Ask for a restaurant recommendation whilst in Windhoek and invariably you’ll be told to visit Joe’s Beerhouse before you’ve even finished your question. Known as much for its whimsical décor as for its food, Joe’s is iconic, in part for being the home of what is likely the world’s sturdiest Mini Cooper.
Comfortably parked on the roof of the beerhouse, this vehicle has a quirky history. As the story goes, two Portuguese adventurers, Ricardo Mota and Adalberto Salveira, set out from Durban, South Africa, in an old style Mini, headed for Maputo, Mozambique, to demonstrate the grit and durability of the car model favored by Mr. Bean and Steve McQueen. Facing rough roads with craters that would put those on the moon to shame, the two drivers had their work cut out for them. Despite the odds, they arrived safely in Maputo, proving the reliability of their fun-sized vehicle in the process. With one mission accomplished, the intrepid wanderers decided to continue their journey, on through northern South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia, driving as much as 1,000 km per day. Eventually, their trip was unceremoniously halted by officials at the Angolan border.
To salve their disappointment at their journey’s untimely end, Mota and Salveira made their way to Joe’s Beerhouse, a popular eatery in the capital founded by a German immigrant. At Joe’s, they sampled the “house wine” (i.e. Jägermeister) and were so overcome by the convivial hospitality that, out of gratitude, they donated their Mini to the beerhouse’s teeming collection of cherished relics. Joe’s collection of baskets, bicycles, burgeoning bric-a-brac, toilet seats, and animal horns, just to name a few items, made this the perfect spot for the adventurers’ noble steed to be laid to rest.