Carne 11 November 2009

Carne, right at the end of Keerbom Street.

Had Ribeye, R105. Very nice, especially since it was with no sauce.

Mugged on style - Roeland Street Cape Town

Lebanese influences on all your old favourites:

Burgers, made on order, including the patty an the 'bun'. R54 for Jalapeno and Feta burger with chips. Bit hard to eat, bit measly on the jalapenos, but really good patty. The 'bun' is more a pita than bun, being made from Leb bread.

Everything is fresh, natural and genuine, i.e. not tampered with, using only quality ingredients. Still struggling to make a name for itself as an evening venue, but with a friendly owner manager, definitely worth the visit.

Bizerca - Foreshore, Cape Town 30 Oct 2009

2004 Donier Merlot, R135 Not bad after a little breathing.

2007 Fantail by Morgenhof Pinotage, R90 Excellent value

Starter: Kudu Carpaccio R60 With oil and parmesan. Red onion on the side. Decent portion.

Main: Fillet of Beef with 8 cubic centimetres of sauteed potatoes and a mushroom flan R145 Brilliantly cooked, couldn't have done better myself.

CK Lamb Main: R125 Awesome, with a touch of lamb curry flavour without any heat.

Restaurant is nice and spacious but therefore a little sparse. The atmosphere wasn't exactly buzzing. I felt more buzz at Mexican Kitchen.

Pepenero - Mouille Point, Cape Town 26 Oct 2009

Went to Pepenero in Mouille Point for our anniversary. Checked all the pics online and it all looked very airy and light. Since it was raining and cold, I was little concerned. I had picked Pigalle initially, which I think is in the same stable of restaurants, but they had a wedding.

Anyway, got there, parking was no problem, even though the place was pretty full, and I have to say, it was pretty cosy. Might have been the very low lighting, or that I got sat at a two seater which was right next to the step, so I had a row of nice rather large asses at eye-level, but warm and cosy none the less.

The waitress was very friendly, quite knowledgable and attentive. The drinks menu is comprehensive. Its not a matter of red or white wine, just deciding 'wine' is an achievement. They have beers, cocktails, whisky, cognac and more. The R4000 a tot Hennessy caught my eye, but I figured I wouldn't be able to stretch 25ml between CK and I for a whole meal. So wine it was, and after a brief chat with the manager, we settled on Rupert and Rothschild Classique at R180.

We enjoyed it, and we were told it complimented the steak nicely.

The menu was quite a variety, with their signature dish being steak on a bed of avo. CK and I shared the mussels for a starter. Now we had last had mussels in Paris, so it was gonna be tough to beat. They came very close, with I think about 8 mussels. They were pleasant, but not amazing. Since the signature dish is not my cup of tea, (I have a reputation for being anti-avo, anti-avometic is the technical term) so I went for the pepper encrusted fillet. Mine was R130 and CK went for the signature dish at R150.

Now I like hot stuff, and the pepper fillet was hot. I don't think I have had heat from pepper like that before, usually chili or wasabi or curry. Anyway, I thought it was amazing. I did eat all the edges and send it to be done a touch more, just for the centre since it was quite a block of meat, but I really enjoyed it. CK had the signature and also enjoyed it immensely.

We skipped desert, and were out of there in about 2 and a half hours, but I think I would go back, not necessarily cos anything drew me in particular, but I wouldn't mind trying the rest of the menu. We got our away with R600 including tip.

Misdirected emails...

Check your To: address people... Just received this in my inbox. Sent direct to me. I know the person, but I am pretty sure I never gave them a bomb...

Hope you are great. Believe your weather is beautiful, cos ours is so lousy.

Reason I am writing is Hayden has that bomb you gave him. He was messing around with it the other day and Jeff is a bit concerned that it may still be live, and asked me to ask you if you knew at all.

10 bucks says this gets tagged by the CIA and NSA!!

Vodakak and the iPhone 3GS

I have been a tad annoyed at the lack of communication from Vodacom regarding the release of the iPhone 3GS. Its discussed here. And here.

Well, just a follow up for some closure. On Friday, 31 July, I got a mail from ... Core, who told me they had a few iPhones 3GS in their iStores. As can be expected I called the iStore in Gateway immediately. Of course, as expected, I got "Umm, no we don't have stock, its coming out in two weeks. You should speak to Vodacom."

I then called iStore V&A Waterfront, and was told that they also had no stock. However, at least he was aware that some stock was supposed to be arriving.

So I called Core direct, and a very distraught gentlemen expressed his frustration that the people he had just spoken to in Gateway had no clue. He had also confirmed the delivery with them. Soooo, I called them back. Only to be told ... They had all been sold.

Imagine my frustration. I then went on to call 5 different Vodashops in the Durban area, all of them being major ones like Gateway, Pavillion, Old Fort Road etc. None, I repeat, NONE of these people new the phone was coming out in less than 2 weeks.

I then proceeded to email every, thats right, EVERY Vodashop store in KZN. I got 1 reply to date. From Vodashop Midlands. In Pietermaritzburg. Saying they had no stock.

Then, on the off chance, I called my closest Vodacom 4U shop, and lo and behold, they had stock. So I went and picked one up for my dad. Easy.

I then went to Cape Town for the weekend, walked into the iStore and walked out, albeit 1.5 hours later, with my new iPhone. Also easy.

Vodacom, YOUR COMMUNICATION CHANNELS ARE ABSOLUTELY TERRIBLE! If you'd like, I can come there and introduce you to an amazing new technology. Its called E-MAIL. What happens is, you type a message, choose all your stores and click send. The stores then read it. And are informed. Easy.

Unbelievable...

Making sub folders in your INBOX

Something I searched for ages for and never found on the web is the ability to create a sub folder of your INBOX in an IMAP account in Mail.app on a Mac.

I figured it out today. When you want to create a new folder under your INBOX, and not just at the same level, (if you are trying to do this, you will understand what I mean), here's what you do:

1) Select the inbox you want to create the folder in.

2) click on the + button under your folder list on the left.

3) When a window pops up asking what to call the folder, type INBOX/NewFolderName

Thats it, nothing will happen for a few seconds, and then voila NewFolderName will appear under your INBOX.

Proof readers...

Two words: Proof read!

If you buy this pillow (for R1150) you will have less snoring and undis. Its a magic pillow that steals your underwear. I wonder if it is related to the laundry basket that steals socks?

And so it begins...

Why did the chicken cross the road? Whos asking? Who cares?

The real answer I am looking for is to do with our cancer stick friends. Why does a smoker in a restaurant, light up in front of their friends, then oh-so-caring hold the blasted thing behind themselves, protecting their friends from the smoke, but promptly destroying what ever taste and aroma you were enjoying of your wine as you innocently sit behind them at the next table?

Quite frankly, all cigarettes should come with glue on the tips, so once you 'drag' it stays in your mouth, bothering you and only you, until such time as the cigarette is finished and the soggy stogie drops from your lips.

Or even worse, you stand around for an hour to get a table at Spiga D'ora, the one decent restaurant in Durban, only to be sat outside on the pavement, and then our "Smokie and their bandits' once again, excuse themselves from their table and come stand next to you and puff away?

Isn't their a 911 number for smoking law infringements? What joy to see blue lights scream up to your table as the Lung Patients get bundled into the back of the Banana Van, my mistake, police vehicle and are whisked away to general holding for as many cigarettes as they can barter from Bubba.