Kicking off on a very high note was the 2008 Meerlust Merlot, which was introduced by its winemaker Chris Williams.  He described the wine estate as ‘one of the most iconic‘, awarded in the 1690’s to its first German owner Henning Huysen. He named it Meerlust, meaning ‘love of the sea’, given its close location to False Bay, which impacts on the way that the Meerlust wines are made.  The wine cellar was built in 1694.  The Myburgh family took over the farm in 1756, and its current owner Hannes Myburgh is the eighth generation of the family living on the wine estate, ‘the longest run family business in South Africa‘.    For the first time Meerlust has used grapes from a new vineyard with 25 year old vines next door for its Merlot, with 10% Cabernet Franc added for structure and its ageing ability. He said the result is a wine that is ‘unashamedly classic’, giving a sense of place, developing with age, and pairs well with foods without overpowering them. I loved the old style smokiness of it, and it was my favourite of all the wines we tasted. Chef Cheyne paired this gorgeous wine with a Shiitake mushroom and coconut cream risotto, an excellent combination, which can be ordered in R50/R90 portion sizes on the new Winter menu.

The second wine was made by highly regarded Rianie Strydom, the General Manager and winemaker at Haskell Vineyards, making both Haskell and Dombeya wines at the highest point on the Annandale Road outside Stellenbosch.  Preston Haskell bought the property in 2002, and she joined the farm in 2005, located in what she called the ‘jewel part of Stellenbosch‘.  Dombeya wines were made from 2005 onwards, and Haskell wines from 2007.  The first vines were planted in 1990. She praised the terroir of the farm.  She has created a unique character for each of the two wine brands, Dombeya being an introduction to wine, being for old and young, a lifestyle wine.  It can be drunk now, but can also be aged for six years.  The Haskell wines have her own stamp, are more single vineyard driven, and have lots of tannin, she said.  Her taste for Merlot was developed when she worked with winemaker Jean Daneel at Morgenhof. She said that Merlot is a difficult wine to make, it being a challenge to create a good one.  There are no shortcuts in making it.  It ‘needs love and passion’.  It is fruit-driven, gentle, has elegance, femininity, and structure. She said that not everyone in South Africa likes Merlot, mainly because locals are drinking it too young. Chef Cheyne paired the 2008 Dombeya Merlot with Beef tataki, mustard and mirrin to which sugar had been added, white and black sesame seeds, and micro herbs, a delicious starter which costs R60.

Winemaker Rudi Schulz introduced his 2009 Thelema Merlot Reserve, made from grapes grown on what was previously a fruit farm. The Merlot was first planted in 1988, and a sorting system was brought in, due to the uneven ripening of the Merlot grapes. They have used aerial photography combined with software to identify the perfect areas for picking, going back into a block six times. This means that they cancel out the ‘averaging effect’ in making the wine, and that they can pinpoint ‘pockets of excellence‘.  The 2009 vintage came from a 1,5 hectare block, and they limit the production to ‘12 barrel bottling’ for the Merlot Reserve. Holden Manz Sales and Marketing Manager Karl Lambour added that 2009 was one of the best vintages ever. Chef Cheyne paired seared crispy duck breast, a sweet potato and miso pureé, star anise syrup, and watermelon jelly (R155) with this special Merlot.

The 2008 Holden Manz Merlot was paired with Karoo lamb, French trimmed, served with kimchi (a fermented Korean dish made from vegetables and seasoning, according to Wikipedia), and potato dauphinoise (R160 on the menu). The wine was introduced by winemaker Schalk Opperman, who came from Rust en Vrede earlier this year, saying that their Merlot is in ‘showing mould’ already, and that the farm has great potential for Merlot. Schalk and farm manager Thys use technology to pick the best grapes, with aerial photography, but nothing beats ‘walking the fields’ to find the best grapes. The Merlot is well structured, and has good berry fruit.

For the dessert Holden Manz served its new port 2009 Good Sport, which is made 100% from Shiraz.  Schalk used the oldest barrels, and it was aged for 18 - 24 months.  Jeane-Tinre van Zyl also attended the dinner, and it was said that an announcement will be made about the port on 30 May - could it relate to the recent Old Mutual Trophy judging?  The dessert was a deconstructed 70% Belgian chocolate pot, served with pistachio nuts, salted caramel, and honeycomb, having a Christmas look and feel to it. On the new Winter menu it costs R48.

What made the dinner special too was that the owners Gerard Holden (having flown in especially from a meeting in India) and Migo Manz were present, and took a lot of time to network with the diners.  Mr Holden is larger than life, with a very sharp eye, and has been described by Mining Weekly as ‘one of Africa mining’s best-known bankers’. He is an avid Twitter reader, and is well-informed about its political dramas! The politics in Franschhoek do not phase him at all. He was recently invited by wine writer Neil Pendock to join the local Commanderie de Bordeaux, and he proudly wore his lapel pin. No surprise then is that the next Holden Manz Winemakers’ Dinner in July will focus on Bordeaux Blends.

We have written previously about the impact that Chef Cheyne has made in his six weeks at Holden Manz, based on his Sunday tapas menu.  Last night’s Winemakers’ Dinner was an opportunity to try a larger selection of his dishes, with flavours of the Orient and a Pacific Rim twist, all on his new Winter Menu.  Chef Cheyne is a strong character, on the edge, creating some of the best cuisine in Franschhoek now.  The Winemakers’ Dinner offered excellent value last night, with five courses and five wines costing R300.

Franschhoek Kitchen, Holden Manz, Franschhoek.  Tel (021) 876-2729.  www.holdenmanz.com Twitter: @HoldenManz  Tuesday - Sunday lunch, Tuesday - Saturday dinner.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage

Each Finalist chose a country and with it a method of preparation, having 90 minutes to prepare their dish.  Not all Finalists were visible in this episode, and only some of the Finalists were interviewed and their dishes shown.  Sarel Loots chose Brazil, and decided to make a chocolate dessert, with custard, and mango, all elements steamed. His dish got raised eyebrows from Chef Benny Masekwameng. He was berated for not making something ‘more MasterChef’, to show his technique. The dish was said to be ‘not good enough’.  Thys Hattingh chose Morocco, and decided to make a pear dessert poached in a Nederburg wine, to criticism of Chef Pete Goffe-Wood, given that Morocco is a Muslim country.  With this he prepared a sweet couscous and cinnamon custard.  He said he has ‘dessert in his genes’, influenced by his mom.  He received the highest praise from Chef Pete, saying that it was ‘visually beautiful’, and that he would ‘pay a lot of money in a top restaurant for that’.  Chef Bennie liked the custard, calling it a ‘lovely dish’.   Samantha Nolan was proudly South African, and chose to make vetkoek and mince, with a peach chutney.  Chef Benny was critical of her spice choice for the mince, which included cardamom, chilli, cumin, ginger, garlic, and turmeric.  Her vetkoek was praised by him for its light golden brown colour and for being ‘perfectly made’, but her mince ‘let you down in having too many spices’.

Manisha Naidu chose to make an Italian grilled chicken with a basil cream sauce and a Parma ham-wrapped tomato. Her plating was praised, representing ‘Italy on a plate’.  Guy Clark chose the United Kingdom, and decided to make ‘pub food’, using a beer batter for the fish, and poaching all the elements of the dish, saying it was ‘worth the risk’. Chef Pete said that he could taste the beer in the batter and that the fish was perfectly poached. However the peas were ‘too mushy’, and the mash ‘lumpy’. Lungile Nhlanhla represented China, and had made deep fried tempura vegetables and stirfry, served with crispy duck.  Chef Andrew Atkinson said that the flavour was ‘absolutely fantastic’. Jade de Waal made mini bite size hamburgers, with fries and a home-made tomato sauce, adding a guacamole topping after one of the chef judges asked her about it. Chef Pete was very critical of the hamburger bun, saying it was ‘too dense and chewy’, but praised her ketchup, saying it was ‘superb’ and ‘the hero’ of the dish, but that the hamburger was not. Khaya Silingile wanted to show the versatility of flavour and technique, making a French inspired chicken ballotine with turned vegetables, ‘with loads of butter’ in her mash, making Chef Pete smile.  When he tasted the dish, Chef Pete said that it was ‘perfect mash’, and Chef Benny said it was a ‘lovely dish’.  She was praised for its ‘taste of Paris’.  Khaya was so excited that she said that she felt ‘tres magnifique’.  Deena Naidoo had prepared Asian baked fish with tempura prawns; Sue-Ann Allen a Spanish deconstructed paella with an avocado, corn and red onion salsa; and Ilse Fourie made a Mexican chicken and chilly pocket with guacamole, salsa,  and a spicy red pepper sauce.

The eleven Finalists were praised by Chef Benny, saying that the judges were blown away by their international dishes, and that they should be proud of what they had presented. They announced Khaya as the winner of this challenge, to which she responded in saying that she had reached ‘culinary heaven’, with Thys in second place, happy about the ‘pat on the back’ which he had received.  Their ‘prize’ was a Masterclass just for the two of them, by Chef Andrew with assistance from Chef Benny. Chef Andrew taught them to make Tagliatelle pasta, and a sauce containing garlic, peppers, tomatoes, and peppers.

Samantha, Sarel, Guy, and Jade were sent into the Pressure Test, for their errors in making the international dishes. One of the Finalists would be sent home as a result of it, they were told. It was to be the ‘toughest and most complicated dish to be prepared so far’. They had to recreate Chef Andrew’s dish, being a Twice Baked Three Cheese Soufflé with a Waldorf salad, Onion Braise, and a Gruyère tuile, in 80 minutes.  They were told that a soufflé is difficult to make well, Chef Andrew saying that the ingredients, grammage, and oven temperature are crucial to its success.  One has to be gentle with a soufflé, in folding in the egg white. Guy started with the beetroot, then made the soufflé, the onions, and finished off in making the tuille.  He seemed to panic, and his colleagues watching from upstairs encouraged him to start from scratch. Chef Andrew said that Guy was ‘too heavy handed’ in making his soufflé, saying that it needs air when one folds in the egg white.  Chef Pete said that Guy had left out the apple and celery from the salad, and that the bacon had not been cooked properly.  Chef Benny added that Guy had not followed the recipe properly. Guy commented that one needs science to be a MasterChef, and that he had last had science at school!  Jade said that she could not faff around, saying that she would start with the onions, then moving onto the soufflé, ‘giving it my all’.  She got her ramekins in the oven too late, running out of the 20 minutes baking time required.  She admitted that she was ‘not up to scratch’, had ‘gone through the wall’, and just had too little time. She served her soufflé in the ramekins, to the surprise of the judges, saying that she ran out of time. When he removed it from the ramekin and cut it, Chef Andrew said that it had ‘not cooked through’. Chef Pete was very direct when he told Jade that she is still young, and that she still ‘has a lot more to learn’. Samantha said that a soufflé requires ‘precision work’, starting with her onions, putting her beetroot in the oven,  and then making the soufflé, which if one is not gentle with it could become a ‘flat-fle’!  She did not make the Gruyère tuile, having run out of time.  Her soufflé was praised for its presentation, looking very similar to that of Chef Andrew, but Chef Pete said that it was not ‘souffle  light’, and tasted more ‘cakey’.  Chef Andrew praised her Waldorf salad, saying that he ‘thoroughly enjoyed it’.

Sarel immediately commented that he would have a time problem, in the recipe being three pages long.  He said this challenge was a ‘tough one’, and he didn’t make a cheese sauce, as he ran out of time.  Chef Benny said that the salad was very crispy, but that the walnuts had been ground, and not sliced as in the dish they had to replicate. Chef Andrew said that Sarel must have made many soufflés before, saying that his seasoning was right, and that he was happy with Sarel’s interpretation. The judges had observed the four Finalists at work, and commented that they were not starting with the soufflé, which worried them. All four of them ran out of time, and had to leave out an element of the dish. The four Finalists were praised for tackling the challenge head on. Guy was selected by the judges to leave MasterChef SA, and he was praised for his spirit and effort, and that he had showed glimpses of not giving up. Guy replied that MasterChef SA had given him a ‘doorway’ to his dreams. The remaining Top 10 MasterChef SA finalists were congratulated for having made it so far, and were told to ‘keep believing in yourself’.  Finalist Deena Naidoo said that they had been simmering up to now, but that they had now reached the ‘reduction stage’. Deena is the only MasterChef SA finalist to not have been in a ‘pressure test’.

For a second week running, the judges choice for elimination was questioned on Twitter, Jade’s soufflé flop having deserved elimination, it was felt.  It annoyed many Tweeters, and many threatened to no longer watch the show, given its loss of credibility.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage

MasterChef SA is the talk of the country, and we have ten more gripping episodes to look forward to in the next two months. To spice things up a little, we have launched two competitions, the first being a prediction of who will win MasterChef SA in episode 18.

We are also running a weekly lucky draw for the correct prediction of who our readers think will be booted out of the MasterChef SA every week.  For the correct prediction of who will leave MasterChef SA in episode 9 today (15 May), Burrata has generously offered a restaurant voucher to the value of R400 to the winner.

The opening of Burrata at the Old Biscuit Mill (in the previous B-Lounge) in March had been eagerly awaited, with its owner Neil Grant coming from 2011 Eat Out Top 10 Restaurant Rust en Vrede (he was the sommelier when he ran the restaurant with chef David Higgs).  Burrata is not a pizzeria, and it’s not an Italian restaurant. It is a unique, friendly, and welcoming restaurant which, with its neighbours The Pot Luck Club and The Test Kitchen,  makes the Old Biscuit Mill and Woodstock an exciting restaurant destination.  The red pizza oven imported from Naples catches one’s eye immediately, unlike any seen locally, with a more modern design.  The pizzaiolo pizza makers use peels imported from Italy to stretch the pizza, to create the correct shape and to place it in the oven, and to turn the pizza around once it is in the oven, to ensure that the pizza is equally cooked.  Burrata backer Barry Engelbrecht is a pizza aficionado, and has attended pizza-making courses around the world, and he trained the staff in pizza-making.

The red pizza oven creates the decor foundation, and the use of red and black extends into the staff uniforms, Maxwell Williams salt and pepper grinders, material serviettes into which the Forum cutlery is rolled, the sugar bowls, and on the menu and winelist covers.  Beautiful Italian Luigi Bormioli glasses made in Parma enhance the special wines served. A special state-of-the-art red hand meat slicer has a place of honour inside the restaurant. The kitchen is open plan, behind glass, and visible to diners. Charming front-of-house hostess is Swiss Isabella Immenkamp, who was a sommelier at Grande Roche previously.  She is very attentive, and European in her service delivery. Chef Annemarie Steenkamp comes from Le Quartier Français, where she spent five years.  The menu has a collection of delectable pizzas, as well as Chef Annemarie’s creations, including pork belly, roasted rib eye, a selection of pasta dishes, and risotto with caramelised onion.  The service and personal attention is exceptional, the best experienced in a very long time. The wine list is comprehensive, reflecting Neil’s passion. Burrata is friendly and welcoming, with reasonable prices. As Chairman of the South African Sommeliers’ Association, Neil has prepared a 50 hour wine appreciation program for the MasterChef South Africa winner on behalf of Nederburg, for its parent company Distell.

Tweet your prediction of which of the 11 remaining finalists will be booted out of MasterChef SA to @WhaleCottage, or e-mail it to whalecot@iafrica.com. Closing time for entries is Tuesday 15 May at 19h30, at the start of episode 9.  The winner will be contacted immediately after the show ends. There will be a weekly Restaurant Voucher prize draw per episode for the correct prediction of who will be booted out of MasterChef SA, and voting for the following episode can start as soon as that day’s episode has been aired. Should there be no correct entry received, the prize is rolled over to go to another week.

POSTSCRIPT 15/5: A surprise elimination in the Three Times Cheese Soufflé was Guy Clark.  Once again, it appears that the wrong selection was made, Tweeters feeling that Jade de Waal should have been eliminated, given that her soufflé was not cooked properly.  There was no correct prediction today, many incorrect guesses having been received.

Burrata, Old Biscuit Mill, Albert Road, Woodstock, Cape Town.  Tel (021) 447-6505.  www.burrata.co.za Twitter: @BurrataSA   Tuesday - Saturday, Lunch and Dinner.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.comTwitter:@WhaleCottage

The panel for the Twitter session was an interesting ‘bolshy’ (referring to another session earlier in the day) mix of Gus Silber, a free-lance writer with 12000 followers; Professor Jonathan Jansen, Rector of the University of the Free State, who Tweets with his 33000 students, and has 21000 followers; and 5FM presenter Gareth Cliff, with more than 275000 followers! The session was chaired by 702 presenter Jenny Crys-Williams, with almost 9000 followers.

The personalities of the three panelists came through in the hour of the panel session in how they use and deal with Twitter and Tweets.  Gareth Cliff only follows 68 Twitter accounts, showing that he outputs information, and may ReTweet it, but that he is not necessarily using Twitter as an information source himself. He said one should choose carefully whom one follows, for the credibility of the information provided. He follows some accounts for the fun they generate.  He questioned why one would follow companies, mentioning Pick ‘n Pay, just selling gherkins, and having no personality at all, he said! There are many clever, but also stupid people, on Twitter. He praised Western Cape Premier Helen Zille for being the ‘best political Tweeter in the world’, even if she sometimes makes mistakes. It is a very democratic medium, in that everyone can have a say. Cliff sounded flippant when he said that he ignores any negative Tweets about himself, and for fun he may even ReTweet them, demonstrating his irreverence. There are ‘nasty, vile, and violent’ things written on Twitter, reflecting humanity, and this is ‘the dark side of Twitter’. He says one cannot be liked by everybody. He says that there is a lot of ‘misinformation’ on Twitter, and as well as false content Tweeted. Social Media has made all of us broadcasters now, he said, and that means that we must take responsibility for what we say. He says that Twitter is a close second to radio as a storytelling medium. Every sidelined person can have a conversation on Twitter, given that there are more cellphones than people in the country, making Twitter accessible to all. He warned against Tweeting too much, not more than once in 15 minutes being his advice. One must be on the edge of the topic, and push its boundaries. Tweeting about poor service has put the power back into the hands of the consumer. If one cannot say something in 140 characters, it does not need to be said. He praised the ‘amazing creativity’ in Tweets. Twitter is a ‘raw medium’, and if one posts something that is untrue or incorrect, one will be found out. When asked if he is paid to Tweet to endorse brands, he said that an ad agency written Tweet would have no credibility, and that he would be unfollowed if he were to hard sell or deceive his followers.  Pictures are important, but he warned against Tweeting ‘personal stuff’.  ’Twitter trolls should not be given time nor tolerated‘.  When one is wasting time (bank or shop queue, plane delayed) he Tweets, and he can Tweet and do other things at the same time.  It becomes integrated into one’s life.

Gus Silber came across as a gentle man, who does not wish to offend by unfollowing anyone (he admitted that he has never unfollowed anyone), resulting in him following more than 11000 accounts, and therefore spends about 4-5 hours per day on Twitter.  Mocked about this by Cliff, he said that he is waiting for one snippet of information to come through that could be the potential for a story. He said that Twitter allows one to ‘plug into other people’s lives’, and that it has become ‘voyeuristic’, and shows one’s character - its like ‘Tweeting naked’, he said. He said that he used to walk around with a moleskin notebook, for story ideas, but now he uses his phone to share his observations with the world, creating a ‘Thoughtstream’.  He said that journalists are exhilarated by but petrified of Twitter, and must now Tweet their scoops before they are printed, to claim ownership of breaking news. Twitter is like ‘24 hour talk radio’, there is always someone Tweeting, but also people awake and ‘listening‘.   Social good can come from Twitter, and that is why it is called Social Media, but fights are an exception, even if they are entertaining. The cellphone is a ‘24 hour Molotov cocktail’. ‘In our vuvuzela democracy, we have all become very human, and very powerful people buddies’. Having a locked Twitter account is a complete waste of time!

Professor Jansen said that Twitter is a medium which is often used irresponsibly, yet he defended the two ‘dimwits’, referring to the two models writing racist Tweets. He did acknowledge that the technology for instant communication has made our world ‘less violent’. He said that teenagers hate their parents being on Twitter, trying to be cool.  He laughed when he said that he has quite a number of followers, but then Oprah Winfrey has 1 million! He warned about the addictive side of Twitter, and how families can sit around a dinner table, no longer talking to each other, each one Tweeting.  It is rude to Tweet while one is talking to someone, he said.

There is no debate about whether Twitter should be embraced - it is a powerful medium, and it is here to stay, the panel concluded!

Allied to this session was the one entitled ‘On being Bolshy’, given that Tweeting takes some kind of ‘bolshiness’. Gareth Cliff, Noseweek editor Martin Welz, and ex-Frontline editor Denis Beckett were the panelists, very ably chaired by Marianne Thamm, even if she misused her position for her personal issues. Martin Welz has no friends on Facebook, while Gareth Cliff has 300000.  However, Noseweek has 30000 readers, and they are the source of information for articles, as well as people who have tried everything else and come to the magazine as a ‘last resort’.  Welz called for letters to the editor to contain real names.  He said we have a right to an opinion, and he respects Gareth Cliff for expressing it. He also said that journalism costs money, to research stories. He said to applause that Noseweek has never written about Julius Malema. Thamm said that she ‘hates bloggers’, and more specifically food bloggers, writing for free!  Ironically, Jenny Hobbs is the organiser of the Franschhoek Literary Festival, and her daughter Jane-Anne is an über food blogger!

In what should have fitted in with this theme as well was yesterday’s session ‘The Price of Fame’, in which the panelist writers Alexandra Fuller, Richard Mason, and Gareth Cliff all protested their fame.  Mason said that Cliff was far more famous, in having been an Idols judge!  One gathered that Cliff did not agree with this, but he was ragged regularly by Mason.  The chairman of the session, Ndumiso Ngcobo, had no control over the strong egos on the panel, who were asking the questions, rather than him! As a result, the conversation was all over the show, and Cliff said relatively little! Fuller had the oddest ‘marketing strategy’, trashing her public image (maybe to prove how ‘unfamous’ she is), telling the audience repeatedly how much she drinks, to the detriment of her duties as a mother towards her children. It was the weakest of the sessions that we attended.

The Franschhoek Literary Festival attracted a sold out Twitter session, and could do well to expand on Social Media, and offering many more sessions on the topic next year! It also needs to vastly improve its Social Media generally and Twitter presence specifically, both in marketing a Festival which saw fewer attendees this year, and to share the content.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage

Grande Provence may not have made the 2012 Eat Out Top 10 Restaurants at the awards last year, but Chef Darren said that he respects sole judge Abigail Donnelly, and the awards, being a yardstick for excellence locally. As a Top 20 finalist, he did say that the restaurants in the 11 - 20th positions were not acknowledged on the awards evening, even though most of their chefs attended, and that this is a weakness of the awards system.  He felt that the local restaurant evaluation system should move to a rating similar to the Australian Chefs Hats (awarded by the Sydney Morning Herald restaurant guide) or Michelin stars, so that top restaurants achieving a cuisine quality are recognised, and are not limited to ten, nor should they be ranked, particularly as no feedback is provided by Eat Out as to why a restaurant has achieved a particular ranking.  He shared that not making Top 10 can be very harmful to a restaurant, some of its staff moving on to or being poached by Top 10 restaurants.  Chef Darren was far more critical of restaurant reviewer JP Rossouw, who had clearly got the rating of Grande Provence wrong, not only in its own right but also relative to other restaurants (e.g. rating Salmon Bar higher). He had also got some basic information wrong, e.g. criticising ‘guinea fowl’, which has not been served in the restaurant for years.

A personal visit to Australia last month allowed Chef Darren to eat at Rockpool in Sydney and at the Lake House outside Melbourne, both 2 Chef Hat rated. The Lake House’s Alla Wolf Tasker has been at the forefront of the development of Australian cuisine. Chef Darren praised Chef Bertus Basson’s Overture for being on a par with the Lake House.  While the cuisine in South Africa’s top restaurants is on a par with Australia, Chef Darren was bowled over by the excellent service he experienced, saying that our restaurants are very far behind in this regard. The service is so professional in top Australian restaurants that it almost makes the meal!  The cost is far higher in Australia, his two-course meal with a glass of wine costing R850 at the Lake House, and R800 for one course and a glass of wine at Rockpool.

Chef Darren has seen a marked improvement in South African cuisine, remembering that about 20 years ago his Rivonia restaurant Two Faces being marked down on a top restaurant rating because they did not serve a ladies size steak, then a criterion of excellence! Chef Darren was once described by The Star as ‘L’enfant Terrible’, for being a trendsetter, and for doing things differently.  South African cuisine has great potential to go back to ‘its most exciting African roots’.

Chefs don’t make money, Chef Darren lamented, and cook for love. In this profession, ‘the passion gets into one’s blood’, and it’s not possible to get it out again. This is why poor reviews are taken so personally by chefs, he said.  In this context he is critical of MasterChef South Africa, in its prize of a year as the Chef of MondoVino restaurant at Montecasino in Johannesburg. By implication it ‘cheapens’ his profession, in that not one of the Finalists will be able to run the restaurant on being announced the winner in July, he feels.  To get to where Chef Darren is now, he did a four year apprenticeship in Melbourne, being taught cooking as well as life skills by his colleagues in the main, and at L’Heiner in Vienna.  He recommends that young chefs go to Australia to gain experience, and then backpack through Asia, rather than going to London for international experience. Chef Darren predicted that more European chefs would be coming to South Africa, as the recession makes itself felt, and returning from overseas to get back to the sun.

Chef Darren is on the brink of leaving the country, having been the Executive Chef at Grande Provence for the past two years.  He will be taking up the position of Group Executive Chef of Mason’s, the largest tour operator in the Seychelles, with three luxury lodges, and a further one being built, on Denis Island and in Mahe.  Collectively about 300 rooms will be catered for every day. In addition, he will oversee the cuisine on four super yachts.  Chef Darren has previously worked for the company in the Seychelles, and he has a soft spot for the island country, owning land on it too.  On Denis Island they will be about 80% produce self-sufficient, growing their own fruit and vegetables, having a piggery and hatchery, with rabbits, duck, and milk. Only beef is brought in.  Charcuterie will be developed by Chef Darren’s team when he arrives next week. Chef Darren said that business is booming in the Seychelles, an archipelago of about 300 islands, with beautiful turquoise sea water and white sand beaches, in a country where Creole is the official language. The cuisine on the Seychelles is Creole, weighted to North India, with coconut milk, fish curry, lime, crab curry, and yellow lentils featuring strongly.  At Mason’s guests would experience a  Creole evening, a barbeque evening, and eat a la carte on the other nights of the week. Lunches are a Creole Buffet, with fish presented less than two hours after having been caught.  Breadfruit, Cassava, and palm hearts are local delicacies.

Chef Darren will be missed for his creative French fine-dining with an Pan-Asian twist menu and plating, for his dry sense of humour, and for his fresh thinking.  His successor is Chef Darren Badenhorst, and the two have worked together for the past year, and they will stay in touch.  Chef Darren Badenhorst has added three new dishes to the Grande Provence menu, and the attention to detail in each, and the vast number of carefully selected ingredients, is impressive, continuing the work of Chef Darren Roberts. I recently tasted the soft shell crab starter on pan-fried sushi with sesame seed, with a soft boiled yolk presented in a beautifully crafted kataifi pastry, with red pepper aioli, and finished off with soya and wasabi pearls. Yesterday I tried his new Ballontine of Chicken with a bone marrow centre, truffle of pomme duchess, carrot and cardomom pureé, morel mushrooms, cracked black pepper, and fresh Japanese truffle, an artistic portrait that could have been framed and hung in the Grande Provence Gallery!

We wish Chef Darren Roberts all the best in his new career in the Seychelles, and look forward to his regular visits back to Franschhoek, to see his family.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage

Reuben Riffel is a Franschhoeker, who opened his first Reuben’s restaurant eight years ago in Franschhoek, and now owns two more, in Robertson, and at the One & Only Cape Town.  It is primarily his endorsement of the Robertsons spice range that has made him a household name and TV chef, but may have cost him his credibility as a chef.   His second cookbook ‘Reuben cooks local’ (R394) is the most recently published of the three books which were discussed.  Reuben talked about how big a step it was for him to open his own restaurant, having been taught by masters such as Richard Carstens. He reads a lot of books by Australian chefs, following their trends.  His grandfather was planting vegetables for their family eating, ahead of their time. Reuben was approached by publisher duo photographer Craig Fraser and Libby Doyle to do a cookbook, and he liked the idea, always having wanted to have a cookbook which he could keep on his own bookshelf!  Reuben liked working with this team, having had other approaches which had been more prescriptive, which he did not like.  The latest cookbook is about foods he likes to eat and the flavours he enjoys.  While it was hard work, it has been a great sense of achievement. Unusual in the book is the list of suppliers that Reuben uses, something he used to feature on his menus too. His cookbook is dedicated to his late father, and Jos Baker wrote the foreword.  He writes that he likes to combine seasonal ingredients and fresh flavours. Reuben spoke about his love for fresh ingredients, and that broadbeans and asparagus are the best thing about Spring. Reuben said he would never throw away a flop dish, always looking to add to it to improve it.  We asked him how he could reconcile the trend by top chefs to use fresh herbs with his endorsement of Robertsons’ bottled spices, and he replied that not everyone can afford to eat at his restaurant, or to buy or grow fresh herbs, nor are all herbs available all year round. Spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves are needed all year round. Reuben’s favourite ingredients are Karoo lamb, snoek, naartjies, springbok, waterblommetjies, West Coast mussels, guinea fowl, guavas, and mielies. Reuben changes his menu every day, based on the fresh produce he receives on a particular day. The foods he grew up on include waterblommetjiebredie, ‘stamp en stoot’ (a mix of beans, white corn, meaty bones and marrow), and Karoo lamb chops, he writes.  His book contains 77 recipes of foods sourced from the ocean (Cape Malay mussel dish above), the field, the orchard, the earth, the wild, and the vine.  Few herbs and spices are contained in his recipes, and Robertsons spices and herbs are not recommended in the book.

Marita van der Vyver was the best known writer, better known for her novels (’Griet skryf ‘n Sprokie’ was her first book, and has been translated into more than ten languages).  She married Frenchman Alain Claisse, lives an idyllic life in Provence, and her husband seems to do a lot of the cooking for the patchwork family of his, her, and their children.  She admitted that 25 years ago she was barely able to cook an egg, nor bake. Publisher Kerneels Breytenbach came to visit, and they decided to prepare their everyday food for him, which her husband calls ‘French peasant food’.  He was so excited about what he ate with them that he invited them to publish a cookbook about Provence. Marita wanted it to be more of a storybook, but the publishers insisted that the recipes of the dishes written about were included, which cramped the style of both her and her husband.  Marita wanted the freedom to write her book ‘Summer in Provence‘ (R264) as she wanted to, and Alain is a creative cook who takes a pinch of this and one of that in preparing his dishes, never replicating any, and always experimenting and adding new dimensions to it.  Lien Botha came to France to do the Provence photography, and the dishes were recreated locally and photographed.  She told us that all food in France is seasonal, even the cheese!  All the recipes in her book specify ingredients which one can buy in South Africa. Marita says she misses waterblommetjies in France. They have not had a vegetable garden up to now, due to the good availability of fresh produce at the local markets, but having moved house recently, they now have space to start one. They have always grown herbs on their windowsill, and she would never cook with dried herbs, she said.  They cannot do without thyme, as it symbolises Provence. Marita’s policy on ingredients is “Beste Beskikbare Bekostigbare” (best affordable available).  The book covers recipes and photographs of the dishes and life in Provence, for asparagus, pumpkin, chicken, spanspek, trout, tarts, stews, cheese, risotto, fruit, polenta, couscous, berries, spinach, figs (photograph of her baked fig and nuts), chocolate, and more.  Marita has just had a new novel published, called ‘Just Dessert, Dear‘, not about cooking at all, but the main character is a food writer.  She said about the theme of her newest book: “Revenge is a dish best served cold”!

Zuretha Roos and Annalie Nel grew up in the Hex River valley.  Both were teachers, with a passion for food, and were approached by a publisher to write ‘Roast Duck on Sundays’ (R254).Their mother was a ’splendid’ passionate cook, and served Muscovy duck weighing up to 7 kg on Sundays, her ‘piéces de résistance’, and now very hard to source.  Annalie had a catering business, and now experiments with recipes.  Zuretha used to be the cookery editor of the now defunct Darling magazine, and has written a number of other cookbooks. They had to use ‘ordinary’ duck for their cover photograph, they said.  The pages of the book have an interesting brown weathered look about them, and the photographs look like they come out of an old family photo album.  The book contains more than the Sunday roast duck - it also covers recipes for soups, breads, pastries, dressings, sauces, fish, shortcrust pastry, venison, cakes, and puddings.

No cookbook is prescriptive, and recipes should be amended to reflect one’s taste and the availability of ingredients. The altitude at which one cooks, one’s stove, the appliances, the quality of the ingredients, and a number of other factors can influence whether a recipe will be successful or not. There was quite a discussion about duck, and how difficult it is to source it with the right fat/meat ratio.  The audience laughed when Reuben said that duck fat is healthy!  Zuretha and Annalie said ‘that it makes the most beautiful roast potatoes’.  Increased usage of star anise and white pepper are two new spice trends, said Abigail.  Old-fashioned recipes are making a come-back too. Marita said that research has shown that a cookbook owner only uses 3 - 4 recipes out of a cookbook.  The great joy of writing a cookbook is that one can source one’s book all the time, to make one’s favourite recipes.  The reliable sourcing of fish is becoming more difficult, Reuben said. Guineafowl can be sourced from Wild Peacock, Reuben said when asked in question time. Kalahari truffles can be sourced from Melissas.  Abigail confirmed that ‘foodie’ is a term which is no longer acceptable to define foodlovers and writers.

‘What’s Cooking‘ was an interesting start to the Franschhoek Literary Festival 2012 yesterday, and in a way Abigail Donnelly, the panel chairman, probably would have been a better source of information on many of the questions she asked the panel.  She was well prepared, having read all three cookbooks, and Reuben and Marita were talkative, which made her task easier.  The two sisters Zuretha and Annelie were less communicative, yet charming in their honesty when they spoke.  All three cookbooks are likely to do well, all three being very different.

POSTSCRIPT 12/5: One wonders what Robertsons, the One & Only Cape Town, the Robertson Small Hotel, Quivertree Publishing, and other business partners would say about Reuben Riffel’s abusive reaction on his Facebook page to our Robertsons’ endorsement question at the Franschhoek Literary Festival yesterday (see the Comments to this blogpost).

POSTSCRIPT 13/5: Reuben Riffel has closed down his Facebook account!

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage

The Sour Service Award goes to the Pick ‘n Pay BP Express in Green Point.  Recently the monthly municipal accounts were paid via EasyPay at this branch and sms bundles were bought for the staff.  When the sms vouchers and proof of payment were printed by the cashier one could barely read the detail, as the shop printer cartridge was close to empty. The Manager Darren didn’t want to call the franchisee Paul Schaefer (he is never there in the evenings nor over weekends), so he tried to dismantle the printer linked to the till and swop it with another. He called when it was done, an hour later, so that we could fetch the newly printed and far more legible slips.  We had not noticed that the sms bundle vouchers did not have a pin code due to the reprint, and this necessitated a third visit to the branch on a Saturday morning, again finding Mr Schaefer absent.  I was asked to return two days later, which was unacceptable, due to the time already wasted over three visits.  Mr Schaefer called, explaining that he would have to look through the screen shots of the till screens of the two previous visits, to get the sms bundle voucher pin numbers, and this could only be done on his return. We called Jacques Lombard at the Pick ‘n Pay Head Office, and he immediately instructed Mr Schaefer to issue replacement sms bundle vouchers, which was done, but was accompanied by abusive calls and sms messages from Mr Schaefer, absolving himself and his staff from any responsibility for the problem created. We will not return to this Pick ‘n Pay branch, due to the continued EasyPay incompetence experienced in the past year.

The WhaleTales Sweet & Sour Service Awards are presented every Friday on the WhaleTales blog.  Nominations for the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be sent to Chris von Ulmenstein at info@whalecottage.com.   Past winners of the Sweet and Sour Service Awards can be read on the Friday posts of this blog, and in the WhaleTales newsletters on the www.whalecottage.com website.

The shark attack caused a huge outcry, in that the Kogel Bay beach does not have sharkspotters (Muizenberg, Fish Hoek, St James, Kalk Bay, and Noordhoek have them), and in that National Geographic was implicated in the shark attack, in that Chris Fisher, a documentary maker for the TV channel, had been filming ‘Shark Men in False Bay’, having received a permit allowing ‘chumming’, luring sharks with a mix of fish and oil, to the boat. The permits issued to the film team were withdrawn immediately after the shark attack, but have since been reissued, on condition that the team’s vessel Ocearch only operates near Gansbaai and in False Bay, and that a maximum of 12 sharks may be tagged, reported iol.co.za.  Reuters quoted contradictory research about the effect of chumming on shark attacks. False Bay has 260 Great White Sharks, according to shark scientist Alison Kock, reported the Cape Times. Shark cage diving, mainly talking place in the Gansbaai area, is also blamed for a greater number of shark attacks. The Western Cape provincial government is to hold a special public hearing about shark research and tourism shortly, reports the Cape Argus.

The visit by blogger and Tweeter Andrew Evans kicked off a multi-prong year-long National Geographic marketing campaign jointly sponsored by Cape Town Tourism and Durban Tourism.  No budget figures for the campaign are available, which includes coverage on National Geographic TV, as well as in the National Geographic magazines in limited countries such as China and India.

Readers of the National Geographic blog were invited to ‘follow our Digital Nomad through South African cities‘, and Andrew spent just over a week in Cape Town, from 16 - 25 April, Tweeting his way around the city (he has just more than 15000 followers on Twitter, not an extraordinary number for his international exposure, and surprisingly only about 2300 Facebook likes). Andrew documented his impressions and experiences in only five blogposts about Cape Town. Four blogspot were very short, and the last one was entitled ‘My Cape Town Favorites’ , containing more information, and sharing information about accommodation, restaurants, and sights he experienced in Cape Town.

The restaurant section intrigued me, and it was disappointing to read where Andrew had eaten: Mama Africa; Kalkys; Bread, Milk and Honey; Lola’s, Eastern Bazaar, Noon Gun, Two Oceans, and the Cape Royale, mediocre restaurants at best. The best of the collection was the Planet Restaurant at the Mount Nelson Hotel, an Eat Out Top 20 Restaurant.  Andrew did not eat at Cape Town’s (and South Africa’s) best restaurant (The Greenhouse) or at the Test Kitchen (best chef).  Just after his visit, Chef Luke Dale-Roberts’ The Test Kitchen restaurant made 74th place on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants! We wrote a comment about this on the blogpost, and Andrew replied, writing that his meal at Planet was a memorable one.  We then asked via a further comment how he chose the restaurants he went to, Cape Town Tourism clearly guiding him about this! To our surprise, the comments and Andrew’s reply have since been deleted, probably at the insistence of Cape Town Tourism!  We note that a correction we offered about the ‘Signature (sic) Hill’ winery Andrew wrote about has been corrected!  Despite a Cape Town Tourism media release announcing that Andrew would also visit Robben island and the three wine routes in Cape Town, these attractions were not included in his visit. But he did go up Table Mountain, play with penguins at Boulder’s Beach, kayaked around Cape Point with Lewis Pugh, and visited the Aquarium, Kirstenbosch, Woodstock, Bo Kaap, District Six, Noordhoek Beach, Camps Bay, the V&A Waterfront, Long Street, Muizenberg, and Kalk Bay.  His experiences were mainly Tweeted with a photograph of each of his tourist destinations.  Although Andrew called for recommendations of places to see and visit in Cape Town, and receiving many suggestions, he did not appear to make time to visit any of the more unusual attractions in the city and in surrounding towns and villages.  Surprising is that Andrew did not reply to any of the travel suggestions he received, Cape Town Tourism Communications Manager Skye Grove responding to the more controversial comments (and clearly deleting those that she did not like!).

Andrew spent a week in Durban in the second half of the joint campaign with Durban Tourism, and now advertisements for Durban strongly brand the city (“Durban: The warmest place to be”) on the National Geographic blog, the advertisement and a banner for Durban running alongside the Cape Town blogposts by Andrew, which does not make marketing sense at all!  While Andrew was in Durban he made a fatal error in a racist Tweet “Black woman visiting from Jo’burg & Muslim woman watch the sunrise & the surfers at #Durban beach”. He also Tweeted about OR Thambo being notorious for theft out of luggage (ouch!) - most incoming international flights are via this airport, so the Tweet is damaging to South African tourism in general, hardly what Cape Town Tourism or Durban Tourism should be paying National Geographic for!

The multi-million Rand National Geographic marketing campaign for Cape Town and Durban has not commenced on a good note. One must question the wisdom of two (competing) cities sharing a marketing campaign (as bad as Cape Town Routes Unlimited marketing ‘Cape Town & Western Cape’ as one brand), and why Andrew’s often naive content was not checked for the many mistakes he has made, reflecting badly on our city, the premier tourism brand of South Africa!  One questions what impact this campaign has had for Cape Town, in a period when Cape Town’s tourism businesses are facing a deadly quiet second half of May, as well as June and July! Cape Town Tourism’s shark swimming advertisement is in poor taste and must be scrapped immediately!

POSTSCRIPT 11/5: The Cape Argus has reported that the public hearing will be held on Tuesday.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage

The 13 Finalists were put to a taste test, with 30 small bowls of ingredients placed on their work stations. They were asked to taste an ‘iconic’ Carrot Cake which Chef Benny Masekwameng had baked, and then choose the 15 ingredients he had included in its baking. Brandon said immediately that he did not have a good track record in identifying ingredients, and looked worried. He added that he had made a carrot cake before, but certainly had not added so many different ingredients. Thys Hattingh was excited when he saw the sugar, knowing it was a cake or a dessert, saying it probably was something he had made before. He started with the foundation of a carrot cake, choosing the base ingredients: carrots, walnuts, sultanas, and more. The carrot cake was praised by the Finalists for its aroma, and some guessed that it contained nutmeg, cinnamon, and fruit.  The Finalists had to choose the ingredients they thought were in the cake, the bottom eight Finalists going into the ‘Elimination Challenge‘, they were told.  It was the second ingredient (walnuts) that caught Thys short, and another seven incorrectly chose sultanas, which were not in the cake. Brandon, Ilse Fourie, Sue-Ann Allen, Jade de Waal, Deena Naidoo, Manisha Naidu, Thys, and Babalwa went into the Elimination Challenge as a result. In choosing a cooking utensil, which matched that of a second Finalist, the eight were paired into groups of two, and had to open a Mystery Box, which contained a directive of where to go to recreate an iconic South African dish, each pair driven to a different destination in the sponsor Hyundai’s vehicles.  They were given 4 hours to meet with the maker of the dish, to taste the ingredients, and to feel the texture.  The makers of the dishes were not allowed to tell them the recipes or give any specific guidelines.  The eight Finalists were told that the makers of the ‘worst dish’ would be sent home, a surprise that two Finalists were set to be eliminated.

Brandon and Babalwa were sent to De Volkskombuis in Stellenbosch, where they met Chef Dawid and were presented with his restaurant’s ‘Meraai se Hoenderpie’, his mother having added the dish to the menu 35 years ago, in honour of one of their chefs at the time. They tasted the dish, described the chicken to be ‘moist and juicy’, covered with a thick and crispy pastry. There were no strong spices, but they detected a taste of sweetness.  On their return, Brandon decided proudly that they would not use puff pastry from the Woolworths Pantry, and that they would make it themselves, a decision which was criticised by Chef Pete Goffe-Wood, in that puff pastry takes two days to be made, he said.  Brandon confidently replied that he knows the short cuts to make puff pastry. They cooked the chicken with bacon, to give it saltiness, as well as mushrooms. Again Brandon told the camera proudly that he came to MasterChef SA to ‘push his boundaries’, and that’s why he chose to make the puff pastry from scratch.  As it does, it shrunk in the oven, and exposed some of the meat. The dish therefore did not look as good as that of De Volkskombuis, and Brandon was told that store puff pastry had been used in the making of the dish at the restaurant. The judges said that the filling had dried out due to the pastry not creating a seal, due to it shrinking.  The dish was not cleaned before presentation, as can be seen in the photograph.

Jade and Sue-Ann were sent to Goedemoed Country Inn in Paarl, where local waterblommetjie bredie expert Tannie Naomi presented her iconic waterblommetjie dish in the 1818 Cape Dutch home, which had housed some of the MasterChef SA production crew, its owner Russian Count Kim Nicolay told me telephonically after the show. Tannie Naomi said that waterblommetjies grow in 60 - 100 cm of water, and are an iconic Boland dish. Kim told me that the phone had rung off the hook after the show last night, for bookings of waterblommetjie bredie, but they are not a restaurant. Back at Nederburg close by, the two Finalists chose bay leaves, salt and pepper, sugar and white wine to cook the lamb.  They left the cooking of the waterblommetjies to last, Chef Pete questioning this, but Jade confidently said that they did not want to overcook it for it to become ‘mushy’!  When served to the judges, they said it was a ‘bit green’, and the dish was shot down for the potatoes, lamb, and waterblommetjies all having been cooked separately, instead of being cooked together, the ingredients not ‘having lived together in the same pot’, they were told.

Ilse and Manisha were sent to the Eziko Cooking and Catering School in Langa, where Chef David presented the dish they had feared, being tripe, both never having prepared it before.  Tripe is a traditional Xhosa dish, served to guests to welcome them, Chef David explained.  The two Finalists described the texture as ‘furry’, and ‘chewy’, and having a salty taste.  Initially they seemed hesitant to taste the dish, but realised that their future participation in MasterChef SA depended on it. Back at the MasterChef SA kitchen, they put the tripe into a pressure cooker.  They had to make phutu pap too, and followed the instructions on the pack.  Chef Benny liked the aroma coming out of their pots, but the two Finalists were worried that the tripe was not yet soft enough and also not as brown as in Chef David’s dish. The judges said that their tripe dish had an identical presentation to that of Eziko, and the tripe was judged by Chef Andrew Atkinson to be ‘not bad’.  Chef Pete liked its texture, but Chef Benny said that the pap did not have the right consistency. But he said that the dish ‘blew me away’, saying that the texture and flavours were right, and therefore they were allowed to join the other five Finalists who did not have to do this Challenge.

Thys and Deena were driven to Biesmiellah, the iconic Cape Malay restaurant in the Bo-Kaap in Cape Town, on a glorious day, and Cape Town was shown off in its glory.  They were presented with Denningvleis, the most popular Cape Malay dish that the Indonesians had brought to this country.  It was described as containing lamb and a ‘watery gravy’. They tasted a ’sweetness’, nuts, and tamarind.  Being furthest away, they had the longest time to discuss their strategy whilst they were driven back to Nederburg.  Arriving back, their challenge was to balance the sweet (with brown sugar) and sour (with tamarind, but which they could not find in the Woolworths Pantry) of the dish. They added raisins, whereas Biesmiellah had used sultanas. When presented to the judges, their dish was said by Chef Andrew to be ‘nearly there’, to look similar to that of Biesmiellah, that the lamb could have been cooked for longer, and that there was a ‘good balance between sweet and sour’, Chef Pete said.  Their dish was judged to be good enough for them to stay on at MasterChef SA.

In the end two teams did not do well: Jade and Sue-Ann did not ‘marry their dish in one pot’, and Brandon and Balalwa did not follow the judges’ brief of replicating the dish they were allocated. The judges reminded the Finalists that this episode had exposed them to the culinary heritage of our country, and that both teams had fallen short in this Challenge. It was their decision to eliminate Brandon and Babalwa in this episode. Brandon said that cooking is the great passion in his life. Babalwa said that she had had an awesome time at MasterChef SA.  From Twitter it would appear that the wrong team was sent home last night, many Tweeting that it was unfair that Brandon was ‘punished’ for preferring to make his own puff pastry instead of using a prepared one.

The remaining eleven Finalists were given a pep talk by the judges, being told that they were a third way through MasterChef SA, and that it was ‘time to shine’, and to ‘reach out and grab it’! They were challenged: Let’s see it’, referring to one of them becoming MasterChef.

POSTSCRIPT 9/5: I popped in at Biesmiellah today, and the manager told me that they have been overwhelmed by the number of calls of Capetonians who want to taste Denningvleis.  One TV viewer came to them straight after the show last night to eat it!

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage

I was invited by De Grendel’s Public Relations consultant Errieda du Toit to share lunch with her a week after De Grendel Restaurant opened.  I had only been to the wine estate once before, more than a year ago, with the Gastronauts, when catering had been brought in from outside.  The room was transformed in collaboration with the Graaff family, blue brought into the table legs, into the upholstery fabric of some the chairs, as well as into the magnificent underplates made by ceramist Mervyn Gers (once the head of Radio Kontrei, the predecessor of Kfm).  The underplates have the Graff family crest, showing a Paschal lamb, five stars representing the Southern Cross, flanked by the Boer farmer on the one side and a miner on the other, with three spades and armour.  The blue pattern on the rim of the plate is repeated in bowls on the tables, and matches the Delftware in the armoire in the restaurant. Matching the underplates in quality is the most stylish, classic but modern, cutlery by Robert Welch, used in Michelin-starred restaurants, we were told by restaurant owner Jonathan Davies, which he was surprised that @Home has the agency for in South Africa.  The Graaff family was awarded the baronetcy in 1911 for service rendered to the Crown in South Africa.  The first Sir David had introduced the commercial cold storage and transportation of meat in South Africa, was the Mayor of Cape Town, introducing electricity to the city, helped set up the dry dock in the Cape Town harbour, and was involved in the building of the Table Mountain cableway.  One wall has a collection of Graaff family photographs, including his son and politician Sir De Villiers Graaff dancing with the then Princess Elizabeth, now the Queen of England, on her Royal visit to Cape Town in 1947. The far end of the dining room has a glass window which allows one to look into the wine cellar, while the kitchen is visible behind a glass window on the opposite end.  The ambiance created is to make one feel as if one is dining with the Graaff family.

The involvement of Jonathan Davies raises the cuisine bar for Cape Town, given that he owns the The Crown at Whitebrook, voted the best restaurant in Wales and one of the Top 50 restaurants in the UK, and has been awarded three AA rosettes, and one Michelin star for a number of years.  He has worked at Ellerman House, and at the Ritz Carlton in Atlanta, and has been coming to South Africa for seven years, having married his Pretorian wife. He met the Graaff family via a Bishops function where the respective children and grandchildren are in the same class.  The deal was struck when Sir David came to have a meal at the Welsh restaurant.  Jonathan has training in both front of house and as a chef, but has decided to concentrate on the former, and has brought in Chef Ian Bergh, previously of Pure at the Hout Bay Manor, Five Flies, and La Colombe.   This exciting team has created a wonderful menu of creative dishes, and one senses that they had fun in coming up with new dishes never seen before on a local menu.  A classic was Jonathan telling us about his Brandy and Coke ice cream he is working on, having observed how popular this drink is in South Africa, and a guinea fowl burger is planned.  Jonathan says he will offer ‘fine dining’, his definition of it being that it is ‘food prepared well and with passion’.  They are also bringing the De Grendel wines into the cuisine, and are using the wines to make chocolate truffles, a weakness of Sir David, I was told.  

Chef Ian brought out four dishes to give us a taste of his menu, and Jonathan brought glasses of De Grendel wines paired with each dish.  We sat in the ‘Conservatory’, a smaller room alongside the main restaurant, overlooking a large dam, and the green fields of the farm, on which Arab horses are kept for an equine remedial therapy programme, helping children with impediments, and in which geese, goats, Nguni cattle, and sheep can be seen too, against the landmark backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean and Table Mountain.  Grain and grapes are farmed at De Grendel.

The meal started with a slice of roast potato bread, served with home-made butter in a ceramic dish made by another top Cape Town ceramicist Lisa Firer, who also made the salt and pepper pots. The salad of fig, Buffalo Ridge mozzarella, cherry tomato and a raspberry dressing was a fresh starter, and a beautiful medley of leaves, which Jonathan paired with the 2011 De Grendel Sauvignon Blanc, the cool breeze off the sea being ideal for growing this grape variety.  The Winifred blend of Chardonnay, Viognier, and Semillon was paired with a pea ravioli, free range chicken, Gorgonzola spuma, and a creamy De Grendel Chardonnay sauce.  The starters range in price from R75 - R130, and other options include scallop, cob, duck liver, and squid.

The pork belly main course was superb, served with apple puree, roasted as well as pickled baby beetroot, and a sage and De Grendel Winifred jus, which Jonathan paired with the De Grendel Pinot Noir.  Other main courses are Beef onglet (a French beef cut), venison, lamb, veal, and line fish, ranging from R135 - R155, and guinea fowl with foie gras (R240).  The piece de resistance, that impressed with its beauty, creaminess, and simplicity, was the dessert, a basil panna cotta served with pomegranate (a special sweet taste, with a popping sound when one bites the kernels, and a beautiful deep red colour), served with strawberry and basil sprout. Given that Jonathan had told us about his Brandy and Coke dessert, a portion of it was made, which Errieda and I shared, being a malva pudding served with an apricot samoosa, a ball of Coca Cola ice cream, and a Brandy sauce.

For dinner a 6 - 8 course tasting menu is offered. The restaurant is child-friendly, and has sourced a children’s range of cutlery.  Children under 3 years do not pay. Child-friendly dishes can be made, or children can order smaller portions of their parents’ dishes. High-chairs will be available for children.  A range of children’s activities is planned, mainly to educate the children about vegetable growing and harvesting.  They will even be able to plant their own vegetables, and would be encouraged to return to see them grow.

I didn’t look at the winelist, but Jonathan told me that the wines are sold at cellar prices, a most commendable pricing strategy!  Errieda told me that the Graaffs started wine farming twelve years ago, making good wines at affordable prices. The farm is 350 meters above sea level and 7 km from the sea. Charles Hopkins is the Cellar master and Elzette du Preez the winemaker.  The De Grendel wine range includes MCC, Rubaiyat, Shiraz, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Rosé, Pinot Gris, and Sauvignon Blanc. Sir David has had a wine made in honour of his wife Lady Sally, called the Winifred, her second name.   They have recently launched a Sauvignon Blanc-based Noble Late Harvest. Bottled triple carbon filtered water comes from the farm, and the glass bottles are re-used. Sundays sees traditional lunch fare, and Jonathan will carve a roast or chicken for a family at the table.  The Crown at Whitebrook Chef James Sommerin, who was featured in the BBC’s ‘Great British Menu’ series, will do guest visits to De Grendel Restaurant, and will showcase some of his menu items.

De Grendel Restaurant is an exciting new addition to the Cape Town gourmet collection, combining a feeling of history and tradition on the wine estate, with the modernity and creativity of the cuisine offered in its restaurant.  I will definitely be returning.

De Grendel Restaurant, De Grendel wine estate, M14, Plattekloof Road, Plattekloof.  Tel (021) 558-6280. www.degrendel.co.za Twitter:@DeGrendelWines. Tuesday - Sunday lunch, Tuesday - Saturday dinner.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter@WhaleCottage