Tag Archives: Jacqui Biess

Notorious Chef Conrad Gallagher opens new restaurant in St Francis Bay, after leaving trail of debt in SA, USA and Ireland!

 

It’s not often that an Irish or any other international newspaper would take an interest in the opening of a restaurant in a holiday town in South Africa, or contact me about this news, requesting my reaction. The Irish Sun did so last week, and published its story two days ago.

I have written about Chef Conrad Gallagher’s  shenanigans before, when it became known that he did not pay his rental in the beautiful Breda Street Café Chic building in Cape Town, nor his staff, nor cake supplier Charly’s Bakery. He left in a hurry, only to return to Port Elizabeth, with a similar manner of escaping payment, leaving unpaid debt. Continue reading →

Charly’s Bakery ‘Charly’s Cake Angels’ Season 2 baking from today!

Charly's Bakery Cup Cakes Whale Cottage PortfolioAfter all the MasterChef SA Season 2 controversy last week, it is cathartic to focus on the new Season 2 of ‘Charly’s Cake Angels’, which begins today with two daily time slots on Food Network DStv Channel 175, creatively communicated by Charly’s Bakery on these four yummy cupcakes.

In 2011 ‘Charly’s Cake Angels‘ attracted a loyal following, not only amongst Capetonians, but countrywide and even internationally, to such an extent that we have had Whale Cottage Camps Bay guests ask us to direct them to the ‘Charly’s Cake Angels’ shop!   The show was screened in 100 countries, including the UK, Ireland, in other African countries, in Europe, and in Asia.  The episodes focus on Cape Town, and while there are no Invention and Pressure Tests, and no eliminations, the episodes were equally stressful to watch in seeing how they meet the deadlines for baking and decorating cakes for weddings Continue reading →

MasterChef SA Season 2 episode 28: Finale sees Kamini Pather controversially crowned winner by a ‘fraction’!

MasterChef 2 28 Kamini and LeandriThere should have been no winner of MasterChef SA Season 2 episode 28 and the Finale of this reality TV cooking show last night, with both contestants making unforgivable mistakes in what was meant to be the pinnacle of the cooking competition!  As a winner had to be chosen, the judges announced Kamini Pather as the winner, beating Leandri van der Wat  by a ‘fraction’ of 6 out of 100 points.

The episode commenced with a very quick overview of the previous 27 episodes, highlighting Kamini’s near perfect past in being ‘top of the class’ (was this a predictor already?), and Leandri’s growth and top praise she received from Chef Prue Leith in particular.  The two Finalists arrived at the MasterChef SA kitchen at Nederburg on a very rainy day, and were surprised to find all fourteen the other MasterChef SA Finalists there, as well as their families.  Kamini’s mother Anthea and brother Neelan were present, as well as Leandri’s (and Seline’s) father Neil, aunt (her ‘second mother‘ Leandri said) and sister Nadine.  Chef Pete Goffe-Wood said that it was the biggest Continue reading →

MasterChef SA Season 2 episode 16: ‘Quirky’ cooking, Mucking Afazing Charly’s Bakery, Khumo Twala flaps out!

MasterChef 2 16 Pressure Test Finalists Whale Cottage PortfolioThe Pressure Test that five Red Team MasterChef SA Finalists, who lost the cook out in the Company’s Gardens in Cape Town yesterday, had to go through seemed less stressful and more fun than some of the others the Finalists have been through, in that they could let their creativity shine through.  The winning Blue Team loved their visit to Charly’s Bakery in Cape Town.

The visiting Chef and ‘Bread and Butter’ column food writer for The Times MasterChef 2 16 Chef Andrea Burgener Whale Cottage Portfoliowas Andrea Burgener of The Leopard (no website for her restaurant, it appears) in Melville in Johannesburg,  Chef Pete Goffe-Wood calling her the ‘Queen of Creative Cuisine’, well known for her creative cooking, eclectic and playful dishes created by experimentation, and tasty food.  She presented three of her dishes, to give the Finalists an idea of what her restaurant serves, each dish having a twist on something well known, being ‘far removed from their origins’, she said.  So, for example the steak tartare was presented on a Moroccan theme, and there was a ‘Korean spagbol‘,  and MasterChef 2 16 SpagBol Whale Cottage Portfolioa Gazpacho made with raw ginger.  Textures are important, it was said, and Chef Andrea’s flavours ‘jump out‘.    Chef Andrew MasterChef 2 16 Gazpacho Whale Cottage PortfolioAtkinson provided the brief for the Pressure Test:  the Finalists had to create a dish of their own creation within 60 minutes, thinking out of the box, to be good enough to feature on Chef Andrea’s menu at Continue reading →