Rocomama’s BlackStar burger and lots of wintery dogs

This past weekend it was Husband’s turn to tackle all the weekend work so most of our pics were snapped at home while he worked, along with a few outings, of course…

Saturday, 6 July 2019: Rocomama’s BlackStar burger

We did our Discovery Health checks at Bayside Mall first thing on Saturday so popped into Mugg & Bean as soon as we’d been given the all-clear. See our cappuccinos and corner table.

To eat, Husband went for the full farmhouse option, while I had the choc-chip flapjack stack – one went home with me for afternoon tea.

My Saturday afternoon in a picture: Coffee, dogs, blankets and books.

Pretty girl looking concerned but actually feeling nice and snug after a weekend afternoon nap.

Sweet boy dog with neck extended for full warmth in front of the fire.

Husband took a break that afternoon so we all headed off to Rocomama’s together for a few fast favourites. See me and Dad with our shakes, Husband and Mum with their wine and beer, and Mum’s impressive black-bunned BlackStar chicken burger. Very tasty indeed.

All the burgers and fries. Yum!

Sunday, 7 July 2019: Breakfast at The Hart, Melkbos

Husband would be working for most of Sunday so we got up early to sort some weekend admin – and to have breakfast, of course. See our table at The Hart Breadhouse and Bakery in Melkbos. I had the single bacon benedict and a cappuccino, Husband opted for a flat white, Coke Zero and the breakfast salad filled with salmon. Delicious.

Sweet Bertie boy snuggled up warm in his sister’s clam shell bed.

My handsome, tired boys, much later that night. Insert heart-eyes emoji.

Monday, 8 July 2019: Homemade spag-bol to ward off the winter chill

Mum rustled up enormous helpings of ‘spag bol’ for Monday dins as it was a very chilly evening.

Tuesday, 9 July 2019: Conferencing at Kantar’s #GettingMediaRight event

On Tuesday, 9 July I attended Kantar’s #GettingMediaRight info-sharing session. See me with Jupiter Drawing Room MD Michelle Beh, the delicious cappuccino, and speakers for the morning Monique Claassen and Jane Ostler. Click here for my event report-back.

I was delighted when I got home from work to a doughnut treat on Tuesday evening.

Wednesday, 10 July 2019: Lunchtime lecture at Red & Yellow School

On Wednesday, I attended author Michael Smorenburg’s lunchtime lecture at Red & Yellow School. Click here for my event report-back.

That’s all, folks! See you next week – same time, same place. 🙂

Winter lunch at Terroir, Ou Meul’s red velvet lattes and midweek milkshakes at Rocomama’s

This past week has been busy but filled with delicious moments, as you’ll see from the pics below…

Tuesday, 4 June 2019: Terroir lunch at Kleine Zalze

On Tuesday, 4 June I was invited to celebrate Kleine Zalze’s second straight win as best New World Producer. Perfect way to prep for a media roadtrip – takeaway cappuccino from Tasha’s, then onto the shuttle!

This view of the submerged windwill is visual proof that you’re almost in Stellenbosch.

The wintery scene that met us at Terroir in Kleine Zalze, Stellenbosch.

More pre-food moments at Terroir.

The bread and antipasti on arrival, as well as stuffed chicken and Picanha steak. All the words are in my overview on Bizcommunity!

Delicious desserts! A selection of petit fours, cheese board platters and a cappuccino just before the rain started up again.

Thursday, 6 June: Doggy burger-bun beds and Rocomama’s dins with Gords

Sweet Bassie finally using her burger-bun bed when I worked from home on Thursday.

Speaking of burgers… Gords was in town for a few days of business so stayed with us on Thursday night. We treated him to dins at our nearest Rocomama’s.

Two milkshake slurpers in action! Gords had strawberry, I went for espresso. Yum.

Friday, 7 June 2019: Pink, streaky sky over Woodstock

Pink, streaky sky over Woodstock as seen from work as the sun rose around 8am.

Doglets warming themselves in front of the fire that evening.

Saturday, 8 June 2019: Woolworth’s breakfast repeat, lamb roast

We started our weekend with a dose of mall admin, so W Cafe in Woolworth’s, Table Bay Mall was our first stop. See my vanilla-cinnamon cappuccino and croissant French toast, as well as Husband’s chilli-egg omelette. Yes, this is a carbon copy of last Saturday’s breakfast!

Husband far out to sea later that day. This is his “Winter? What Winter” pose.

Husband’s parents invited us over for a lamb roast on the braai on Saturday night. See our happy faces.

Husband and Bassie pre- and post-dins. Lol! Bertie was there too, but moved too fast for photos.

Sunday, 9 June 2019: Red velvet lattes and sweet moments with the doggies

We breakfasted at Ou Meul Bakery in Willowbridge Centre on Sunday morning. See my delicious red-velvet latte and Nutella-berry croissant French toast, as well as Husband’s hummus toast and flat white (unpictured).

Sweet doggy moments later that day (some them literally sweet, with cake and doughnuts).

That’s all, folks! We hope you have a lovely long weekend and Father’s Day with your family.

*Disclaimer: My food and drink at Terroir in Kleine Zalze was part of our review package. All else came from our own pockets. All enjoyed equally.

A misty Winter 2019 stay in Paternoster’s Abalone House

Last weekend we were treated to a winter stay at Abalone House, Paternoster. Reuben’s is no longer the on-site restaurant, but our meals were just as good – if not better – than on our last visit…

Friday, 31 May 2019: Creative Mornings Cape Town at AAA School

I started my Friday at the May 2019 edition of Creative Mornings Cape Town, featuring Ashley Dowds. See the delicious coffee and doughnut treat, and watch for my overview of his talk on Bizcommunity next week!

Saturday, 1 June 2019: Roadtrip to Abalone House, Paternoster

We started our weekend with breakfast at Woolworth’s in Table Bay Mall. See my croissant French toast and vanilla-cinnamon cappuccino, as well as Husband’s enormous chilli egg omelette.

Our misty, 100-minute roadtrip was enjoyable, bar three ‘stop-go’ sections, but we were happy to see our destination at the curve of the road – the always-lovely Abalone House, Paternoster.

Nothing warms the cockles of the heart more than sitting in a little bit of wintery sunshine, with welcome drinks on the deck. Lovely flutes of bubbly!

Spot the husband amongst the Tretchikoffs! He’s printed a few of these over his career as it’s a popular choice in the local design industry, so had to snap a few pics.

Abalone House just shouts ‘Winter comfort’ to me – probably because of all the fireplaces, well-stocked bookshelves and cute in-room rubber duckies! Also see the gorgeous but laughably cold pool – we’ll have to return in Summer to try it out.

We noticed signs for the Crayfish Wharf for the first time on this visit to Paternoster, so drove down to explore. It’s a lovely spot when the mist lifts!

To the beach! The weather seemed to be getting worse, so we took a chance in walking down to the beach. It was too misty for more than a few quick snaps, so we hurried back to Abalone House to jump into the Jacuzzi.

Teehee! I call this ‘the cat of Paternoster’. This kitty in the window watched us on our way to and from the beach.

Also meet the kitties of Abalone House! Chelsea rushed over to greet us and even Toffee gave a meow of remembrance once we entered our room – the exact same one as last time. The kitties loved the under-carpet heating!

You’ll find me in the Jacuzzi… The rooftop Jacuzzi seemed to heat up much faster than on our previous visit, so we spent much of our afternoon there, gazing across the bay when the mist allowed. Also see Husband having a final steamy dip after dinner in the bottom-left pic.

Dinner is served! See the excitement on my face at the delicious, fresh rolls that appeared while we were deciding on our orders from the menu. We each went with a starter and main from the menu for the night: The ‘three-cheese soup with bacon and red pepper’ for me, and crispy pork belly with spicy croquet and pineapple chutney, ginger-infused honey jus as my main, while Husband enjoyed the chili-salt squid starter with crisp paper vegetable salad, lime mayo and nuac cham starter followed by the char-grilled fillet mignon with cauliflower puree, baby carrots, potato fondant and green peppercorn emulsion. A truly delicious meal, my only disappointment was the firm shake of the head response when I asked about milkshakes, as I had a delicious strawberry one last time – oh well, the #MilkshakeQueen will return!

The best of our ‘gown shots’ from this stay.

Sunday, 2 June 2019: Morning massages and breakfast buffets

Breakfast’s the best meal of the day, especially if you have yours at Abalone House! See the buffet table spread, Bloody Mary station, where guests are encouraged to fix their own, Terbodore cappuccinos and our Eggs Benedicts – parma ham for me, salmon for Husband. Yum!

Husband heading off to the Spa building for his 30-minute Majestic Awakening head-neck-and-shoulders massage.

Another gorgeous Tretchikoff inside the Spa building. I paged through magazines and enjoyed the citrussy scents while waiting for Husband as he enjoyed our complimentary massage. I’d been struggling with a pinched nerve in my shoulder that week so didn’t want to risk further pain – luckily, Husband said it was soothing and just what he needed to face the week ahead.

Quality time with the sweet doglets that afternoon, once we were back home safe and sound. Both seen getting TLC from their Grandpa here.

That’s all, folks! We hope your weekend is warm and filled with good food. 🙂

*Disclaimer: Our accommodation and meals at Abalone House were part of our review package. All else came from our own pockets. All enjoyed equally.

Easter weekend 2019: Bee hive removal, caramel-choc hot cross buns and fondue

Last weekend was longer than usual as it was the Easter weekend, and we took an extra day’s leave on the Thursday…

Monday, 15 April 2019: After-work book launch in Woodstock

I popped in at the Test Kitchen in the Old Biscut Mill after work last Monday, for the launch of Sandalene Dale-Roberts’ latest cookbook, The Inside Job. See some of the decor and food that we sampled from the book.

Couldn’t resist snapping this wall art outside the Old Biscuit Mill, on my way home that evening.

Wednesday, 17 April 2019:  Start-of-weekend dins at CTFM

Our gardener pointed out an enormous beehive in a corner of the garden, which we had removed. The bees were taken to safety, and we were left with lots of honeycomb!

Bee rescue complete, we headed to CTFM in Seaside Village for a ‘welcome to the long weekend’ meal. See the parents’ prawns, my beef burger, Husband’s Teriyaki salmon and the top of my berry bomb gourmet shake.

The whole family, enjoying our CTFM dins – especially as we used our Entertainer vouchers for added value!

Thuesday, 18 April 2019: Car service day, swing benching with Bassie

We had taken Thursday off from work as our car was booked in for a service, walking distance from home. That was our first stop on Thursday…

Breakfast is much more satisfying if you’ve worked – made that walked – for it! See the lovely sun-dappled path, and our breakfast at Reload, Flamingo Vlei. Husband had the Turkish eggs and a double flat white, I had a peppermint-choc latte and the chicken-mayo bacon bagel. Just right, before the walk back home.

Bassie loved sitting on the swing bench with me on Thursday evening.

The tree is quite a sight when it’s all lit up! We ate outside that night.

Friday, 19 April 2019: Good Friday hot cross buns, Irish nachos and jalapeno poppers at Saint’s

We all breakfasted together at News Cafe on Friday morning. See my early bird full English breakfast.

Sweet little Bassie was Very Interested in my chocolate hot cross bun, especially as I’d filled it with Caramel Treat. Caramel-chocolate hot cross buns were advertised anywhere, but none were in stock, so I made my own.

We stopped in at Saint’s for a late-afternoon treat. See my cafe Capri – a latte with chocolate and coconut, as well as Husband’s spiked shake with black beer, Irish whiskey and Nutella, his ‘green hot’ jalapeno poppers wrapped in bacon and my ‘Irish nachos’. Yum!

It was cold enough that evening for us to put our new fireplace to use for the first time. Bassie enjoyed it but Bertie LOVED it. See various phases of his evening enjoyment here.

Saturday, 20 April 2019: Velvet Cake Co’s Easter slice

Makro was our first stop on Saturday, so we ate at the in-store restaurant, Cafe De La Fe. See my toasted chicken mayo and Husband’s full cooked breakfast, as well as his large cream-topped cappuccino – my latte is just out of sight.

Sweet Bertie boy stretched out to fully enjoy the Saturday sunshine.

We popped in at Husband’s parents for a quick pre-Easter visit on Saturday afternoon. See the delicious slice of ‘Easter cake’ from the Velvet Cake Co top right.

Beautiful citrussy skies at night.

Sunday, 21 April 2019 Easter Sunday fondue fun at home

We had a mall admin morning on Sunday, so breakfasted at Woolworths Cafe. See my vanilla-cinnamon cappuccino and poached egg bowl, as well as Husband’s chilli omelette and double flat white.

Husband made friends with what the Robben Island website tells us is a Cape Dwarf chameleon that had been exploring the garden. Much larger than the little guy from a few weeks ago, so it’s probably his dad or older brother. Click here if you’ve forgotten!

Happy Easter! See our pretty pink roses, Dad with leafy ‘bunny ears’, and our lovely pork and veggies fondue.

Monday, 22 April 2019: Easter Monday breakfast at On the Rocks, lupper at Rocomama’s

It was a crisp but beautiful day on Monday, so we started ours with breakfast at On the Rocks. See our cappuccinos as well as Husband’s croque Madame and my French toast with berries and ice cream.

After much lazing around, we had an ‘end-of-the-holiday’ treat visit at Rocomama’s that afternoon. See our smiles and my espresso shake. Not pictured – our delicious burgers and Husband’s draught beer.

Tuesday, 23 April 2019: Chocolate bunnies to get back into work mode

The return to work on Tuesday was sweetened by the Lindt bunny waiting on my laptop.

Wednesday, 24 April 2019: Pre-work coffee treat at Tribe

Husband had a work meeting in town first thing on Wednesday, so dropped me off at work on the way. But first, coffee! We love the blend at Tribe, which is over the road from my office, and all coffees are R15 if ordered before 9am. See our tall flat whites, the wall mural outside and some literal spilt milk on the steps outside. We didn’t cry over it.

That’s all, folks! We hope you have a restful weekend ahead 🙂

Doodles’ mid-week winter specials and sunsets over the sea

We’ve both been battling a Winter cold this past week so when not at work, we mainly stayed home to avoid the rainy weather (at last!) You’ll also notice this week’s selection of pics strongly features snaps of the doggies watching us eat…

Friday, 8 June 2018: Raisin scones drop-off

I worked from home last Friday to skip the long commute in to the office, and mum popped in with a homemade treat – raisin scones, fresh out the oven. So yum!

Saturday, 9 June 2018: Reading on couches with dogs

We breakfasted at our local Lacomia’s Cafe in Builder’s Warehouse of Saturday morning, as Husband had all sorts of odds and ends to purchase and tick off on his DIY list. See my cafe mocha and toasted chicken mayo, as well as Husband’s cappuccino, his cola in the background and his sloppy joe eggy mince on toast.

I spent most of my Saturday afternoon reading on the couch with the doggies. You can just see Bassie, popping up behind my legs. They’re such sweet snuggle buddies.

Mmm, soup! We were both feeling quite under the weather that evening so soup with rolls in front of a roaring fire seemed the best idea for dins. It was.

Sunday, 10 June 2018: Reload dog park breakfast, Limnos treat

We had Sunday breakfast at Reload at the Leadville dog park in Sunningdale (our not-so-social doggies stayed at home, though). See my Mediterranean bagel topped with hummus, onions and avo, as well as my peppermint-choc latte and Husband’s ‘trim’ bacon and bockwurst open omelette.

The peppermint-choc latte is delicious and sweet enough that you don’t need to add any sugar.

Here is Husband, tentatively sipping on a triple cappuccino. We had initially sat outside to watch the doggies play in the park but the wind soon proved too gusty, especially given our compromised immune systems.

Our breakfast table looked like this.

Then it was time for some weekend admin. When we saw Limnos had finally opened in the Table Bay Mall, of course we stopped in for a look and take-home treat. I went for a salambo eclair, which is just delicious – choux pastry with vanilla cream piped in through the base, and topped with syrupy almond slivers. Yum! See Bassie pretending not to watch me eat it in the last photo.

This is post-salambo, pre-coffee. Bassie was happy to snuggle with me on the couch while I convalesced with a new book.

Mum made a lovely trifle for Sunday lupper-dessert.

You can just see the doggies watching their granny eat hers in the background here.

Tuesday, 12 June 2018: Monthly radio recording at 2OceansVibe

On Tuesday, my colleague Angie and I popped in at the 2OceansVibe recording studio in Cartel House, Loop Street for our second show. We stopped in for a post-show coffee and caught up on emails at Cafe du Cap downstairs.

We were careful not to ‘drop the mic. Lol.

Wednesday, 13 June 2018: Mid-week winter dins at Doodles

We stopped in for dins at Doodles on Wednesday to celebrate both finally feeling a bit better from this change-of-season cold. Husband had the winter bangers and mash special for R59, plus a glass of red to wash it down, I had the Wednesday burger and chips special (it’s another R59 meal, but I ordered a latte instead).

The cold front was due to hit the following day so watching the sun setting over the sea after dins seemed extra special as we’d be stuck indoors for the next few days.

Bertie was happy to snuggle with me again that eve in front of the fire.

That’s all, folks! Stay warm and well, and have a happy Father’s Day weekend 🙂

Beach dogs, art galleries and a splash of coffee

The past week-and-a-bit was filled with dashing around from work event to work event, a few arty moments – and coffee, of course…

Monday, 21 May 2018: Social media workshop at Southern Sun Newlands

I spent all of last Monday at the Southern Sun Newlands, soaking up knowledge from the Vivid Engage ‘understanding social media and using it to market your business’ workshop. Click here if you missed my overview on Biz!

It was a wonderfully rainy day so we were happy to batten down the hatches, ask questions and take notes. There was a tempting foosball table right outside the conference room and also lovely conference food in the Newlands Cafe downstairs at lunch time.

Tuesday, 22 May 2018: Startupbootcamp FastTrack interview

Then on Tuesday I dashed off the Old Mutual Centre in Pinelands for a quick lunchtime interview with Phil Kiracofe, CEO of Startupbootcamp. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, click here to educate yourself!

Thursday, 24 May 2018: Afternoon at Southern Guild

I’d been to Southern Guild’s gallery space once before, when they were just up the road in Woodstock (that’s where we snapped this pic of me in a Porky Hefer original), but not since their move to the Silo side of the V&A Waterfront a year ago, so was only happy to attend their ‘announcement event’. The actual content shared is under wraps for another week still, but you can take in some of the scenes so long – that’s a glass of Krone in the bottom right…

Some of the sights in and around Southern Guild. It was another much-needed rainy day, so my umbrella tagged along for the trip.

Sweet little Bassie warming herself in front of the fire that evening.

Saturday, 26 May 2018: Golden lattes and ground-splattered ice creams

We had some mall admin to do so breakfasted at W Cafe at Woolworths in the new Table Bay Mall. See me smelling my ‘golden latte’ – turmeric, ginger and cinnamon. Also Husband’s flat white in the background, his exotic shroom bowl and my Nutella French toast. Yum!

The weather had turned crisp yet sunny that afternoon, so Husband had his weekend plunge in the Atlantic.

Isn’t this the saddest thing you’ve ever seen? Luckily not mine, but it was right outside our car when we returned from our beach visit.

Sunday, 27 May: Cup & Cake brunch, Jerry’s burger’s lunch and train station collection

We had brunch at Cup & Cake with Husband’s parents on Sunday. See my creamy spiced chai latte at Cup & Cake.

Ah, pancakes! Cup & Cake’s current special is three cinnamon-sugar ones for R20. They’re fresh and tasty.

We had early lupper at Jerry’s on the beachfront as we’d only be collecting my parents from the train station much later that eve. Husband told me to pose.

The view at Jerry’s is quite something, as is the food. Husband went for a Bloody Jerry to drink and Drunken chicken burger to eat, while I opted for the peanut butter-banana shake and the ‘Heart attack’ burger with sweet potato fries. We ate it all.

Finally! Husband managed to get us onto the exact platform at Cape Town station where the Rovos rail would eventually pull up, so we were there to film my parents and their new friends as they got off the train.

Monday, 28 May 2018: Almost-disastrous day-off dog walkies

After some bike admin first thing on Monday – the reason we’d taken a day’s leave – my parents treated us to breakfast at All in the Kitchen, which is only open on weekdays. I agree that coffee is always a good idea! See the pretty foamy flat whites, my ‘nutters’ granola bowl, the bacon-cheese croissant Husband and Mum went for, and Dad’s toasted bacon-and-egg.

Such an attractive breakfast spread!

We drove the doggies up to Kreeftebaai and due to the chilly weather with drizzle on-and-off, found it absolutely deserted. The doggies had a ball running to and fro.

Sweet little Bassie running back towards me from all the way up the coast. You’ll notice her brother is nowhere in sight.

See Bassie trotting sweetly beside her dad, only to realise brother Bertie is long gone chasing birdies up the coast. We drove two beaches further up before Husband found him gazing out at sea in ‘wild dog’ mode. Bassie won’t admit it but she was slightly concerned. All’s well, though!

All tuckered out, Bertie was very content to just lie on the warm blankets that evening.

Thursday, 31 May 2018: Crystal Towers working breakfast

I met a PR colleague for our annual catch-up chat first thing on Thursday. It was yet another much-needed rainy day so the strong cappuccinos were just what we ordered.

That’s all, folks! May your weekend be happy and warm; and your ice-cream not go splat on the ground.

CTFM sunsets and Father-in-law’s 75th birthday breakfast at McPherson’s

Last weekend we celebrated Father-in-Law’s 75th birthday with a family breakfast at McPherson’s, amongst other things…

Friday, 13 April 2018: Cupcakes and braais

My favourite moments from last Friday – office birthday cake, also a small home braai and the doggies coming to fetch me from the bus stop after work. Bless.

Saturday, 14 April 2018: 75th birthday breakfast at McPherson’s

We all met up at McPherson’s for breakfast on Saturday morning to celebrate Father-in-Law’s 75th birthday the day before. See Mother-in-Law with the cutlery top-left, my parents with strong cappuccinos bottom-right as well as the R25 ‘bacon-eggs-toast’ breakfast bottom-left and the French toast with bacon and grilled banana top-right. Delicious and such good value, in a pretty setting.

The McPherson’s cat looked much orange-r, fluffier and larger than the last few times we’ve seen it – perhaps a different cat?

Full family photo with the birthday boy front and centre. This is best version of the many attempts we took, take my word for it 😉

Later that afternoon we soaked up some sunshine in and around the V&A Waterfront. This was taken while looking around the cruise terminal at the harbour.

Gourmet milkshakes, yes please! I had to work that evening so we went out for early dins, and decided to finally try the CTFM at Seaside Village – we’d popped in a few times but never ordered anything. See the gourmet shakes – I went for the caramel pop. Yum.

To eat, Husband had a salmon handroll and the East Coast mussel potjie, while I went with the lamb croquettes.

Lights and driftwood and birdies make up the pretty decor inside the Seaside Village branch of Cape Town Fish Market…

Just in case you didn’t know where we were eating, I branded my finger.

Precious doglets pretending they just happened to end up asleep on the couch together by the fire while I was working later that night.

Sunday, 15 April 2018: La Rocca breakfast

W.e were meeting Brother-in-Law Spec at the movies in Canal Walk later in the morning so decided on breakfast at La Rocca. See my latte and toasted chicken-mayo with rustic fries, as well as Husband’s Mexican eggs benedict topped with prego sauce.

We had pork roast with roast potatoes for lupper at Mum’s that evening.

For dessert, slices of berry ice-cream ‘cake’ Mum whipped up.

Monday, 16 April 2018: Sunset burger special at CTFM

We’d enjoyed our meal at CTFM so much that we returned for dins on Monday. Glass of red wine and choc-cookie gourmet shake with sunset-over-sea views after a tough day at work? Don’t mind if we do!

Pretty pink clouds at sunset, as seen from our table.

To eat, this time Husband had the ‘salmon poppers’ starter followed by the fish curry, while I had the choc-cookie gourmet shake and the R55 Monday burger special.

That’s all, folks! It’s definitely Autumn here in the Cape so I’m looking forward to lots of hot drinks and hugs for warmth.

Autumn Risotto Pop-Up Experience at 95 Keerom and Gords’ visit

Last week was really busy and quite chilly but filled with happy, delicious moments, too…

Wednesday, 4 April 2018: Autumn Risotto Pop-Up Experience at 95 Keerom and Gords’ visit

I’d been invited to review the Autumn Risotto Pop-Up Experience at 95 Keerom on Wednesday afternoon, so of course I accepted the offer. Each bowl was delicious, especially accompanied by Steenberg Wines’ finest.

The food and the drink. Yes, I ate all this. Click through for details and full descriptions in my official review on Bizcommunity.

Gords, one of Husband’s oldest friends from our Joburg days, was in Cape Town on business on Wednesday so we jumped at the chance to see him at Husband’s parents’ house. See various happy moments below – yes, the doggies were there, too.

Husband’s Mum cooked up haggis, chilli con carne, potatoes and various veg in honour of Gords’ visit. See how thrilled Bertie was to greet Gords, also see my Mum with Bassie (my parents popped in for a quick visit, too).

Friday, 6 April 2018: Doggies warming themselves at the fire

The doggies warming themselves at the fire last Friday evening.

Sleepy sweethearts.

Precious little Bassie peeping out from under her blankie.

Saturday, 7 April 2018: Coffee-filled breakfast at The Daily

The Daily at Seaside Village in Big Bay had revamped its menu so we went for a quick taste. As it was first thing in the morning, we started with coffee! See various shots of Husband’s ‘con panna’ (espresso topped with cream) and my latte.

To eat we went with old favourites – toasted chicken mayo in white for me, eggs florentine for Husband. See shots of how they were served on the left and after we’d doctored them with sauces on the right.

After a fair deal of weekend admin we decided on an early dinner at The Orient in Eden on the Bay that evening. See various hand rolls, sashimi and maki consumed by Husband, and my cashew chicken dish bottom left.

Sunday, 8 April 2018: Coffee at Reload, breakfast at Tables at Nitida, liquid treats at Pakalolo

We were up earlier than necessary on Sunday so stopped for a fancy coffee treat first thing. The outside seating area at Reload in Parklands is inviting.

See my peppermint-chocolate latte and various weekend newspapers. Sunday morning bliss.

As we’d not seen them the day before, we met Husband’s parents at Tables at Nitida for breakfast. It’s such a pretty spot!

Love the mosaic tables at Tables (lol) – also see my Milo shake;, the general ‘bacon-eggs-mushrooms-tomato’ brekkie ordered by Husband’s parents; my brioche French toast with jar of scrumptious caramelised bananas and nuts; and Husband’s Italian-style chorizo-pepper-feta-spring onion open-faced omelette. No wonder their tagline is ‘For the love of food!’

Tables at Nitida always makes us feel welcome. “May all who enter as guests leave as friends.”

After we’d ‘left as friends’, we stopped in at Klein Rosboom for a look around. The entry table is just so pretty. Insert heart-eyes emoji.

Some of the lovely sights at Klein Roosboom. We found ‘die hang gat’, where you can sit in a swing chair while tasting wine. Such fun!

You can see us peeking into another of the tasting room ‘caves’ at Klein Roosboom in the mirror here.

Much later that afternoon, after lots of manual labour in the garden, we stopped in at Pakalolo on the beachfront for a liquid treat. It was a frosty Castle Light draught for Husband and raspberry virgin daquiri for me. Delicious!

You can just make out Husband behind my virgin raspberry daquiri here. Lol.

Ahh. That’s how you spend a Sunday afternoon. Sipping daquiris and staring at sea views.

Mum outdid herself with homemade gnocchi and a crunchy salad for lupper that eve.

Wednesday, 11 April 2018: Overcast fiery skies at night

Overcast sunset sky at night…

Thursday, 12 April 2018: ‘Feel better’ pastries from Trescatelli Bakery

Cloud-flecked sunrise sky in the morning.

There was a bus strike on Thursday and I wasn’t feeling 100% so worked from home that day. Day made when my parents popped in with delicious pastries! See huge mug of coffee with chocolate and vanilla-cream cannoli from Trescatelli Bakery here. Mmm.

That’s all, folks! Have a delicious weekend 🙂

Bassie turns 11 over Easter long weekend 2018

Little Bassie is now 11 years old and we had a wonderful time celebrating her special day last weekend, as you’ll see from the pics below…

Thursday, 29 March 2018: First fire of 2018

It was rather chilly last Thursday evening, so we lit our first fire of the year in the fireplace. I warmed my bare feet while the doggies happily huddled nearby – Bassie is on the couch, if you’re trying to spot her.

Friday, 30 March 2018: Cup & Cake breakfast on Good Friday

After a leisurely lie-in we decided on Cup & Cake in Eden on the Bay for breakfast. See my caramel latte to start the day.

The food was so good! I had the French Toast sandwich with banana, sweet fried onions and cream cheese while Husband had a classic eggs benedict.

It was a cold day, overall, as is usual for Good Friday – note the Winter grey sky and green sea. Note that Husband was just exploring along the coastline, he did not take a dip.

We picked up some Good Friday treats, to last throughout the long Easter weekend.

Bassie pretended to not be interested in the chocolate hot-cross buns. See her ‘not looking at the foodies’ face on the second shot.

Saturday, 31 March 2018: Musselling in Bloubergstrand

Surprise! We’d just ordered our food and drinks for breakfast at News Cafe with brother-in-law Spec on Saturday morning (he’d slept over at ours) when Mum and Dad walked in! See our various coffees topped with foam hearts and elephants, early bird breakfast specials and the City Slicker eggs benedict Husband ordered for a change.

Proof we were all there.

Then it was time for musselling with Husband’s family, just down the road at Bloubergstrand. All equipped with permits and a suitably low tide, they were ready to wade in.

This lovely golden retriever doggie came bounding over to sit with me after his dip in the sea. His name was Charlie.

You can just make out the mussellers near the rocks here.

We decided on liquid treats at Saint’s in Eden on the Bay later that afternoon. See Spec’s blueberry mojito, my Insomniac shake and Husband’s ‘Fat Mary’ – a bloody Mary topped with candied bacon. Yum!

Husband finally had his proper dip in the sea that afternoon.

The mussels had since been cleaned and cooked, and were eaten as a starter by the others at the braai at the parents later that afternoon. There was also a ‘rosbif’ (roast beef) braaied on the Weber-spit with taters, and lots of veg.

Of course there were all sorts of Easter goodies for dessert. Also see the doggies sitting sweetly.

Bassie was very interested in all the Easter treats but received her own doggy treats as it was the day before her birthday.

Sunday, 1 April 2018: Easter Sunday and Bassie’s 11th birthday

Bassie got lots of special birthday girl attention on Sunday. See Bertie just under Husband’s arm, not willing to move out of the photo.

Surprise (again!) We had just ordered our food and drinks at Mugg & Bean in Table Bay Mall on Sunday morning when Mum and Dad appeared! We moved to a bigger table to eat together. See dad’s ‘serious cappuccino’ and blueberry flapjacks on top, my banoffee French toast bottom left, Mum’s avo egg toast in the middle and Husband’s M&M Classic.

We stopped in at Eden Cafe for our Sunday afternoon treats. See my passionfruit shake and Husband’s Castle Lite.

Various attempts at getting the birthday girl to look happy in her birthday-hat pic this year (her hat is smaller than the one the rest of us wear, but still a little big for her).

Mmm. We’d brought along a malva pudding-style sticky-toffee baked pudding for Easter dessert.

Monday, 2 April 2018: Family Day doggy beach walks

We breakfasted at Cafe Lacomia in our nearest Builder’s Warehouse on Monday. See Husband’s sloppy joe, my toasted chicken mayo and my cafe mocha.

The weather was finally right for a doggie beach visit late on Monday morning.

Doggies running eagerly towards the sea with Husband.

We really kept things local this past long weekend. For our Monday treat we decided on an early-dins at Doodles…

See Husband’s linefish of the day (angelfish) with veg and baked potato, as well as my melt burger with pepper sauce and Bar-one shake.

The sea was crashing over the rocks with Table Mountain under a light cloudy duvet as we took the scenic route home.

I had a belated Easter treat with a cup of coffee in a reindeer mug that evening. Delicious!

That’s all, folks! Keep your eyes peeled for next week’s update, which will feature a visit from special friend, Gords. Have a happy weekend 🙂

What to do in Tulbagh

It feels like we’ve been celebrating it for months already (well, we have been), but last Friday was finally our 10th wedding anniversary. Though we both worked on the day, we had the opportunity to spend the weekend in sun-drenched Tulbagh – what a treat it was, as you’ll see below…

Saturday, 26 August 2017: Roadrip to Tulbagh and Oakhurst Olives

A roadtrip selfie is a must, especially if you’re passing bright canola fields just before the start of Spring, as we did…

The crops of canola appear out of nowhere and are so very pretty, it’s like someone spilled bright yellow below and blue above.

The first stop on our schedule was Oakhurst Olives, just a little bit out of town and well worth a visit. We did olive oil shots (yes really – quite the experience!) We also dipped the most delicious bits of freshly baked bread into it and smeared a tasty olive tapanade on the rest. You can buy all their products right there, so we did.

Once you’ve climbed the stairs you marvel at the view outside.

If you have the time, take a little wander around the property. There are lilies and ponies and not-so-wild horses roaming the grounds.

Like this guy! He came running over to say hi when he saw us. Such a friendly horsey. Loved having his nose and neck rubbed. The dark one in the bottom right wasn’t quite as keen.

Next stop, check in at the Tulbagh Heritage Boutique Hotel. There were beautiful Proteas everywhere we looked, and just look at those rooms! A ginormous royal bed, bright fluffy gowns that put the usual scratchy white ones hotels offer to shame, and the fireplace downstairs in the restaurant.

Some of the outside scenes. The stairway up to our room, a quaint water feature, big chilly pool, and the bar that was packed to sardine levels just before dins that evening with McGregor-Mayweather preamble.

First up at the hotel, lunch! We seated ourselves beneath the shade of the tree on the terrace where Husband enjoyed a BBQ chicken butterflied burger while I made a go at the ‘Schuster’ (there’s a pizza on my terrace) – crispy based with rocket, peppadews, feta, avo and slices of biltong, it was enormous – we took the rest up to our room to snack on later.

I had ample opportunity for coffee with a view here. See the Olive Terrace below our room, an inviting bench and the must-dunk rusks in our room.

Late-afternoon is just the right time to take a quick tour of the town, as the setting sun gives the light a magical quality.

A walking tour of Historic Church Street is highly recommended. There are guided tours, but we ventured out on our own and had a wonderful time reading up on the various beautiful old homesteads and appealing coffee shops.

The cemetery is peaceful and sunny if you’re not freaked out by things like that.

The botanical gardens grounds were open so we soaked up some sunshine, and also popped in to the Paddagang to see their interesting decor.

Tulbagh really is an undiscovered gem of a town. Everyone greets you in the streets and you see sights like this almost every which way you turn your head.

We were back in time to watch the sun set from our balcony.

The rooms are bright, airy and beautifully decorated. Plus, little bite-size nougat treats are left on your pillow! Such a nice touch.

We sampled some truly delicious dishes for dinner in the completely booked out Olive Terrace restaurant that evening. See my Frangelico Hazelnut Mochaccino, the Cape Malay Lamb curry Husband enjoyed with sambals and popadoms, while I went for the spicy Mexican bean soup with nachos and guacamole, and ended off with the coffee creme brulee and an unpictured whisky dom pedro for Husband. No wonder this has been voted the top restaurant in Tulbagh on TripAdvisor for three years running!

Tummies purring, we stepped outside again to see the blue-lit tree after dins and took our customary ‘gownie snap’ once we’d settled in for the night.

Sunday, 27 August 2017: Breakfast at the Olive Terrace, ziplining with Ceres Zipslide Adventures

Breakfast! Yes, this was to be our third meal at the Olive Terrace, and we were the only ones to brave sitting outdoors as there was a slight chill. The cappuccinos were strong and the food just what we were after – the homemade granola was sweet rolled oats baked in local vanilla and honey, topped with toasted seeds and fruit from the Tulbagh region, as well as thick, unsweetened Greek yoghurt with a side jar of honey to drizzle to your heart’s content. Being a benedict-man, Husband went for the eggs royale, served on sweetcorn-pumpkin fritters. Yum!

After a quick checkout it was time for a very short roadtrip. Fields of pink blossoms lined the way into Ceres.

Just 20 minutes later we were harnessed, helmeted and ready to zip our way through the Ceres valley with Ceres Zipslide Adventures! Quite the different experience to when I first went ziplining along the Acrobranch obstacle course earlier this year, click here for a reminder…

This is a screenshot of the Ceres valley ziplining area from one of the videos Husband filmed.

Wheeee! Off I go! You zip across 1.4km over 8 different sections. It’s a wonderfully exhilarating activity, definitely a reason to add Ceres to your Cape travel itinerary.

There are fields and hills and vales and peaks to explore as you slowly make your way home again – thanks for a wonderful time, Tulbagh!

*Disclaimer: Obviously our meals and accommodation at Oakhurst Olives, Ceres Zipslide Adventures and the Tulbagh Boutique Heritage Hotel were part of our review package. All else came from our own pockets. All enjoyed equally. Watch for my official review on Biz!