Food Hospitality World exhibition at the CTICC

Food Trade Exhibition time. We started with a visit on Thursday morning last week to Hostex at CTICC which, sadly for us, was very much a non-event this year – too many bed companies and garden furniture. Things were much more interesting on Tuesday at another trade show, the Food Hospitality World Africa 2014, featuring more food oriented companies with some of our best producers like Fynbos Fine foods, Pesto Princess and Indezi cheeses, some of whom will follow through to the Good Food and Wine Show this weekend. And we were able to meet and congratulate Emma Dean, the winner of Masterchef Australia with her husband, who was walking through the show. A charming couple. Lynne has been following the various Masterchef programmes and still has about four of the Australian programmes to watch on PVR. She didn’t know who the winner was until she opened the newspaper that morning, which gave the game away.

The Food Hospitality World is organised by the same Italian company that now owns The Good Food and Wine show

We were delighted to find the Pesto Princess stand with their excellent products. We were next to them at the Neighbourgoods Market in the Old Biscuit Mill. Sadly, we have both stopped selling at the market. They will carry through to the Good Food and Wine show this weekend.

And our favourite Chilli products company, who supplied us from the beginning when we had our shop. Rozelle and Julian Abramson of Fynbos Fine foods are demonstrating the full range of their products and their excellent rebranding.

We were delighted to meet Rob Cornell and Paul Nash from Indezi River Cheeses in Natal. We have loved their cheeses for many years, especially their blue cheese, and were very interested to taste some of their new cheeses and to hear of their new move into many different goat cheeses, which will be on the market soon. At the moment the goats are kidding and there is no milk for cheese until the baby goats are weaned.

There was also a number of Italian suppliers exhibiting their wares. They showed us the good Italian wines they are importing into South Africa. We tasted some superb Parma hams, mortadella sausages, salamis and cheese and had a small taste of some really good Italian gelato. Lynne tasted some real pistachio and a sour cherry ice cream – there is nothing of this quality available here at the moment. We do hope they will find importers who will work with them, as many of these products are exactly what we need to help raise the standards of the local commercial produce. The artisanal producers here are doing very well but the big boys are turning out horrible quality. There was one local stand showing polony and horribly coloured frankfurters which, quite frankly, we wouldn’t touch with a bargepole.

Roberto Bottega of Idiom and Whalehaven wines showed us the extensive range of Italian wines his family is importing

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014

Three Waterfront restaurants

Have you ever fantasised about having a starter in one restaurant, mains in another and dessert in a third?  Well, it is not usually available but on Tuesday, Annette Ashley, who handles the marketing for these three restaurants in the V&A Waterfront,  owned by Peter Protoulis, wanted to show us their scope and what better way than to do exactly this. We began at the Greek Fisherman and, even though the day was becoming dank and chill, sat in the open air section with a lovely view of the waterfront and the mountain, an enormous plate of Mezze to share and a good glass of  Simonsig Chenin  MORE

The Greek Fisherman’s comprehensive menu on display

The comfortable interior

The amazing mezze platter included three dips: taramasalata, humus,and tzatziki, very good hot haloumi, spanakopita (cheese pies), quince jelly, lamb koftes, tomato & mozzarella bruscetta, huge chips and some pita bread. We also had a lovely Greek salad topped with Feta cheese, and some great mussels in a tomato sauce.  It was enough for a meal on itself!

The properly dressed classic Greek salad

A sunny interlude, mezze and a dock full of boats brought back memories of dockside eating in Greece, if a little warmer.

On to the second restaurant, conveniently next door, The City Grill

Warm African animal skin polar fleece blankets became necessary as the afternoon wore on

Lamb chops for a Banting Lynne

A mustard sauce topped a large piece of medium rare sirloin for John with a glass of Simonsig Pinotage

and a plate of veal with rice and vegetables for Annette

The inside of The City Grill also has touches of Africa

Then it was up one flight of stairs to Meloncino, which has the best view of the harbour and the mountain.  One of our favourite dishes there is a marvellous Seafood pasta cooked in a paper parcel.

Here we sat inside, in comfort

The cocktail bar

The view from our table of a damp, wintry Cape Town. In summer, we bring our friends from overseas here for the excellent Italian food and the view

Lynne and Annette enjoying the day

A chocolate ice

A perfect Pannacotta with a strawberry coulis, light and creamy

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014

Birthday lunch at Jardine on Jordan

Saturday saw us driving to Stellenbosch Kloof to visit one of our favourite restaurants for daughter Clare’s birthday celebration. While we started out with the best intentions, unfortunately and regrettably Banting went out of the window. We had a superb lunch, even though we castigated ourselves severely and suffered afterwards for falling for the carbs, but who can pass up fat crisp hand-cut chips, a chocolate marquise or a honey and poppy seed soufflé ? Oh, and did we mention the two warm, freshly baked breads, and hot mini vetkoek? Well, one day off can’t do too much harm can it? 

A very wet day, so behind glass near the fire ...

... but still with a beautiful view of the lake and the autumnal vines on the hill

A nice gas fire keeps the restaurant very warm

Decisions, decisions

John ventured out into the rain for a photograph

The restaurant was almost full when we arrived at 12.30 and, as usual, it pumped

The menu always has good choices for every kind of eating

A glass of Jordan’s fine unwooded Chardonnay for Lynne and one of The Outlier Sauvignon Blanc for John

Warm bread straight from the oven. Who could possibly resist? Not us. There is a watercress pesto, a rich caponata with pine nuts and a divine garlic mayonnaise. This is the hidden first course, as it is just part of your meal. And you can then go and buy the bread in the bakery next door to take home.

We defy you to pass up on the crisp hand cut chips. These are the ones we couldn’t resist

Such a beautifully presented starter plate of the Fairview roast lamb with Jerusalem artichokes

Pretty as a picture, too, was the (Banting) starter portion of a brawnlike tender suckling pig terrine with a sauce grebiche, sliced baby beet and pink onions with some apple squares. Such good intentions....

Then to mains. Tender and delicious herb crusted Boran sirloin with fried marrow, garlic purée, spinach and celeriac for father and daughter. Jordan The Prospector Shiraz was a superb match

Lynne wanted to try the Silver bream, a new fish for her, and it had a good texture - soft and full of flavour, served with a slightly sweet carrot purée and baby roasted carrots. She enjoyed it with the Jordan Barrel Fermented Chenin blanc. The downfall was the chips.

Dessert. So we ordered – allow 20 minutes – with plenty of time, the famous honey and poppy seed soufflés,

served by the pastry chef herself. She breaks the top and pours proper vanilla crème anglaise into each soufflé, which had risen beautifully. They were very sweet, as the insides of the ramekins have to be coated in granulated sugar to get them to rise properly and rise they did. So you do need a rather sweet tooth to enjoy this dessert

And then it is topped with vanilla ice cream...

John, always the chocoholic, had the Valrhona Chocolate marquise with orange jelly and crème fraiche, also topped with vanilla ice cream

And the kitchen came up trumps with a small token to Clare for her birthday. 

Thank you all for another memorable meal. We will be back
The bill for our lunch (with wine by the glass) came to R1460 including 10% tip)

Proteas love the rain

Buying some treats from Louise Starey at the bakery on our way home

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014

Fine Brandy Fusion Festival at the CTICC

Friday night saw us at this very successful show at CTICC (we are thinking of applying for monthly parking rates). Wow, was this enthusiastically attended by lots of Cape Town’s brandy-loving folk. We admit to having had a ball, even though we sipped to taste rather than drank many of the great brandies on offer. They were giving very generous portions and we do hope everyone was drinking safely and making alternative arrangements to get home afterwards. South Africa is making great brandies. We tasted only 10 year olds and older, and one French, Bisquit XO.

You start by referencing aromas found in brandy

The hall started to fill up nicely

One of the more colourful stands. Brandy cocktails in all their variations were very popular

Queuing for a taste of one of our favourite local brandies, the Laborie Alambic brandy

Watching the cooper from van Ryn make barrels is always fascinating

Tapping down the rings on the barrel has  a lovely rhythm

Shante Hutton, Wine News Editor of Wine.co.za enjoying the show, a lot

Organiser extra-ordinaire Janice Fridjhon making a recording of the band for her daughter in Johannesburg

Did you really like that brandy?

Popular band Mi Casa wowed the crowd

This was our favourite stand.  Not too many queues and probably the best selection of fine South African brandy available. And all for tasting.

Louisenhof and Kaapzicht Potstill brandies, both from good local wine farms

Sumsaré from the Robertson valley

Luckily, this year there were several places to sit and discuss, taste and eat your dinner

Southern Cape Vineyards with their selection of brandy

And who did we meet on the Bisquit Stand? Two SA Masterchef judges Benny Masekwameng and Pete Goffe Wood.

And the lovely ladies from van Ryn who made our recent visit such fun

One of the symposia which took place throughout the show

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© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2014