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| Bombay Brasserie |
I thoroughly enjoyed Taste of Cape this
year. I went on both Saturday night and Sunday morning – as I feel
there's too much to see, do and taste for one session, and it was
really worth it.
On Saturday I went with my two House &
Garden magazine colleagues. One of them is a vegetarian (Lila), the
other Jewish (Staci), and then there's me with my weird food
allergies (that I conveniently 'forgot' about during certain
tastings, but 'suddenly remembered' during others) – so the three
of us made for fussy eaters.
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| Il Leone |
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| hermanuspietersfontein |
However, there was a lot to be
impressed by. My top dishes being from Bombay Brasserie
(www.tajcapetown.co.za) – the calamari and fish dishes with dreamy
mint sauce; Planet (at Mount Nelson www.mountnelson.co.za) – which
had their dishes paired with selected wines at the
Hermanuspietersfontein (www.hpf1855.co.za) stand across the way; and
Il Leone (www.mastrantonio.com/illeone)
– the kings of pasta, and even though I never usually eat veal,
their porcini and veal dish was to-die-for.
I also loved the fact that La Mouette
(lamouette-restaurant.co.za) had a pop-up stand on Sunday, just after
I'd blogged about them on friday! The gin-and-tonic dessert and the
lamb dish were tops.
Although I missed this one, apparently
everyone was raving about the gourmet burger from Makaron
(www.makaronrestaurant.co.za)
– the new restaurant at Majeka House in the Winelands. I did
actually have some macarons at another stand though... Dark chocolate
and orange flavour – yums!
Wines I loved: Thelema Shiraz
(www.thelema.co.za), Idiom Shiraz, Mouvedre and Viognier blend
(www.idiom.co.za), Ernie Els' Big Easy red blend (www.ernieels.com),
and for a pocket-friendly shiraz, try Deetlefs 2010 shiraz
(www.deetlefs.com). I do know they are totally sold out of their Cab
Sauv and I think their pinotage at the moment too (they export 90%).
So get some Shiraz before that's also gone.
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| Jorgensen's distillery |
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| Italian Wine Tasting |
The Italian wine tasting was most
informative and I'll be writing a separate blog post about the company
that's doing it. But good to know you can order a case of Italy :-)
It's always good to see the guys from
Jorgensen's distillery (www.jd7.co.za). I tried some of
their chilli vodka – which blew my socks off – most notable is
their new naartjie liquor. Seriously yummy stuff and great for a gift
*Cough *cough – it's my birthday in May – *cough*
Their Naked
Lemon Limoncello is also divine!
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| Queen of Tarts |
The mini tarts from the Queen of Tarts
stand were gorgeous and decadent, and the chorizo from Cape Mountain
Charcuturie (also at the Houtbay Market) is
perfect to snack on its own, or to be had in pasta dishes, which I
will be experimenting with this week (www.capemountainfood.co.za).
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| bacon nougat |
But the winner of the 'weirdest, most
unusual product', was not the alcoholic, flavoured whipped cream, nor
the tequila beer, but the 'Salted Macadamia Nut and Maple Smoked
Bacon Honey Nougat'. Bacon and nougat. Don't believe me? It's
pictured above. Made by a company called Ma Mere Maison. And you
know what? It wasn't as revolting as it sounds... it tastes like a
slightly salty nougat. Yeah, I'm not buying it either...
I was also happy to see that there was
live entertainment. Hot Water (www.hotwater.co.za)
played on Saturday night, while Natasha Meister
(www.natashameister.com)
– a blues goddess – charmed crowds on Sunday in the Brandy
lounge.
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| Hot Water |
In any case, I'm sad Taste of Cape is
over, but there's always next year :-)
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