Tag Archives: Green Point

El Burro’s Mexican fair

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So on Mon eve I finally got to check out the relatively new Mexican spot in town – El Burro.  (meaning donkey in Spanish)

El Burro has taken over the old premises of the Buena Vista Social Cafe (which moved almost across the road, closer to the V&A Waterfront).

This venue used to be quite dark & dingy – a bit of a student jol and the kind of spot where you’d only really eat something after copious amounts of Tequila.  But I always felt that it had great potential to be something really cool.  This is why I was really excited to hear about the revamp.

Decor wise there’s been a total turnaround.  Fun, quirky details, fresh colours, great lighting and it’s super clean!

My favourite detail were these two little horsies next to their cactus friend… or are those supposed to be dressed up donkeys?  I don’t care, to me they looked like My Little Ponies and I wanted to take them home with me to cuddle on the couch. :)

Hello my babies...

Then we all also loved the seriously cool menu design:

Yeah... skulls & guns and stuff...

For starters, Nix and I shared the Elotes (R37):

BLACKENED CORN ROLLED IN HOME-MADE MAYO, PARMESAN & PAPRIKA, SERVED WITH ROCKET, RADISH & PICKLED RED ONION.

You can’t really stuff up a mielie – one of my favourite things on the planet, especially when dripping with lightly salted butter, mmmmmm – BUT the parmesan & paprika mix gave it a really weird aftertaste.  That funky taste put Nix off totally – I on the other hand was willing to look past that little detail.  Why?  Well because I just really love corn!

Lara had the Chiles Relenos (3 for R33):

SMOKED JALAPENO’S STUFFED WITH QUESO FRESCO, SERVED WITH ROCKET, RADISH & PICKLED RED ONION

I had a small taste of this as well – can’t say it blew me away.  It wasn’t great, it wasn’t terrible.. it was just OK.

Elotes (corn) on the left & Chiles Relenos on the right

Some people had told me that I should go for the Cerviche (R56):

FINELY DICED FRESH LINE FISH MARINATED IN LIME JUICE, SERRANO CHILLIES, GINGER & CORIANDER.

Every review I could find online also mentioned it and then the waitress recommended it as well. But reading the description of what it is just didn’t grab me.  So I opted out.  Maybe that would’ve been amazing.  Dunno…

For mains  Lara opted for the Ensalada de Camaron (R70):

PRAWN SALAD WITH CRISPY BACON, BLACKENED CORN, BLACK BEANS & AVO

Nix had the Mushroom Quesadilla (R65):

GRILLED FLOUR TORTILLA FILLED WITH SAUTÉED FIELD MUSHROOMS & QUESO FRESCO, SERVED WITH A SUN-DRIED TOMATO & BLACK BEAN SALSA.

And I went for the Build-your-own Tacos option with Grilled chicken (R68):

FLOUR OR CORN TORTILLAS SERVED WITH PICKLED RED ONION, GUACAMOLE, SOUR CREAM, FRESH TOMATO, ROAST TOMATO SALSA & SHREDDED GREENS.
GRILLED CHICKEN
MARINATED IN CHILLI, CORIANDER, GARLIC & LEMON.

From left to right: Prawn salad, grilled chicken taco & mushroom quesadilla

Lara said her salad was “as good as a salad can be” and Nix said her quesadilla was like a 3 out of 5 good.

My grilled chicken taco on the other hand was really really bland.  Like so bland, those under seasoned Woolies Slimmers Choice meals with the unknown white goop on top made this look bad…  I thought to myself “what happened to the marinated in chilli part?”

After mains, I gave up on the food and decided to focus my energies on the wine instead.  But Nix & Lara decided to share the Dark Chocolate Fondant (R42) for dessert:

They said it was really yum – but I just couldn’t shake the feeling that it just seemed very very wrong to have a French dessert on a Mexican menu.  Anyone else feel the same? ;)   Maybe it would have sounded more acceptable if they mixed in some chilli into the chocolate or something. (And no, the chilli used as decoration does not count.)

So anyhoo, after all the excitement about trying this spot out, I was left a bit disappointed.  My Miss K Kiss-o-Meter ratings for El Burro would be:

    • Vibe: 
    • Price:
    • Food:  (mine) (rest of table)
    • Service: 

It certainly doesn’t trump my beloved Fat Cactus.  But I really do love the look & feel of the place, so I might go back to give them a second chance sometime.

xxx

Enjoying a Turkish feast

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On Wed eve I had dinner at Anatoli in Napier St, Green Point.   It is a Turkish restaurant that’s been around for about 26 years and is housed in a beautiful Victorian warehouse dating back to 1904.

Now those people who followed my travel blog would know that I got to spend a day in Istanbul on my way back to SA, and I didn’t have the best experience.  As a woman traveling alone, I wasn’t made to feel very welcome and I had to resort to eating some Turkish delights on a lonely park bench for lunch.  Not so cool.   So the thought of finally getting to experience a proper Turkish feast was just way too exciting for words.

The decor I thought was amazing.  It makes you feel like you’ve truly just stepped into a local spot in Turkey:

We were quite big group – so I had organised with the restaurant before hand that we would be going for one of their set menu options:

Topkapi – R195.00 p.p
Selection of 10 mezes,small garlic bread, lamb chicken and vegeterian cooked dishes served with rice, baklava, stuffed apricot and date lozenges as dessert.

This worked out really well because we didn’t have to wait long for our food and everyone’s food came out together.  This is not something that’s usually achievable with a big table.  So it was great.

Our starters consisted off a spread including the following mezze’s (plus bread):  Humus, spicy lamb meat balls, chicken & walnut puree, finely chopped tomato, cucumber, chillies & olive oil, broad bean puree, green beans cooked in olive oil with tomatoes, garlic & black pepper corns, grilled peppers, dolmasi (wine leaves stuffed with rice, pine nuts, black currants and spices) & a tzatziki type item:

That bread rocked my world! I'm still lusting after it... Then I enjoyed most of the other things except the dolmasi (it's just not for me). What's really nice is that this option gives you a chance to try things you wouldn't normally have ordered. Thus opening your mind to new tastes. Love it.

I was sticking to white wine for the evening – I seem to be slightly paranoid about red wine now after splashing out on a Brite Smile treatment, hehe (I’ll get over it soon I’m sure) – but I did have a small taste of this Jason’s Hill Merlot which everyone at the table was raving about:

I had never heard of this winery before. But that Merlot was beautiful. Very smooth & easy drinking.

For mains they brought out big platters of rice, a lamb dish, a chicken dish & a vegetarian dish:

I enjoyed everything – it was a good, hearty meal that reminded me of a great Sunday lunch buffet.  Was very filling though, we ended up with quite a few doggy bags.

Then for dessert we had a small piece of Baklava, a stuffed apricot & a small taste of some sweet orange item:

For those hardcore dessert lovers out there – you might be thinking that this sweet spread looks a bit tiny.  But trust me – it packs quite a punch!  It’s way too sweet to have any more than this serving.   I enjoyed the baklava – but the other two items weren’t really my thing.   I’ve mentioned before that I’m not a fan of fruit as a dessert – fruit is for breakfast, end of story. ;)

Now this might seem strange, but I have to show you some pics of the toilets! haha.  It was just sooooo pretty.   Look at these awesome Turkish lanterns they have in there:

I really wanted to buy some of these while in Istanbul at the Grand Bazaar, but I didn't have any space left... bummer.

And then look at the beautiful tiles:

Could have had my meal in here! hehe

My dad always reckons you need to check out a restaurant’s toilet to get an idea of how clean their kitchen is.  Based on what I saw there – I felt pretty reassured that the kitchen was in top notch.

OK – back to the dinner table.  So how do you end off a Turkish meal?  With a punch-in-the-face Turkish coffee of course!  I went for the medium sweet option.  After those super sweet desserts, I figured the very sweet option would literally cause my brain to go explode. :)

Trust me - you need the water. This little baby kept me awake until about 3am, but it was really tasty. Just a tip: Don't sip all the way to the bottom of the cup. Try one and you'll see what I mean.

The general consensus from the table was that this spot was a winner. It was really fun to try something totally different for a change and now I know exactly which Turkish dishes to opt for next time.

My Miss K Kiss-o-Meter ratings for Anatoli would be:

    • Vibe: 
    • Price:
    • Food: 
    • Service: 

xxx

Cape Town’s very own Gelato heaven

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While travelling through Italy in June this of this year, I literally consumed my own body weight in gelato.  I had it every single day I was there… at times even for breakfast.  So that gives you an idea of how much I looooooove it. :)

Now I know what you’re thinking… isn’t gelato just a fancy Italian name for plain ol’ ice cream?  No it certainly is not!  There are a few key differences:

  1. Ice cream has a minimum of 10% fat, while Gelato is made with a greater proportion of whole milk to cream, so it only contains about 5 to 7 % fat.  That means a more guilt free treat, woohoo!
  2. Gelato is also churned at a slower speed to ice cream, making it denser because not as much air is whipped into the mixture.
  3. Ice cream is typically served frozen, while gelato is stored and served at a slightly warmer temperature.
  4. Because it contains less fat, it doesn’t coat your mouth in the same way as ice cream does, therefore making the flavours more intense.

So there you go guys & gals!  ** Info sourced from About.com, so it’s totally legit...

So on Sunday, after a pretty intense game of putt-putt over in Mouille Point, Bjorn and I decided to spoil ourselves a bit at Gelato Mania on Main Rd, Green Point.

Seriously, how pretty is this place!?

Friends of mine had mentioned this place to me before and I’ve also driven past it lank in the past.  But that was before I realised what exactly gelato was and how it would totally change my world forever… so I very stupidly never bothered to check it out!  Aaargggh.

But I now know that Gelato Mania is amazing!  They’ve got you covered on absolutely everything, from every topping under the sun to handmade sugar cones and more:

Can you feel the sugar high just looking at that display?

And then check out some of the flavour options:

BOOM! In your face losers!

The really cool thing is that you can get a FREE taste of any flavour before committing to a whole scoop.  Sweet.  I was so excited, I felt just like this little guy:

Actually, is that my reflection in the glass?

By the time we had selected our flavours, the shop was buzzing:

Obviously there are a lot of gelato converts here in CT...

I opted for the Mina Pinguina (which has a Ferrero Rocher taste to it) & Lindt Almond.  Bjorn went for the Turkish delight & Lemon Sorbet:

Happiness is...

All 4 flavours rocked my world.  But my absolute favourite was that white Lindt Almond one.  Mmmmmmm.  A single scoop will cost you R24.95 (but I think it gets slightly cheaper the more scoops you add – can’t quite remember now) – so yes, a bit pricey – but once you’ve tried some you will agree that it’s worth every cent.

Gelato Mania is a family run business.  Apparently the famiglia  get together like once a month to come up with new flavours.  They compete for who can come up with the best one and then that one gets featured in store.  My favourite, Lindt Almond, is one of those and will likely only be featured for a limited period.

One of the little sayings on the tables in the shop states that their most important ingredient is love.  And yes, I know that sounds totally cheesy, but I believe it damn it! ;)

Oh, before I go – it’s also important to mention is that they do cater for diabetics and the lactose intolerant.  So there’s happiness for everybody!

xxx

Sláinte Restaurant & Bar opening

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Last Thu eve I headed over to Green Point for the launch party of Sláinte Restaurant & Bar – a new Irish sports bar… well I didn’t know the Irish part until we arrived and saw this guy:

He doesn't look too happy about being in a skirt. hehe

At this point I was like – OK, it must be either a Scottish or Irish spot.  Luckily there were other clues… The first thing I saw when I walked in was a black & white picture of U2… aaaah, Irish it is then!

My plus one spot for the evening went to….  drum roll please…. my lucky friend Darryn!!! I owed him big time for picking me for that Peroni dinner a couple of weeks back. :)   Leila and her friend Mark were also there – so we had some partners in crime as well.

On the way in we were welcomed by some gorgeous ladies:

The welcome crew along with Kate Cloete from Brand Bakery (the PR company who helped put together the event)

We were given our VIP wrist bands and directed towards the bar for as much free beer & wine as our hearts desired. Nice. Decor wise, I was really impressed.  This is definitely not your average sports bar people – no ancient beer & cigarette posters plastered all over the walls, no stale peanuts or pretzels on the bar, no cheesy music playing in the background – instead a fresh & modern take on an old classic:

The invite had promised that there would be sports celebrities in attendance.  I was really really hoping for Ryk Neethling  (as I’ve mentioned before, I’m passionate about mens swimming. hehe).  But sadly I had to make do with drooling over his hot piccie on the wall… sigh…

There he is!

Actually, I wasn’t really that great at spotting any sport celebrities.  Then again I’m someone who can only identify super hot sports men thanks to Heat magazine – anyone else is like a black hole to me. ;)   Then again the other 3 people with me weren’t doing that much better either!  As a result we decided to have a bit of fun by taking on the personalities of famous sports celebrities ourselves.  Here you go:

From right to left: Svettlana von Swetztrapp - Olympic gymnast specialising in "that ribbon stuff"; Dorianne van Dooswyn - Clay pigeon shooting champion (just like her oupa); Jeane-luc van der Merwe - Syncronised swimmer extraudinaire & Chip "Chet" Tyler - A Redbull Extreme pilot - nuff said.

Now most of the time I’m able to hide the fact that I’m Afrikaans.  Usually when people find out, they’re like: “What? Really? You’re lying…”  But every now and again something will slip out which make my friends rip me to pieces.   Like the way I was pronouncing the name of this restaurant:  Sla – in – tey  (imagine that with a heavy Afrikaans “poppie” accent)  Ja, pretty bad.  The actual pronounciation is: Slaw-inche.  And it’s an Irish word used in toasts, meaning “health”:

Entertainment wise they had a DJ playing some tunes and also this lovely violinist – rocking it out Vanessa-Mae style.

Then I had to take a picture of the “beer-on-tap”.   I was wondering… if pictures of beautiful shoes are like porn for woman… does this picture really do it for the guys?

On to the most important stuff… the food!  We had strategically positioned ourselves close to the kitchen to ensure that we wouldn’t miss anything.  We’re clever that way. ;)   And it totally panned out.  Just check out some of the goodies we got to sample:

Crumbed calamari, crostini with various yummy toppings, chicken liver pate, a chicken feta roll, sweet potato tart & crumbed chicken strips...

There were also deep-fried prawns which were my favourite! (got so excited about them I didn’t even have time to snap a picture)  But in general I really enjoyed the food, like re-ee-ee-aa-lly.  Can definitely see myself popping in here again for an after work drink and snack.  It’s both girl & boy friendly, so that’s a nice bonus.

A huge thanks to the guys at Brand Bakery & the owners of Sláinte for the invite.  Had a great time.  And I’m sure Sláinte is going to be a buzzing spot.   Good location, nice vibe, fabulous staff, delicious food and a fully stocked bar… what more could you want.

xxx

Dim sum & cocktails

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Beluga restaurant in Green Point is a Cape Town classic.  It’s one of only a few restaurants that has managed to stay popular year in and year out.  I love taking Cape Town visitors here for their a la carte menu and my friends and I regularly enjoy the half price sushi & cocktails special. Yes, that’s right, half price bitches!   The special runs daily until 7pm, and then all day on Sundays.

This special has obviously become a firm favourite with locals, so it’s crucial to book ahead to avoid disappointment.  But one thing some people might not know is that they’ve added various yummy dim sum options to their sushi & cocktail menu.  And that too is available on the half price special.

(Please note, this is not your average dim sum like they serve in sometimes dodgy Chinese take out spots – this is fabulous dim sum like only Beluga can serve up)

The magical red menu! Anything in here falls under the half price special. Yay!

NB tip:  as long as your orders are in before 7pm, you’re sorted – you can sit enjoy it past 7pm still.  (on Sundays you don’t have to stress about the time at all of course)

Naturally our first priority always is to sort out the cocktails!

Cranberry Royale, Cosmopolitan & Mojito... yeah, that's a good start!

With drinks sorted, I started ordering my dim sum options… This is going to sound like a lot of food for one person, but luckily I was with a big group of mates, so there were lots of mouths to help me clean up!  I just wanted a taste of a variety of things…  First up was the Springbok & Chinese spice deep fried wontons:

Crispy goodness...

Then I had the duck with sweet bbq sauce steamed buns:

Mmmmm... soft buns... ;)

And lastly the beef, coriander & ginger pot stickers:

Bring it on!

All three were very tasty – but my favourite was the duck steamed buns.  So YUM! The beef pot stickers came a close second.

Let me quickly tally up my costs for the evening:
- Cosmo = R44
- Cranberry Royale = R35  (OK, so the mojito wasn’t actually mine! haha)
- Springbok deep fried wontons (4 pieces) = R40
- Duck steamed buns (2 pieces) = R38
- Beef pot stickers (3 pieces) = R40

Normal total would have been:  R197.  BUT, with the faaaaabulous half price special, I only had to pay R98.50!  How awesome is that!?! :)

During the evening I got to catch up with my friend Lize – I hadn’t seen her in a while and she told me that she’s picked up her blog again after a little bit of a break – www.parisandpomegranates.com – check it out for lots of good travel tips, this chicka did a stint as an Emirates air hostess, so she’s seen quite a bit of the world.  Very jealous!

Cocktails in hand = happiness

Then my friend, Dani, was lovely enough to bring us some Ferrero Rocher chocolates.  LOVE THEM!!!  I totally scoffed down way more than my fair share… mwhahahahaha…

Here you can see the camera picked up some weird light - I think it's from my "crazy chocolate eyes"!

Awesome drinks, awesome food, awesome company & choccies to wrap up the evening – what more could a girl ask for?  Hmmmm… maybe hot, half naked waitors?  That could be something I should tell Beluga to look in to… ;)

Oh, before I forget – my Miss K Kiss-o-Meter ratings:

  • Vibe:
  • Price: (for the special)  (normally)
  • Food:
  • Service:

OK – now I have to try and work off all of that evil food & cocktails… back to the gym for me!

xxx