Tag Archives: bloggers

The Sommeliers Selection 2018 simplifies wine selection by quality and value for money!

Last Monday I attended The Sommeliers Selection 2018 tasting of the top-scoring wines at Tokara Delicatessen, driving through from Cape Town on a rainy day. My two favorites I tasted were Arra Shiraz 2015, as well as Trizanne Reserve Syrah 2017.  The top wines in the tasting were selected by top Sommelier members of the South African SOmmeliers Association, and the Black Cellar Club.  Continue reading →

West Coast Village comes to the Cape Town Fish Market in V&A Waterfront!

CTFM West Coast Fire Whale CottageWhat a fun birthday party Jenny Morris laid on at the new location of the V & A Waterfront branch of Cape Town Fish Market, on the business side of the Waterfront, where Paulaner and Moyo used to be.  The restaurant has created The West Coast Village, complete with sea sand,  replicating a Strandloper-type restaurant, but just done better!

The Cape Town Fish Market space is massive, and can seat up to 600 patrons inCTFM West Coast Jenny Morris Whale Cottage total, on a green artificial lawn outside, and inside too, a retractable roof allowing the restaurant patrons to sit under the stars if the weather allows it.   A minimum of 20 guests must book the West Coast Village, so that the food for this special menu can be prepped in advance.  We were seated at long tables, with Jenny’s friends, most sitting at tables set on the beach sand.  It is difficult to walk on it, and Jenny’s instruction to bring flat shoes was understandable in retrospect.   At the side of The West Coast Village area is a dedicated fireplace, at Continue reading →

Does charging for travel blogging have credibility?

Travel bloggingTravel bloggers who charge for their service ‘have lost touch with the true spirit of travel blogging‘.

While blogging is a noble form of recording one’s experiences, it should at all times be honest and reflect the full travel experience, good and bad.  Bloggers receiving payment gush about the beautiful scenery, and their experiences, and never criticise.  In addition, they rarely declare receiving a gift or an experience for free, let alone being paid for writing about the experiences.

However, I fear that as tourist boards and travel principles have shifted some of their emphasis from traditional media reviews to blogger press trips, and blog posts about their products, the spirit of blogging Continue reading →

Jet-set Mercedes-Benz Eat Out Awards 2014 at Thunder City, but food a disappointment!

Eat Out 2015 cover Whale CottageThe Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant Awards event is a highlight on the restaurant calendar, held for the 17th year, and at Thunder City for the first time last night.   The results surprised, with one heavyweight chef sliding right off the Top 10 list, while a new restaurant made Top 10. Two restaurants which did not make the Top 20 Restaurant shortlist in 2013 flew back into Top 10 last night.  Stellenbosch remains the Gourmet Capital of South Africa (4 Top 10 restaurants), followed by 3 in Johannesburg, and 1 each in Cape Town, Franschhoek, and Hermanus.   While the award recipients were acceptable, the food was a disaster.

Thunder City is not an ideal venue for a function of this magnitude (800 guests, but advertised asEat OUt Thunder City Whale Cottage 1000 initially), being difficult to find – the petrol station one block away from the turn-off had no clue where Thunder City is, and there were no signs off Borcherds Quarry Road, other than some posters held by men, only visible in the last minute.  I followed a taxi, there being no further signage to Thunder City.  We were collected from the VIP parking by a Mercedes-Benz shuttle van, and I arrived just as the event started, Chef Pete Goffe-Wood doing a tribute to Chef Bruce Robertson, who passed away two weeks ago.   The lighting was poor for Continue reading →