Santa Shoe Box: packed and ready to go
October 19, 2009 · Leave a Comment
→ Leave a CommentCategories: Cape Town
Tagged: cape town charity, christmas just gets earlier each year, santa shoe box
Rocking The Daisies 2009
October 18, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Rocking the Daisies
→ Leave a CommentCategories: Uncategorized
Six-ish courses at The Roundhouse, Cape Town
August 10, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Winter in Cape Town brings with it plenty of restaurant specials (you can get an updated list at Roussow’s Restaurants), and The Roundhouse is offering six courses for R180. Well, except that the amuse-bouche and the pre-dessert sorbet each count as a course, as does the post-dinner popcorn and marshmallows, so it’s really three courses maybe four.
I was there for dinner on a packed Wednesday evening – Capetonians do love a good winter special. As far as I can recall, the staff working in the restaurant are still in training as part of Let’s Sell Lobster, but I might be wrong. They’re all friendly and chatty (although we did have to top up our own glasses – really nice glasses and decanter, by the way). Fasie was on the floor as well, and helped us choose a very tasty wine (if I could only remember what it was!).
I did enjoy all the courses, except for the post-dinner popcorn and marshmallows. The bouillabaisse was particularly satisfying, and the pork belly very winter-comfy-tasty. But I don’t think they stuck their neck out with any of the dishes, and altogether, it would have been good if at least one of the courses had been a little lighter, more delicate. Still, The Roundhouse is a hunting lodge, so I guess robust dinners make sense on a cold Cape Town evening.
Blakey’s subjective (and probably overly critical) verdict:
- Service: friendly, but no replenishing of wine glasses, tut tut!
- Ambience: very picturesque, chairs were comfy (yay!) and very nice glasses (I like glasses)
- Food: bold. Possibly too bold. But tasty. But what was up with the popcorn and marshmallows?
There you have it.
→ Leave a CommentCategories: Cape Town · Cynical · Restaurants
Tagged: Cape Town food, Cape Town Restaurants, The Roundhouse
Wolfram Alpha
May 18, 2009 · Leave a Comment
I think Wolfram Alpha is a Wikipedia threat and not so much a Google threat. Just my 2c.
→ Leave a CommentCategories: Uncategorized
Tagged: google, wikipedia, wolfram alpha
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
March 19, 2009 · 1 Comment
Many people considered the F. Scott Fitzgerald story to be unfilmable.
Turns out they were right.
→ 1 CommentCategories: Cynical
Tagged: curious case of benjamin button, the emporer's new clothes
Teatime at Nigiro in Cape Town
March 18, 2009 · 5 Comments
I love tea. I love tea very, very much. My day starts with a cup of tea in bed, and there is not much conversation that I am capable of until I’ve had my morning cup of tea.
Coffee is good, and I do appreciate fine coffee from fine coffee purveyors, but I am definitely a tea girl. Tea makes things better. Tea revives you. (I am SO coveting the Tea Revives You poster from Keep Calm Gallery – that’s the image above.) Tea might make the world go round. Oh, and I also like a G&T. Kind of tea, but not. At all.
Anyways, my fondness of tea means that I have been anticipating Nigiro (the URL might redirect to Origin – tut tut!), the new tea room at Origin Coffee Roasting in De Waterkant in Cape Town, for a while and so was very pleased to be invited along to the launch of Nigiro on Tuesday evening. What a fabulous occasion: Cape Town celebrating my favourite beverage! A beautiful glass box of a tea room has been created in Origin Coffee Roasting’s De Waterkant HQ, and I am very much looking forward to sitting down for a tea ceremony in there.
I got to meet some of the Elle Deco ladies (who were kind enough to compliment on my favourite necklace, which did make me feel less plainjane next to their lovely stylish selves), catch up with a few faces from the Open Everything event, of course congratulate David Donde on such a wonderful evening, meet a bespoke perfumer, drink some Stormhoek tastiness, eat the most heavenly steamed dumplings (best, and first, I’ve ever had) and of course taste some Nigiro tea. Superbly soft vanilla black tea and orange spiced rooibos yumminess. How wonderful.
I left with a beautifully packaged press pack with some teas to try at home (now I just need to get me one of those very nice glass teapots!).
→ 5 CommentsCategories: Cape Town
Tagged: Cape Town, nigiro, tea makes everything better
Bake Bread – Give Dough: Blakey gets involved
October 16, 2008 · 1 Comment
First up, two disclaimers:
1. I work for Breadline Africa, a fabulous charity that funds hundreds of grassroots community projects.
Container Nursery School!
2. My sister did the baking for me – I’ve been chock-a-block promoting the campaign (but I’ll get my apron on this weekend evening).
So, the idea behind the Blogger Bake Off is that bloggers will do something a little unusual (Bake Bread) and then donate money (Give Dough). Funds will be used by Breadline Africa to do things like convert old shipping containers into kitchens, schools, and clinics for needy communities (the photo is of a container nursery school – a double decker one!).
I’ve tried (and failed at) working with yeast before, but that experience made a statement that I read recently stand out: Early Money Is Like Yeast. Funding these grassroots projects means that there is an early and developmental injection of funds, which can make such a huge difference in someone’s life.
Madeira Cake - like bread?
For this blog, my sister baked a Madeira Cake, which is super tasty and kind of looks like bread! And I donated (and am asking everyone I know to do the same!).
And now, I do the tagging.
The rules:
If you are tagged, copy and paste the rules into your post.
- Bake bread, do something you wouldn’t normally do, and blog about it. Upload your picture and recipe on www.bloggerbakeoff.com.
- Give dough, donate to Breadline Africa and help us end poverty.
- Tag five bloggers, and ping Breadline Africa so they know you’ve done so.
I’m tagging:
The Lush (I’m a fan!)
Andrew Smit (who ran the comrades, but can he bake?)
Pam Sykes (who is a compulsive baker)
Avinash Kaushik (because he’s a great guy with a great blog: it would be fabulous if you joined us!)
Clotilde Dusoulier (I’m aiming big here: I’ve been a fan for years, I have your cookbook, maybe you can show the world how a Parisienne does it?)
Fingers crossed! Go on, Bake Bread – Give Dough.
→ 1 CommentCategories: Uncategorized
Tagged: Blogger Bake Off, breadline africa
Blog Action Day: Bake Bread, Give Dough, End Poverty
October 15, 2008 · 1 Comment
It’s Blog Action Day today with the theme of poverty. Bloggers all around the world will be talking about poverty, and some will even be doing something about it.
So, today, I am doing by donating as part of the Blogger Bake Off – a campaign that’s raising funds for Breadline Africa (a non-profit that I work for).
Bake Bread - Give Dough
Coming soon: Blakey Bakes Bread
→ 1 CommentCategories: Uncategorized
Tagged: blog action day, Blogger Bake Off, breadline africa
Blogger Bake Off: It’s coming!
October 13, 2008 · 3 Comments
Breadline Africa’s Blogger Bake Off is on its way! www.bloggerbakeoff.com
→ 3 CommentsCategories: Uncategorized
Tagged: blog action day, breadline africa
R2D2 on Twitter
August 27, 2008 · Leave a Comment
*dwooooop! dwooooop! dwooooop!*
→ Leave a CommentCategories: Uncategorized
Tagged: R2D2, twitter
