'Viagra' banana split a winner

2008-01-15 09:09

Le Roux Schoeman

Cape Town - The menu of a St Francis Bay chef, who apparently serves up a powerful drug against erectile dysfunction with a banana split, was shrouded in mystery when Die Burger newspaper tried to investigate.

One of the items on Big Time Taverna's dessert menu, between Greek baklava and ice-cream desserts is the so-called Viagra, but whether or not it's the real thing is not that easy to determine.

The owner, Peri Tsiotsiopoulos, said that, in fact, he served up Cialis, a schedule four drug that is prescribed for erectile dysfunction.

He said the whole thing began about two years ago at the cheeky suggestion of a visitor from Holland to the Eastern Cape town.

Side effects

The popularity of the dessert had increased by leaps and bounds.

Tsiotsiopoulos said he had sold about 80 of the desserts in December, and men had left the restaurant bouncing like Bambi.

"It's a beautiful thing," he said.

But when Die Burger spoke to medical experts they were less than amused that chefs could be dispensing prescription medicine such as Viagra and Cialis.

"That falls outside the parameters of the restaurant business," said Dr Marmol Stoltz, chairperson of the Western Cape branch of the South African Medical Association.

She said any doctor who encountered such a dish ought to "report it".

Brian Thomas, a chemist at Prospur Pharmacy in Plumstead, was also shocked.

"The medication is not available without prescription because it can have dangerous side effects on some people. It's like playing with medicine without understanding it."

When questioned about the possible health dangers, Tsiotsiopoulos countered that the desserts he served were sometimes just sugar-coated sweets, and that customers were asked for "a certificate" before they were served Cialis.

When asked how he got hold of Cialis, he said: "That's my indaba."

Well-informed sources said Cialis was available only with a doctor's prescription and cost about R180 for two pills.

- Die Burger