The wonder that is... the Western Cape (Part 3)

 

 

Friday, 27 September

 

One thing on my list for today.... CHARLYS BAKERY!

 

The weather was bad! We had to get out of our apartment and move to my brothers place for the night. So, we packed our tiny rental to the brim, squished ourselves in and headed to CT city centre for coffee and Charlys cake!

 

I doubt it was near 11am when we arrived and the queue was already out the door - this place was pumping.

Lucky for us we managed to get a table and Jess and I stood in the queue...This time we opted for none of the Charly favs... cupcakes, cookies and instead went for slices of their amazing baked cheesecake, double choc cheese cake and lemon meringue... Toooo good! and the coffee wasn't bad either.

 

The entire time we were there, the queue just didn't seem to die down. The angels and oompaloompas know what they are doing!

 

With the weather still not being kind to us, we unloaded our stuff at our resting place for the night and my mom and I headed for Hillcrest Olive farm to buy everything Olive... I'm not an olive fan so I just place dinner.

 

 

With a table booked for Magnifico Willow Bridge, and an extremely bad experience upon arrival, we decided to throw caution to the wind and dine Master Chef style at Hussar Grill - No disappointment there!
One of the best decisions made and the best dining experience I've had in a while.
The steak with mustard sauce was amazing and we all cleaned our plates with satisfaction - everyone should book a table at this place when next in Cape Town!

 

Saturday, 28 September.... time to head home...

 

 

Today is our last day in Cape Town and it is market day!

The Audacia Market, Root 44, is a relatively new market in Stellies and we opted to try it out... similar vibes to all your slow markets in Gauteng but with a few added 'CT onlys'.

I have to say, my fav thing was the Bubble Tea Company! The strangest concept for ice-tea but seriously entertaining to the last sip or bubble!

From there we headed to Jordan wine farm for our final tasting.
Hidden away in the heart of the hills this farm boasts numerous awards and an amazing restaurant. We, however, were only there for the wine :)




Before heading to the airport, we ate our last meal in Cape Town... Mac Donalds! and it was good!

7 days of good food and wine in the mother city was therapy for my soul... sad to leave but ready to plan my next culinary trip adventure...

The weekends tastings were not quite over however, as we headed to the TASTE of JOBURG on Sunday... yet again too much food and wine to comprehend.




Being international coffee day, I also had make sure I drank more than my fair share and can happily say that as I write this I am finishing off the day and week, with a freshly brewed cup of Ethiopian blend as I listen to the rain fall outside my window... being back home in Pretoria... my heart is happy :-)

Till next time xx
Mel



 

The wonder that is... the Western Cape (Part 2)

Tuesday, 24 Sept...HERITAGE DAY...BRAAI DAY!

Heritage day! And what is Heritage Day without a braai?? Soasaties, bread, wors, corn, beets, salad and traditional apple crumble and cream!

However, before we indulged in all that, we headed off to Durbanville Hills for a glass of wine and a stunning, local is lekker, view of Cape Town.
Then a quick wine tasting at Nitida -  a quaint little winery with some big wines.
I also managed to get myself a new cook book to ad to my collection... MasterChef here I come, haha!

Reading through the recipes in my new book

Proudly South African Day was a blast... good food, good wine, good company, great weather... I still don't know why anyone would want to be anywhere else.


Wednesday 25 Sept

Stellenbosch Day! Not having a GPS and having to rely my directions, addresses and the help of Google maps on my phone has been entertaining! U-turn, U-turn, U-turn!

We finally made it to Legado Coffee café in Techo park - too much planned for the day and time delays saw us missing out on the roastery and just picking up a take-away and some Ice-cream Community 65% choc ice-cream. Yum Yum Yum! - no other words!

We then made our way through the jam packed streets of Stellies to The Bird Cage Tea Bar.
I read about this place and recommendations from friends and family made it a must on my list.

I don't think words can fully describe how amazing the lemon butter chicken on rice really was...even my dad was left speechless so that's saying a lot!
Huge round of applause  to the chefs of this must see Tea Bar!

Our final stop in Stellies was my fav place in the Western Cape - JC le Roux
Bubbles everywhere!
I held out the last time I visited and so this time, the nougat pairing wasn't even a question!
And I promise you, you'll never look at Turkish delight the same way again... heaven!

 

We wrapped up Wednesday with the family at the original Waterfront Tavern, Ferrymans at the V & A.
This girl went all 'pub' out and dined on fish and chips (with peas) and a beer!
Not sure I'll do the beer again, but the rest wasn't half bad :-)






Thursday 26 Sept

 

I had plans for Thursday, big plans, bagel plans... but alas, disappointment!

New York bagel sounded (and looked) like the place to be. We took a leisurely walk from the apartment to get coffee and a bagel before starting the day.

This restaurant  is open from 6h30 to 4pm and boasts a large variety of deli food.
However by 11am, they had no muffins, no croissants and the funny thing is, they weren't going to make more! WHAT?!?

Strange as it was, I still managed to get a bagel and coffee - not a place I'd go back to...sorry guys.

After a strange start to the day we made our way to Constantia Glen wine farm - stunning! By this stage all wine tastes the same to me but the personality of the people working there makes this farm a must for everyone! You'll end up buying 6 bottles!

The Creamery was last on my list
for the day.

Making our way to Dean street in Newlands was another set of u-turns, but we got there!
Ok people, a double scoop has to be on everyones bucket list - you cannot die before trying this homemade ice-cream! 65% choc! Coffee! Peanut butter! Heaven on earth!
They actually serve other food as well but who cares!

Loved it!



The weather started to turn on us as we headed back to Sea Point.
Everyone was hungry for some salty food so we made a pit stop at a cute little place on the beachfront - New Point deli - Google it, its made a name for itself!


That's it for part 2 of my trip... the week is coming to an end and I feel like there is still so much more I want to do. At least I can go back for visits any time :-)

Toodles xx

 

 

 

The wonder that is... the Western Cape (Part 1)

Spring in the Cape...

Snow, rain, wind, ice.... that is what appeared to be facing us as we boarded our plane to Cape Town on 21 September. SPRING! Had the Western Cape not gotten that memo??
Our cases where laden with jerseys, long pants and even coats! We were prepared for the cold that we were heading to... I was even more prepared for the coffee, wine, ice-cream and food in general that I was about to consume over the 7 day period. I had my list, Google maps downloaded to my phone and stretch pants (just in case ;-P )

We arrived to a chilly welcome just after 6pm and had to locate a car rental place to get some wheels for the weeks adventure. (Have to mention that we spotted Chad Le Clos at the airport before we left Pretoria.)
Eventually, with key and Google maps in hand, we made our way to the hotel - gorgeous beach front view - and settled in before heading out for a snack with my brother and sister-in law.

POSTICINO in the Sea Point area is as popular as they come and we only just managed to grab the only available table at 9pm.
Awesome, busy, Italian vibe, the perfect pizza with paper thin bases and just enough topping.
3 pizza's shared amongst us was enough to settle the flight hunger pains and prepare us for the week head...







Well rested and ready for our first adventure, Glen Carlou (GC) wine farm was our first stop on Sunday morning. GC - one of the only wine farms on the Paarl wine route (well any route for that matter) where the tastings are free!
The view from this winery is amazing. We managed to see not only the snow covered mountains but the sun shining over the Cape at the same time - absolutely stunning.
If you want to stretch your mind, take a walk through the Hess Museum of Contemporary Art - just don't do it after the wine tasting because you will have no clue what's going on :-p

Our second and final stop for the day before heading off to Hillsong CT for their 4.30pm service, was Babylonstoren. Oh gosh guys, if you want to be in touch with nature, get there!
This wine farm includes a garden where you can take a long walk and as long as you are there, you can pick and eat what you like, (there is a R10 entry fee at the gate).
There is everything from lemons and peaches to a variety of lettuces and herbs - including carpets of Thyme, Camemile etc. Clivias and lilies line the gardens and there a streams of water running through.                          


The funniest thing for me, and I literally laughed for 2 minutes at this, is the giant bird cage!
You can climb up and sit inside the cage! Hilarious!!

The Glass house restaurant boasts a number of amazing dishes and fruit juices (the yellow, the green and the red) Indulge in the beetroot and chocolate cupcakes - they're a must.

The day was made even more interesting when we spotted Jade from MasterChef season 1, all hippy-like in the garden.. as you do.

This place is where you want to be if you want to become one with nature (and food and wine)

Monday 23 Sept

Today, the girls walked the promenade (8.1km) and the started our trip through the inner city.

We made our way through the narrow streets of the inner city to ORIGINS COFFEE. This place is amazing! So nicely hidden along a busy street and packed to the rafters inside.
We had to try their almond croissant (we were hungry!) as well as their amazing winder blend coffee. I ventured further and had a cup of their Guatemalan bla bla bla -amazing!
Origins can boast at being one of the best, I would not deny that - every blend, every country, they have it! A little piece of coffee heaven.

 

 

 

From there we decided to walk to Jason Bakery in Bree street - Google maps promised a 10min walk - I think not! Anyhoo, when we got there we were greeted by a  'closed' sign! Bummer! With Heritage day being on the Tuesday, it would seem a lot of places took Monday off too...

 

Before heading to the vineyards we HAD to stop for lunch and no better place than PURE GOOD in St Johns Street for a healthy snack.

Shannon (MasterChef SA season 2) has made this restaurant into a gem and I just loved it there.

 

 

The Mother City wrap (or salad) is a must and I have to promote the 'pina colada'  smoothie - I don't think any fruit / veg smoothie can compare!

Will definitely make Pure Good a stop every time I'm in Cape Town :-)



 



Finally we wrapped up the day at Altydgedact and D'Aria - the infamous Blush wine does leave your cheeks a little rosey and warms you up as the Cape chill moves into the night air.


That's it for Part 1 of my trip.... next up Heritage day and a trip to Stellenbosch :-)

Ciao for now
Mel



The taste of life...

So I've been trying to get myself to sit down for longer than 5min to write my next blog and after numerous culinary experiences and my cute friend buying me a journal to write my food thoughts down, I'm finally here :-)

In order to expand my coffee shop 'I've been there list', I decided to make a list of places to go in Pretoria and Joburg areas. And my OH MY! there are a ton of cute little 'must see' places :-)

Word of advice... if a place is known for its coffee experience, go there for coffee and don't expect to be able to eat a good lunch. I know that may sound harsh but seriously guys, I left some of these places starving but completely satisfied with my caffeine intake.



STEPHANIES Lynnwood Bridge

This place is just fabulous! Food, drink and amazing coffee!
Situated in Lynnwood Bridge just opposite another coffee haven, Tribeca.
The food was amazing and the coffee even better!
You definitely cant go wrong with time spent here :-)

+27cafe in Duncan street is such a fab place to enjoy a coffee, Wi-Fi, quality time with friends and maybe even pick up a broach or two...
However, the food doesn't fill at all and you may not want to take a hungry boyfriend there :-/
Cappuccino I hear you say... yes, some of the best ever! You cant go wrong at +27 when you order coffee!




                                                                                        

 

 
 








The Luckybread company in Brooklyn is a little piece on heaven on earth.
The food portions are just right if you don't want that 'full' feeling and the coffee... oh my word the coffee!
Pick a country and they will most probably have an amazing blend from there... you cant go wrong.
Head to Brooklyn, go watch a movie and then treat yourself :-)  

 



 

Today I treated myself to amazing double shot cappuccino and lunch at Pure in Thomson street, Pretoria. The coffee was tots amaze ;-) and the pumpkin and bree quiche just as amazing - You honestly cant go wrong if you want to spend some time in the sun, listen to live music and maybe pop into the Big Blue factory story before you head home...

 

Wrapping things up, get yourselves to the Neighbourgoods market in Joburg!! It has to be on your bucket list people, don't miss out!!

 

Go for it! Drinks some coffee, eat some food.... enjoy the taste of life!!

Till next time xx

Stop... TURN UP THE MUSIC!

 

Life is fast... things are here today, gone tomorrow... children grow up, flowers wilt, the robot changes and we take no notice.

'Take time to smell the roses' - who has time for that?? Seriously, some days I forget to put deo on- its clear I have no time to smell myself, never mind the roses.

How is it that we get caught up in the trap of day to day robotic living and only realise too late that we should have taken notice of the flowers along the way.

Sitting at a funeral service a few weeks back, it hit me again how we only appreciate people/things/life when its too late.... when its gone. 

Point of Grace has a song that sums it up perfectly, 'Wear your red dress, use your good dishes, make a big mess and make lots of wishes! .. turn up the music, turn it up loud!.... you wont regret it, looking back from where you have been, cos its not who you knew and its not what you did, its HOW YOU LIVED!'

Join me in my 2013 quest to LIVE! To appreciate each and every day. To really taste and see that HE is good! To smell the roses, the slowly sip the coffee and eat the cake.

Love people, love life, love your saviour but most importantly live TODAY and turn up the music!!

Be Blessed!
Mel