Tag Archives: Lady Anne Barnard

Kamers food and design market builds on history of The Castle of Good Hope, first time in Cape Town!

Kamers Cover picOn Thursday I was invited to the opening of the Kamers food and design pop-up event, which is being held inside and outside the extensive The Castle, an apt venue as The Castle  of Good Hope was home to the market in Cape Town in early days.

Kamers started off in Stellenbosch twelve years ago when a collection of friends organised it as Kamers vol Geskenke, and its timing was close to Christmas, allowing one to buy unusual, unique, and stylish presents to give as gifts.   At that time they started with 40 stands, now they have 140, chosen out of a list of 600 applicants, we were told by the founder of the event, Wanda du Toit.  Her official title is Creative Director. Other members of the organising team include Magdel Kemp, Amelia van Zyl, and Hesta du Plessis.  Kamers has never been held in Cape Town, so hosting it in the city as well as in The Castle is a double historic event.  Now Kamers is spread over four events throughout the year, in Stellenbosch, Pretoria, and for the first time in Johannesburg and Cape Town this year.  It is organised by a team of twelve, and no one ever leaves, said Wanda.   Unique to the Cape Town event is the collaboration with the Cape Craft & Design Initiative (CCDI), a collective of 5000 small design and craft enterprises, which are offered business and marketing support to assist them in growing their businesses, to help them grow, and to enable them to employ staff, said Erica Elk, its Executive Director. World Design Capital 2014 has endorsed Kamers.

On arrival at The Castle, we were guided to park furthest from The Castle building, and fill up the space in this way, not making sense at all, the latecomers being lucky enough to park closest to The Castle building!  It was difficult to find the venue for the media launch, a number of us entering the building housing the William Fehr Collection. An Iziko Museums staff member was unfriendly in pointing us generally down a passage with her walkie-talkie, without explanation. Kamers Calvyn Gilfellan Whale Cottage PortfolioShe had no clue about Kamers taking place on the property, or where the media function was, and fortunately a colleague could guide us to a completely different building.  In the launch address Wanda hinted at some of the issues they had in using The Castle buildings, being a Military-owned property with rules and regulations, which created some challenges for the organisers, but these were not visible to us, other than the attitude of the Iziko staff and the parking ‘organisation’.  I fed back the problem with the Iziko Museums staff to Calvyn Gilfellan, the CEO of The Castle, who told me immediately that the Iziko Continue reading →

Eat Out Conference 2012 links the heritage and future of food!

The inaugural Eat Out Conference, held at the The Westin hotel on the eve of the Eat Out DStv Food Network Top 10 Awards with a disappointing attendance of fewer than 100 delegates, was an interesting journey of food through its South African history beginning in 1652, culminating in the climax of the inspirational talk by Chef Massimo Bottura of fifth ranked Osteria Francescana on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list.

Chef Luke Dale-Roberts of The Test Kitchen, most likely to be crowned our country’s best Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant and Chef this evening, was meant to speak about ‘Food for thought, thought for food’, admitting that he is more comfortable cooking than he is at admin and public speaking.  He was inspired by the recent gathering of 200 international chefs organised by Alain Ducasse, at which it was emphasised: “I am a chef, it’s what I am, it’s what I make”. He said a chef would die if he/she were to stop evolving.  Every day inspires him, he said, as well as the seasons, and their change.  Chef Luke showed a number of videos, made by Dreamcatcher Productions, of the making of his ‘thematic food’, being as funky, beautiful, and vibey as his dishes, including ‘Sea’ (oysters on salt), ‘The Farm’, ‘The Forest’, ‘The Test Kitchen Egg‘ with foie gras in its middle, the more recent ‘Walk through citrus groves’ (which included a three citrus sorbet, and Campari and orange jelly), and ‘Red Cabbage Coral’, served in different styles, being raw, powdered, cooked, and as a jelly.  While Chef Luke did not address the theme of his talk, being more self-promotion focused, he earned the respect of the audience through the quality of his videos, and the beautiful dishes that he presented.

The presentation by UK food designer Andrew Stellitano and photographer Dominic Davies of sonnets on strands of pasta, laser cut biscuits, and more, went over the heads of most of the audience, especially the part entitled ‘Sensory experiences of the Cape’, via James Wannerton, who suffers from synaethesia, a condition in which two of the five senses are dissonant.  Fun was his taste association, via Google Maps, of Table Mountain with pear drops, the Epping Market with chocolate digestives, and Paarl with ‘Gobstoppers’, all of which we were given to taste.

Margot Janse, Chef of The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français for the past 17 years, has a record number of ten Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant awards, more than any of the other 18 chefs she is competing against tonight.  Africa is Chef Margot’s inspiration. She has lived in Africa for 23 years, coming to South Africa from Lusaka, and down to the Cape at the time at which Mr Mandela had just been released.  This opened up a whole new world for culinary South Africa, the rest of world starting to fall in love with our country again, she said.  More was better in the ‘Nineties, quantity was synonymous with quality then!  She remembered braais, chutney, mampoer, witblits, South African generosity, her favourite gem squash, cheddar and gouda cheeses, milk in plastic sachets, and learnt that meat does not have to come in styrofoam trays. Her love for food became an obsession and then her career.  She travels a lot, cooking in many countries. Her creations all have a South African stamp, and could include baobab, buchu, and chakalaka, these ingredients making us special.  She is proud of where her supplies come from, having walked where the cattle graze, and sees where the vegetables grow.  She shared how Farmer Angus makes a plan, and walked the extra mile for her, getting the cheeks cut out of lamb skulls. Integrity and honesty are the lessons she has learnt from Africa.  She cooks what is grown here, and now.  She learnt to fight for good service, for her staff, was known to be difficult, and is no longer banned from suppliers for standing her man.

She discussed the contradiction of focusing on the perfect carrot, when there are so many people in our country going hungry. Guests want to contribute, and give something back. With a fundraiser in Holland she raised R1 million, and can feed 750 children in Franschhoek, proudly showing this scheme to her guests. She has learnt ‘Ons maak ‘n plan’, that everything is possible in Africa.  She uses local ingredients like sorghum, kapokbos, num-nums, sour figs, and a salt from a sacred place which is 200 years old, in the Mopani district.  The Tasting Room only serves local wines, mainly from Franschhoek. She was asked how she has stayed at the restaurant for so long, and explained that she stays enthused through sourcing, and constantly evolving her restaurant. This winter they changed the interior of the restaurant, done by her brother, who was inspired by her food, removing all unnecessary and ‘intimidating factors’, such as table cloths, candles, and bread.  The tables have been made from wood from the trees which were removed when the Berg River dam was built. She concluded with a plea: “Let’s celebrate this incredible land”! One reaction to her moving talk was from the audience: “I came about food and I was inspired to be a South African”.

Hetta Van Deventer-Terblanche, Culinary Consultant at La Motte, used research about Cape food in compiling a cookbook ‘Cape Winelands Cuisine’. Her talk was entitled ‘South African Storytelling on a plate‘.  She related that she had grown up in a traditional town, with the belief that South Africa does not have a distinctive cuisine, with only a small repertoire, and that South Africans love meat (Braai, biltong, boerewors, potjiekos), and that vegetables are less important (‘Rys, vleis en aartappels‘). After 1994 the world opened up to South Africa. Guests asked where they could eat South African food, and they wanted South African cuisine defined. She said that she started researching South African food long before it became trendy.  She described the recipes of the first settlers from different countries as ‘culinary treasures’. Founder Jan van Riebeek loved gardening, being ‘passionate and obsessed‘ about it, and experimented with the new plants he brought here, laying the foundation of South African herbs and spices. His fruits at the Company Gardens were described as being larger than everywhere else in world. There was an abundance of fruit, vegetables and nuts, which were not just harvested for ‘mooigoed’!   French Huguenots added the heritage of offal and macaroons, for example.  Rice was planted in the Cape, Lady Anne Barnard preferring it to imported rice.  Roses were used for rose water seasoning, as were dried mushrooms, and crushed crayfish tail shells. Our forbears used natural flavourants naturally 300 years ago – ‘how new is our old, how old is our new‘, she asked.  She said that we have lost such a lot, and that we need to find our past again.  Dr Hettie Claasens did a lot of original research, being her inspiration, documented in her book ‘Die Geskiedenis van Boerekos’. Recipes are handed from mothers to daughters, and therefore are secret, and many are lost, as mothers are not teaching their daughters any more.  Pierneef à La Motte Chef Chris Erasmus was praised, making magic on a plate.  ‘Find your own food stories’, she concluded.

Catering by The Westin hotel was excellent, from the morning tea treats, to the lunch buffet, especially its ‘dessert’ Sweet Treat buffet of Smarties, jelly tots, macaroons, and chocolates, and cappuccino requests were actioned with speed and friendliness.

Chef Massimo Bottura of 3 Michelin star Osteria Francescana described Modena and surrounds as the ‘motor and food valley’, including Lamborghini and Bughatti, as well as Parmigiano-Reggiano, proscuitto, and balsamic vinegar. Chef Massimo entitled his talk ‘Come to Italy with Me’, also the name of one of his menu options, sharing how excited he was about his first visit to Africa. At his restaurant he asks guests to leave behind their preconceptions of Italian food, and to rediscover Italian flavours with him.  He shared Chef Luke’s philosophy of being a chef, saying: “Do what I want to do, with passion. Look deep in your heart. Get the best from the past and bring it into the future”.  All chefs must have an identity, he said, knowing who they are and where they come from.  He said he could not achieve what he has without the support of a great team.  Chef Massimo’s dish of five different styles of Parmigiano-Reggiano was named Italy’s Dish of the Decade 2001 – 2011.  He described how he and his team ‘break down old forms, into a puzzle, and recreate them into new forms, using new technology and techniques‘.  Chef Massimo brought his love for art into his talk, and explained how he recreated traditional recipes ‘through Picasso’s eyes’, creating ‘Cubist paintings’. Asked how the recession affects his business, he explained that it has hit Italy badly, but that they have faith in their new Prime Minister. His business, with only 25 seats, has not felt its effect, but one must work hard, keep one’s feet on the ground, be humble, and fight to beat the crisis! Chef Massimo described how they tried to perfect the Umami of a broth, adding pigeon, veal, beef, capers, chicken, eel, but it was the Parmigiano-Reggiano that gave the soup the perfect Umami!  He advised that one must step back 10 meters, to see better into the future. One must combine history, art, food, and the social aspects to be successful.  He mentioned his Tagliatelle Ragu as one of his trademark dishes, one which made the locals in his area attract them to his restaurant.  He concluded, emphasising again that one must never forget where one comes from.

I had asked the question about the recession, and was delighted that Chef Massimo’s American wife Lara Gilmore came over to say hello, filling in some information gaps.  Lara said that she met Chef Massimo in New York 19 years ago, and moved to Modena with him a year later.  She explained the slide of the lemon and the light bulb, saying it represented that even the simplest ingredient can become special, depending on how you use it.  She told me the lovely story of how Chef Massimo had been asked to design a menu for Christmas and New Year for a cruise liner.  An earthquake in May caused tremendous damage and hardship for the people of Emilia Romagna, so Chef Massimo designed the menu utilising large numbers of ingredients from this region, to build up its economy again. She shared that the restaurant has three menus, one with 6-courses of  Traditional dishes at €100, the Classics menu with his best dishes over the years at €140 for 8 courses, and the 12-course Sensations ‘Come to Italy with Me’ menu at €180.  The dessert list has two sections, she explained, five being ‘savoury sweet’, and another five ‘sweet sweet’.  The quirky names of the dishes impress, for example ‘Oops, I dropped the lemon tart’!  While they worked hard to achieve three Michelin stars, it is even harder to maintain them, Lara shared, but it has allowed them to be more daring and avant garde. They have recently finished redoing the restaurant and the kitchen.

The Conference ended off with a panel discussion led by Eat Out editor Abigail Donnelly, and was disappointing, with a mismatched panel of Chef Reuben Riffel, Chef Giorgio Nava, The Local Grill owner Steven Maresch, and Food Network owner representative Nick Thorogood.  Grass-fed beef (‘Field to fork’) was highlighted as being healthier, and more sustainable, although it was clear that the steakhouse was ordering grain-fed meat. Even Chef Reuben said he had to order both kinds, as his customers did not relate to the grass-fed steak.  Nick fed back that the trend in London is that the source of each ingredient is specified on the menu. South America will be the ‘next big name in cuisine’ , the influence on world cuisine coming from the forthcoming Olympics and World Cup soccer.  Chef Reuben tried hard to argue that he is in touch with his restaurants, despite being  a ‘celebrity chef’ now, but a question from the audience sounded as if it was addressed to him directly, making a passionate plea for absent chefs to be at their restaurants!  TV cooking shows are popular, for entertainment and the inspiration.  No-shows are a problem, but most restaurants do not ask for credit card details, with the exception of The Tasting Room. Bank chargebacks could mean that the guests dispute the payments and receive the money back anyway. Chef Jenny Morris suggested that the restaurant industry stand together and formulate a policy on booking deposits.  The role of food critics was discussed just as it was time to close the discussion.  While bloggers were criticised for not being knowledgeable and wielding considerable power, the unanimous view was that blogposts about restaurants must be honest and constructive, to ensure the integrity of one’s blog.

Despite the excellent content of the Eat Out Conference, bar one session, it was poorly attended.  As the Conference is likely to become an annual event, New Media Publishing may need to consider a Sunday or Monday for it, to attract a far larger attendance by chefs, only a handful being in attendance.  Important too would be to focus on who the Conference is aimed at – at Foodies, writing about Food and Restaurants, or at Chefs, or a combination of the two.  Very few chefs attended, and one suspects that had most of those who attended not been speakers, there would have been barely any in the audience, a full-day Saturday conference in November probably poorly suited to busy restaurant kitchens. Perhaps the cost of R1000 was a deterrent too. Such a Conference would be better suited to the quiet winter period.  Sadly, there was little interaction between the food writers and the few chefs, partly caused by the lack of name tags.

POSTSCRIPT 26/11: Last night I saw Massimo Bottura and his wife Lara at the Eat Out Awards dinner, and we chatted, especially about her most unusual choker made from a very special wine cork, encased in sterling silver at the ends.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage

Doolhof launches Theseus to celebrate its 300th anniversary!

Doolhof wine estate celebrated its 300th anniversary with the launch of its Theseus 2009 wine at a wine tasting and lunch at Signal restaurant at the Cape Grace hotel yesterday.  Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, a traveller in search of adventure.

Owner Dennis Kerrison is a charming British gentleman, and explained why he had bought a farm in Wellington, and such a large one, having only wanted a 5 ha piece of land to be a garagiste!  He had regularly travelled to South Africa, and found the soils of Wellington to be very good, and the land reasonably priced, in contrast to Franschhoek!  He bought the 398 ha Doolhof, ‘with lots of fynbos and rock’, in 2003, loving the valley.  Doolhof means labyrinth in Afrikaans, and describes its mysterious, alluring, and hidden treasures, even having once been home to witches, according to legend.  Jacques Potier of the Dutch East India Company was allocated the land in 1712, and over the years the property has had Thomas Bain, builder of Bain’s Kloof Pass in Wellington, live on the farm, as did Lady Anne Barnard, who loved its 44 orange trees, she wrote.  The Grand Dédale Country House is one of my favourites, and the decor for it has been very tastefully done by his wife Dorothy.

Mr Kerrison stated that they are committed to Biodiversity (100 hectares have been identified for clearing of alien plant invasion, and are commited to preserve the fynbos on the farm), Fairtrade, and other ethical wine farming methods and policies.  He and his staff are committed to producing wines of excellence.

Winemaker Friedrich Kühne is of German descent, the German names proudly having been carried over in the family over the generations since a forebear moved to South Africa, he said.  He has been at Doolhof for the past four years, and took the wine writers and bloggers through a tasting of the Doolhof Legends of the Labyrinth range:

*  Lady in White 2010 is a blend of 59% Chenin Blanc, 27% Semillon, 24% Sauvignon Blanc, of which 28% is wooded.  The Chenin Blanc comes form 35 year old bush vine. It has lemongrass, citrus, floral, and wood on the nose, and 12% alcohol.  It pairs well with seafood and sushi, and costs R80 at the cellardoor.

*   Lady in Red 2008 is a Bordeaux blend of Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and Merlot, with cedarwood, oak, plum, black fruit, and cinnamon notes, ideally suited to drinking with pasta and pizza, and red meats. Each wine was matured separately in French oak for 14 months. It costs R80.

*   The Minotaur 2008 is the top of the range Cape blend made from handpicked grapes form the estate’s premier vineyards, only the best barrels selected, with 5000 – 7000 bottles produced every year, with 21% Pinotage, 21% Malbec, 21% Shiraz, 17% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 9% Petit Verdot.  Best drunk with red meat, rich sauces, and game. It costs R150.

*   Dark Lady Pinotage 2011 has strong coffee mocha notes, with dark fruit, black berry, and cherry, ideal to be drunk with coffee, Christmas pudding, ostrich, duck, curry, and chocolate mousse.  It costs R70.

*  The new Theseus 2009 is a Bordeaux blend of 33% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Cabernet Franc, 17% Malbec, and 5% Petit Verdot, with 80%  matured in new wood. It will only be made in the years in which the grapes are good enough.  It has red fruit, cassis, and plums on the nose. Matured for 24 months in French oak barrels. Best served with steak and lamb.  It costs R230.

After the tasting we moved through to the Signal restaurant, and had a fun table, entertained by Fiona McDonald and Greg Landman.  The first starter was a pan fried scallop, charred sweet corn, cauliflower pureé, black forest ham velouté, topped with pea shoots, which was paired with Lady in White.  The second starter was beautifully plated, being Springbok carpaccio, with a smoked capsicum salsa, with balsamic and olive oil drizzled rocket, and herb dusted croutons, which was paired with the Minotaur and Lady in Red.

A palate cleanser was an interesting mix of cucumber, mint and lime sorbet, and summer melon salad.  The main course was an outstanding tender grilled Chalmar beef fillet with roasted garlic mash, sautéed baby spinach and a delicious mushroom and truffle sauce, paired with the new Theseus.  The dessert was a pretty looking dark chocolate tart, praline ice cream, and cherries, paired with the Dark Lady, and accompanied by a cappuccino.

Doolhof is a lovely wine estate at the end of the Bovlei Road, an oasis to escape to from a busy schedule in staying over, or to taste the strong and bold Doolhof wines, which also offers a Cape Range and Signature Range.

Disclosure: We received a bottle of The Minotaur and Theseus with our media pack.

Doolhof wine estate, Bovlei Road, Wellington.  Tel (021) 873-6911 www.doolhof.com Twitter: @DoolhofWines Tasting Room open daily, 10h00 – 17h00 (closes at 16h00 on Sundays).

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage

Restaurant Review: Myoga Restaurant little ginger, lots of value

In three years I had never made it to Myoga, a restaurant in the Vineyard Hotel, but operated independently by Mike Bassett, who also owns Ginja, which had previously featured on the Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant list.  Reports I had heard about the “bizarre” food served at the time that Richard Carsten was working at Myoga did not inspire a visit.  An invitation from new Marketing Manager Marc Coppin to try out the Winter Special was an incentive to visit this restaurant, which offers the most exceptional value in its 6-course winter special at R 150 (an 8-course degustation menu is also available, and costs R 350).   Bassett is a lover of ginger, as his two restaurant names attest, but there is little ginger evident in the dishes on the Winter Special – only two of the menu items contain ginger (gnocchi with steamed shrimp, and in the roast pork belly dish).

The buildings surrounding Myoga lend a modern air to that part of the hotel, and therefore it is a surprise when one sees the old-fashioned look of the Myoga restaurant space.  Marc explained that it once was the Ball Room of Lady Anne Barnard’s residence, and the round kitchen design is exactly in this space, intended to display the “theatre of the kitchen”, Marc explains. If pots fall and bang, as they did that evening, then it is part of this theatre.  But I am getting ahead of myself.  As one steps in through the door, one looks straight ahead into a collection of colourful water-wings, and one sees a lady’s costume and shorts.  It is meant to be a wacky “decor” touch, in that the costume and bathing shorts are meant to denote the Gents and Ladies loos – too wacky, in my opinion, for a serious player in the restaurant industry.  Whilst we are on the topic – when one is in the loo, one is entertained by a live feed coming from the kitchen, on a flatscreen TV at the back of each bathroom door.   A pity therefore that one of the screens did not work that night, nor the latch on one of the doors.  In the entrance area a massive Aga stove, more suitable for a museum, displays the restaurant’s awards, alongside two brass washing basins on top of the stove (only a man can see these as being decorative assets to the restaurant)!

The decor of the restaurant space is a surprise, and quite frankly, leaves a lot to be desired.  As I wrote about Jardine, the decor needs a serious “woman’s touch”.   It has different design elements thrown at the interior, and there is little consistency.  Marc told me that a revered decor fundi advised Bassett on the decor, and that this is a touchy subject.  On entering the main restaurant space, one sees the bar on the right, with a multitude of thin steel strands.   To the left is a seating area at which no one sits, like a lounge, the black lacquer edging of the white leather couches badly scratched and a brownish couch being very much out of place in terms of colour and design.  My advice to Marc was to remove the seating area, and add restaurant tables.  The woodwork on all chairs in the restaurant has an orange-ish stain, with two different black and white fabrics used.  The tables are black with a silver edging.  Massive orange “thrones” are dotted around the restaurant, adding colour, but dating the restaurant.   An Eastern lighting touch around the columns seems to relate back to a previous restaurant tenant.  In general, the lighting is a busy and clashing mixture of lamps, chandeliers and downlighters.

All traces of Carstens have been removed from the menu, the feedback having been that he was too wacky with his deconstruction approach to food.  The menu has been simplified, and is updated every six months, says Marc.  Myoga offers “global fusion cuisine”, and the most favourite menu items stay, Myoga regulars enjoying this and others welcome the opportunity to try something new.   The mantra of the restaurant is “Relax Eat Revive”, says the menu.   The winter specials menu is a generous six-course one, each course offering three choices, and five of these are paired to a wine selected by the sommelier, at an exceptionally reasonable R 150 for the food and an extra R 135 for the wine pairing.  The dishes on the specials menu are different to those on the standard menu.  The sommelier/”mixologist” Carl is the nicest I have had the pleasure to deal with (lofty sommeliers are not my favourite).  Having worked at Myoga from the beginning, he is knowledgeable in being able to answer all my questions, and even about sister restaurant Ginja.  He does not flinch when I tell him that I would prefer reds with all my courses, and he found suitable ones for me. For a start, we were offered a cocktail, not something I indulge in, a strawberry sparkling wine martini mix, which had quite a bite to it, so I quickly put it aside.   Beaumont is the house wine. 

Rob Earleigh is the chef, working with Bassett at Myoga.  I started with an amuse bouche of coriander spuma with sweet chilli (not too hot at all), served in a shot glass, with a toasted crispy ‘salt and pepper prawn’, one of the Myoga signature dishes, which Carl serves with an Oak Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2008.  Iced oyster and roasted garlic flaky pastry tart were two ‘mouth tickler’ alternatives.  This was followed by a garden pea soup, pancetta and truffle cappuccino, with a refreshing taste of mint, with salted crackling, served with a Hermanuspietersfontein nr. 5 Sauvignon Blanc 2009.  We were served tasty ciabatta and wholewheat bread with this.  Other soup alternatives were a Cape seafood bouillabaisse, and slow cooked leek and potato soup.  A lamb and lemon canneloni (almost pancake-like), with a feta cream centre, and tandoori spice, was an unusual combination, and the least successful of the items on the menu in my opinion, being too bland relative to the other exciting pasta dishes (Semolina potato gnocchi, and baked ricotta and spinach dumplings) my companions had.  The pasta dish was served with Raka Sangiovese 2008.  We had a lime sorbet as a ‘refresher’, but even for this course one has the choice of apple and passion fruit sorbet too. 

The kingklip looked attractive with a green herb and mustard crust, and was served with Mediterranean steamed poatato, charred leeks, asparagus and sauce nantaise.  However, it had an overpowering taste of Dijon mustard, which is a shame, as kingklip is a lovely tasting fish and does not need mustard to spice it up.  Hermanuspietersfontein’s Die Bartho 2009 was paired with the fish.   The roasted pork belly, an alternative main course dish, was outstanding, served with sweet potato and cream spinach. Beef fillet was a third alternative.  I ended off with a hot apple and pear brulee tart, which I had served with fresh cream instead of creme fraiche, and Carl served Delheim Edelspatz 2009 with it.  The milk chocolate pot de creme was an alternative dessert, being a cooked chocolate pudding with a wonderful caramel foam, served in a coffee cup. Another alternative dessert was wobbly vanilla panna cotta with pineapple soup.

The service we received from manager Mike, who had to jump in at the last minute as the restaurant was so busy, was impeccable. I particularly liked him explaining the ingredient of each dish, as the menus had been removed after we had ordered.  Also, he laid the cutlery on the left and right of each diner, rather than stretching across, which I experience in restaurants with great regularity.  Marc is the new Marketing Manager of the restaurant, having been a waiter at the restaurant prior to this.  He is excited about the challenge that lies ahead, and he received a mini-lecture from me about the value of social media marketing.

We loved being spoilt by the Myoga team, and generally the food and service was of an outstanding quality, at most commendable value-for-money (hence the fully booked restaurant on a weekday night).  We will come back.  I wish I could get my hands on the Myoga decor though!

Myoga, Vineyard Hotel, 60 Colinton Road, Newlands. Tel  (021) 657-4545. www.myoga.co.za. Open Tuesdays – Saturdays for lunch and dinner.  6-course dinner R150.    2-course lunch R125, 3 courses cost R175.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com