Monthly Archives: May 2013
The Wall: Between a rock and a hard place
The Wall: Contemplation
A wall of interesting things
If you belong to a photo-walk group then I guarantee that your photographer-friends will hugely appreciate you insisting on a stop-over. There’s great coffee (at a great price) and a plethora of interesting photos to be taken.
Keep an eye out over the next day or two – I’ll share a few close-up photos of items in the wall, as well as an assortment other pieces of art that I found at The Woodstock Foundry.
A small tribe of coffee cups
Tribe Coffee – I recommend you visit
I heard about Tribe Coffee at The Foundry in Woodstock. At the time I remember thinking it couldn't possibly be better than Truth, and for sure wouldn't top Origin, but, I have to say, it's close - and I think I may actually prefer their coffee to that served at both Truth and Origin. Sure, you don't believe me - and perhaps it's just personal taste at play, but you really should visit Tribe. Pay your R10 for their cup of brown gold, and then let's compare notes. Okay? :)
You'll find Tribe at 160 Albert Road in Woodstock, just a little down the road (and within walking distance) from The Old Biscuit Mill.
Encouraging sustainability
Because The Sun Belongs To You…
Care for the lands
Wall art at The Woodstock Foundry
Telecommunications – a crow’s nest of wires
A distant Table Bay Harbour
An unusual view of Table Mountain
Maynardville Park
Where the streets have no name
Flowers at The Piano Bar
An array of purple flowers
A purple part of town
Mr Ant and Ms Gazania
Just another Gazania
Dinner and a stylish Green Point restaurant
After relaxing with drinks at Sky Bar, on the hotel's roof-top, we returned to the ground level for dinner - an arrangement of bite-sized versions of the restaurant's new menu. (Click on the pictures below to see a sampling of what we were treated to - yum, right?) I won't go into the delicious details, but on the menu for the evening was an assortment of specialty breads, cheese soufflé, loin of lamb, beef fillet, kingklip, berry pavlova and an incredible, and I do mean incredible, chocolate mousse!
Something that I found really interesting about the restaurant is the origin of its name. I believe it's derived from the New York-style grill that they use to sear their steak at precisely 1800 degrees Fahrenheit, which is a whopping 982 degrees Celsius! Now that's pretty warm heh? Chef Jonathan Gargan believes that it's their special super-hot grill that's responsible for the juicy goodness - and while I can certainly agree that the steak is juicy and good, I do think he's being just a little modest - it probably also has a little to do with years of culinary magic he's rehearsed in the kitchen. ;)
Visit Bistro 1800° at 47 Main Road in Green Point - you won't regret it. Also, when you arrive, stop your car right in front of the building, make use of the valet parking, and step out like royalty leaving the smiling staff to find a safe spot for your car in the building's basement - it's way more fun that way.
A view from Sky Bar at Cape Royale Hotel
Besides for the stylish-yet-unpretentious vibe, what's especially great about Sky Bar is the view. The Cape Royale Hotel is the tallest building in the area, which means that while sipping drinks you're treated to a 360° view of the mountains, ocean, and city. :)
We spent about an hour on the roof-top, enjoying the view, drinking cocktails, and eating oysters. We even managed to squeeze in an impromptu neck and shoulder massage, at Sky Bar, courtesy of the hotel's Equinox Spa (which was, for the record, pretty darn fantastic!).
In a follow-up post I'll share a little more about our dinner at the hotel's in-house Bistro 1800° restaurant, but for now click on the photos below and take a look at the transfixing view of Table Bay and the city from Sky Bar. Pretty awesome, heh?
And there we saw Bon Jovi
Anyway, so yes, Kerry-Anne and I went along to the concert at the Cape Town Stadium, clutching our precious golden circle tickets; and my oh my - it really was a spectacular show. If you enjoy their music at all, even just a little bit, an never made it to the concert, I believe you should now be kicking yourself. :)
Tip: Our experience in the golden circle caused us to renew our resolve that we'll never again buy concert tickets for a performance at the Cape Town Stadium unless they're golden circle tickets. The sound really was incomparable to the mushy sound that we've too many times experienced in the seated area!
Gazania Gazania, beautiful Gazania
Zabad in De Waterkant
It looked stylish and inviting inside. It wasn't too busy (to make it noisy), yet not too empty to be uncomfortable. The menu selection looked pretty good, and both the coffee and breakfasts were super satisfactory.
As perhaps you know, I prize good service (and by that I mean chirpy and friendly, not surly and posh) over the quality of the meal. Sure, there's a point where great service just doesn't cut it anymore, but for me a visit to a restaurant is more about the experience than the food. A restaurant with great staff and atmosphere easily get away with merely average food.
As I said, the food at Zabad was great, but I can't think I'll return for a second visit. Sadly.
A killer speed boat
Let’s play ball
A row of birds
A long conversation
Coming in from the waves
Surfers and clingy wetsuits
I'm not sure if it's that the suit shrunk and is thus now tighter than it was before (I mean, it's impossible that I've grown), or if wetsuits are generally meant to be really difficult to exit from. Don't you just hate that?