{"id":29687,"date":"2012-02-08T11:49:10","date_gmt":"2012-02-08T09:49:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.whalecottage.com\/blog\/?p=29687"},"modified":"2012-02-10T00:08:20","modified_gmt":"2012-02-09T22:08:20","slug":"house-and-leisure-the-food-issue-a-warmed-up-stew-of-leftovers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chrisvonulmenstein.com\/blog\/restaurant-news\/house-and-leisure-the-food-issue-a-warmed-up-stew-of-leftovers\/","title":{"rendered":"House and Leisure ‘The Food Issue’: a warmed-up ‘stew’ of leftovers!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>I love House and Leisure<\/strong> magazine, and it is one of only two magazines that I subscribe to. \u00a0But as a decor magazine that is top-notch, its attempt to diversify into Food by publishing an annual The Food Issue<\/strong> damages its reputation, it obviously serving as an opportunistic advertising and promotional publication! \u00a0The cover design is very striking, however, one of the few positives to praise.<\/p>\n

Containing 67 recipes, and divided into four sections (Easy Living, Summer, Winter warmth, and Luxury) which are not a logical classification, the second annual issue of this publication contains a less than half page Editor’s Letter by controversial House and Leisure<\/strong> editor Naomi Larkin<\/a>. \u00a0This is where the editorial writing begins and ends. She writes: “We’ve drawn on old favourites as well as created new recipes specifically for this collection”<\/em>. \u00a0This is one of the problems, in that any avid reader and therefore collector of the House and Leisure<\/strong> magazines will already have the bulk of the recipes, so there is little new in the dedicated The Food Issue<\/strong>. \u00a0We were critical of the 2011 issue<\/a><\/strong><\/span> too, which paired wines with the recipes, but this has been dropped in the latest issue.<\/p>\n

Larkin boasts contributors to the publications as being top South African chefs such as Peter Tempelhoff (The Greenhouse, Eat Out <\/strong>2012 Top Restaurant<\/strong>), Delaire Graff chef Christiaan Campbell, Eric Bulpitt (The Roundhouse), Malika van Reenen (Signal restaurant at the Cape Grace hotel), Werner Snoek (Toadbury Hall in Johannesburg), and Kevin Gouws ( ex-Shamwari Townhouse). \u00a0However, most of these chefs only have one recipe featured. None of the restaurant affiliations \"\"<\/a>are mentioned in the editorial. \u00a0If recipes of top chefs (not all chefs meet this description) were included, one wonders why there were not more Eat Out Top 10<\/strong> restaurants<\/strong><\/a><\/span> included, such as Luke Dale-Roberts’ The Test Kitchen. \u00a0I called one of the chefs, whose recipe is included, and he did not even know about the inclusion nor the publication, and remembers that his recipe was in a House and Leisure<\/strong> magazine some months ago!<\/p>\n

Even worse is for other chefs, whose recipes were included, but who did not receive an honourable mention in the Editor’s Letter: Arnold Hoon (owner of Ah! guest house in Paternoster), Tina Bester (of Queen of Tarts), Susan Greig (offers cooking classes in Johannesburg), Craig Cormack and Bertus Basson (from Sofia’s and Overture, respectively), Laurent Deslandes (Bizerca Bistro), Heidi van Loggerenberg (only reference to her via Google is to Raw Pot Luck in Johannesburg), Darren Stewart (Saffron Restaurant at Abalone Guest House in Paternoster), Kirsten Zschokke (much better known as Miss K in Green Point!), Chantal Coady (Rococo Chocolate), Chris Erasmus (Pierneef \u00e0 La Motte), Jonathan Cane and Kathryn White (Mess Kitchen), and Neil Jewell (Bread & Wine). \u00a0\u00a0The overwhelming majority of the recipes are written by House and Leisure<\/strong> Food Editor Raphaella Frame, and many are by Phillippa Cheifitz, their former\u00a0Food editor.\u00a0 Photography is generally of a good standard, but interesting is that photographs in past\u00a0House and Leisure<\/strong> issues have been used (e.g. the safari-look shoot at Kirstenbosch for the ‘Medley of Small Birds: roast quail, pigeon and poussin’<\/em> recipe was in the December 2011 issue.<\/p>\n

Advertisers include VW Tiguan, Siemens, Luxaflex, Easylife Kitchens, Chateau d’Ax, Clicks, Fleur du Cap, Le Creuset, Rio Largo, Eclipse, Miele, Wiltshire, Kelvinator, Spier, Luigi Bormioli, Mount Grace, Lindt, Golden Cloud, Nedbank, The Beach House\/theHomechannel, Frederique Constant, and Investec. \u00a0Not all the advertisements are relevant to the food content of the publication.<\/p>\n

House and Leisure The Food Issue,<\/strong> 2012, R39,95.<\/p>\n

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio : www.whalecottage.com<\/a> Twitter: @WhaleCottage<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I love House and Leisure magazine, and it is one of only two magazines that I subscribe to. \u00a0But as a decor magazine that is top-notch, its attempt to diversify into Food by publishing an annual The Food Issue damages its reputation, it obviously serving as an opportunistic advertising and promotional publication! \u00a0The cover design […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[124,266,20,528,21],"tags":[568,7291,7292,64,36,110,14773,14785,2552,32378,11308,6360,3986,7260,14764,1736,14784,6301,14786,3849,412,14795,14792,14775,9621,2820,14777,14778,14789,14768,14771,1614,7977,14790,555,14783,14765,14779,14787,14772,14791,7994,829,1346,33,2551,14781,6611,11380,14780,14776,2329,14774,14770,14769,483,8993,52,9630,14793,14763,2690,607,7518,14794,11379,14767,14782,14766,32373,14788],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t