Tag Archives: hotels

Corona Virus: Strict (but confusing) new Law for licensed Restaurants, Clubs, Shebeens, and Bars announced!

 

A report just seen on News24 states that the Government has announced that all licensed restaurants, shebeens, clubs, and bars have to close their doors at 18h00 on Mondays to Saturdays, and at 13h00 on Sundays and public holidays, with immediate effect. This is a devastating announcement for the hospitality industry which was not addressed  by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s speech on Sunday evening. Hotels have been instructed to take greater care to prevent and to contain the spread of the COVID-19 Virus in their establishments. Continue reading →

The Eat and Meat of a Michelin Restaurant Inspector! A star job, eating out 275 times a year?

The local JHP Gourmet Guide once again tried to link itself to the Michelin star rating of our local restaurants, by awarding top local restaurants one, two, and three plate accolades, as if they are equivalent to Michelin one, two, and three stars. I have been critical of this exaggerated and dishonest link by Jenny Handley and her Gourmet Guide Awards, especially as I know how the restaurant visits are done by her. (See the Blogpost link at the end of this article). A recent Forbes article ‘The Secret Life of an Anonymous Michelin Restaurant Inspector’ therefore attracted my attention, and I summarise it below, so that I could double check my view on this. Continue reading →

Little-known hospitality consultancy Hospitality Counsel announces Top 10 Chefs and Restaurants 2019!

It was a Facebook post by Chef Jan-Hendrik van der Westhuizen of South African/French restaurant JAN in Nice that alerted me to the Hospitality Counsel 2019 ranking of our countries top ten Restaurants as well as Chefs, when he thanked them for being included in the Top 10 Chef List. No other restaurant or chef on the two lists appears to have announced the accolades from the Hospitality Counsel, awarded at an event called the 2019 Luxury Tourism Awards! Continue reading →

Restaurant Review: SeaFood at 5-star The Plettenberg still has service issues, now kitchen ones too!

On our recent trip to Plettenberg Bay, my friend from Paris and I tried to visit as many of the better restaurants in the town as we could fit in. Given the disappointing visits to SeaFood/Sand at The Plettenberg in the past five years, it was not on my list of restaurants to eat at, but as it was on my friend’s list, I obliged, holding thumbs that things have improved! Sadly the service and food left much to be desired, despite it being under the guardianship of Eat Out Top 10 Group Executive Chef Peter Tempelhoff!  Continue reading →