invites people to browse, touch, read, and linger, food here is never about formality. It is about togetherness.

Every dish begins with a feeling, then a memory.
A quiet reminder that our stories matter — and everyone deserves a place at the table.

Excerpt from Volume 18 (Embrace), pg. 90.
Limited editions will be available at Food I Love You this Saturday.

#bloom #foodinbloom #mphophalane #foodiloveyou #houseandleisure taken in Food, I Love You by @mpho_deane_phalane

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9 months ago

This Saturday, FOOD IN BLOOM opens with our first Studio Visit, hosted in the creative world of Mpho Phalane.

Founder of Food I Love You, Mpho’s work uses food as a way of holding memory, culture, and connection — grounded in care, generosity, and exchange.

Get to know her ahead of Saturday, before we gather for conversation and a shared table.

Book your place via the link in bio. taken in Food, I Love You by @mpho_deane_phalane

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9 months ago

FOOD IN BLOOM — the flow for the afternoon

We’re sharing the flow of the afternoon so you can plan your day with ease.
Doors open 30 minutes before the conversation begins, allowing time to arrive, settle in, and get comfortable.

A bar will be open on arrival, with coffee and warm or cold beverages available to order before we begin.

To honour the space and the exchange, the conversation will begin on time.

An afternoon of conversation, food, and shared presence.

Ticket: R350
Includes a curated grazing table.
Link in bio. taken in Food, I Love You by @mpho_deane_phalane

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9 months ago

FOOD IN BLOOM
with Mpho Phalane

Our first Studio Visit takes us into the kitchen and creative world of Mpho Phalane, founder of Food I Love You.

This intimate afternoon gathering invites us into Mpho’s practice — where food becomes storytelling, memory, care, and cultural expression. Set within her own space, the conversation unfolds around process and intention.

Join us for an afternoon of listening, tasting, and shared presence — where place shapes the conversation, and the table becomes the meeting point.

TICKET: R350
Includes a curated grazing table.
Link in bio.

ABOUT STUDIO VISITS
Studio Visits is a natural extension of how we like to gather. While we love our home at Mamakashaka & Friends, we’re stepping outside the walls and into the spaces where the work lives.

This series takes our conversations in situ — into kitchens, studios, workshops, and creative environments — meeting artists and makers on their own terms.

#bloom #womeninbloom #foodinbloom #mphophalane #foodiloveyou taken in Food, I Love You by @mpho_deane_phalane

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9 months ago

Moments shared are moments savoured. ✨ Celebrating excellence and connection through gourmet dining experiences, Mpho Phalane’s Manifest Moment inspires us to slow down and savour life as it comes.

#JägermeisterManifest #ManifestMoments #MphoPhalane by @mpho_deane_phalane

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9 months ago

An eventful year, to say the least. The lessons alone could write a book… or a film. I’m ending this year deeply appreciative of the beautiful oxymoron that life can be. Grateful for the stretch, the softness, the discomfort, the becoming.
Cheers to the year that reminded me that old ways won’t carry me where I’m going. 🥂 by @mpho_deane_phalane

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10 months ago

Did a cool feature in the @wwtaste cooking a vegetarian spread that has so many stories of people I have met in my journey of food! The shoot was extra special for 2 reasons… it was covered by my homie @____khanya and coz it features my whole family including our dog, Sparkles. Please purchase your copy and Enjoy some of my favourite recipes for your holiday cooking! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Be safe and get rest! Ke Dezemba! 🥰❤️ Eat. Love. Thrive by @mpho_deane_phalane

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10 months ago