Last week was an exceptionally busy one on the homefront as we had two visitors from Joburg: My aunty Jenny stayed with my parents for the week, while Gords stayed on our side of the property for a night, plus it was Mother’s Day…
Saturday, 11 May 2019: La Rocca breakfast, Petisco’s dins
We slept in quite late on Saturday as my One Show work only ended at 5am. First stop was La Rocca in Canal Walk for breakfast. See my tiramisu latte, toasted sandwich and chips drenched in hot prego sauce. Hubcap went for the rib egg benedict and a cream-topped cappuccino.Beautiful view across to Table Mountain from Blouberg beach that afternoon.On Saturday evening we went to Petisco’s for dins. They were completely fully booked but we were happy to eat at the bar. See Husband and Dad with their wine and catemba (wine + Coke) respectively, my coffee shake with Amarula, a well-peppered portion of chicken xai xai and the menfolk with their pre-meal Jagermeister shots.Sleepy doglets on the couch that evening.
Sunday, 12 May 2019: Mother’s Day breakfast at Village Place Cafe
We decided on Village Place in West Coast Village for Mother’s Day breakfast as it’s a fairly central meeting point for all except Spec, who drove through from Fish Hoek side to join us. See some of the lovely breakfast things we ate.Hubcapsicum with our mums.Proof that the others were all there, and see my dirty chai latte and low-carb banana-berry flapjack stack. Yum!Various snaps of Mother’s Day unfolding in Mum’s lounge that evening. Such sweet doglets.
Tuesday, 14 May 2019: Evening braai at home with all the parents, Aunty Jenny and Gords
Aunty Jenny arrived at my parents’ side of the house for the week (she’s just left, at the time of publishing this), while Gords headed over with Husband’s parents after work on Tuesday. T’was a simple braai of wors rolls and Mum’s legendary potato salad, with lots of laughs and our pretty coloured lights.More scenes from the braai. Was a lovely change of weeknight routine!Husband snapped everyone busy with post-braai coffee in our lounge that evening. I say ‘everyone’ but only my parents and I had coffee.Sweet little Bassie having a nap once Husband’s parents left and the others retired to their rooms.
Wednesday, 15 May 2019: Work-from-home treats
It was a treat to work from home on Wednesday, as I got to skip the commute and start from bed.Dad provided almond croissants as tea time treats from Limnos Bakery in Table Bay Mall when I worked from home on Wednesday.
Thursday, 16 May 2019: Digital Agency Showcase at Red & Yellow School
The sun was only just rising when I got off the MyCiti bus in Woodstock on Thursday morning.After a short stint in the office, I attended the second ever digital agency showcase at Red & Yellow School on Thursday, where work from some of SA’s top digital agencies was featured. Click here and here for my coverage so far.
That’s all, folks! We hope the weekend ahead is filled with all that makes you happy. 🙂
We had yet another day off work this week as it was national voting day on Wednesday – the last public holiday for a while, so we made the most of the chance to relax…
Saturday, 4 May 2019: Braai at Husband’s parents
We decided on a little bit of a road trip for our Saturday breakfast, eventualy ending up at Melkbos Kitchen. The coffee was delicious, as was the food. See Husband’s salmon-eggs benedict, as well as my bacon-egg buttie.The doggies enjoyed running around and taking in their other granny’s garden, as their last visit was the day we moved – Bertie’s birthday, on 1 March.Results of all the braai-ing effort.
Sunday, 5 May 2019: Kauai breakfast and honeyed lupper
We wanted something on the healthier side of the street for Sunday breakfast, so went to Kauai at Eden on the Bay. See the lovely view as well as my almond oat pot and Husband’s Mexican egg bowl. Not pictured: Our strong flat white coffees.Mum made a delicious honey-mustard chicken meal for Sunday lupper, as we still have lots of honey from our bee hive removal. Click here if you don’t know what I’m talking about.Mini doughnuts for dessert!A beautiful sky at sunset, as seen from home.
Tuesday, 7 May 2019: French toast breakfast treat
I worked from home on Tuesday as I had a very late night of work the night before so opted to skip the commute into the office. Added bonus: homemade French toast with bacon, syrup and honey, made by Mum.
Wednesday, 8 May 2019: Voting day in South Africa
We slept in a little later than normal then headed to Wimpy at Bayside Mall for breakfast. See Husband winking without his streaky bacon breakfast (plus cheese griller), and me with my regular Wimpy coffee and Bar-one waffle.We kept an eye on the queues outside the voting stations all day, then decided on lunch at the Italian Club before making our mark. See the ribs and chips, red wine, gnocchi bolognaise and my coffee shake.A group ‘thumfie’ as proof that we all eventually made our mark that afternoon.Sweet, sleepy doglets as snapped throughout the week.
That’s all, folks! Tune in next week – same time, same place for my next update…
This past week has been jam-packed on the work and home front, as you’ll see from the pics below…
Thursday, 7 March: #MayDayMeander at Allee Bleue
After a brief stint in the office before the sun had fully risen, I met a friend at Tasha’s at the V&A Waterfront for a quick work-related chat, over Nutella-marshmallow hot chocolate. Yum!Next stop, a media tour for the day in Franschhoek. Welcome to Allee Bleue! This translates to ‘blue avenue’ and makes sense when you take in all the blue Eucalyptus trees and touches of blue dotted throughout the grounds.Taking in some of the scenery at Allee Bleue.The drizzle was on and off, which made for lovely Franschhoek landscape photos.Freshly plucked herbs feature strongly in Allee Bleue’s tasting options.More of the herby bites and sights along the way as we continued our May Day Meander preview around the grounds of Allee Bleue.Mmm. Even more of the stops along the way – keep in mind the whole ‘meander’ only takes an hour or so, meaning we were taking in lots of food, drink and information in that time.Finally all meandered out, it was time for lunch. See the blue hydrangeas on the table and some of the lovely eats we were treated to. Not seen in these pics – the sweet grey squirrels that roam the property.
Friday, 8 March 2019: Table View sunsets
You can just see Table Mountain popping out a very blue shoulder behind our yellow house here – view on my walk home from the bus…Husband happily putting the gas stove to the test.Such pretty sunsets, as seen from home on Friday evening.
Saturday, 9 March 2019: Family housewarming braai
It was a ‘breakfast at Reload’ type of Saturday, as we’re now walking distance from the Flamingo Vlei branch. See my peppermint-choc latte and smashed-avo bagel, as well as Husband’s cooked breakfast with triple-shot espresso. Love the kudu-painted wall.The boxes are all unpacked so we held a housewarming braai at our house that afternoon.Various snaps as the sun went down on our housewarming braai.Braai food! See the cheese and crackers, strawberry mousse and Don’s famous lemony chicken wings.Bassie prefers to sit on a lap when there are many other folk around. Her uncle Spec slept over but the rest all made their way back to their own homes as all live nearby.
Sunday, 10 March 2019: Carlucci’s breakfast
We set off for Carlucci’s, just down the road from home, for Sunday breakfast. See my dirty chai latte and Husband peppering his plate.Our full table of food. See my dirty chai latte and chocolate croissant, the brothers’ flat whites, Husband’s Coke Zero and egg-topped mince on toast, as well as well as Spec’s classic breakfast plate.We sampled some of our housewarming gifts on Sunday afternoon – see the dry Prosecco and assorted De Villiers chocolate slabs.Little Bassie hasn’t quite figured out all the ins and outs of the new house yet so will often wait outside until we see her and let her in.
Cheers! We got to the V&A Waterfront’s Cruises Terminal a little earlier than necessary for our six-star dining experience after work on Tuesday evening, so had a quick drink at Panama Jacks first, as we could see the Crystal Serenity clearly from our table outside. See Husband’s carafe of red blend and my blueberry shake.We got to explore most of the nooks and crannies of the Crystal Serenity. There’s so much to see! Note the local bagpipers behind Husband in the bottom-left pic. They were boarding for the night’s performance.Some of the lovely sights we saw onboard the Crystal Serenity.Even more things aboard the Crystal Serenity.As seen on the wall of the kiddies’ room of the Crystal Serenity.We were also treated to dinner at Crystal Serenity’s Waterside restaurant. See my parma ham-topped gnocchetti, Husband sipping away at the endless supply of wine, food being professionally snapped, as well as Husband’s starter of ‘Ahi tuna tartare and scallop crudo, and main of broiled corvina on a tomato rice pilaf.Six-star dins? Don’t mind if I do! See my roast duckling, Husband’s vanilla creme brulee, and my coconut-chocolate trifle and cappuccino.
Wednesday, 13 March 2019: Heavy Chef’s ‘Instagram for Business’ masterclass at Workshop 17
Wednesday was gloomy and wet, which made some of the sights around Workshop 17 all the more eye-catching. See the turquoise-and-gold striped rhino, as well as snacks and treats in the Heavy Chef masterclass. Click here for my overview of the event!
That’s all, folks. Click here for more on the #MayDayMeander, here for more on our Crystal Serenity experience and here for more on Workshop 17’s ‘Instagram for Business’ masterclass. Over and out! 🙂
*Disclaimer: Our meals at Allee Bleue and at Crystal Serenity’s Waterside restaurant were part of our review package. All else came from our own pockets. All enjoyed equally.
Last week we finally moved into our dream home here in Cape Town, along with the doggies and my parents. It’s a process that we started back in June, so we can’t quite believe it’s real!
As you’ll see from the pics below, all are now settled in and happy – especially as the move coincided with Bertie’s 9th birthday…
Friday, 1 March 2019: Moving day, Bertie’s 9th birthday
Bye bye, Bishops Bend! We’ve loved our four years here in the first house we’ve owned, but the time has come for something different. After everything was packed up, we said our final goodbyes last Friday evening.Hello, Giraffe House! So many things make us happy about our new home, as you’ll see from the pics below and more to come in the next few weeks – two separate houses, one enormous garden for the doggies…More of the pretty corners of our new home.There are beautiful blossoms and trees everywhere you look here, and the doglets love doing laps around the garden. It’s so tropical.Amongst all the unpacking that evening, we even managed to fit in a mini-birthday celebration for Bertie boy.Moving in celebrations! Some of Bertie’s birthday-party snacks, his new giraffe rope-toy, split shooters to celebrate the big move, as well as a beautiful vase of flowers and thoughtful muffin-and-coffee welcome gift from our new neighbours. We feel loved!Bertie receiving his ‘Giraffe House’ birthday present – we’ve had it hidden away since starting the house purchase process. He has pulled out most of the stuffing and now watches TV with it. So sweet!
Saturday, 2 March 2019: Celebratory cocktails and tacos at El Barrio
We were drenched in sweat from unpacking boxes on Saturday afternoon as it was such a hot day, so as soon as we had a gap we hit the beach. It was just what our aching feet needed. Husband said the water was less icy than usual so he had quite a long swim in the sea, too.We also stopped in at El Barrio in Eden on the Bay for a celebration of tacos and cocktails. See our tacos, Husband’s blueberry-filled ‘Mexican hipster’ and my strawberry, lime and mint frozen margarita. Yum!We all had a braai together that evening. Also see Husband testing out my hammock chair.Finally, a tree shady enough to swing from my hammock chair in peace!
Sunday, 3 March 2019: Blueberries breakfast
We stopped in at Blueberries in Table View Shopping Centre for a quick breakfast. See my banana-caramel pancake and Husband’s hash-brown plate.Beautiful star-shaped buds caught in a fine spider’s web in a hidden corner of our new garden.
Monday, 4 March 2019: Rocomama’s waffles
The doggies watching their Granny’s every move while adjusting to the novelty of living together. Such sweeties.Husband was back at work on Monday but I had one more day to unpack all those boxes, so unpack I did – then went for a treat at Rocomama’s once I was done. See Dad’s waffle sandwich, Mum’s Hey Joe saucy hot dog, and my espresso shake.My half-portion Cookies n Scream waffle was just what the doctor ordered. 🙂
Tuesday, 5 March 2019: Sunrise in Woodstock
We’ve had quite a few early starts to work this week, arriving at the office before 7am. See the sunrise as I walk towards my office from the MyCiti bus stop in Woodstock.
Wednesday, 6 March 2019: Interviewing CEOs at YPO
I popped into the CTICC on Wednesday, to interview a few of the members and speakers of YPO, the world’s largest gathering of CEOs. Click here if you missed my first overview.
That’s all for now, folks! 🙂 Check in next week for more pics.
Last weekend we visited the Two Ocean Aquarium at the V&A Waterfront, as entry is free up to a week after your birthday on proof of ID, so we paid for a single ticket…
Friday, 1 February 2019: Creative Mornings CT, work lunch at Da Vinci’s
The best way to start my Friday, especially as we were finally over the endlessness of January and into February – with gold-flecked doughnuts and insights from Dan Mace at the first Creative Mornings Cape Town session of the year, held at Friends of Design on Bree Street. Click here for a reminder of my overview of the event!It was also time for our first team lunch of the year on Friday, so we decided on Da Vinci’s on Kloof Street. See my peppermint crisp shake, as well as the R50 burger special I enjoyed, and various pretty salads consumed by colleagues.Work lunching! We sat in a lovely tropical corner.
Saturday, 2 February 2019: A free birthday Aquarium visit
We breakfasted at MareSol at the Waterfront, close to the yachts in the harbour. See Husband’s cappuccino, Coke Zero and Portuguese breakfast pan, featuring chorizo, jalapenos and baked eggs, as well as my delicious caramelly Rabanadas (French toast made from Portuguese roll rather than bread) and glass of pineapple juice.See the bright blue skies when we were sight-seeing between breakfast and the Aquarium at the V&A Waterfront. I love those rhinos so!See Husband outside the Aquarium, two eels popping up to say hi top-left, as well as various other spiny waves ‘hello’.I think I found Nemo. This ‘photo-posing’ cylinder is kiddie-size so I had to crawl around on the floor to get in and out. Anything for a good photo, teehee.Baby shark, do do do do do do… See the shark pods top-left, baby sharks bottom right, penguins top right and Husband in explorer mode.We also saw stretching starfish, stripy fish, jellyfish and coral-like stonefish (look closely at the picture bottom-right for their orange faces!)Precious seahorses, glowing archways and various other fish.Even more sea critters – rays, crabs and coral.This selection of ‘tall things’ shows how the weather changed during our Waterfront visit. See the blue skies behind Life Grand Cafe on our way in, a clever ‘no-nonsense coffee guide’, and the decidedly grey skies behind a giraffe sculpture on our way out of the area.The colourful stairs to the Silo District, at the other end of the V&A Waterfront.It was a braai at Husband’s parents for dins that evening. See various braai meats, our green gazpacho starter made with Husband’s mum’s basil plant, as well as a very happy Bertie.
Sunday, 3 February 2019: Breakfast at the Blaauwberg Beach Hotel
Sunday was gloomy and grey and all day, with pockets of rain. We met Husband’s mom and brother at Waves restaurant at the Blaauwberg Beach Hotel, as his dad was taking part in a bike race in Stellenbosch. See some of the cheese and tomatoes at the breakfast buffet, as well as our strong cappuccinos and the grey skies outside.Breakfasting at Waves! See how full it was, and our table of food. That’s a peanut-butter breakfast waffle for me, the ‘breakfast burger’ with extra egg for the boys, and the smashed avo brekkie for their mum.Coffee, a book and spending time with my doglets made for a happy rainy Sunday morning.The sky had cleared up a little bit by the time we went for our Sunday treat that afternoon, but Husband didn’t get in.You know it’s cold if Husband has a coffee-based drink for his treat – even if he’s still wearing sleeveless vests. Lol. This is the Mexican coffee, featuring tequila, Kahlua, espresso and ice cream with a cinnamon rim – followed by the tomato sangrita shooter, while I had the enormous bowl of cooked Champurado – Masa harina, muscovado sugar, milk, dark chocolate, star anise, cinnamon and vanilla. The coffee and Champurado are both on the morning menu. Delicious!We had two types of pie with salad at Mum’s for lupper, followed by homemade peppermint-crisp tart while watching the cricket – yum! Also see Bertie enjoying the breeze on the way home, with his sweet head out the window.
That’s all, folks! It’s set to be another scorcher of a weekend so stay cool.
Boy do we have an action-packed blog update for you! This past week has been a super busy one, so you’re in for a bumper edition of pics below…
Friday, 31 November 2018: Staff end-of-year lunch at Strandkombuis in Yzerfontein
I got to work before 7am last Friday, but the sun was already up. I had lots to do and it was also the day of our staff end-of-year lunch at the Strandkombuis in Yzerfontein – see my ‘Hawaiian-themed’ outfit, and the huge loaves of farm-fresh bread we ate as starters. See my jammed-up bread slice next to my large bowl of spicy butternut soup, for size.It was quite a windy day but that didn’t stop us from exploring the venue and deserted beach. Also see the fish-filled menu for the day and a kitty more interested in his nap than in the food around him (though he did proudly parade through later, with a mouse in his mouth).My goodness, but the food was good. See a plate of the seafood option bottom-left; my braaied chicken and chops and pumpkin fritters top-right; and the plate of fresh koeksisters and pot of ‘moer koffie’ for dessert – we shared, that’s not all mine.One of the few team shots taken of the afternoon – thanks to my deskmate Angie for letting me use her snap!I got back home that evening just in time for a braai with Husband’s parents, who’d not been to our house since June, despite living just 2km away. See the pretty sunset, my food, and our pre- and post-loadshedding faces.
Saturday, 1 December 2018: A ‘staycation’ at Once in Cape Town
We breakfasted at Village Place in West Coast Village with Spec on Saturday morning. He was staying at our house all weekend, to keep the doggies company while we explored the Cape. He had the eggy mince on toast, Husband had an eggs benedict and for me, the low-carb flapjacks.Waves were crashing loudly at Husband’s favourite swimming hole in the sea that morning. He braved a quick dunk but didn’t stay in for long.Our venue for the weekend – the four-star Once in Cape Town backpackers’ lodge on Upper Kloof Street. It’s a wonderful setting with lots to do, and was buzzing with guests catching up at Yours Truly’s ‘Up Yours’ upper bar area and at the downstairs pool table throughout the weekend.See Husband testing out our en suite shower with mountain views beyond; the charming cactus decor in our private room; and ‘bedside tipple’ wine with tin mug.Bright, floral sights from the balcony at Once in Cape Town.We walked a few blocks up Kloof Neck Street to Van Hunks for an afternoon cocktail. See my espresso martini. Husband’s Bloody Mary, complete with celery stick, not pictured.We’d booked for an early dinner at Hudson’s Burger Bar, just a short walk from Once in Cape Town, so that was our next stop. See Husband trying out the top-deck shooter; my Strawberry Candyfloss ‘Insta’ shake; the interesting avo fries; and my delicious ‘bacon jam’ burger topped with thin, crispy ‘dusted onions’. A win!Ahh. The stunning sunset from that side of the Cape on the left, and our complimentary breakfasts downstairs in Yours Truly first thing on Sunday. Once in Cape Town’s guests have a choice of coffees, as well as a juice, fruit and either a croissant board or muesli bowl to start the day.
Sunday, 2 December 2018: Lucky & Lost Cape Peninsula tour
Breakfast down and check-out sorted, it was time for the full-day Lucky & Lost Cape Peninsula tour! We were the first guests to be collected, just after 8am, and the last to be dropped off back at Once in Cape Town after 5pm. See some of the sights and our Cape Malay curry ‘picnic lunch’ top-right.The beautiful Bo-Kaap, our first stop of the tour. We learned that back in the day, different house colours could denote different professions.Seeing some of the sights in the Bo-Kaap. We got to try some of those fresh ‘koesusters’ (not the koeksisters I ate on Friday) when we stopped on Chapman’s Peak Drive, later in the day.Next stop? The high cliffs above Muizenberg. I love the trees down below, beside the train track.Some of the sights we saw in Kalk Bay, Cape Point – see the ostrich family crossing the road, and lines and lines of penguins sunning themselves at Boulders Beach.If you peer closely, you’ll see Husband standing just in front of this crashing wave at the edge of Cape Point.Our next stop was one of my favourites – the Cape Point Vineyards in Noordhoek. It was a lovely afternoon to sit and sample white wines, while gazing at the gorgeous scenery.Taking in the sights on our last stop of the tour, along Chapman’s Peak Drive. Such a wonderful setting.You can see why Chapman’s Peak is such a popular tourist spot.The doglets were happy to finally see us again that evening. They just couldn’t contain their excitement. 😉Mum had made a delicious cinnamon-baby apple cake, just the thing on a Sunday evening with cream and a fresh coffee.
Tuesday, 4 December 2018: Heavy Chef’s YouTube masterclass at Workshop 17
My Tuesday was all about the Heavy Chef masterclass on ‘winning at YouTube’, held at the always-inspirational Workshop 17 venue. Coverage on Bizcommunity soon!
Wednesday, 5 December 2018: A loadshedding sundae at Milky Lane
We discovered that Table Bay Mall’s load-shedding schedule is different to ours at home, so that’s where we spent much of Wednesday evening’s ‘electricity-free hours. Husband decided we should share the ‘Churro-full of Smiles’ sundae at Milky Lane, so we did.Pretty pastel sunset on our way back home from the Mall.
That’s all, folks! Don’t forget to tune in next week, for my next update…
*Disclaimer: Our meals and accommodation at Once in Cape Town, Hudson’s, Yours Truly and Lucky & Lost were part of our review package. All else came from our own pockets. All enjoyed equally.
Last week was full of sunshine, good food and sweet doggie moments, as you’ll see from the pics below…
Saturday, 17 November 2018: Afternoon naps and braais
We had mall admin to sort out at Table Bay Mall first thing, so it was a Mugg & Bean breakfast for us. See our samples of blood-orange gingerade (very nice), the bottomless coffee station, table decor and our food, which Husband called ‘un-characteristically underwhelming’.We shared a savoury waffle for Saturday lunch at the Big Bay Waffle Company in Eden on the Bay. Also see my frozen white chocolate latte (frappe) and Husband’s white chocolate shake.Sweet doglets trying to wake their dad from his Saturday afternoon nap.The beautiful, bubbling sea – it looks lovely from a distance but was actually quite murky and foamy up close. So much so that Husband skipped his weekly sea dip!We attended a later-than-usual braai at Husband’s parents that eve, to coincide with the SA vs Scotland rugby match aired on TV after 7pm. See some of the food we ate, and the dessert Bassie wanted to eat.More scenes from the braai – Bassie smelling the flowers and eyeing the braai meat, Bertie licking his dad’s nose and sunset setting in.Bertie loved sitting wedged between his mom and grampa while watching the rugby after the braai.
Sunday, 18 November 2018: Melkbos morning
Our ‘I Love Melkies’ breakfast on Sunday morning was a win. See our coffees and the setting, as well as my bacon-marscapone-strawberry waffle.Husband’s second flat white and ‘hash and pork’ bowl, so good he declared it delicious.A beautiful lilac double-Adirondack I spotted while we were walking in Melkbos. I must have!We stopped in at Catch 22 on Marine Drive for Sunday afternoon treats. See Husband’s jumbo oysters and Bloody Mary, as well as my Ferrero Rocher shake. Yum!Table Mountain, as seen from the powdery sands of Dolphin Beach. The sea was still too choppy for a dip, alas.Mum made a chocolate peanut-butter cake that had us all asking for more.
Tuesday, 20 November 2018: R59 Tuesday pizza special at Panarotti’s
Husband had to work late on Tuesday evening, when my parents usually come over with dins, so instead we met them at Panarotti’s in Table Bay Mall for the R59 pizza special. All thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, from the pizza to the cherry cola and salted caramel shakes as sampled by me and dad. See Husband pretending to pour his glass of red into mum’s Sprite Zero.
Wednesday, 21 November 2018: Corinium’s Women in Digital and Data conference at The Forum, Embassy Hill
More scenes from in and around the venue.I’d never been to The Forum at Embassy Hill in Constantia, what a beautiful conference setting! The insights were also fantastic and will be featured on Bizcommunity over the coming weeks.
Thursday, 22 November 2018: HeavyChef’s ‘entrepreneurial grit’ masterclass at Workshop 17
One of the best cups of filter coffee I’ve ever had. Delicious and fresh, especially after dipping an arm elbow-deep into an ice bucket for almost 2 minutes for important lessons on mindset. Watch for my coverage of the masterclass on Bizcommunity, if you’re not sure what I mean by that!Some of the sights from inside Workshop 17. What a wonderful co-working space! Easy to see why so many work events are held at Workshop 17.
Not only does the title of this week’s blog post refer to the sheer squishiness of my cute critters, but also the fact that we had enormous braai marshmallows last weekend, which the doglets loved. See for yourself below…
Friday, 2 November 2018: Pink office birthday cake
We celebrated a colleague’s birthday with tea and the prettiest pink cake. Happy birthday, Clarina!Endless sky views on my way home from the office that afternoon.
Saturday, 3 November 2018: Halloween braai at Husband’s parents
We started our weekend with breakfast at Green’s in Plattekloof Village. See my apple-berry crumble and cappuccino, as well as Husband’s flat white, Coke Zero and open haddock omelette.Not your average ‘Husband in sea’ weekend pics.We saw people queuing to get into Xpresso, newly opened in Table Bay Mall, so stopped in to find out what all the fuss was about. Everything costs R10! Whether you’re having a fancy flavoured coffee, a sandwich roll, pastry or cold drink, you’ll only be parting with a single green note. Husband loved the con panna so much he had two of them, and my top-deck hot chocolate was delicious. We’ll be back!Husband’s parents hosted a Halloween-themed braai on Saturday evening. See our hasselback potatoes, pumpkin-filled gemsquashes and various braai meats.Bertie and his dad, watching some rugby (TV not pictured).Such well-behaved doglets waiting for braai treats from their dad.Main meals eaten, it was time for dessert. We had a jumbo bag of jumbo marshmallows to braai (see Bassie attempting a raw one). Bertie was more interested in my slice of milktart, teehee.Lol. Look at size of marshmallow. Look at size of mouth. Somehow it worked out!
Sunday, 4 November 2018: Bread & Butter’s single benedicts, jumbo oysters at Catch 22
We breakfasted at Bread and Butter on Sunday. See the enormous bacon, avo and egg-filled croissant as devoured by Spec, as well as the cakes on display, our flat whites and the single benedicts on sweet-potato bread, as eaten by Husband and me.We stopped in at Catch 22 later that afternoon, so Spec could try the jumbo oysters. I had a gingerbread latte, Husband had a Bloody Mary and Spec an Amstel.Make-your-own gatsby lupper at Mum’s! We had a choice of spicy chicken or chilli con carne to fill them with. Mmm.Lovey post-lupper treats at Mum’s that evening – madeira cake and coffee, both topped with cream.Precious doglets in various poses on the couch, as snapped over the weekend.
Wednesday, 7 November 2018: Team lunch at La Bottega
It had been a while since our last team lunch – we’ve all been so busy that we kept postponing. Luckily, Wednesday we finally made it happen. See some of the lovely poke bowls and pizzas we ate at La Bottega – the bacon and sliced-potato version is especially good – just up the road from our offices in Woodstock. Also see my Nutella-banana gourmet shake. Yum!(Almost) the whole gang was there!
That’s all, folks! It feels like we’ve switched back to Summer for now, stay cool.
Last week was a real scorcher, with the temperature over 30’C for most of the week – it’s like we skipped Spring this year!
Friday, 19 October 2018: Galliova Awards at De Grendel Estate
Last Friday, I attended the 29th Galliova Awards for SA food and health writers. The De Grendel venue is just gorgeous. See our welcome flutes of bubbly, me with SA foodie Dorah Sitole and the view across to Table Mountain.Bright, sunny setting inside De Grendel.Delicious snacks as we networked, before the main event.This is what we were in for…De Grendel proved itself worthy as venue for an award honouring food writers. See the cheese-filled starter, main course mushrooms and lamb, and strawberry sorbet with lemon dessert. Lip-smackingly good. Click here if you missed my full overview on Bizcommunity earlier in the week.
Saturday, 20 October 2018: Roasting rugby braai
We went to Village Place Cafe in West Coast Village for our Saturday morning breakfast. See our cappuccinos, my breakfast pot of granola, yoghurt and fruit, and Husband’s mince (and egg) on toast.Husband needed to briefly pop in to work on Saturday morning, so I accompanied him. See him through the Jack Daniels bottle cut out, and various other interesting design things I saw in his office.See Husband about to take his weekly dip in the sea and our afternoon treats at Doodles – a Castle Lite draught for Husband and the caramel shake for me – with blobs of Caramel Treat swirled throughout, it’s a real treat! 😉Saturday afternoon meant braai time while watching the rugby at Husband’s parents. See the veggie sosatie sticks, homemade wors, pretty little flowers and doglets interested in the milk tart and chocolate mousse dessert.Bassie was very amusing, while the 100-minute-plus rugby match unfolded on screen. See her slumped on the couch taking a nap on Uncle Spec’s lap, sitting with me as I sipped a Four Cousins’ Fiver strawberry-litchi cooler, and giving her dad the side-eye when he snapped a family pic outside at the braai.
Sunday, 21 October 2018: Trecastelli and Daily Cafe coffee treats
We kept things local with breakfast at Trecastelli in Marine Circle on Sunday. Husband had the cooked breakfast (still not on the menu) and I had the R40 cappuccino+custard croissant.Pretty colour-changing light streamers and blue skies, as seen through the sun roof at Table Bay Mall.We decided on tin cups (condensed milk coffees) and the coffee tasting tray at the Daily Cafe in Seaside Village for our Sunday afternoon treat.Mum whipped up the perfect lupper for a hot day – cold roast chicken with salads, fruit and vegetables. It was just the thing!Also see Mum’s very pretty fresh flowers, and the chocolate cake she baked – just because.The precious doglets lay on and around the couches once we were back home that evening – anything to be closer to the ceiling fan!
Thursday, 25 October 2018: The Digital Agency Showcase at Red & Yellow School
On Thursday, Red & Yellow School held their first ever digital agency showcase, where we listened to insights from the country’s top six digital agencies (as per the IAB Bookmark Awards).See me sitting with various industry friends over the course of the day – my first overview of one of the talks is live on Bizcommunity.
Wednesday, 24 October 2018: Sunset cocktails at Doodles
Beautiful view of Table Mountain across Table Bay on Wednesday evening.We stopped in at Doodles after work on Wednesday, as cocktails were R38 each from 6pm to 8pm. See the setting sun, my Intergalactic Gargle Blaster and Husband’s Long Island Ice Tea.
That’s all, folks! Here’s to another sunny weekend…
Last weekend we finally felt that the seasons have changed in the Cape. We even went to the beach for ice cream! And while there have been a few very chilly days since then, today was a scorcher and this weekend is set to be sunny and bright…
Wednesday, 26 September 2018: Planting vines and sampling wines at Ayama Wines, Slent Farm
Last Wednesday, I was part of a media group to visit a wine farm run by Italians – my full review of the experience will be up on Bizcommunity next week. For now, look at the picture-postcard scenery on our way to Ayama Wines in the Voor Paardeberg region, through Paarl.Soon enough, we were there. Ahh. You can just feel the peacefulness of the surroundings. There are 172 hectares in total, with the vines flown in from Italy and 95% of the output exported outside of SA, so no worries f you’ve not heard of Ayama Wines.We took a tractor tour of the land – see the sweet family doggy trotting along behind us in the bottom left pic. Also see lillies growing wild and in pots, and the protective blue booties we wore, to keep our shoes clean and the soil uncontaminated.See the new Ayama Wines tasting room, farm petrol pump and mill, some of the lovely eats we tried, and our take-home gift of artichoke (we also received a few bottles of wine, not pictured).
Friday, 28 September 2018: Creative Mornings event and end of #BI4Gov
My first stop last Friday – after a brief email check-in at the office – was taking part in a collaborative art experiment at the Creative Mornings Cape Town session for September, held at Friends of Design on Bree Street. Click here for my overview if you missed it.Next stop, the CTICC for day two of the #BI4Gov Behavioural Insights conference. If you missed it, click through to my article based on a tea break chat with MC, Africa Melane.Conference food at the CTICC is always welcome as it’s quite hunger-making work, frantically taking notes and chatting to people in the gaps.
Saturday, 29 September 2018: Coffee French toast, beach ice creams and family braais
For our ‘Yay, it’s the weekend’ breakfast, we went to Pulp Kitchen in Willowbridge Centre. See Husband’s Mexican chilli mince-filled ‘brekkie burrito’ topped with guac and salsa, our flat whites and the bicycle-themed decor.For me, the coffee French toast with maple syrup and coffee cream. So yum!Such lovely scenery, while riding through the Durbanville suburbs after breakfast.Later that afternoon we went to Sea Breeze, the ice cream place next to Pakalolo on Blouberg beachfront, as they make the perfect beach ice cream. This time I asked for a sugar cone, with mixed choc and vanilla soft serve, and a Flake, of course.Just as pretty in front of the spring flowers that cover the dunes! Delicious, too.Saturday afternoon meant it was time for a braai at Husband’s parents’ house. See the fire, the meat, sweet Bassie grinning, and our large, fresh strawberries for dessert.Sweet Bertie, all tuckered out on the couch that evening.
Sunday, 30 September 2018: Beach excursions in Melkbos and Blouberg
We decided on breakfast at The Hart in Melkbos on Sunday morning. I went for the single bacon benedict, Husband had the chorizo rosti and of course we each had a flat white, too.Our breakfast table at The Hart.Bellies full, we took ourselves for a little walk along the Melkbos beachfront. Husband went exploring for sea life out amongst the rocks, as he does, and showed me all sorts of mollusks and sea anemones.Later that afternoon, we set up camp at Blouberg beachfront. It was our first proper beach day since the weather has perked up a little. See me holding up our beach umbrella – it decided to up and blow away while Husband was in the sea, so I had to chase after it and pin it down.If you look closely, you’ll see Husband standing on the wall of rocks about in the middle of the ocean.Mum made all sorts of lovely summery foods for lupper – these are just the salads and accompaniments to various sausages and rolls.Mmm! And for dessert, we had both milktart and a chocolatey-lime mousse pudding. The doglets were Very Interested.
Tuesday, 2 October 2018: Delicious dins and drooling doglet
Mum outdid herself with a delicious gingery sweet-and-sour pork for lupper that evening, AND homemade Romany Cream-style biscuits! If you look closely at the picture of Bassie, you’ll see a bubble of drool. Teehee.
That’s all, folks! Enjoy the sunshine. 🙂
Ramblings, rumblings and random ruminations, version ii. Also reviews, recommendations and alliteration. Based on living the good life in the fairest Cape. Eating is my favourite pastime. Updated weekly
Rambling Litchii 