Tag Archives: Tafelberg Furnishers

Tafelberg Furnishers Sweet Service and Sinnfull Ice Cream Emporium Sour Service Award

The Sweet Service Award goes to Tafelberg Furnishers, who immediately agreed to replace a faulty Sunbeam frying pan, bought in August, when it was returned to the Green Point branch.  Whilst the purchase date was checked on the slip, the faulty pan was not tested, the manager taking the customer’s word for it.  The exchange is compulsory in terms of the Consumer Protection Act, and I was delighted that they abide by it.

The Sour Service Award goes to the Sinnfull Ice Cream Emporium in The Promenade in Camps Bay, which is looking very tacky, its display cabinet having sections broken off, some of the leather chairs being torn but put out every day, often looking dirty in the passage outside the shop (the assistant telling me that it is the centre’s responsibility to clean in front of their store), the music blaring, and the shop generally looking run-down and not as top-quality as it once was.  On my last visit, the manager of the store was chatting away on his cellphone, in full view of  a number of customers wishing to be served! The manager looks like he is ready for the beach, wearing beach shorts and is barefoot, and is generally not customer-friendly.  Despite feedback to a more senior manager and the owner Britta Sinn, little has changed, other than a recent price increase of 20 %!

The WhaleTales Sweet & Sour Service Awards are presented every Friday on the WhaleTales blog.  Nominations for the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be sent to Chris von Ulmenstein at info@whalecottage.com. Past winners of the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be read on the Friday posts of this blog, and in the WhaleTales newsletters on the www.whalecottage.com website.

Ria’s Pools Sweet and Tafelberg Furnishers Sour Service Awards

The Sweet Service Award goes to Ria’s Pools in Franschhoek, who came to our rescue late afternoon on 31 December, when the pool at Whale Cottage Franschhoek had a technical problem, which prevented the pool vacuum cleaner from moving.  All pool companies servicing Franschhoek, even from Stellenbosch and Paarl, were called, and only Ria’s Pools’ Morne called back.   Morne came back the following day, on a public holiday, to check that all was in order, as well as two days later.  He has won his company a new client for his outstanding service.

 

The Sour Service Award goes to Tafelberg Furnishers in Green Point, where the branch manager Sterna took no interest in hearing a complaint about the lack of feedback by the salesman about the time of delivery of a washing machine to our Whale Cottage Franschhoek.  Sterna just put me through to the Warehouse, making it my problem to sort it out with them, instead of listening to my complaint about her colleague.

The WhaleTales Sweet & Sour Service Awards are presented every Friday on the WhaleTales blog.  Nominations for the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be sent to Chris von Ulmenstein at info@whalecottage.com.   Past winners of the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be read on the Friday posts of this blog, and in the WhaleTales newsletters on the www.whalecottage.com website.

Warwick/Vilafonte wine and Scrumptious food bloggers paired

The third Food & Wine Bloggers’ Club meeting takes place next Wednesday 28 July, from 18h00 – 20h00, and will pair Jane-Anne Hobbs Rayner of Scrumptious food blog, and Mike Ratcliffe of Warwick and Vilafonte wine blog.

Mike Ratcliffe is the Managing Director of Warwick wine estate and Managing Partner of Vilafonte.  He has a B.Comm (Economics) from the University of Stellenbosch and a Graduate Diploma in Wine Marketing from the University of Adelaide. He is a Board member of Wines of South Africa (WOSA), has been involved on the marketing committee of the Stellenbosch Wine Route, is the Deputy Chairman of the South African Wine Industry Trust (encouraging black economic empowerment and land redistribution), and is President of the United States/South Africa Foundation, a fundraising charity based in the USA.  He is an international wine judge, industry commentator and marketing co-ordinator, and is an industry leader in embracing social media marketing in the marketing of his wines.

Jane-Anne Hobbs Rayner of Scrumptious blog is a freelance journalist, editor, author of three books (on local touring routes, and on raising toddlers), cook, food writer and recipe developer.  She writes as Juno, and her blog is independent, in that she does not accept any advertising or sponsorship, nor does she accept freebies.  She does use Google Adsense.  She is passionate about “food, fresh local ingredients and punchy flavours”. She loves writing recipes.  Jane-Anne was a speaker at the Food Bloggers’ Conference earlier this year. 

The Food & Wine Bloggers’ Club was formed to reflect the tremendous growth in and power of food and wine blogs in forming opinion about food, restaurants and wines.  Most bloggers do not have any formal training in blogging, and learnt from others.   Each of the two bloggers will talk for about half an hour about their blog, and what they have learnt about blogging.  The Club will give fledgling as well as experienced bloggers the opportunity to learn from each other and to share their knowledge with others.  Attendees can ask questions, and get to know fellow bloggers.  The Club meetings are informal and fun.

Other writers that will be talking at future Bloggers Club meetings are the following:

Wednesday 18 August:       Sam Wilson of Food24 Blogs, and Rob Armstrong of Haut Espoir 

Wednesday 22 September: Dax Villanueva of Relax-with-Dax Blog, and Hein Koegelenberg of La Motte and Hein Koegelenberg Blog

Wednesday 20 October:     Clare Mack of Spill Blog, and Simon Back of Backsberg Blog

Wednesday 24 November:  Marisa Hendricks of The Creative Pot Blog, and Emile Joubert of Wine Goggle Blog

Wines are brought along by the wine blogging speaker, and Mike will introduce the Warwick wines served.  Snacks will be served to match the Warwick wines.  The cost of attendance is R 150.  Bookings can be made by e-mailing info@whalecottage.com.

The meeting of the Food & Wine Bloggers’ Club will be held at Cafe Max, 126 Waterkant Street, in De Waterkant, Cape Town.   From Somerset Road turn up Highfield Street (opposite Green Point Traffic Department), alongside the Tafelberg Furnishers/Kfm building, and turn left into Waterkant Street.  Cafe Max is about 200 meters further down the road, on the left.

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