One of my favourite meals, the Kalk Bay platter from the Cape Town Fish
Market, a great restaurant. The platter contained, fish, calamari, prawns
and mussels. A large meal, but it is so good. They also do great sushi. By
the way if you are vegetarian, I would not rush there too fast…Here is
their website – www.ctfm.co.za.
I was walking through Greenmarket Square today, and I was amazed at how in some ways it has not changed in 20 year, but in some ways it is completely different!
The most remarkable change is how European it now looks, being almost completly surrounded be Parisian Cafe’s, restaurants and coffee shops. These pictures do make me feel like I am sitting in a little corner of Provence. All I need is a glass of ”vin ordinaire”, or perhaps a ”petit cafe”.
Corner of Burg and Shortmarket street
Shortmarket Street, looking up St Georges Mall towards the square
Greenmarket Square - traditional African (tourist) market
Compare the first pic to the above, which I took in Paris about three years ago, could almost be the same place.
Enjoy Cape Town - little Paris.
I have spoken in the past about how the different between excellent service and poor service is often revealed when service goes wrong. Well, here is another example.
Recently our favourite Indian restaurant Gaylords in Muizenberg mysteriously closed. This greatly disappointed both Lois and myself, because it was the only restaurant that served a HOT curry when we wanted a HOT curry. So, we have been on the prowl for a replacement.
Last night, we tried a fairly new restaurant called Bihari in Westlake.
I ordered a butter chicken, and Lois had a potatoe curry. She ordered hers “Indian Hot”, and I thought that I would just have mine hot. We had to send both back because they were not hot enough. Shortly both meals were returned, but only slightly warmer (they had filled my half-empty bowl to the brim). “Oh well”, I thought, “it is not at all hot but very tasty, so no problem.” Besides, butter chicken is not really a hot dish.
After the meal, I mentioned to the waiter that I would have preferred it much hotter, but not to worry since I had really enjoyed my meal, but please make it hotter next time. Well, not five minutes later the head waiter was at the table apologizing, and he offered to arrange a really hot curry for me to take home as an apology. “Sure – lunch tomorrow”. I did start to get a bit nervous when they told me that it would take a few minutes, and they were “just grinding the chillis”.
About ten minutes later the meal arrived, all ready packed to take home, and they brought a little extra sauce for me in a bowl to taste. Well, it was blisteringly hot! I am not sure that I have had a hotter curry in a restaurant. So they can make a hot curry. I decided to throw it into the freezer and keep for supper one evening next week.
But the point of the story is that even though something had gone wrong, and even though I was not particularity concerned about what went wrong, the restaurant (under their own initiative) felt compelled to make it right. No questions, and no fuss!
Will we be back – of course – two orchids!
A few days ago, it was our wedding anniversary, so Lois and I decided to goto Five Flies for supper.
In summary, it was a wonderful experience.
The menu is very simply structured, all starters are a fixed price, all mains a fixed price, and the same for deserts. You can order a single dish, or you get a discount if you order a 2,3 or four course meal. You can also decide as you go how many courses to order, and they will bill you accordingly.
The wine list is similarly structured, with the wines split into about 4 price ranges. I found that it just makes the who pricing much simpler.
The meal was great – I started with beef carpaccio and green salad. It was a generous portion, with fresh salad greens. Lois started with green asparagus spears in a lemon butter sauce. She loved it! For mains, I had the lamb shank, which was very tender, and had clearly been cooking for hours. Lois had a pesto pasta with asparagus and vege stir-fry. While she enjoyed her meal, she felt that the greens were a little over-cooked. They also marketed it as a vege-platter, so she expected the veges on the side, and not in the pasta.
We shared a cheese platter (for 1, which came with a glass of port). The platter was not huge, but a good size to share (it would have been too much for 1!).
The website is great. The entire menu is on it (with prices!) – other restaurants take note! And they allow you to book online. I did so, and received confirmation within the promised 24 hours!
They welcomed Eccles (the guide dog), and especially made sure that we had a table with plenty of room for her. The staff were efficient, professional and friendly.
Will we be back? Definitely!
ps: at the end of the meal they gave us some "monopoly" money which will give us some great discounts (>R90) at our next meal!
We have just got back from running a Toastmasters training session in Windhoek, Namibia. Namibia is such a wonderfully friendly country. You are constantly surrounded by people greeting you, and doing it because it is polite, and not because they are trying to get something out of you.
You quickly learn to be friendly, because it is impossible to conduct any type of business without firstly greeting people, and then wishing them a good day afterwards. It also forces you to slow down for a few minutes and stop rushing all the time.
A typical example of the friendless occurred at the restaurant where we had supper one evening:
Patron: Can I please have the wine list?
Waiter: Good Evening
Patron: (obviously from Johannesburg or Cape Town) – blank stare
Waiter: Good Evening
Patron: (getting the message) Good Evening
Waiter: (smile) Would you like to see the wine list?
The waiter was clearly giving the patron a very quick lesson in the manner in which you conduct yourself in Windhoek.
The training session was great – we spent the afternoon at a game reserve, and the evening at the legendary Joe’s Beerhouse.
Joes can hold about 1000 people, however it still manages to maintain it’s intimate atmosphere. We had a table of about 10 people, and the service was excellent. The food was not cheap (well – I suppose that be Cape Town standards it was), but it was superb.
I was very proud that I managed to finish my Eisbein, but please don’t tell my doctor! I also tried a small piece of Zebra steak, which was very good.
We followed off the meal with a Jagermeister and schnapps, and then we stumbled off to bed (because we were tried after the training!)
If you get the chance, you must visit Namibia, it is a very friendly country, and well worth the visit. My only regret was that we were only there for the weekend. When we go up in January I hope to spend a few more days there.
PS: at night the temperature dropped to about -4, and went up to about 27 deg C in the day!
PPS: Thanks Stan for the above photo.
This week I experienced a wonderfully sad evening. It was wonderful because I got to spend an evening having a great dinner with some of my very close friends in one of my favourite restaurants. It was sad because it was the last time that I could have dinner there.
The reason for this is not because I do not wish to go back, rather because I cannot go back. After being steered in very good hands by Hans and Marion for the past 16 years, The Boardsail Inn is finally closing its doors for good this week.
In its infinite wisdom, The City of Cape Town has cancelled The Boardsail’s lease. They have all sorts of reasons for this which have been discussed at length in the local newspapers, some of which are to “allow parking for council vehicles, to allow a service road, an emergency exit, for increased parking for the community”. The premises have been used for over 50 years, and it is a sad moment seeing it close for good.
No longer will I be able to enjoy a quiet dinner in the week. I am going to miss the winter curry evenings, where Hans would serve up a batch of warming curries. And in summer, I am no longer going to be able to sit on the porch, enjoying a beer or two, watching the sun as it sets over the vlei. Most importantly, my dogs are going to miss hearing Charlie barking at them from across the vlei when they enjoy their daily walks.
I am not the only person who is going to miss the Boardsail, and I think that many people will be happy to join me in raising a somewhat virtual glass to Marion and Hans while we say “thanks for all the good times – we are going to miss you”.
Three onions to City of Cape Town 
Attention: Cape Town City Manager
Copies: False Bay Echo
Boardsail Inn
Development and Infrastructure Services
The article in the False Bay Echo, 5 May Refers (p3):
I would like to voice my concern over the potential closure of the Boardsail Inn.
Marion and Hans have been running the restaurant for over 16 years, I really feel that it is one of the hidden gems in Cape Town. My wife, myself and several of my friends are regular diners at the Boardsail, and I have had nothing but outstanding hospitality, service and food there.
There are plenty of braai spots in Lakeside, and there is no need to remove the Boardsail to make way for roads etc. I fail to see why after the premises have been used for over 50 years, 16 as the Boardsail, the council has made this decision. Regarding using the buildings for their operational needs, yes I too would love to have an office with the view the Boardsail currently has. This smacks of council abuse. I am sure that there are other properties from which they could operate. It is shocking that the council can terminate a 16 year lease with only a few weeks notice.
The letter quotes the reasons for the lease termination as to “allow parking for council vehicles, to allow a service road, an emergency exit, for increased parking for the community.” There is currently a large parking area behind the restaurant, which I have never seen full. The area is very readily accessibly via the current service road, and it’s a very short drive to the larger road infrastructure. Why would you destroy such a beautiful setting with such a fantastic view for a parking area? Regarding the emergency vehicles, I do agree that they should have ready access, but the currently do have access to the area.
Job creation and entrepreneurship is being encouraged by our National Government. By terminating the lease you are going directly against this, and you are directly destroying several jobs.
Both Marion and Hans have put a lot of energy into turning the Boardsail into what it currently is, by terminating the lease, you are removing the entire future value of the business that they have created.
I strongly urge you to very seriously reconsider this decision.
Regards
Craig Strachan
Lakeside resident and ratepayer
The restaurant is well signposted from the main road (all 50m and three shops of it). We followed the signs to the restaurant, and arrived at a parking lot. Climbing out of the car, we couldn’t see any signs of the restaurant, which was really puzzling. Looking around, we saw a path wondering into the trees. With a sense of excitement, and a great deal of trepidation, we walked down the path. Very soon, we arrived in a small clearing in the trees. Two steps led up to a wooden platform which blended into the trees.
Leading off the platform were dark, varnished wooden steps, climbing their way in large zigzags up into the trees, getting smaller and smaller as they disappeared in the distance.
Looking to the left, we saw something that looked out of place, a wooden frame with glass doors, and a single button.
Deciding to continue on this adventure, I pressed the button. I heard a click, followed a brief second later buy the noise of an electric motor, slowly getting louder. Looking up towards my right, I saw a glass vanicular slowly coming down through the trees. Slowly it arrived and gently docked. The glass doors opened and in we climbed. A panel on the side revealed two buttons, up and down. Since we couldn’t go any lower, I pressed the up button. We heard a click and with a gentle jolt, we were on our way, going higher and higher.
Presently, the vanicular slowed to a stop and the doors opened, revealing a wooden platform, and an entrance door on the left. On the right, we could see the top of the stairs we had observed from the bottom. We entered into the room, and found ourselves in the most charming restaurant – the restaurant in the sky.
Michaela’s is a split level restaurant, with a bar and seating on both levels. The top level has a deck area with magnificent views of the sea, the trees (below you), and the hills of the Eastern Cape. Since we didn’t go to the bottom level, I can’t comment on it.
While not cheap, the meal was certainly not expensive (a characteristic we found throughout the East London area). I ordered sole, with a salmon, shrimp and mushroo m dressing (R74). The sole was large, there was plenty of salmon in the dressing, and it was very, very tasty. Lois had the soup of the day, which came with a few pieces of melba toast (R24). Her bowl was large, and also very good. The salad was fresh and crisp, with plenty of veges in it.
The staff is unassuming and friendly. They have the rare ability to be there when you need the assistance, but to not be in the way the rest of the time. We were there for lunch on a Friday, and there were quite a few busy tables. I got the impression that many people are regulars.
We had drinks the next evening, and even though there were getting ready for a wedding party downstairs, we were welcome to have drinks upstairs. The wedding party all arrived while we were having drinks, and although we were tempted to gatecrash the wedding (a wedding being our original reason for the trip), we managed to resist the urge. I do however get the sneaking suspicion that we would have been welcome to join in the festivities had we done so.
written by Craig
Michaela’s Restaurant – 043-738-5139
Chance had us at the same restaurant exactly a week later. The chef was back and fully recovered from his car accident, and they had most items on the menu. I choose the line fish, a piece of fresh cape salmon, served with a Thai curry sauce. It was outstanding (you’ll have to ask for the curry sauce – they don’t usually serve it with the fish). Lois had an aubergine bake, which was almost like a vege lasagna, also very good.
Once again, service was slow, but we were not in a rush. I would not go there if I was going for a quick bite to eat on the way to a movie.
No Beatles music this time :-(. Both times we have been there was on a Sunday evening, and both times they were fairly full. The clientele seem to be a quite a mixture of people, which is probably a reflection of the ambiance and price.
In the last review, I said that I would be back, and I was, and I will be again.
written by Craig
Octopus’ Garden is in the St James station building, in what I believe is the old post office. It has a very airy and light, lovely, laid-back atmosphere. The décor is a tasteful mixture of modern paintings and bohemian murals.
The menu is an eclectic blend of local and Italian (one of the co-owners is Italian). Dishes include game carpaccio, steak, fresh tuna, line fish and pasta dishes (it is not a large menu, but it should have something to suit everybody). Lois wanted the spinach ravioli with tomato and pepper sauce. However since she does not eat spinach, it was no problem for the restaurant to substitute the ravioli with tagliatelli. I had a spinach cannelloni which was really fantastic. I would have preferred a little chilli in it, but they assured that next time if I ask when I place my order they will add some chilli for me.
If you bring white wine, instead of giving you an ice bucket, they put your wine into the fridge and periodically come past your table to top up the wine. I cannot comment on the wine list (since I didn’t order the wine), however their house wine is an Italian house wine, which was very nice and fruity.
On the night we went, they were a bit slow bringing the food, and they were out of stock of some of the items (they had no line fish or lasagna). However they did apologise and assure me that this is because the chef had hurt his sholder in a car accident that afternoon and was not at work (I am assured he is doing well and will be back at work this week).
Because of the name, many of the songs played at the restaurant are Beatles songs, which suited me fine. I certainly got the impression that many of the tables were regulars, which is always a good thing. The staff was all very friendly, and both owners swung past the tables to apologise about the delay, and to check that all is fine, and I really got the impression that they were genuinely interested and not just asking because it was expected.
Leila the guide dog was welcome and presented with a bowl of water.
I will definitely be back.
written by Craig
