Hazendal Executive Chef Michelle Theron is a busy lady, running five restaurants on the spectacular Stellenbosch wine estate, which I visited for the first time last weekend. Unfortunately I was unable to meet Chef Michélle, as she had already left after preparing breakfast for guests renting the Hazendal Homestead. I left her prize of a bottle of Adhara Premium Extra Virgin Olive Oil with her colleague, in recognition of being selected as a 2021 Top 10 Woman Chef. Continue reading →
I was fortunate to receive a copy of the gazetted Lockdown Level 2 regulations prior to the presentation by Minister Dlamini-Zuma at a Media Livestream just after lunch time today.
The Regulations are as follows:
1. The Curfew remains in place, from 22h00 – 4h00
2. A mask must be worn at all times when leaving one’s home, including in public transport
3. No more than 50 persons may attend a funeral
4. No evictions from own accommodation is allowed.
5. Any disputes regarding rented accommodation must be heard by the Rental Housing Tribunal
6. Gatherings are not allowed except for a funeral, a religious gathering, the workplace, conferences and meetings, cinemas (maximum of 50 persons), theatres, concerts, and live performances of up to 50 persons. casinos, auctions, sporting activities, weddings (limited to 50 persons), social events at one’s home with a maximum of 10 persons, fitness centres and gyms (maximum of 50 persons), sports fields, swimming pools (maximum of 50 persons), beaches, public parks, museums, galleries, libraries, Personal Care services, restaurants, bars (maximum of 50 persons), Taverns (maximum of 50 persons), Shebeens (maximum of 50 persons), tour operators, and all accommodation establishments including AirBnB (maximum of 50% of floor space).
7. Night clubs are not allowed to open.
8. The country’s borders remain closed except for ports (but cruise ship stops are still banned), and for approved flights for persons requiring international medical care, and for incoming and outgoing repatriation travel.
9. Transport regulations: buses and taxis may not carry more than 70% for long distance travel, and 100% for any other travel; all passengers must wear a mask.
10. Licensed on-consumption establishments may sell alcohol (no timing restrictions) , while licensed off-consumption outlets may sell alcohol on Mondays – Thursdays, from 9h00 – 17h00.
A shock is that the ban on cigarette sales, which the President announced would be lifted, is not mentioned in the gazetted Level 2 regulations at all. A news report by News24 states: ‘Level two has no provisions on tobacco, which means no restrictions or limits in the sale of cigarettes, vaping liquid, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, or anything associated with these products’. In her speech, the Minister mentioned that cigarettes should be smoked responsibly, and should not be shared!
Chris von Ulmenstein, WhaleTales Blog: www.chrisvonulmenstein.com/blog Tel +27 082 55 11 323 Twitter:@Ulmenstein Facebook: Chris von Ulmenstein, My Cape Town Guide/Mein Kapstadt Guide Instagram: @Chrissy_Ulmenstein @MyCapeTownGuide
I had eagerly awaited the opening of the Cavalli Estate on the R44 between Stellenbosch and Somerset West, its majestic entrance having been completed about two years ago, and having heard a number of times that Chef Henrico Grobbelaar would be heading up the kitchen in the Equus restaurant. Its Equus Tasting Room, Gallery, Boutique, and Restaurant opened a month ago, its 54 thoroughbred saddlebred horses, and olive and vine plantation make up the Cavalli Estate. It must be the largest Winelands tourism offering in terms of size and facilities offered.
Horses dominate everything at Cavalli, the Italian name for the animal, and the racehorse stud was developed while the Equus centre was being built. The stud is the main reason for the estate’s existence, and one passes the large stable building as one drives to Equus, with fynbos evident in the gardens landscaped by Keith Kirsten, who also did the Delaire Graff gardens. I had been invited to be shown around by mother and daughter Gundel and Annette Sogor from Gordon’s Bay, who had been to the tasting room before, but had not yet eaten at Equus. Arriving separately, we each shared how unprofessional the welcome at the security entrance as well as at the parking had been, and Lauren Smith, owner’s daughter, architect, and Operations Manager of the estate, made quick work in having the problem addressed and the outsourced security men replaced.
The Equus building is vast, and consists of a massive art gallery, a boutique, Continue reading →
Excellent news to warm up a depressed tourism winter is the announcement in yesterday’s Cape Times that a new cruise liner terminal is finally being planned for Cape Town’s port.
Transnet owns the harbour, and last week called for ‘submissions of interest in the funding, construction and operation of a terminal’. The tender notice calls for interested parties to meet on 6 June, and submit their tenders by 29 June.
The poor state of the current temporary facilities for cruise line tourist embarkation in the Cape Town harbour has been heavily criticised, making it less attractive for cruise liners to call on Cape Town as a result. Until January this year, cruise liners were preferring to dock in the V&A Waterfront, but a Department of Home Affairs directive forbade this due to security concerns for passengers visiting Cape Town. Since then the V&A Waterfront has been calling for support in getting the cruise liners back into its quays again, as it is good for their tenants’ business. Western Cape Minister of Tourism Alan Winde has been working on the issue too, recently meeting the national Minister of Home Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, who told him to call on national Minister of Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk, it being a tourism issue. It was her department, however, which issued the directive as to the docking of cruise liners, and forbade the future docking in the V&A Waterfront. City of Cape Town Tourism, Events and Marketing Mayoral Committee member Grant Pascoe promised in January to address the cruise liner issue, but appears to not have done anything to date!
Some ships like the Queen Mary 2, which has visited twice in recent months, is too large to be accommodated in the V&A Waterfront, and therefore a new cruise liner terminal in the main port would be first prize. It has been suggested that due to the relatively small number of cruise line visits to date, that the new cruise liner terminal be developed as a multifunctional venue, suitable for weddings and conferences too. FEDHASA Cape Chairman Dirk Elzinga welcomed the news: ‘the hospitality industry would be delighted if a cruise liner terminal was built. It’s long overdue. At the moment the cruise liner facilities are non-existent. If there’s a good cruise terminal then operators will definitely do their best to bring more business to Cape Town‘, which would benefit Cape Town’s hotel industry.
One hopes that tenders for the development of the Cape Town cruise liner terminal will be found, despite the continued economic depression, even if it were to become a joint project between the City of Cape Town and the Western Cape government, as is the Cape Town International Convention Centre. Cape Town is perfectly positioned to play a far greater role in cruise tourism, and currently is a shabby competitor to Durban, which harbour has developed good facilities to welcome cruise liner tourists to its city.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage
February has drawn to a close, and has not disappointed the tourism industry in Cape Town in giving it a welcome confidence and income boost. However, February occupancy in Camps Bay has been on a par with 2011, at just under 90%. February is by far the most popular tourist month of the year now, which it previously shared with November.
February is attractive to the UK market specifically, and to the northern hemisphere generally, to have a break after a long and bitterly cold winter this year. The UK had school half term in this period too, allowing families to travel. The Mining Indaba earlier this month was a tremendous boost for the city. Our statistics for Camps Bay show that the share of the UK market in February was at its lowest level in the past six years, at only 20%, with that of South African visitors having increased dramatically from 9 % in 2007 to 38% this month. The German tourist share at 15 % this month is on a par with 2007 and 2008, a welcome improvement after a decline in the years between 2008 and 2012.
In January occupancy in Camps Bay improved significantly to 72%, from 58% the year before, but it was still below the occupancy achieved in January between 2007 and 2010. A similar trend was evident in December 2011. Hermanus showed a significant recovery in February, with a 40% occupancy, double that of February 2011, the best performance since 2008. Sadly Franschhoek experienced by far its worst February ever in six years, largely due to the sharp decline in the number of weddings which have traditionally been held in the village in February, and German tourists being less interested in visiting Franschhoek, choosing Stellenbosch in preference. The Franschhoek Wine Valley tourism association has done no visible marketing in the past year, other than the hosting of a few events, and its reduced marketing in using the services of a one-day-a-week consultant is not helping!
It was with concern that we read an article in the Weekend Argus last weekend, irresponsibly entitled ‘Tourists flock to Mother City in record numbers’. The article’s claim that ‘Cape Town’s extended summer has translated into the city’s best-ever holiday season, with tourism experts declaring that predictions for a much-improved season have been right on the money’, is misleading, and completely incorrect. The problem probably lies with who the journalist interviewed as so-called ‘tourism experts’.
The article quoted a number of tourism players, and the statements of most would be shot down by the industry, given their own experiences of the past few months, and how these compare with previous years:
* The biggest culprit is Cape Chamber of Commerce President Michael Bagraim, who has enjoyed using his position as President to make media statements about any possible topic, including tourism, about which he has little experience as a labour lawyer. He claimed that the tourism figures ‘were the best he had seen yet for the city’ (our underlining). His statement implies that he may not have seen all potential past tourism information, and it shows in his subsequent quotes to the journalist, including the nonsensical statement that ‘This past summer has certainly been the best, and we hope the upcoming summer will be even better. At the current rate I think Cape Town could easily become the best tourist destination in the world’, not defining how he defines ‘best’! He clearly does not understand the definition of ‘summer’, and that it still has another six weeks to go, with far lower occupancy expected in this period.
Mr Bagraim goes from bad to worse, by praising the World Cup for the good performance: “I believe that we are now experiencing the rewards from the World Cup, the reason being that so many tourists currently in the city were here during that period, and are now returning”. We cannot agree with Mr Bagraim at all, showing that he was completely out of his depth in this interview! He added that word of mouth from those that had attended the World Cup 18 months ago, the resultant media coverage, Table Mountain’s New7Wonders of Nature (not yet confirmed for Cape Town), and being named 2014 World Design Capital ‘would help ensure that Cape Town’s tourist enterprise would continue to thrive’ (our underlining). Mr Bagraim clearly was not aware that the tourism industry experienced a crisis in 2011, and was nowhere near ‘thriving’! He added:‘The one thing to remember about tourism is that it is foreign money which comes into the city, meaning it is new money that gets recycled throughout the economy’ (our underlining). Once again Mr Bagraim has not been briefed about the visitor composition, and that the majority of tourists in the Cape are South African! The rest of his statement would make economists shudder! We can however agree with his declaration that ‘Tourism is certainly the biggest money-spinner for the city, and it will continue to be so for many years to come’!
* Western Cape Minister of Tourism Alan Winde quoted improved visitor numbers for ‘Table Mountain National Park’ and Robben Island, but the time period was not stated.
* Calvyn Gilfellan, CEO of Cape Town Routes Unlimited, issued a media statement a week ago, along similar lines of the Weekend Argus article, and the journalist must have sought inspiration for his headline from this irresponsible media statement about the ‘interim summer’ period. Mr Gilfellan is quoted as saying that Table Mountain had seen a 25 % increase in visitor numbers between November – January relative to the same period a year ago. His conclusion is that it proves ‘the impact an international accolade has on the popularity of the attraction’. What Gilfellan neglected to mention was that the improved weather (i.e. reduced number of days on which the Cableway did not operate due to rain and gale force wind) in the past three months relative to a year ago played a huge role in the tourism numbers achieved for Cape Town’s icon.
* Cape Town Tourism’s Communication Manager Skye Grove was also quoted, in a nonsensical linkage made between tour guides and the increased use of technology, ‘which should spur tour guides to up their game’, she is quoted as saying. Further she is quoted as saying that tour guides should maintain high standards of quality and content ‘to keep up both with the challenge of technology, but also with the high tourist numbers’, a statement that does not make sense! Ms Grove sent out a media release last week, sharing informal ‘research’ Cape Town Tourism had conducted amongst its members about their performance in December and January. With the exception of the accommodation members, the sample sizes were not mentioned, yet detailed analyses were provided, and one can assume that the subsample sizes were tiny (only 106 accommodation establishments responded, representing by far their largest member segment). Ms Grove quotes passenger arrival figures at Cape Town International, up on the year before, which was a particularly poor period of arrivals. She quoted Ravi Nadasen, GM of The Cullinan, who stated that accommodation establishments had not experienced the same good performance as had tourism products, due to the oversupply of accommodation in the city, as well as a trend to visitors staying with family and friends.
* Mayoral Committee Member for Tourism, Events and Marketing, Grant Pascoe, is receiving a lot of coverage via Cape Town Tourism’s media releases, in the few that they issue, and his statements in the Cape Town Tourism media release were included in the Weekend Argus article, once again demonstrating how out of touch the Councillor is with tourism in the city. He is quoted as saying that ‘the boost in the number of visitors to the city was a trend that was expected to continue into 2012’, given a number of events in March and April, including the Argus Cycle Tour, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, Design Indaba, and the Two Oceans Marathon. Our experience is that events (e.g. J&B Met) have attracted fewer non-Cape Town visitors to Cape Town this year, and even the Argus Cycle Tour has not yet filled Camps Bay, as it has in the past years.
We have previously pleaded for greater honesty and reliability in the reporting of the performance of the tourism industry. The summer season is not yet over, and the past twelve months should not be the only benchmark of tourism performance, given that 2011 was the worst tourism year ever experienced in the Cape. It is no achievement to see tourism improvements relative to 2011!
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage
Spice Route is the new name of the wine estate previously called Seidelberg, and also is the name of the brand new restaurant on the wine estate, which now belongs to Charles Back of neighbouring Fairview, which he bought from Roland Seidel last year, and re-opened the renovated estate in October.
The first impression is not a good one as one drives to the restaurant and tasting room, as the Cabernet Sauvignon vines have had to be removed due a red ant infection, and new planting will only take place in winter, I was told by the tasting room staff, my first stop at Spice Route. The staff had no knowledge of the history of the wine range, which was first made for Mr Back by maverick winemaker Eben Sadie. The tasting room has been renovated, painted white now, with new furniture, and has been brought out onto the terrace and the lawn too, with a lovely view, even onto Table Mountain. The Spice Route wines were produced in 1997 for the first time. It was explained that the exceptional Spice Route wine brand, being one of four Fairview brands, was not receiving the attention it deserves, and therefore Mr Back bought the neighbouring farm. All Spice Route wines are made by winemaker Charl du Plessis on the Swartland farm, the Malabar having its own cellar. The Spice Route wine range consists of Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Viognier, Mourvédre, Pinotage, Shiraz, Chakalaka, Flagship Syrah, and Malabar. One pays R25 to taste six of the nine Spice Route wines, and can also order an excellent value-for-money Spice Route wine and food pairing at R90, with a taste of all nine wines and three dishes off the restaurant menu: paté, kingklip, and pork belly.
The restaurant too has been extensively renovated, under the guidance of architect Johan Malherbe of Malherbe Rust, and the interior decor has been designed by René de Waal of Experience Makers. René chose a white interior for the walls, chairs, and tables, and added decor elements from the Middle East and Zanzibar to emphasise the spice link to the restaurant name, through tiles on the floor, lamps, massive jars 
of spices on the restaurant counter, the chairs, the place mats, works of art on the walls, and wall cornices. The spice theme also manifests in the cinnamon coloured aprons of the waitron staff. The menu/winelist cover is brown leather, and each page is Spice Route branded. Each table (without tablecloth) has a bottle of Fairview olive oil, and a set of Goldcrest coarse salt and black pepper grinders. Quality material serviettes, Fortis Hotelware cutlery, and good glassware is on the table, including a small Greek style water glass. There was no music at all, an element which could have enhanced the theme. Outside the furniture is wooden and looks like it was there before, not tying in with the inside decor. Surprising is that the cloakrooms have not been renovated yet, having been painted in a ghastly pink/red, with wall tiles missing, and having the cheapest toilet roll holders.
Staff are mainly from the previous Seidelberg restaurant, but the Manager Lize Rossouw (studied at the Institute for Culinary Arts and the International Hotel School, and moved across from Fairview) and the Chef Phillip Pretorius (previously at Fairview’s The Goat Shed and Sevruga) are new. Theo, the waiter who looked after me, worked at Meerendal with David Higgs, at Grande Roche, and at Seidelberg.
Exciting changes are planned, and in future visitors will be encouraged to follow the route at Spice Route, with a micro-brewery planned with Jack Black, and a new chocolate factory to be set up by DV chocolates (from Hermanus) in the manor house in the next two months. The DV chocolates have already been incorporated into the menu. A grappa distillery is also being considered, and picnics on the lawn outside the manor house are also planned. An organic vegetable garden is being developed, to supply both the Fairview and Spice Route restaurants, and the School House guest house near the Agter Paarl Road is planned to open as a farm stall, selling its vegetables, chocolates, beer, wine, and more. The Red Hot Glass glass blowing studio is still there, and appears unchanged. Wedding bookings are starting to roll in, Lize said.
The menu is not extensive, but interesting, and each menu item has a Spice Route wine recommendation (without the vintage or price indicated). The 
menu items are not all Mediterranean or Middle Eastern, but contain spices which leave a spicy after-taste. I chose a prawn and paw paw salad (R65) as a starter, which came with a generous portion of prawns, citrus segments, pineapple, cherry tomatoes, roasted peanuts, green beans, and paw paw, and was served with a lemongrass, coconut, soy, ginger, and peanut oil dressing, a refreshing start to the lunch. A treat was that Chef Phillip brought the salad to the table, so that we could have a brief chat. The suggested pairing was the Chenin Blanc, but I enjoyed it with a taste of the Shiraz. Very special too was the duck liver parfait served with an unusual pear and ginger 
chutney (R56), a lovely marriage, and even more unusual was the presentation of the parfait, being coated in the orange-coloured chakalaka and sesame seeds, making me nervous about it initially, but being absolutely delicious, rich and creamy. The parfait pairing recommendation was the Mouvèdre, but I had it with a taste of the Flagship Syrah.
Other starters are a ceviche of cured linefish, a spicy duck breast, pork belly with a Madagascar DV chocolate lentil salad, and a Panzanella Bread salad with marinated buffalo mozzarella, ranging in price from R48 to R62. Six main courses start at R89 for handmade potato gnocchi to R218 for a Roast rib-eye steak on the bone, for two persons to share. 
One can also order linefish with tandoori paste; Chalmar beef fillet; venison loin served with a DV chocolate, black currant and chilli jus; and an Indian butter chicken served with espresso foam. Five desserts cost between R42 – R58, and include a delicious apple tart tatin served with home-made vanilla pod ice cream and an unusual carrot and ginger puree, which I enjoyed with a perfectly made cappuccino, the coffee coming from Beans for Africa in Paarl; DV dark chocolate and fresh chilli Crème Brûlée; white chocolate and rose water mousse served with goat’s chevin; coconut and banana bread; and beetroot panna cotta.
Selfishly I liked that Spice Route has not yet been discovered by the tourists as is the case at Fairview, and does not feel touristy, the service being personalised and efficient. All the plans for the wine estate are likely to fill up the restaurant in future. I was sceptical about going to Spice Route for lunch, given its past offering, but was impressed with all aspects of it, except for the cloakrooms of course! I will be back to try more of Chef Phillip’s spicy menu and to taste more of the Spice Route wines!
Spice Route restaurant, Spice Route wine estate, Paarl. Tel (021) 863-5222. www.spiceroute.co.za. Sunday – Thursday 11h00 – 18h00, Friday – Saturday 11h00 – 21h00.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage
Every year Cape Town Tourism and Cape Town Routes Unlimited, both bodies tasked to market Cape Town, tell the tourism industry that Seasonality is a problem unique to the Western Cape, and that they have planned events for the quieter months and scheduled more advertising, to address the problem which swallows up in the winter months the income generated in the summer months.
To evaluate Seasonality for our Whale Cottages, we went back to our Occupancy information as far back as 2007, and found interesting trends:
* Occupancy for Whale Cottage Camps Bay was at 72 % on average in 2007, 70 % in 2008, and dropped every year, to 63 % in 2009, 56% in 2010 and 41% this year to date.
* During the period May – August, the Cape winter season, Whale Cottage Camps Bay Occupancy declined year on year, from 54 % in 2007, to 45% in 2009 and 2010, to 28% this year, an almost 50 % decline in Occupancy between 2007 and 2011! Despite an average Occupancy of 70 % over the World Cup, from 11 June – 11 July last year, the World Cup had no effect on 2010 Winter Occupancy, as the good June and July performance was negated by a sharp decline in Occupancy before (19 % in May, being the lowest Occupancy ever in the five year period) and after (36% in August last year, vastly down compared to previous years) the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
* Every individual month has seen a decline in Occupancy for Whale Cottage Camps Bay over the past five years, February 2011 showing the least decline in Occupancy (88% in 2011, our best month by far this year, compared to 97% in 2007), and September 2011 showing the most drastic Occupancy decline (28% in 2011, compared to 60 % in 2007).
* These trends apply to Whale Cottage Hermanus and Whale Cottage Franschhoek too, both towns having seen Occupancy in 2007 (on average around 50%) halve this year for the period January – September.
* Hermanus recovers from Seasonality more quickly in winter, due to the arrival of the Southern Right whales from May. However, in the last two winters the average Occupancy was around 10% (despite the World Cup, which made no impact on business to this town), compared to 40 % on average in 2007).
* Franschhoek shows a similar Seasonality decline, but is at a far lower level in winter, dropping by half from 16 % in 2007, to 7% this winter. The World Cup made no impact on business. The village has seen a decline in the number and size of weddings, and despite an increased activity in hosting events, which fill up the guest houses for the two days of the event, the remaining 28 days remain close to empty! The trend is for a vastly reduced Occupancy, from 41 % on average in 2007, to 13% on average this year, for the period January – September. September has been the month with the most drastic decline in Occupancy in the past five years, but Occupancy declined consistently year on year in each of the months.
* The Occupancy trends reflect the changed tourism pattern, with more international tourists staying in Cape Town, and not travelling to inland towns to stay over, doing a day trip to Hermanus and Franschhoek at best. Cape Town Routes Unlimited is responsible for marketing the Western Cape, and it appears to have failed in its work, if our figures are taken as a benchmark. It shocked me to hear that Cape Town Routes Unlimited has lost both its Marketing Executives David Frandsen and Itumeleng Pooe, and that all marketing is now handled by the CEO Calvyn Gilfellan. Cape Town Tourism’s Marketing Manager Velma Corcoran has only been in the job for a month, and has not made her mark in any way. She has no tourism marketing experience specifically, and no marketing experience generally.
Not having a firm statistic as to the contribution of UK tourists to our Whale Cottage business, we checked our country of origin statistics over the past years. This source market has represented as much as 53 % (November 2007) of our bookings over the past five years, but the average has been at around 33%. It is this percentage of bookings which we will miss this summer, as bookings from the UK are extremely rare, due to the economic woes of the United Kingdom. German bookings for Camps Bay have represented as much as 24 % (December 2007), but have seen a steady decline over the past five years, averaging at about 10 – 15 %. Our forward bookings show a strong increase in German bookings for this summer. Not surprising is that the proportion of South African bookings has climbed steadily, as we have lost international business, and this may also be due to our Whale Cottages still charging affordable 2007 rates, and discounting rates by close to half in the winter months.
A Carte Blanche programme on Sunday highlighted the tourism crisis. Portfolio of Places CEO Liz Westby-Nunn spoke about 52 of her client establishments having closed down in the past year. She has been in business for about 25 years, and business is so bad that she has consolidated her three Portfolio Guides into one, and has dropped her advertising rate by about 50%, just to hold on to her clients. Mrs Westby-Nunn has been a feisty business person, who took 20 % advertising rate increases year on year in the past. Clive Bennett, Managing Director of the One&Only Cape Town, said that “We aren’t seeing growth we should be seeing, and you couple that with the surplus number of beds, sadly there are going to be closures”. Bennett added that the recession had hit South Africa post-World Cup. Shamwari’s Tom Jager said that business for them has seen ‘a big drop’. SA Tourism’s Chief Marketing Officer Roshene Singh said she would look at the impact of the tourism industry’s poor performance on jobs at the end of this year. SATSA President Heather Guiterrez was controversial in stating that blaming the recession is a convenient excuse: “There is 4% tourism growth within tourism worldwide, and we’re not seeing it in South Africa. In fact, we are seeing a huge decline of tourism into South Africa”. She blames the lack of post-World Cup marketing for the current status. ‘South Africa went dead. People don’t go to a country that goes dead’, she said. SA Tourism defended its work, stating that April had seen a 7,5 % increase on the year before. Ms Guiterrez said that SA Tourism does not have enough marketing money to market South Africa on international TV, and this was confirmed by Ms Singh, stating that their marketing budget is minuscule relative to their main competitors. Mrs Westby-Nunn was critical of the official arrival statistics, stating that the 8 million figure should be closer to 1 million. The tourism players interviewed said that the impact of the decline in tourism is its effect on job creation, the target of 250000 having been set, and would not be achievable. Both Bennet and Protea Hotels CEO Arthus Gillis called for more flexibility in the airlines, allowing charter flights, and making SAA the tourism loss leader, to bring as many tourists to the country as possible. Gillis says his business is predominantly focusing on domestic tourists, being their ‘saviour’.
We received the following response to our latest WhaleTales newsletter from Herbert Henrich, a fellow guest house owner in Franschhoek, and he hits the nail on the head in confirming the poor state of the guest house industry: “Thank you for your most comprehensive ‘Tales’ and the detailed information contained therein. For one, like me, sitting on the hospitality industry outer parameters, your reports provide much insight in what would remain obscure otherwise. Our business suffers. The reasons are probably a) global recession and b) lack of exciting promotion of South Africa as a special tourist destination. The most remote parts of the world are being offered to potential tourists on TV almost daily. Very little – if anything – from the RSA. But promotion alone will not re-instate what once was a flourishing industry. There will still be the economic millstone around the consumers’ neck. Hence, business will shrink and establishments will close down, bringing about further lack of income and loss of jobs. Our operational cost go up, however, irrespective of the business slowing down. Municipal rates, levies, electricity, taxes – you name it, will be collected whether there is income or not. I would suggest that it is time that the government will consider easing up on us somewhat. Why do we still have to pay inflated rates for business premises which bring no business? Is it not time the government supports those who do not close down in order not to increase the number of job-less ? Those who actually subsidize the government rather than the other way around ? I think the hospitality industry, which has no alternative replacement business option , should make a united appeal to provincial and national government departments to reduce their every increasing fiscal demands and allow some time to regroup and allow the business to come back to some sort of reasonable level”.
We once again call on Cape Town Tourism and Cape Town Routes Unlimited to involve our industry in utilizing our information as a predictor of tourism activity for the season ahead, and to focus on the domestic market, in getting them to Cape Town. Our tourists are not on Twitter and Facebook, in our experience, and need good old-fashioned advertising and articles in newspapers and magazines to attract them to our beautiful Cape.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage
I was invited by Manley Communications to try out the new The Marianne restaurant, which opened on Saturday on the De Huguenot Estate, almost two weeks ago. While the property was not yet ready to receive guests at that time, the lunch gave us a good indication of the good things to come.
The 2,8 hectare De Huguenot Estate was bought by Tom and Marianne Gray about five years ago, previously having owned Highlands Guest House in Kenilworth. The property is located alongside a wall that was built in the past year, whilst the road repairs in Pniel were done, with the Johannesdal name on it. Tom told me that Johannesdal was a block of eight plots that was allocated to freed slaves, who settled in Pniel, and they named their joint land Johannesdal. De Huguenot Estate is one of the blocks, and has the most magnificent view onto the Groot Drakenstein mountains. De Huguenot Estate has one of the oldest buildings in Pniel, in which the Grays live, previously having been a stable and which was built in 1820, about twenty-five years before Pniel was founded. We couldn’t have chosen a better sunny winter’s day, which enhanced the enjoyment. In the distance we were shown the recently acquired 550 hectare property of Dick Enthoven, owner of Spier, which stretches all the way to Boschendal, and where he will set up polo grounds.
The property has four luxury suites, one of them a Honeymoon Suite, and will be looking to attract wedding business. It has the Harry Q Bar (at which Chef Tanja will be serving what she calls “Floating Food”, being reasonably priced ‘sharing’ tapas with a difference) and Fraîche Deli and Café (to serve freshly baked breads, pastries, scones, quiches, and cakes, as well as all day breakfasts, and other lunch and treat options), and The Marianne restaurant.
The Marianne is a generously sized room with a fireplace, facing the mountains, and looks onto a massive oak tree, the valley and the mountains. The walls are painted a soothing grey, and this is the colour of the staff uniforms too, apt given the owners’ surname! For the lunch we were seated at one long table, being a collection of wedding planners, event co-ordinators, and writers. Antique furniture is married with modern. The impressive star heading up the kitchen is Chef Tanja Kruger, a talented winner of the Chaine de Rotisseurs Young Chef of the Year 2008, and a member of the South African Culinary Olympic Team, who moved from Hunter’s Country House in Plettenberg Bay, having worked at Lanzerac, the Radisson Hotel and Five Flies before. Her Sous Chef is Christo Pretorius, 2010 Unilever Young Chef of the Year. The patissier is Olga Puru, who will be doing the baking, and will make the wedding cakes too. A vegetable garden has been established, and Chef Tanja will be focusing on using the freshest produce to prepare her food on Slow Food principles. Marianne Gray is charming, and she made us laugh when she said she is the owner of the wonderful new property, but cannot cook an egg nor does she drink alcohol! But it is clear that she loves people and is a good entertainer and hostess. We were welcomed with a glass of Colmant sparkling wine, and I enjoyed the Thelema Red wine.
Our menu was printed on classy silver paper, and was representative of the food to be served at The Marianne, with prices indicative of what will be charged. We were offered a choice of seven starters, nine main courses and eight desserts, and we could see each others beautifully presented dishes as they came out of the kitchen. I chose Rabbit for the starter, my first ever, a pistachio crusted saddle of rabbit and bacon pressed flank, served with liver parfait, an apple and raisin chutney, pickled shimiji and succotash (a corn, bean and tomato stew), which will cost R75. Other starter choices are a Baby Iceberg salad, and Cauliflower custard and sweetcorn velouté (R40), Oxtail ravioli and Fairview Chevin and apple terrine (both R55), Quail curry (R65), and Pan seared scallops served with black pudding and sugar snap pesto (R75).
Main courses range from R80 – R135, and I chose the Sticky pork belly, which was served with apple and sweet potato puree, celeriac remoulade, apple crisps, roasted root vegetables and honey cider jus (R120). It was hard to choose a dish out of the list of beautifully presented options, and I look forward to coming back, to try some of the other main courses, including Asparagus and mushroom bolognaise; a Caramelized onion, olive and Brie tart; an interesting sounding “Exploration of fish pie”; Prawn laksa, served with basmati rice and a laksa curry sauce; Roast rack of lamb; Chalmar beef sirloin; and “Hot smoked free range baby chicken”. For dessert, which all cost R45, 
I chose the Valrhona dark chocolate fondant, which oozed thick rich chocolate, and was served with honeycomb, milk chocolate ice cream as well as chocolate soil. Other choices were a passion fruit soufflé; Orange crème caramel; poppyseed pannacotta; banana split, which was a deconstructed collection of deep fried banana custard, macerated cherries, caramelised banana, vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and nut brittle; Sticky toffee pudding; and Blue cheese trifle. What impressed was the Cheese board, which one can make up from a selection of eight cheeses, including an aptly named Huguenot, each costing R20, and to which one can add homemade watermelon preserve.
The Marianne Restaurant adds another fine dining restaurant to the Stellenbosch Restaurant Route, and adds another splendid restaurant to the Helshoogte Pass area, which includes Tokara and Delaire Graff. I will be trying out the other dishes at The Marianne, and also Fraîche. I liked the friendliness of the owners, and know that De Huguenot Estate will become a new food lovers’ destination in what is now South Africa’s new gourmet centre.
POSTSCRIPT 14/7:I returned this evening, to try the Harry Q bar for tapas – good quality, and value for money Seafood pops (hake and prawn tempura) at R45, Chicken Satay (R35), and home-made Marshmallow with a Valrhona chocolate ganache dip (R40). Other tapas one can order include soup, mini Caesar salad, Caprese salad, ‘nude oysters’, Franschhoek salmon fish cakes, smoked gnocchi, pea and ham risotto, Aubergine Roulade, Pepperdew poppers, Spiced pork riblets, Fried Fairview Crotin, Beef short rib croquettes, and venison boerewors. Sweet tapas range in price from R30 – R40, and include homemade chocolate brownies, truffles and fudge, macaroons, and strawberries, all of which can be ordered with Valronah ganache or toffee sauce, at R10 each.
Manager Philip told us that owner Marianne has protested about the use of her name for the restaurant, and therefore it is now called de Huguenot.
POSTSCRIPT 7/8: I had my first lunch since the opening of de Huguenot to the public today, struggling to book telephonically earlier in the morning, but managing to do so by Twitter. The restaurant was heavily booked, and had a nice smoky smell from the lit fire. The restaurant windows allowed one to see the snow-topped Franschhoek mountain peaks in the distance. A vase with daffodils and anenomes was on the table. Fortis Hotelware cutlery was laid on the table, on a quality white table cloth. The serviette was forgotten. The menu has not changed from the one we saw at the launch lunch, as written about above. A bread plate with a home-made seed loaf and two rolls were brought to the table with parsley-topped butter a minute before the food was served. I loved the seedloaf so much that Manager Philip sold me the left-over loaf. I ordered Asparagus and Mushroom bolognaise, made with lime spaghetti, a tomato sauce, and topped with parmesan shavings (R75). It probably was not the best representation of Chef Tanja’s culinary skills. 
Much more interesting was the Banana Split, which was a deconstructed dessert with slices of banana, a deep fried banana custard, macerated cherries, nut brittle, chocolate sauce, and a ball of chocolate (R45). The waiter that served me lacked polish and experience, and his service was not reflective of the quality of Chef Tanja’s food. The winelist look rather weathered from heavy use. MCC’s offered are Moreson’s Miss Molly (R150), Colmant Brut Reserve (R35/R195), and Graham Beck Brut (R235). White wines by the glass are Thelema Sutherland Sauvignon Blanc (R25/R99), and Ken Forrester Petite Chenin (R25/R99). Red wines by the glass are Thelema Mountain Red(R25/R99), and Ken Forrester Petite Cabernet/Merlot and Petite Pinotage (R25/R95). Six Shiraz options are offered, ranging from R145 for a 2010 Guardian Peak to R325 for Hartenberg 2007.
POSTSCRIPT 14/10: Sadly the De Huguenot Restaurant will close down on 31 October. Fraîche is no longer happening, and the Harry Q bar will become a breakfast, lunch and dinner venue. The venue will focus on weddings and events.
POSTSCRIPT 2/3: Sadly, De Huguenot Estate will be auctioned on 14 March.
de Huguenot Restaurant, Fraîche Deli and Café, and Harry Q Bar, De Huguenot Estate, R310, Helshoogte Road, Johannesdal, Pniel, between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. Tel 021 885-1240. www.dehuguenot.co.za (Website still under construction). Open ‘360°’, as Chef Tanja put it, Mondays – Sundays for breakfast and lunch, and eventually for dinner.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage
Choosing to leave the Rijk’s Country House in Tulbagh after our first night’s stay last weekend, we looked at two options, and chose the next door 4-star Manley’s Wine Lodge instead of the Tulbagh Hotel. It was a good choice, and we slept well with absolute peace and quiet, and Manley’s Wine Lodge probably is the best quality and value accommodation in Tulbagh, earning its pay-off line of ‘a little special’ in more ways than one!
The Manley Private Cellar belongs to David Ovendale from London. The first vines were planted in 1999. His property is managed by wine-maker Stefan Hartman. A most charming and helpful Alicea Brits manages the Lodge, and was very accommodating in assisting us with the last-minute booking. The Lodge has 13 rooms, offered at R 550 per person sharing, and two self-catering cottages. Alicea made us an excellent offer, allowing my son and I to each have our own room.
The Lodge is about 400 meters from the winetasting room and the Man’Lee’s Country Kitchen, and there is a little “consecrated chapel” midway, seating just over 100 guests, weddings clearly being popular in Tulbagh. While the building exterior looked rather ‘Fifties, and the garden terribly dry due to the dry summer, the rooms looked surprisingly good, in tones of brown and beige. Given our experience at Rijk’s, I was impressed to see the good quality curtains, with blockout, guaranteeing a good night’s sleep. The desk was comfortable to use, with a brown mock-leather chair. The headboard was brown mock-croc. The bed linen was good quality cotton, but the staff had put the open end of the duvet cover at the top, and not at the bottom of the bed. Given our Rijk’s experience, it was nice to see a Lindt chocolate as a turn-down treat.
The bathroom looked less modern, offering both a shower and bath, needing one to close the bathroom door so that one can open the shower door. In the shower itself, I saw something I have never seen before – a mirror connected to a product holder, allowing men to shave there. The only problem was that the mirror had started rusting, and horrid brown streaks were visible on the tiles underneath it. I was impressed with a neat box of bathroom amenities, containing about six different products, as well as a sewing kit, cotton wool, etc, none of which we had seen at the 5-star Rijk’s next door. The cupboard space was neatly used for a bar fridge, which was switched on and had bottled water in it, for which we were not charged, and a tea and coffee facility. The TV had numerous channels, and I was impressed with the bouquet they were offering, each room appearing to have its own decoder. In addition to the airconditioner, an heater was also available, which I switched on for the chilly night. There was a fireplace too, but no matches to light the fire with.
Breakfast at Man’Lee’s Country Kitchen is included in the rate, but is independently owned by Lee Roberts-Walsh. It has a rustic cottagey feel about it, with seating inside and outside. Wooden tables are covered with red-and-white-check table cloths, with benches outside and chairs inside. While music was being beamed from the speakers, a TV was off-puttingly broadcasting the end of the Cape Epic cycle race in a room at the entrance to the restaurant. By the time we came for breakfast, they had run out of croissants. The breakfast buffet had what was required, but nothing was presented with any style, and nor did the fruit look very fresh. Surprisingly, the oranges were served in quarters with the skin, last seen at hockey matches at school! Our waiter was a temperamental character. He clearly was having a bad day, and muttered loudly after he had brought us the menus. I placed an order of egg and toast, but it took forever to come. When I saw the waiter standing outside, catching a breath of fresh air, I asked him about my order. He seemed to not know about it at all, even though I placed it with him, and him having written it down on a little pad. The toasted whole-wheat bread was delicious, and Lee told me that she buys the seed-covered bread at Pick ‘n Pay in Ceres. Commendable is the free wireless internet, and that is about all that I can praise about Man’Lee’s. Man’Lee’s is closed on Tuesdays, so it is uncertain how they handle breakfasts for the Lodge’s guests on this day.
Alicea trusted us to do the payment after breakfast, and seemed defensive when I raised the poor quality breakfast and service with her, saying that Man’Lee’s is independent of Manley’s Wine Lodge. As the breakfast is part of the accommodation package, I advised her to pass on the feedback to Lee, as the bad service experienced at Man’Lee’s affects the image of the Lodge. This must have happened, as I received the following apology from Lee the following day: ” Good Day, As a guest of ManLee’s Country Kitchen this morning, I wish to apologise for the behaviour of my staff member that seemed to upset you with his attitude. I must point out that I pride myself in having a professional approach to all my customers and am rather upset that he was not up to my usual high standard of service. I would like to extend an invitation to you and your son, when you are next in the Tulbagh area to enjoy and meal with impeccable service, courtesy of ManLee’s Country Kitchen. With kind Regards, Lee Roberts-Walsh, Chef/Proprietor, Man’lee’s Country Kitchen”.
The marketing is overstated, in my opinion, with the brochure promising ‘The ultimate wine lodge’, ‘a venue created in the French provincial style’, ‘relax with specially selected wines from around the world’, ‘delicious country cuisine’, ‘Manley is truly a place of luxury …’, and refers to a ‘Boutique Hotel’. It is a good 4-star, good value accommodation establishment, but is lacking in not offering wireless internet in the bedrooms, in its un-modern bathrooms, and the poor breakfast quality and service at Man’Lee’s Country Kitchen.
Manley’s Wine Lodge, Main Winterhoek Road, Tulbagh. Tel (023) 230-0582. www.manleywinelodge.co.za (Interestingly, the Lodge website is also that for Manley’s wines, a wine marketing weakness). Man’Lee’s Country Kitchen, Tel (023) 230-1807.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage
It was the photograph of the prawn and pineapple tian that wine writer Edo Heyns took at Laborie Le Restaurant earlier this week, and tweeted, that made me drive to Paarl to try Laborie Le Restaurant. I was surprised to find a restaurant with outstanding food, but sadly the service left much to be desired. I am not sure of the exact name of the restaurant – it is generally referred to as Laborie Restaurant, but the winelist and the website refer to it as ‘Laborie Le Restaurant’, as does the business card for Executive Chef Alicia Giliomee.
My last visit to Laborie was a few years ago, for a family birthday lunch. I remember it being a set menu, and being okay, nothing spectacular. I’ll start at the end, which was the part that finally drove the nail in the service coffin, and that is that the property belongs to the KWV, and the restaurant is leased out to the Belgian owner Peter Rues. The security staff at the boom are contracted out, and when I wanted to exit, I had to stop at the boom and hoot, despite the security guard being able to see me driving down from the parking area, which meant that he could have opened it so that I could just drive through. He was incensed that I had hooted, and a war of words erupted. I had to call the restaurant to ask them to get the boom opened, and as soon as he saw me making the call, he opened it. I was seething when I left. The incident left a very bad taste, and the Manager Nadia Beutler was very sweet in reporting the matter to the estate manager, and in apologising via Twitter.
Since I had last been to Laborie, the parking area in front of the building has been planted to lawns, and the parking is now behind the building. There is no signage to indicate where to go to the restaurant entrance, so I followed other guests to find the entrance. On non-windy days one can sit outside, and enjoy the view onto the Drakenstein mountains. On my way in I noticed an outside table that had an old tree trunk as the base, with a glass top. As the southeaster was blowing quite strongly, all the doors were closed, and we were uncertain as to where to enter. I chose the first door, and saw staff talking to guests who had used the next door. I was ignored and had to request someone to seat me – the waitress spoke to me across the spacious restaurant, and no one bothered to come over to me. Flora finally decided to help me, and I chose a table. The restaurant filled up quickly, and it was a contrasting mix of older Paarl residents lunching ahead of the Garden Club AGM to be held there, and business executives, including some journalists, and KWV CEO Thys Loubser, whom I have known for many years. 
The restaurant building is beautiful from the outside, dating back to 1961, and looks like a historic building with thatched roof and gable in the Cape Dutch style. Inside the large room is functionally filled with tables, with a surprisingly modern chandelier, and chairs are brown leather. The table cloth is a yellow/gold colour, and the patterned green curtains could probably do with an update. The serviette was white, and one set of heavily used cutlery was set on the table. I liked the vase with fresh flowers on each table. Greenhouse olive oil and balsamic bottles are on the table, with small salt and pepper grinders. Flora brought the menu and winelist, both with a mock-croc cover, and well-branded and identifiable as the winelist and menu (the bill was presented in a green plastic holder, and should have had the same cover, to create synergy). Flora and I did not get on well at all, and she neglected me service-wise, so much so that I had to request my order to be taken by another waiter. I was told that she has worked there for 30 years, and unfortunately it shows. I asked her for the name of the chef, and she only knew her first name, but quickly added that she was off-duty, and that Lesley was in the kitchen, being “the Coloured one”! Flora’s apron was dirty, not acceptable for the start of the lunch service, and her name tag was upside down. Staff wear white shirts and black pants, and a Laborie branded apron. She removed my side plate and serviette when she removed the other table settings. I had a wow moment when I received a Direct Message on Twitter, welcoming me to the restaurant. I had not booked nor had I identified myself on arrival, and I also had not tweeted about being at Laborie at that point in time. The Manager Nadia said she recognised me, and had been the Tweeter. She was helpful in providing information, and coming to my rescue at the boom. The chef is Alicia Giliomee, who previously worked at Sand at The Plettenberg hotel and at Fairlawns in Johannesburg.
The menu has ‘footnotes’ on almost every page, some of which are repeated, and one is the pay-off line: “Laborie – where yesterday and today meet…”, not a bad description, the ‘yesterday’ aptly describing the service, and the ‘today’ the excellent cuisine, not quite what the owner had in mind, I am sure! Another note warns one not to be in a hurry: “We are passionate about delivering delicious food and quality service, and thank you in advance for your patience”. The note that impressed me was the following: “Laborie Restaurant is passionate about reducing our carbon footprint. We support accredited suppliers within a maximum of 150 km radius and only serve seafood on the SASSI accredited green and orange list. Our meat and poultry products are all free range and grain fed to add to your taste experience. We also support small industry producers that can provide a product of quality”. They write that they recycle waste too, as part of this policy. 
The menu has a number of options: ‘Light Lunch’ includes salads ranging between R55 – R68, a Laborie Winelands platter of charcuterie, patés, cheeses and pickles (R85), a seafood platter of pickled calamari, mussels, tiger prawns and linefish (R92), as well as a mezze platter (R82). A quick business lunch, entitled “Pronto! Pronto!”, consists of a Laborie salad, Cape Malay chicken curry and wild berry Vacherin, at a cost of R145. A Food and Wine Tasting menu costs R245 for four courses, with a wine paired to each course. Then follows the a la carte menu. Flora brought the bread basket with wrapped butter portions. I liked the bread with raisins in it. I ordered the prawn and pineapple tian (R62), and felt it to be a generous portion as such, and also in terms of the number of prawns that it contained. I was a little disappointed that there was little avocado in it, one of my favourites. It was set on thin strips of cucumber, sprinkled with coconut flakes, decorated with cherry tomatoes, a miniature apple on top, and drizzled with a sweet chilli vinaigrette, almost a meal in itself. Other starter choices include an onion tarte tatin, steak tartar a l’Americaine, springbok carpaccio, and a salmon and spinach/basil cream roulade, all costing around R60.
For the main course I had the slow roasted duck, with a crispy skin (R118), two pieces served with mash, peach slices, raspberries, an orange slice, and topped creatively with the thinnest potato wafer, a twig of rosemary, and a branch of basil, giving it a decorative touch. It was the best duck I have had in a long time. However, I was unimpressed with the side dish of mixed stirfried vegetables, so old-fashioned, and ‘done before’, consisting of red and yellow peppers, mushrooms, carrots, beans, corn cob, red cabbage, courgette and mange tout, being superfluous, given the generous duck portion. None of the main courses exceed R129, and average at about R100. One can also order linefish (silverfish on Thursday), roast chicken, artichoke and green olive gnocci, Cape Malay chicken curry, Chateaubriand, beef fillet, rolled stuffed loin of lamb, and Karoo lamb shank (I am not sure how the 150 km radius links to this item on the menu). Desserts range from R30 – R45, and include a raspberry soufflé, truffles, cinnamon brûlé, frozen mint mousse, and a summer fruit savarin.
The wine list has an introduction to the Laborie wine estate, and is named after the La Bri district in France. In 1685 the farm was awarded to the first French Huguenot farmer Jean Taillefert, and the manor house was built in 1750. The wines made by him on this farm were subsequently described as being “the best in the colony and similar to our small wines of Champagne”. The wine list also states the following about the restaurant: “Your visit to Laborie Restaurant will allow you to reminisce about the Cape as it once was hundreds of years ago”. The winelist is proudly-Paarl, or rather proudly KWV/Laborie. Cap Classiques offered include the Laborie Blanc de Blanc (R40/R135), its Brut (R35/R125), and Brut Rosé (R35/R125). KWV Cuvee Brut and Pearly Bay Celebration (also by KWV) cost R85. KWV Roodeberg is available at R95. The Laborie Shiraz 2008 is very reasonably priced at R35/R105, while the Laborie Limited Collection Shiraz 2008 costs R135. The flagship Laborie Jean Taillefert Shiraz 2006 costs R 295.
Nadia is relatively new in managing Laborie Restaurant, and she is full of ideas. She has marketed the Laborie Lazy Days market, which started three Saturdays ago, and it has become hugely popular already, being held on the new lawns – Nadia has an events consultancy background. The lawns are ideal for functions, such as weddings and other parties. She also wants to set up a champagne bar at the far end of the restaurant, to kill “the dead space” there, she said. Gourmet picnics can be ordered at R145 per person. There was good synergy between the restaurant and the tasting room, a note in the billfold inviting one to visit the tasting room. I did not see where it is, relative to the restaurant. The bill had a thank you in English, Afrikaans, German and French, a nice tourist touch. I will certainly come back to Laborie Le Restaurant for the excellent food, and hope that I will strike it luckier with the service via a different waiter and in being let out at the boom. I am confident that Nadia will look at improving all aspects of the restaurant, and will focus on the service side too. 
POSTSCRIPT 19/3: I returned to Laborie le Restaurant for lunch today, after visiting the disappointing Laborie Lazy Days market. I received a friendly reception from Nadia, and was delighted to receive her excellent service throughout the meal. I was disappointed with the roulade of salmon and pesto, mixed with cream cheese, feeling it to have been overpromised in its description, but loved the airy and light frozen mint mousse.
Laborie Le Restaurant, Taillefert Street, Paarl. Tel (021) 807-3093. www.laborierestaurant.co.za (The website lists the full a la carte menu. The Gallery only has a few photographs of events, and there are barely any photographs of Chef Alicia’s beautiful food presentation). The business card for the Executive Chef is one of the best I’ve seen in a long time, with appetite appeal, showing a delicious dessert and glass of wine, representing exactly what the restaurant is all about. Twitter: @LaborieResto Tuesday – Sunday lunch, Thursday – Sunday dinner.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage