James Harvey swapped the corporate grind for ground beef when opening Ballito hotspot restaurant, Jimbo’s Burger Bar.

Originally from Johannesburg, James moved to Ballito in 2021 and shook up the burger scene by opening Jimbo’s the following year. The restaurant was voted the Best Burger in The North Coast Courier’s Best of Ballito Readers’ Choice Awards in 2023 and 2024.

“I had no intention to ever own a restaurant,” said James. “During Covid, the place I used to get my burgers from in Joburg closed, so I looked online to learn how to make smash burgers. I went to the supermarket and bought every condiment, went home and started creating my own sauces – things grew from there.”

James began by making smash burgers at home for his friends. Encouraged by rave reviews on a fishing trip and from a 20-person focus group, he decided to bet on himself. He bought a flat grill and started making his own sauces. A chance meeting with a friend later led to him buying an old food truck.

“I started doing Food Truck Fridays. I’d pop up randomly at an event in Ballito, sell 50 burgers, and be out before anyone knew I was there. I sweated for months in a hot trailer before I bet my lifesavings on the shop.”

He needed further financial help and expertise to begin, however.

“I had no idea about the amount of money, time, and equipment it would take to get the store going,” he said.

“I spent so much money on the kitchen, I had to decorate the front of my store with my own possessions. If you had visited my house, you wouldn’t have found anything on the walls!”
As ever, the Ballito community rallied.

“Brett Michielin and Brad Hort from Mozambik have been incredible. I barely knew Brett, and he gave me equipment he wasn’t using. Conrad van Rooyen from RocoMamas also helped me, and I’m technically the competition. I opened over two years ago and never looked back.”

James calls the shop his man cave because it is where he and his junior manager Loki – his 18-month-old American Pitbull – spend all their time.

“Jimbo’s is where people can come hang out and talk. I want to build relationships because I believe people buy from people and I could never have been successful without the local support; it’s been amazing.”

You can find Jimbo’s in the original Ballito Village on Sandra Road.

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