Tag Archives: ‘slow food’

2012 Eat In Awards salute quality SA producers’ integrity and innovation!

I should have known that going to the Stellenbosch Slow Market at Oude Libertas yesterday would bring on claustrophobia, it being the fullest I have ever seen this popular market, and one that I had sworn that I would never go back to again.  The announcement of the winners of the 2012 Eat In DStv Food Network Produce Awards was the reason for my visit, and once I had received a copy of the magazine with the winners’ names, and tasted some of their produce, it was a good time to leave.

Given the increased passion for food preparation, spurred by cooking programs such as MasterChef Australia and now our own South African reality TV cooking show, as well as the recession reducing the frequency of eating out, buying healthy produce to use and eat at home is becoming increasingly popular.   Five years ago Eat In, sister publication to Eat Out, which presents the annual Top 10 Restaurant awards, was launched by New Media Publishing. The magazine’s Awards ‘aim to acknowledge and celebrate outstanding independent South African producers for their integrity, passion and innovation’. The crucial criterion is that the produce is South African grown, and added criteria were that the products are produced ethically in terms of the workforce, and in an environmentally responsible manner.  The winners were judged Continue reading →

The Creamery: creaming it with their ice creams!

I first had a taste of the ice creams of The Creamery at a recent food market at The Baxter, meeting owner Kate Schrire and her manager Marianne Visser, both passionate advocates for their products.  Yesterday I went to visit them at their offices and kitchen in Mowbray, to get to know more about how they operate and to taste their lovely creamy ice creams. Given their business principles and ethics, they are sure to cream it as they grow.

Kate started The Creamery two months ago, being an ice cream lover, and having made her own ice cream at home, which her friends raved about when they tasted it.  Born in the UK, she has lived in this country for twenty years, and trained at the SA Chef’s Academy with Garth Stroebel. She spent four years in the USA, and worked for Alice Waters, a food activist, who created events to educate the public about how food works.  In Cape Town she joined Slow Food Cape Town and the Mother City branches, and serves on the committee of the latter.  She was a freelance journalist for Mail & Guardian and The Weekender, writing about indigenous foods, but felt that she would rather like to be hands on with food, and joined the Sustainability Institute outside Stellenbosch, connecting people to food suppliers.  Marianne worked for a film production company, and loves baking and cooking.  She said her new job ‘doesn’t feel like work’.

Kate wants to feel ‘ethically comfortable’ with what she eats and produces, and therefore decided to source her products from small family businesses in the Western Cape, for her high quality hand-made ice cream. The milk comes from the Kotze family’s Langrietvlei farm near Hopefield, previously supplying Parmalat, but they are one of many farmers who had their contracts cut by this milk product producer.  Reuben Kotze has started marketing his own maas, milk, and drinking yoghurt on the West Coast, and brings these products to The Creamery.  His mother is a honey producer, having supplied Pick ‘n Pay for 28 years already. Eggs come from Homegrown Eggs; chocolate from Cocoa Fair and coffee from Rosetta Roastery, both at the Old Biscuit Mill; Nowo Organics supplies unsprayed strawberries, melons, and chocolate mint; and Kleinjongenskraal supplies citrus, stone fruit and blackberries.  One of their new creations is a beer ice cream, using Darling Brew.  Mixing cream, milk, sugar and eggs they make a custard, to which they add a pinch of salt, infusing it with their flavour or ingredient, and then churn it for 8 minutes.  Kitchen waste is collected for composting, and they avoid using non-recyclable products, to minimise landfill waste.

In the short time of the business’ life they have sold only at markets, and are active on Twitter.  Today they start with a stand at the Neighbourgoods Market at the Biscuit Mill for the first time, and recently started a pop-up shop on Wednesday afternoons at Starlings Café in Claremont.  From 12 January they will be at the Earth Fair Market on St George’s Mall. They now have a Web Shop, and one can order and pay for the products via the website, and choose a collection point, being the offices in Mowbray, or at any of the markets at which they are at.

Flavours which one can order are chocolate, vanilla, ginger, peanut butter, strawberry, and lemon.  I tried the lemon (made me think of my mom’s special lemon chiffon, and very refreshing), blackberries (beautiful rich purple colour, making it good for plating, but also very good taste), chocolate (very thick and rich, excellent), fresh ginger (I am not really a ginger fan, but a very unusual ice cream flavour, and probably excellent served with a tart), barley malt (the sweetest of the six I tasted, and a very pronounced flavour reminiscent of Horlicks), and Black Mist Stout (made from the Darling Brew beer, popular amongst the ladies too).  They are constantly looking for new ice cream flavours, and look to the USA for new ideas.  Having come from Frankie Fenner Meat Merchants to the Freeworld Design Centre Christmas Market, I had fun brainstorming meat ice creams with Kate, which the new meat retailer is interested in stocking.  They have also experimented with coriander seed, cardamon, and star anise spices for ice creams, but are still working on getting the flavour balances right.  Recently I tried their more unusual apricot kernel ice cream, and they told me about their honey, rosemary and peach ice cream.  New ice cream products are in the pipeline, including ice cream sandwiches and cakes.

The Creamery ice creams are sold in scoops at markets, and in 500 ml tubs via web orders, at R45. They are looking at doing a 200ml cup, for sale at specialist theatres such as The Fugard Theatre and Labia.  An Ice Cream Club is to be launched next month, a three month membership offering three tubs in seasonal flavours, with invitations to try new flavours and products. Kate said that they will keep it local and seasonal, making small batches, working with ‘little guys just like us’.

The Creamery, 22A Waverley Business Park, Weymouth Road, Mowbray.  Tel 0722522225.  www.thecreamery.co.za Twitter: @TheCreamerySA

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

Haute Cabrière Cellar Restaurant breath of fresh air, exciting new chef

The Haute Cabrière wine cellar and restaurant are an institution in Franschhoek, having opened sixteen years ago, with a location on the slopes of the Franschhoek Pass that has one of the best views of the village.  Chef Matthew Gordon’s departure earlier this year allowed the Von Arnim family to take over the management of the restaurant, creating an opportunity for the restaurant interior to be redone, and for new chef Ryan Shell to be appointed, re-opening on 1 September.

The best part of the refurbishment is that the restaurant has received permission from the powers-that-be to serve guests outside, to capitalise on the beautiful view over the Franschhoek valley, which one does not see much of when sitting inside.  Winetasting too can now be done outside at special tables and chairs, outside the next-door cellar, home to the Saturday morning 11h00 cellar tour which ends with the Sabrage highlight.  Christiane von Armin, daughter-in-law of flamboyant legend owner Achim von Arnim, took on the restaurant project, and her first step was the furnishing.  She has added the most comfortable white leather chairs, and two white couches with a coffee table with a vase of deep red roses are a friendly homely welcome as one enters through the massive glass doors.  Achim is a painter too, and his works are hung in the restaurant and the wine cellar.  New chandeliers have been added, the glass crystals having an almost identical shape to the chair backs.  The winetasting room and restaurant are now visibly connected, in that a new window allows each side to see the other, and creates a display space for all the Haute Cabrière wines, best known for the Pierre Jourdan sparkling wines. Tables have white table cloths, and the abundance of white in the restaurant makes it look fresh.  French-style café music plays in the background.

Having tried to eat at the restaurant on Thursday evening (they only open in the evenings on Friday and Saturday in September), I returned yesterday for lunch and arrived just as Achim’s wife Hildegard, son Tamo, Christiane,  Jos Baker, and Ian and Lise Manley arrived, and I was privileged to be spontaneously invited by Christiane to join their table.   The Manleys have been appointed to handle the publicity for Haute Cabrière. Jos Baker was the first shareholder of the wine estate, and was a good friend of ‘Omi’ Theodora von Arnim, Achim’s mother, and Tamo regaled us with stories about what sounded like a wonderful colourful character. Jos still judges the San Pellegrino World’s Best 50 Restaurants, and is off to Europe shortly to do her judging. I got to know Jos as a member of Cape Town Slow Food, and she was the most creative planner of exciting events for the club.  Sadly she is no longer involved.

Exciting is the young chef Ryan Shell, who will position the Haute Cabrière restaurant as one of Franschhoek’s best again. Chef Ryan left the Prue Leith Chef’s Academy as a lecturer, and has worked in Franschhoek before, with Chef Margot Janse at Le Quartier Français, with Chef Chris Erasmus (now at Pierneef à La Motte) when at Ginja, and with Mike Bassett at Myoga. He has also worked at the Michelin-starred Longueville Manor on the Isle of Jersey.   His inspiration to cook came for his aunt, who encouraged him to go to chef’s school. Ryan says he is part of a team of eight making the cuisine magic happen, and that it is easy to do so in the beautiful cave-design building, to which guests come because they want to be there, making them easy to please.  His menu will evolve, much like the wines in the cellar next door, he says, and he has made three changes to the menu in the past ten days already, ensuring that it remains fresh.  Zelda Oelofse-Cornthwaite is the manager, and she has retained most of the previous Haute Cabriére restaurant staff, and has added Desiree, the previous manager of Bouillabaisse.  Staff wear white shirts and black pants, with a strongly branded red Haute Cabriére apron.  Their service is friendly and efficient.

The menu and wine list are presented in a black leather holder.  The menu introduction refers to the changes that have taken place in the restaurant, but that it is still committed to established traditions and the ‘true marriage between food and wine, setting the scene for our food to dance with our wines for your enjoyment’. What was started by Chef Matthew Gordon has been carried on by Chef Ryan, in that almost all dishes, even the desserts, are available in full and half portions, allowing one to taste a larger number of dishes, and making eating at the restaurant cost-effective.  Most of the Haute Cabrière wines are available by the glass too.  The table setting has a glass of sparkling wine on each table, and probably would make one order a glass of bubbly as a start.  We were offered a glass of Pierre Jourdan Cuvée Belle Rose.  The menu has a wine pairing recommendation for each dish, and dishes containing nuts are marked.

Chef Ryan impressed by coming to the table, to introduce his amuse bouche of a trio of roast tomato soup, prawn beignet, and buffalo mozzarella, tomato and onion salad.  His lovely freshly-baked bread was quickly finished.  The starter choices are Malay curried butternut soup with a lime prawn mousse and coconut (R30/60), very yummy duck liver parfait (left) served on blueberry toast, and a celery and orange salad (R45/65), confit lamb terrine filled with apricot (R40/60), and pickled beetroot salad (R35/55).   The six main courses offer a variety of choices, including meat, fish and vegetarian: braised pork belly is served with peach pommes puree, roasted porcini and a peanut froth (R60/R100), Beef Wellington (R76/R125), a beautiful light and healthy lasagna of Franschhoek salmon trout (right) with orange-buttered baby vegetables (R65/110), tomato and buffalo mozzarella tart (R50/90), crown roasted chicken breast with sweet corn couscous (R65/110), and porcini-crusted wildebeest loin served with a bitter chocolate jus (R75/145).

It is on the dessert side that Chef Ryan’s creativity really comes to the fore, in the elements the desserts are composed of.  I chose lemon thyme panna cotta, for its unusual addition of butternut anglaise, and was served with a blueberry tuille and grilled vanilla chiffon (R40/55).  Other options are bitter chocolate crème brûlee served with banana and rosemary beignets, mint syrup and sour cherry sorbet (R40/60); Pierre Jourdan poached pears served with molasses pudding and vanilla and rooibos ice cream (R30/55); and strawberry and champagne jelly served with spicy walnut ice cream (R40/60).  Coffee is by LavAzza.

The Pierre Jourdan Cap Classiques Brut, Cuvée Belle Rose, Brut Savage, and Blanc de Blanc range in price from R32/R129 to R42/R169.  The Cuvée Reserve is only available by the bottle, at R264.  Pierre Jourdan is honoured in the brand name, having been the first owner of the Cabriére wine estate.  Haute Cabriére Chardonnay/Pinot Noir 2010 (R27/109), Unwooded Pinot Noir 2011 (R30/119), Pinot Noir 2011 (R47/189); Pierre Jourdan Tranquille lower alcohol wine (R21/82); Pierre Jourdan Ratafia (R16/129) and Fine de Jourdan potstill brandy (R27/R219) are also offered, all at very reasonable prices.

Haute Cabriére Cellar Restaurant is an exciting reinvented rediscovery, and Chef Ryan is a breath of fresh air in this well-established restaurant.  It offers a good variety of creatively prepared dishes as well as wines at affordable prices.

POSTSCRIPT 30/10: Lovely lunch at Haute Cabriere today, and well looked after by Desiree and her staff. Spoilt with glass of Pierre Jourdan Cuvée Belle Rose.  Excellent tender fillet in Beef Wellington (starter portion), and interesting sour cherry sorbet, with cherry and cinnamon soup for dessert.

Haute Cabrière Cellar Restaurant, Franschhoek Pass, Monday – Sunday lunch, Friday and Saturday dinner (in September, from October lunch and dinners daily).  Tel (021) 876-3688. www.cabriere.co.za

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

De Huguenot Estate marries history and modernity in Pniel!

I was invited by Manley Communications to try out the new The Marianne restaurant, which opened on Saturday on the De Huguenot Estate, almost two weeks ago.  While the property was not yet ready to receive guests at that time, the lunch gave us a good indication of the good things to come.

The 2,8 hectare De Huguenot Estate was bought by Tom and Marianne Gray about five years ago, previously having owned Highlands Guest House in Kenilworth.   The property is located alongside a wall that was built in the past year, whilst the road repairs in Pniel were done, with the Johannesdal name on it.  Tom told me that Johannesdal was a block of eight plots that was allocated to freed slaves, who settled in Pniel, and they named their joint land Johannesdal.  De Huguenot Estate is one of the blocks, and has the most magnificent view onto the Groot Drakenstein mountains.  De Huguenot Estate has one of the oldest buildings in Pniel, in which the Grays live, previously having been a stable and which was built in 1820, about twenty-five years before Pniel was founded.  We couldn’t have chosen a better sunny winter’s day, which enhanced the enjoyment.  In the distance we were shown the recently acquired 550 hectare property of Dick Enthoven, owner of Spier, which stretches all the way to Boschendal, and where he will set up polo grounds.

The property has four luxury suites, one of them a Honeymoon Suite, and will be looking to attract wedding business.  It has the Harry Q Bar (at which Chef Tanja will be serving what she calls “Floating Food”, being reasonably priced ‘sharing’ tapas with a difference) and Fraîche Deli and Café (to serve freshly baked breads, pastries, scones, quiches, and cakes, as well as all day breakfasts, and other lunch and treat options), and The Marianne restaurant.

The Marianne is a generously sized room with a fireplace, facing the mountains, and looks onto a massive oak tree, the valley and the mountains.  The walls are painted a soothing grey, and this is the colour of the staff uniforms too, apt given the owners’ surname!   For the lunch we were seated at one long table, being a collection of wedding planners, event co-ordinators, and writers.   Antique furniture is married with modern.  The impressive star heading up the kitchen is Chef Tanja Kruger, a talented winner of the Chaine de Rotisseurs Young Chef of the Year 2008, and a member of the South African Culinary Olympic Team, who moved from Hunter’s Country House in Plettenberg Bay, having worked at Lanzerac, the Radisson Hotel and Five Flies before.  Her Sous Chef is Christo Pretorius, 2010 Unilever Young Chef of the Year.  The patissier is Olga Puru, who will be doing the baking, and will make the wedding cakes too.  A vegetable garden has been established, and Chef Tanja will be focusing on using the freshest produce to prepare her food on Slow Food principles. Marianne Gray is charming, and she made us laugh when she said she is the owner of the wonderful new property, but cannot cook an egg nor does she drink alcohol!  But it is clear that she loves people and is a good entertainer and hostess.  We were welcomed with a glass of Colmant sparkling wine, and I enjoyed the Thelema Red wine.

Our menu was printed on classy silver paper, and was representative of the food to be served at The Marianne, with prices indicative of what will be charged.  We were offered a choice of seven starters, nine main courses and eight desserts, and we could see each others beautifully presented dishes as they came out of the kitchen.  I chose Rabbit for the starter, my first ever, a pistachio crusted saddle of rabbit and bacon pressed flank, served with liver parfait, an apple and raisin chutney, pickled shimiji and succotash (a corn, bean and tomato stew), which will cost R75.  Other starter choices are a Baby Iceberg salad, and Cauliflower custard and sweetcorn velouté (R40), Oxtail ravioli and Fairview Chevin and apple terrine (both R55), Quail curry (R65), and Pan seared scallops served with black pudding and sugar snap pesto (R75).

Main courses range from R80 – R135, and I chose the Sticky pork belly, which was served with apple and sweet potato puree, celeriac remoulade, apple crisps, roasted root vegetables and honey cider jus (R120).   It was hard to choose a dish out of the list of beautifully presented options, and I look forward to coming back, to try some of the other main courses, including Asparagus and mushroom bolognaise; a Caramelized onion, olive and Brie tart; an interesting sounding “Exploration of fish pie”; Prawn laksa, served with basmati rice and a laksa curry sauce; Roast rack of lamb; Chalmar beef sirloin; and “Hot smoked free range baby chicken”. For dessert, which all cost R45, I chose the Valrhona dark chocolate fondant, which oozed thick rich chocolate, and was served with honeycomb, milk chocolate ice cream as well as chocolate soil.   Other choices were a passion fruit soufflé; Orange crème caramel; poppyseed pannacotta; banana split, which was a deconstructed collection of deep fried banana custard, macerated cherries, caramelised banana, vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and nut brittle; Sticky toffee pudding; and Blue cheese trifle.  What impressed was the Cheese board, which one can make up from a selection of eight cheeses, including an aptly named Huguenot, each costing R20, and to which one can add homemade watermelon preserve.

The Marianne Restaurant adds another fine dining restaurant to the Stellenbosch Restaurant Route, and adds another splendid restaurant to the Helshoogte Pass area, which includes Tokara and Delaire Graff.  I will be trying out the other dishes at The Marianne, and also Fraîche.  I liked the friendliness of the owners, and know that De Huguenot Estate will become a new food lovers’ destination in what is now South Africa’s new gourmet centre.

POSTSCRIPT 14/7:I returned this evening, to try the Harry Q bar for tapas – good quality, and value for money Seafood pops (hake and prawn tempura) at R45, Chicken Satay (R35), and home-made Marshmallow with a Valrhona chocolate ganache dip (R40).  Other tapas one can order include soup, mini Caesar salad, Caprese salad, ‘nude oysters’, Franschhoek salmon fish cakes, smoked gnocchi, pea and ham risotto, Aubergine Roulade, Pepperdew poppers, Spiced pork riblets, Fried Fairview Crotin, Beef short rib croquettes, and venison boerewors. Sweet tapas range in price from R30 – R40, and include homemade chocolate brownies, truffles and fudge, macaroons, and strawberries, all of which can be ordered with Valronah ganache or toffee sauce, at R10 each.

Manager Philip told us that owner Marianne has protested about the use of her name for the restaurant, and therefore it is now called de Huguenot.

POSTSCRIPT 7/8: I had my first lunch since the opening of de Huguenot to the public today, struggling to book telephonically earlier in the morning, but managing to do so by Twitter.  The restaurant was heavily booked, and had a nice smoky smell from the lit fire.  The restaurant windows allowed one to see the snow-topped Franschhoek mountain peaks in the distance.  A vase with daffodils and anenomes was on the table.  Fortis Hotelware cutlery was laid on the table, on a quality white table cloth.  The serviette was forgotten.   The menu has not changed from the one we saw at the launch lunch, as written about above.   A bread plate with a home-made seed loaf and two rolls were brought to the table with parsley-topped butter a minute before the food was served.  I loved the seedloaf so much that Manager Philip sold me the left-over loaf.  I ordered Asparagus and Mushroom bolognaise, made with lime spaghetti, a tomato sauce, and topped with parmesan shavings (R75).  It probably was not the best representation of Chef Tanja’s culinary skills.  Much more interesting was the Banana Split, which was a deconstructed dessert with slices of banana, a deep fried banana custard, macerated cherries, nut brittle, chocolate sauce, and a ball of chocolate (R45). The waiter that served me lacked polish and experience, and his service was not reflective of the quality of Chef Tanja’s food. The winelist look rather weathered from heavy use. MCC’s offered are Moreson’s Miss Molly (R150), Colmant Brut Reserve (R35/R195), and Graham Beck Brut (R235).  White wines by the glass are Thelema Sutherland Sauvignon Blanc (R25/R99), and Ken Forrester Petite Chenin (R25/R99).  Red wines by the glass are Thelema Mountain Red(R25/R99), and Ken Forrester Petite Cabernet/Merlot and Petite Pinotage (R25/R95).  Six Shiraz options are offered, ranging from R145 for a 2010 Guardian Peak to R325 for Hartenberg 2007.

POSTSCRIPT 14/10: Sadly the De Huguenot Restaurant will close down on 31 October.  Fraîche is no longer happening, and the Harry Q bar will become a breakfast, lunch and dinner venue.  The venue will focus on weddings and events.

POSTSCRIPT 2/3: Sadly, De Huguenot Estate will be auctioned on 14 March.

de Huguenot Restaurant, Fraîche Deli and Café, and Harry Q Bar, De Huguenot Estate, R310, Helshoogte Road, Johannesdal, Pniel, between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek.  Tel 021 885-1240.  www.dehuguenot.co.za (Website still under construction).  Open ‘360°’, as Chef Tanja put it, Mondays – Sundays for breakfast and lunch, and eventually for dinner.

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