On Sunday we packed up our overnight bags and headed first to Allée Bleue wine farm in Franschhoek, to which we had been invited to sample Craig Cormack’s pop-up month of Pizza and Pasta for September. It was the most beautiful day and we were given a lovely table on a small balcony apart from the main restaurant, with a view of the vineyards
The manor house with the Franschhoek
mountains in the distance
The Restaurant
The shaded terrace part of the
restaurant
One of the conference rooms being
dressed for a conference on Monday morning
Our table for two on the side of the
main terrace
There was lovely bird life in the
garden below. This is a bulbul
Bud-break on the vines and all the
lovely spring greens of the vines and the trees
The flowering aloe on the side of the
stream was a haven for many malachite sunbirds
Our welcoming drink of Allee Bleue Rosé
bubbly had been doctored with some Chambord raspberry liqueur. The jury is out on that one. Perhaps better
without?
Taking a sip
The highest mountain in the Cape, the
Witzenberg in Ceres, is almost another table mountain. When we get snow on the
mountain tops in winter, this is the mountain it settles on and it can be seen
from the city.
The menu with a small selection of
Pizza and Pasta
First came two hot herb rolls with a
tomato pesto, a basil pesto and a red pepper pesto.
Then they bring the salad bar, where
you get to mix and choose your own salad greens and herbs all from the farms
herb gardens. Allée Bleue supplies fresh herbs to most of the restaurants and
supermarkets in the Cape
John’s choice was the bacon, chorizo,
Parma ham, brie pizza topped with caramelised onions and Dijon mustard and a
red wine reduction. This was served with a glass of Allée Bleue Cabernet Merlot
2012
Lynne’s choice was the fried polenta
gnocchi with fried sage leaves, mushrooms, mushroom puree and foam and a tiny
touch of truffle oil. This was served with Allée Bleue’s very good Flagship
white wine, Isabeau 2012, a blend of Semillon, Chardonnay and a little viognier.
We asked for one serving of the baked
cheesecake topped with cranberries to share and got a whopping piece, enough for
3 of us!
Look who we found dining there that
day! Geoff and Lynn Grier of Villiera
who were great company during an enjoyable lunch
The chef who made our lunch, Ian
Laubscher
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014
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