My experience at Il Leone……….29-02-2012

It was the fiancé’s birthday, he is a leap year baby, and so seeing as it only comes around once every 4 years I thought I’d spoil him a bit. Not that I never get him anything for his birthday the other 3 years. Would have been much cheaper for me if only it worked like that!! J

We first went for sundowners at Tobago, the restaurant at the Radisson Hotel, where we had an overpriced glass of wine. Mainly paying for the view I guess. In retrospect I was quite grateful for this seeing as on the way to Il Leone we went through a roadblock. Luckily I had nothing to worry about seeing as I only had a 1/3 of a glass of wine (at a full glass’ price).

If you haven’t been to Il Leone before, please do yourself a favour and get down there. I never regret having discovered this restaurant a few years ago at the Taste of Cape Town.

The restaurant was softly lit, creating a really romantic mood. We sat at a table upstairs overlooking the street down below. It was a nice warm summer’s night so there were even some people sitting outside on the small patio.

We ordered a bottle of Haute Cabriere Chardonnay/Pinot noir, which is one of our favourite wines! Seeing as the food here is so good, we didn’t want to spoil our appetite by having a starter! Therefore we only ordered mains and thought we’d decide about the dessert later.

I didn’t catch the name of our waiter but he was really goofy and made us laugh the whole night. Some free entertainment for the evening. After he explained the specials to us quite comically, I couldn’t decide what to have. Usually when we go out for dinner I never order pasta but seeing as we were at one of the best pasta restaurants in Cape Town I figured, before the time already, that I would have a pasta dish. One of their signature dishes, that the fiancé fell in love with when he tasted it for the first time at Taste of Cape Town, is their Shelled prawns sautéed in chilli, garlic and white wine. Tossed with cherry tomatoes, fresh rocket and roasted pine nuts. Served with linguine. You won’t find this on their menu though as it is listed as a special. So every time we go there, he has it. Although he tried to not be predictable and have it he just couldn’t resist it. The previous time we were there he also had it and I had their Lamb Ragu. So seeing as he was ordering the same again I just couldn’t get it over myself to order the ragu again! Then we would be about as exciting as an 80 year old couple going out for their annual anniversary dinner. That night the ragu was veal though and not lamb so it wouldn’t have been exactly the same but still, potato potaoe. Seeing as I was indecisive, I mentioned to the waiter that the Veal Ragu had caught my attention but that I had had it before. He then told me about the Vitello Porcini: Veal steak with Porcini mushrooms served with fresh greens and mash potatoes, which was one of the specials. Either he had forgotten to tell us about it initially or I hadn’t been paying attention. Seeing as it wasn’t on their menu I couldn’t get the exact description of the dish for you. I tried to ask the waiter what it entailed and he said; “Well it’s Veal with Porcini mushrooms!” Ha ha ha! Bless him. I decided to go for that.

Although I didn’t have pasta I don’t, for a second, regret ordering the Veal!!! It was absolutely to freaking die for!!! The veal steaks were very thin, like minute steaks but so so tender! I could tear it apart with your hands! The Porcini Mushrooms were also divine! Just cooked for long enough, as not to lose their firmness. The veg was still nice and crispy, accompanied with fluffy smooth mash potatoes. I absolutely could not get enough of this goodness! Every single bite was like palate heaven!!! I did of course also taste the fiancé’s pasta which was amazing as usual! It had just the right about of bite to ensure that the chilli wasn’t overwhelming.

While looking at the menu for mains we noticed their dessert menu, which actually played the major role in us not ordering starters! J Seeing as it was his birthday I suppose he deserved to have his cake and eat it too! We noticed the Tiramisu: homemade Italian specialty and it being the fiancé’s favourite (yes another favourite) we ordered some for dessert. It was ok. Definitely not the best tiramisu I have tasted. I will even go as far as to say that the tiramisu I’ve had from woolies’ was more flavourful. It just lacked those complex levels of flavours that you expect from a tiramisu. I thought the portion was a little bit on the small side as well. I remember it being quite a bit larger the previous time we had it.

None the less, it was an absolutely perfect evening!! Definitely one of the restaurants in Cape Town that I am in love with! I don’t think I will wait a whole year again before going back there though!!!

Yours in fun & birthday celebrations,

Elly D

22 Cobern Street

Corner of Prestwich

Green Point

Cape Town

021-4210071

illeone@mastrantonio.com

www.mastrantonio.com/illeone/

My experience at Col’Cacchios……….19-02-2012

Another one of our locals is this awesome pizzeria. Before discovering this pizzeria I would have never thought that I would come across a pizzeria that makes the best salads ever! This is what I love about them so much! Not only do they have amazing gourmet thin based pizzas but they also have the most amazing salads! A few years ago I remember myself saying that I will never actually order a salad at a restaurant as a main meal because it would never fill me. Well a few years later when your body doesn’t metabolize pizzas as good as it used to, you find yourself opting for the occasional salad on the menu. Having said that, I will seldom order a salad at another place because I know there is no way it would live up to Col’Cacchios’ salads.

Their salads are so massive and bursting with goodness that on a few occasions I have actually not been able to finish them. Even though I mostly order salads when visiting Col’Cacchios, I always steel a slice of pizza from the finance. Just having salad and no pizzas at a pizzeria as great as this one, would just be wrong. Another great thing that they have is wheat free bases, which opens their menu up to the unfortunate folk that can’t eat wheat. They clearly know that their pizzas are so good that people might struggle just deciding on one, therefore you can order two halves from two different pizzas. What is nice about this as well is that you can try something new, without running the risk of missing out on your favourite pizza. In this case you pay half of each pizza’s price.

I ordered the Brioso: Lettuce, rocket, roasted beetroot, roasted butternut, feta, crispy onions, butternut chips, pomegranate arils, green yoghurt dressing, seasoned chicken. Standard it comes without the chicken. I don’t like those root vegetable chips so I always ask that they leave the butternut chips off. The green yoghurt dressing they use is amazing !

The fiancé had half of the Stagionata: ham, mushroom, olives, artichokes and half of the Carricciosa: salami, olives, asparagus, mushroom. Stagionata is his favourite so he felt “adventurous” and tried something different with the other half. Even though their ingredients are so similar! J Both were really good of course.

There is no question that we will be back there. Once or twice we have had bad service and the occasional bad meal but 95% of the time their food is totally delicious!

Yours in fun & pizzas,

Elly D

Shop 15 Seaside Village

Cormorant Road

Bloubergstrand

021-554 2725

blouberg@colcacchio.co.za

www.colcacchio.co.za

My experience at Yo Eastern Fusion……….26-02-2012

I have wanted to write about Yo Eastern Fusion for ages now as we go there all the time! This is by far our favourite sushi spot! I have never been a fan of sushi buffets or all you can eat as with buffet the sushi isn’t always the freshest and with all you can eat you always end up eating too much and then feeling sick. Also one of my favourite sushi items is seared tuna sashimi and I am yet to come across a buffet or all you can eat that includes sashimi.

This restaurant initially started out in Melkbosstrand right on the beach. That is where we discovered it. Then they sold it and moved to the little Woolworths centre in Sunset Beach. So we continued supporting them at their new location. Not only is their sushi the best value for money you will find anywhere, but their normal noodle/rice meals are also really good. I am yet to have a bad meal there. They continued to open a branch in Plattekloof as well, which we have only visited once to see what it was like. A few years ago when Eden on the Bay reared its head they opened a restaurant there too. I must say in the beginning while the Eden on the Bay branch was still finding their feet the service there was shocking and they often didn’t have tuna so we stopped going there for a while. In the mean time they have improved and we now go there most of the time as oppose to going to their Sunset Beach branch.  

This past Sunday we went to Yo Eastern Fusion again. When we crave sushi there isn’t even a question as to where we will go, except maybe on some Sundays when Beluga creeps in as an option. That’s also only when we don’t mind a bit of as drive. Being so used to the value of money at this place, Beluga only becomes worthwhile to me when they have their half price sushi special. I will never go eat sushi at Beluga when it is at full price.

We were starving when we got there so we immediately ordered a Prawn, crab stick and avocado salad to start with. Sometimes they add too much mayo for my liking, so we always ask for it on the side just in case. This particular day the salad took a bit longer than usual, but it was delicious as always.

For mains we had Salmon Sashimi, Seared Tuna Sashimi, Salmon Roses, Prawn Fashion Sandwiches and Tuna California rolls. They also have the best Prawn Tempura Rolls. Once again we weren’t disappointed. The sushi was extremely fresh and wasn’t left standing after being plated as the Seared Tuna Sashimi was still slightly warm. Accompanied with a bottle of Kleine Zalze Bush Vine Chenin Blanc I could not imagine a better way to spend the last bit of your Sunday afternoon. Of course we will be back there again and again for plenty more delicious sushi experiences!!

Yours in fun & sushi,

Elly D

Eden on the Bay

Bloubergstrand

021-554 4752

My experience at Remex……….16-02-2012

Friends of ours invited us to this little Mexican spot one Thursday night. We have never been to this place but they have a few times and have ranted and raved about it every time, so we figured why not. They literally stumbled upon it while they were still living in Richwood. If you never visit Richwood you would probably also not be aware that this place existed. It is located at the La Piazza Centre next to a grocery store. There is also a bottle store in the same centre. Now whenever you are unsure where to locate your new restaurant, close to a bottle store would definitely not be a bad choice!! Hence this is exactly how my friends found this place!

On Thursday nights they have half price tequila’s and frozen margaritas from 8 until 10. I was really looking forward to having some of their margaritas but unfortunately they were having problems with their margarita machine. :-( They are really not shy on dishing out those tequila’s either! One of our friends that joined us is pregnant so they even went as far as giving her a shot of water for every time we had a shot of tequila just so she wouldn’t feel left out! How cute! J

Seeing as our friends were the experts at this place we let them steer the boat and order for us. Instead of each of us having our own meal we ordered a few different meals and shared. For starters we had the Combo platter for 2: 2 little Chimi Changas, 2 Chilli Poppers, 4 Cheese Nachos, 2 Quesadillas, 2 Nacho Cups with an extra portion of Chili Poppers (4 Tortilla wrapped jalapeno chilies stuffed with 3 cheeses, deep fried and accompanied with a layered dip).

I had never heard of Chimi Changas or Nacho Cups and perhaps you haven’t either. Chimi Changas are explained further on. Nacho Cups are exactly that, a nacho chip that has been moulded into a little cup before being deep fried and then afterwards filled with creamy chicken. It is like having a nacho chip that already has a “dip” on it. Easy to enjoy in a few small bites. Needless to say everything in the platter was really good. Their nachos are homemade and look and taste nothing like the store bought ones. They are rather large and very nice and crispy.

For mains we ordered the Nachos Grande: large nachos topped with various fillings (chili con carne, spicy chicken, seared vegetables, creamy chicken, and covered with melted cheese. Topped with guacamole salsa and sour cream). You get two versions of this dish and of course we had the larger one out of the two, Mucho Hungry nachos (12 nachos).

 

We also ordered Chimi changas: 2 Deep fried burritos stuffed with cheese and chili con carne and a Burrito: large flour tortilla folded into a pocket and stuffed with spicy chicken.

Everything was extremely tasty and not overly spiced. So it didn’t leave me burping chili in the early hours of the morning. It is a very casual place and I will gladly spread the word and be back there. Next time I will just make sure their frozen margarita machine is working!! J

Yours in fun & tequila’s,

Elly D
La Piazza Centre
Nederburg Road
Richwood
0836994257
0844306405
remexcantina@gmail.com
Remex Mexican Cantina Facebook page

My experience at Bar Bar Black Sheep……….02-02-2012

Since I heard about this funky little restaurant that opened its doors in the arty town of Riebeeck Kasteel (where I spend a lot of time as a kid) I have been wanting to visit them. Eventually the opportunity arose when I got send to Riebeeck Kasteel on a work outing. When we arrived there we walked to the back and sat at one of the brightly cloured tables outside. Making sure we got a spot under the fine misty spray coming from the overhead sprinklers. When you arrive, it looks like you are actually at a friend's house having lunch in their back yard. Very cute!

Our waiter was a typical plaas japie. He even had what looked like some proper home-made prison tattoos, but he was very sweet! :-) He just kept on telling us that everything was really good and that their portions were on the larger side. He immediately told us which meal was no longer available, which a lot of waiters neglect to do. There is nothing fancy, apparence wise, about the menu you get given. It is just an A4 print out. Their menu changes seasonally so I guess they don’t bother spending time and money on a plastic menu as it would just be wasted.

I think I was too hungry by the time I looked at the menu because I couldn’t decide on what to have. I thought about having the chicken dish (Smoked paprika chicken – Chicken breast pan fried in olive oil and cooked with herbs, chick peas, cream, smoked paprika, hot smoked sausage, garlic and served with whole roasted sweet red pepper) but the cream in the sauce put me off. The Pork and black bean stew – Pork Knuckle browned and cooked with tomato, turmeric, thyme, paprika, garlic, rosemary, cumin, chilli and black beans served with crusty white bread caught my eye but I thought the pork would still be on the bone and too fatty. I asked the waiter to choose between the chicken and the lamb burger (Bar Bar lamb burger – 100% Leg of lamb mince burger pan friend and baked in the oven. Served with greens, cream cheese, guacamole, capers, bacon and tomato chutney), and he chose the lamb burger. I thought seeing as I was on the quest to find the best burger I might as well try it.

I must say when it arrived, it looked great! The presentation of their meals is really good. The greens it is served with was really nice. Quite different to the usual side greens one would expect. It had cucumber pieces that had been soaked in tzatziki sauce, capers, aubergines, olives, tomatoes, rocket and artichokes. The potato skewer was nicely roasted and well-seasoned. Underneath the burger patty they spread some cream cheese which was quite a pleasant surprise. The burger was good but definitely not as good as the gourmet one’s that I am used to. I want my burger patty to crumble as I try stick it in my mouth. This one was too dense and solid which also resulted in it not being as moist and juicy. The sweet tomato chutney was a great touch to the dish. After having only some of the greens and only the patty and toppings I was extremely full. I suppose he did warn us about the size of the meals! :-) The patty was very heavy on my stomach. My friend ended up having the pork and black bean stew and the pork knuckle wasn’t on the bone as I had feared. Her meal actually looked really nice! Unfortunately I was too full to give it a taste but she enjoyed it.

Overall, it was a good experience and if I’m ever in that area again I will be sure to pop by. The name just cracks me up every time I see it. They have a wide variety of meals on the menu but not a killer long list which is good. This is the perfect little place to go spend a lazy hot afternoon at.

Yours in fun & food,

Elly D

Short Street

Riebeeck Kasteel

022-448 1031

bbbs@telkomsa.net

www.bbbs.co.za

My experience at Jan Cats……….29-01-2012

We were in Stellenbosch for the day looking at wedding venues. While booking the appointments with the various farms the day before we realized we had quite a gap between the last two farms as the last farm could only see us at 3pm. We figured what better way to kill time then to go grab a bite to eat. I quickly had a look on Grand Dining’s website to see if they had any restaurants in Stellenbosch on their list. Turns out, there was actually quite a few, so we settled on this one.

Jan Cats is the restaurant and pub at the Stellenbosch Hotel. The interior of the pub gives you that comforting old English pub feel. We chose a nice little table outside under the shade as it was a Stellies Scorcher that day. Just before arriving there we were at Kleine Zalze, looking at the venue but also having a little wine taste seeing as we had so much time to kill! :-) Therefore we decided to have a bottle of Kleine Zalze Bush Vine Chenin Blanc – Guava, pineapple & peach aromas, clean and crisp aftertaste from their menu. As we arrived we realized the Aussie Open men’s tennis final was about half way so while munching down we could conveniently follow the remainder of the game. The fiancé, for the umpteen time, tried to explain how the scoring in tennis worked. Now I am not stoopid, I get most sport rules and I even know the off side rule! I promise! But tennis, I just can’t seem to get!!

Anyway, to eat I ordered the Rare roast beef wrap – roast sirloin, whole grain mustard and dill cucumber but received the Smoked Salmon Wrap – Smoked Salmon, cream cheese, capers, tomato, red onion with side salad. Thinking about it now, I even pointed to the meal I wanted as I still asked her something about it and looking at the menu those two items aren’t even above each other! Anyway, luckily for her (and for me I suppose) I was in such a chilled mood, must have been the bush vine talking :-), that I said I would have it. Completely different to what I ordered but luckily it was not a bad or unhealthy swop! It turned out to be quite good. They were definitely NOT shy with the salmon!! The side salad also came with a nice mustard seed dressing so I was happy. It was going down perfectly with my chilled white wine.

The fiancé had the Chicken Schnitzel – with mushroom sauce, chips and side salad. It looked really good and he was also rather happy with the choice he had made. After finishing our vino we rushed out of there to make our last appointment and continued trying to listen to the tennis updates on the radio, me slightly less confused and trying to stay with it.

Overall a nice experience! Even with the food order mix up. There are so many other quaint little eateries in Stellenbosch so I can’t say I’ll rush back but definitely worth popping by.

Yours in fun & food,

Elly D

Cnr of Dorp and
Andringa Street
Stellenbosch
021-887 3644

www.stellenboschhotel.co.za

My experience at Hudsons on Somerset……….19-01-2012

I first tried Hudsons throughout the Soccer World Cup. I work at the start of the fan walk so we used to leave our cars at my office and then take a walk down the fan walk to the stadium. The first stop was always Cubana’s to get a cold one and then down Somerset Road to grab something to eat. That is how we discovered Hudsons! What a perfect end to a day, a cold beer, a burger and some footy. Wow that sounded part dyke! I promise my fiancé is actually a MAN! J Ever since then we have been going back to Hudsons for their awesome burgers. I must say before Hudsons I never used to think twice before deciding where to go for gourmet burgers as there was really only one place and that was Royale Eatery! Now after Hudsons have opened their doors it has become a tougher choice. At the moment I am trying to find the best burger in town! So shortly after having been to Royale, I went to Hudsons. During the December holidays we also went to Beefcakes but I wasn’t too impressed. I feel it is quite overpriced for what you get, but then again I suppose I do not form part of their target market. I think perhaps Beefcakes is more of a place to be seen at then a place to go and grab a good burger at!

Not only does Hudsons have amazing burgers but they also have a wide variety of drinks. Everything from amazing cocktails, to some microbrewery beers. Whenever I order a cocktail I ask the waitress about it seeing as I have had many disappointing cocktails and I can’t justify paying R40 bucks plus for something that resembles icy sugar water with some alcohol in it. The waitress ensured me that their Daiquiri’s were huge and really good so that was the only convincing I needed! Oh my word was I impressed when that bowl of frozen strawberry goodness came straight my way!! J This is by far the best Daiquiri I have had and although it is so much bigger than normal cocktails it still is at the normal price which is fantastic!

Just like I have my favourite burger at Royale, I also have my favourite here. It is called The Game – Ostrich patty topped with cranberry jelly, herbed goats cheese and rocket. Can you see the resemblance to my favourite at Royale?? Ha ha!

For those of you that haven’t been to Hudsons before, the burgers are served with no side orders. If you would like anything extra you can order it additionally. So I ordered the side salad with my burger which comes with the nicest dressing. From the picture you can see how wholesome and GOOD the burger looks and they are not shy with their goats cheese or the cranberry jelly. Their patties are just so good and juicy as well!

I’m sorry to whoever I might disappoint here but my favourite burger joint between Royale and Hudsons is………….…Hudsons!

Having said that we will definitely be going back to Royale but unfortunately not as often as we used to! A friend told me about The Dog’s Bollocks and that is definitely next on my list of burger joints to try out! I can’t wait!

Yours in fun & food,

Elly D

Somerset Road (Cnr of Portswood)

Cape Town

021-433 1496

info@theburgerjoint.co.za

www.theburgerjoint.co.za