Tag Archives: Anel Potgieter

Has the Good Food & Wine Show become the (Italian) Cook Show?

Good Food & Wine ShowCarlo Cracca. Antonio Carluccio. Gennaro Contaldo. Katy Ashworth. Emma Dean. Vichit Mukura. These are the ‘top international chefs’ Cape Town food lovers are being exposed to at the Good Food & Wine Show at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, augmented with a handful of light-weight (with the exception of Chef David Higgs) mainly TV cooking program local cooks!   As Cape Town is the centre of gourmet gastronomy, surely exhibition organisers Fiera Milano could have done better?

Christine Cashmore has organised the Good Food & Wine Show for years, and sold her company to Fiera Milano last year.  She is certainly still involved, as I saw her at the show yesterday.  She is tough to deal with, changing PR companies every year!  Every year the criticism about the Show has grown, the big food producers no longer bothering to participate, and sample their products.   The emphasis this year was clearly TV cooking shows, and the invited chefs (mainly) had a link to a TV program, in cooking at the Celebrity Chefs Theatre (how did Kamini Pather slip in here, as controversial winner of MasterChef Season 2?), the kykNET Kook Teater, the Spar Food Theatre, and the Selati Sweet Treats Theatre. Continue reading →

Babylonstoren, Oranjezicht City Farm, Farmer Angus win at 2014 Eat Out Zonnebloem Producer Awards!

Eat Out produce2014nr2-2269 (1)The winners of the 8th annual Eat Out Zonnebloem Produce Awards were announced at the Stellenbosch Slowmarket yesterday.  The Eat Out media release states that the quality of produce was excellent this year, and that it was not easy to choose the overall winners.

Judges were Deena Naidoo, MasterChef SA Season 1 winner, Eat Out Top 10 Chef Jackie Cameron of Hartford House,  Chef Vanessa Marx of Dear Me, Eat Out editor Abigail Donnelly, and Eat Out Editor-in-Chief Anelde Greeff.Eat Out Produce AWards 2014 judges produce2014-2534

We are delighted that the Oranjezicht City Farm has received recognition for its excellent work, in winning the South African Heritage Award.  Anel Potgieter’s ‘Life is a Zoo Biscuit’ won Best Local Food Blog for the second time.  Farmer Angus has been a pioneer for organic meat and egg production at Spier, and has been a previous winner too.  It is no surprise that Frankie Fenner Meat Merchants has received the ‘Outstanding Outlet’ award for the Cape area, having been the former 2013 Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant judge, yet it is surprising in that the outlet is in a dive location, and the service arrogant and poor – we are still waiting for the calf’s liver we ordered more than a month ago!

The 2014 Eat Out Zonnebloem Produce Awards winners are: Continue reading →

Justin Bonello passionate and patriotic Cooked in Africa Films food TV producer! Ultimate Braai Master Season 3 on the grill!

Ultimate BraaiMaster Season 3 Cape Final Banners Whale Cottage PortfolioYesterday I was invited to attend the judging of the Cape Finals of Season 3 of Ultimate Braai Master held in the parking area of The Lookout at the V&A Waterfront.  Not only was it a good way to catch up with a number of chefs who judged the Cape Finals, but it was also an opportunity to meet Cooked in Africa Films producer Justin Bonello.

Justin chatted to blogger Thuli Gogela of Mzansi Style Cuisine Blog (she appeared in the Bloggers episode of season 2 of MasterChef SA)  and I as the judging came to an end at the Finals.  One sensed his overriding passion for food, which has grown into TV production, with 21 productions to date, including two previous Ultimate Braai Master Ultimate Braaimaster Season 3 Cape Finals Thuli Gozela Justin Bonello Whale Cottage Portfolioseasons, two seasons of Charly’s Cake Angels, as well as ‘Seasons at Terroir‘, which was launched last week and focuses on Chef Michael Broughton, and his restaurant Terroir at Kleine Zalze.   Justin denied that Terroir not making the Top 20 Eat Out restaurant list last November was a blow to their production, saying that Chef Michael’s food is beyond Top 10 competitions, clearly a fan of the chef’s food. He is fascinated by the revolution of growing one’s own vegetables and herbs, and proudly showed me a photograph of his vegetable garden at home, out Hout Bay way, which will become the subject of a TV series  ‘Green Time’ at the end of 2015, with seven pilot projects of vegetable gardening at schools being developed. Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 28/29 September

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*    The City of Cape Town is calling for more public comments about the draft Liquor By Law: Control of Undertakings that sell Liquor to the Public, 2013, requesting input from 1 October, for a month.  Retail outlets will be able to apply for Sunday trading (again), operating no later than 20h00.

*   The price of petrol is set to drop by 20 cents at midnight on Tuesday, according to Kfm news.

*   Could Slum Tourism be the new trend?  Is it ethical?

*   Michael Fridjhon sings the praises of Hein Koegelenberg of La Motte and Leopard’s Leap, in how he has transformed La Motte, and the success Continue reading →