I had the luck to have enjoyed a 16 course Tasting Menu dinner soon after the opening of Gåte Restaurant at Quoin Rock outside Stellenbosch, in November. I was blown away by the creativity of the dining experience, and its experiential nature, with Molecular Gastronomy, something I had not experienced at this international level in my dining experiences locally and internationally. On Tuesday a week ago I returned to Gåte, to try the new dishes on the Tasting Menu, as well as those that have changed in the past three months, while my friend from Paris ate the Tasting Menu for the first time, at her invitation. Continue reading →
Tag Archives: Grappa
Pierino Penati Ristorante at Villa 47: Michelin-star link, Cape Town’s best fine dining restaurant now open!
Cape Town’s first Michelin-star linked restaurant has opened on the third floor at Villa 47. Pierino Penati Ristorante at Villa 47 is the sister restaurant to the one-star Michelin restaurant Pierino Penati, established seventy years ago in Brianza close to Milan in Italy. It raises the bar of fine dining in our city, and is now the best fine dining restaurant in Cape Town! Continue reading →
10 Year Celebration Grappa launched by Dalla Cia Distillery!
The Dalla Cia family of Stellenbosch, synonymous with Grappa, has launched a 10 Year Celebration Grappa, which was distilled in 2004 and has been barrel-matured for the past ten years. The launch of the special Grappa celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Dalla Cia Wine & Spirit Company.
Father and son Giorgio and George Dalla Cia created the anniversary Grappa, and continues a tradition started by Vittorio Dalla Cia, father of Giorgio, in Friuli in Italy in the ‘Twenties. George Dalla Cia is the Continue reading →
Restaurant Review: Palma on Bree Street authentic Italian family-run, but no passion!
About ten days ago Orphanage Cocktail Emporium co-owner Katie Friedman introduced me to new eateries Mother’s Ruin Gin Bar and Palma in the next street block on Bree Street, being landlord to both. My experience of Palma on that evening differed vastly from that of our dinner last night.
I had invited my friend Whitney to join me, and we chose an outside table, given how hot it still was when we arrived. It was lighter than on my previous visit, and the ‘less is more’ interior design impressed. General Manager Roberto Carluzzo did not seem to recognise me, or to react to the Facebook posts and the blogpost I had written about the 26 eateries on Bree Street subsequent to my first visit. The doorman did however welcome me back, a nice touch. Mama Palma Carluzzo was in the bar, putting on finishing touches to leaving, and I was disappointed, as we had been told that she is the chef, in charge of Continue reading →