Tag Archives: Pinterest

FitChef: healthy, clean, and fresh meals and smoothies delivered to one’s home!

FitChef Mediterranean fresh veg Whale CottageLast night I was invited to the first media launch in the country of FitChef, a new service of healthy meals and smoothies delivered into one’s home, as per one’s chosen mealplan.  A range of options is offered, including Banting/LCHF, detox and weight loss, vegetarian, and wellness. More than 50000 meal portions and 35000 smoothies are sold around the country monthly.

Developed by founder Wayne Kaminsky, who told us that he was a superfit fitness fanatic sportsman, participating in Ironman and Cape Epic challenges, and needing to find a more healthy eating pattern to lose weight.  He was using antibiotics, and could let them go when the benefits of the ‘clean eating’ came to the fore.  He moved more and more to healthy foods which he enjoyed cooking, making a batch of portions over weekends, and finding them selling well when he posted photographs of them on Facebook.  He started FitChef three years ago, and the Cape region was opened a year ago.  Wayne has tremendous energy, and his food preparation skills were impressive, preparing our dinner simultaneously at 10 food stations, at each of which a different dish was prepared.  He had prepared some of the dishes, and talked us through each food preparation station, each containing a different set of ingredients for a dish to be made. I noticed that a lot of ingredients came from Woolworths, but Wayne said that they prefer to use Pick ‘n Pay products. I questioned Wayne about his use of some Robertsons products, and he said that it was just for our dinner, and that they use fresh herbs in the factory food preparation. Continue reading →

Are ‘frikkin’ bloggers’ the bread and butter of Restaurant marketing?

Mount Nelson Rudi Liebenberg BloggersOn Sunday the Sunday Times had a lengthy article, entitled ‘Food Soldiers’, about the blood, sweat, and tears that go into the preparation of ‘fine food’ and the running of good restaurants. The article concluded with a denigration of ‘frikkin’ bloggers‘ by newly renamed Belmond Mount Nelson Hotel Chef Rudi Liebenberg, quite out of character of someone who comes across as gentle and kind.

I Tweeted the last paragraph of the article, and posted it on Facebook, and an interesting discussion arose on the latter forum, threatening to become a ‘Chefs versus Bloggers’ fight. Veteran Chef Billy Gallagher fully supported Chef Rudi, writing ‘I believe you write good stuff Chris and I follow your blog which is always interesting to say the least, having spent 40 years in the hotel business. It was hotel chefs that laid the foundation. The South African chefs Association created the platform for today’s South African chefs and this 40 years ago was a hotel chefs initiative.  Many of the top 10 restaurants are on wine estates which adds a wonderful backdrop to these very talented chefs. Let’s give Rudi his opinion right or wrong‘.   Twelve Apostles Executive Director Horst Frehse also wrote in support of Chef Rudi.   Susanna Tecklenburg of Oude Wellington wrote  ‘I eat, sleep, sitting on the loo social media between cooking and running my restaurant. It sure brings in business and you meet new people all the time and guests appreciated when you comment on their posts. Read all the blogs and specially yours Chris Von Ulmenstein and value your opinion. Thanks for all your input and info all the time. With my busy lifestyle you ‘frikkin’ bloggers help us to be in touch what’s going on out there!’.  Chef Anton Bekker of Taste Restaurant was critical of the effect of MasterChef SA on diners: ‘Social media keep my restaurant afloat! I do have problem when people watch masterchef and then think they know everything. Lol. Or when a food writer comments that the hollandaise needed some more cream. … haha’. Sarie Kos Food Editor Herman Lensing was the first to react to the Facebook post, stating that all diners have the right to express an opinion, and that chefs should cook for their customers and not for critics.  Amanda Brinkmann was very vocal about the subject, saying that due to the politics in food writing, she believes in and supports ‘citizen journalism‘.  Deon Schutte clearly wrote from a chef’s perspective: ‘I think that Continue reading →

Social Media Trends 2014: Facebook leads in South Africa!

Facebook logoFacebook has the largest number of Social Media users in South Africa, and grew by 40% to reach 9,4 million active users in 2013, a survey entitled ‘South African Social Media Landscape 2014’,  and conducted by World Wide Worx and Fuseware, has found.  It has overtaken Mxit, which has 6 million users, for the first time.

Twitter experienced the fastest growth in the number of users, at 129% in the past year, reaching 5,5 million users.   Mxit’s growth has been curtailed by the popularity of instant messaging apps WhatsApp and 2Go, and the growing use of social networking sites on smartphones. Google+ too has been slow to grow, with less than half a million users, but Instagram has grown six-fold in the past year, and is expected to grow even more.

The majority of South African Social Media users is accessing the sites via their smartphones, 87% for Facebook and 85% for Twitter.

The Social Media usage trends of individuals reflect those of companies:  93% of major Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 21 November

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   Brangelina’s Miravel Rosé is the first pink wine to have made the Wine Spectator Top 100 exciting wines list.  This year South Africa’s Hamilton Russell Chardonnay 2012,  Ashbourne Sandstone 2008 (also made by Hamilton Russell), and AA Badenhorst Family 2009 are also on the Top 100 list.

*   Hartenberg is hosting its annual Riesling Rocks Festival on 25 January, with our country’s best Rieslings available to taste, paired with gourmet deli food. Hartenberg winemaker Carl Schultz is regarded as one of the best local Riesling winemakers.  Tickets cost R120. (received via media release via Smart Communications & Events)

*   Indaba will run over only three days next year, from 10 – 12 May, SA Tourism giving the ‘stagnant’ trade show in Durban a makeover with changes being implemented over the next two years.  The focus will be to meet and engage, rather than man large stands.  SA Tourism Chief Marketing Officer Jan Hutton will meet with the tourism industry in Durban and Cape Town next week, to share her plans for Indaba 2014.

*   Tony Romer-Lee is said to be leaving the McGrath Collection at the end Continue reading →