Havercrofts - The celebrity of Stanford

Havercrofts was recently listed by Eat Out as one of the best country-style restaurants in South-Africa.  To say that you are going to experience delicious food and be entertained throughout your whole meal is an understatement.

Havercrofts is situated near Stanford. It is run by Chef Brydon and his wife Innes. It is only open for lunch from Thursday to Sunday but a visit here will never disappoint.

This entertaining duo of Havercrofts

I was privileged to visit them for Christmas lunch recently. Our table was seated on the patio under some vine leaves overlooking fields filled with sheep and horses grazing. You wont find a more fitting country view than at Havercrofts.

You will be warmly greeted by the charismatic, opinionated and extremely entertaining Innes. If conversation during your meal dwindles be sure that Innes will pop by to help stir on the pot.

Attention to detail will always be observed at Havercrofts. For our Christmas lunch we all received some of Brydon's famous fudge.

The feasting then commences. They do not have a set menu as Brydon likes to cook with the freshest and most seasonal produce he can find. Be expected to be wowed by dishes such as the three cheese soufflés, pork belly, mushroom risotto, kudu fillet with a black pepper sauce, chicken escalope, home-made ice-cream, blue cheese panacotta, flourless chocolate.......

Prices average at R40-R50 for a starter, R95 upwards for a main and R40 for a dessert.

Our options for Christmas were...

Smoked salmon soufflé

Chilled red pepper and tomato soup

The roast turkey and gammon with all the trimmings.As you can see here Brydon does not skip on portion sizes.

Christmas pud ice-cream

Crepe orange,lemon and brandy

Another part of the Havercroft experience is the small shop where you can buy biscuits, jams and the BEST FUDGE ever made by Brydon. The fudge this man provides for you have caused some frequent sugar rushes in my family.

Drinkwise the winelist is minimalistic but still with great choices to choose from. The allow corkage at R20 per bottle. Softdrinks are served by the glass.

At Havercroft you are treated as family. Everyone will feel special and it will almost be as if you have just had a meal in you own house.

Address: Main road, R43, about 500 meters from Stanford. Its situated next to a kennel.
Open for lunch from Thursday to Sunday from 12:30 - 15:00
Telephone number: 028 341 0603

My fabulous stuffed happy family at our Christmas lunch! 

Origin Coffee roasting for the perfect cup of joe

Welcome to Origin! 



For artesian brewed coffee or a great selection of teas Origin Coffee roasting is the place to stop by. Here you can see the excellent baristas in action and observe how your freshly made bagel makes it from the bakery to your table. The HQ is located in Hudson street but Origin caters for 80 venues in South Africa.

 

I am a huge tea lover and I recently began appreciating brewing tea in its more natural form. A friend recently gave me a " brewing" teapot for my birthday and Origin is one of the best places to come and source some leaves. They have over a 100 types of tea leaves to choose from. 

 

Their coffee sources stem from Central America, Asia Pacific, South America and Africa.

 

They also host some barista classes which I think is a great activity for friends, a date or a birthday present for some coffee extremist. The course extends over 3 days.

 Tea tasting area

 

Origin is open for breakfast and lunch or pop in for a take-away if time does not allow a sit down.

 

On my recent visit we sampled some tea and had a light lunch. We had a artichoke and olive sourdough open sandwich which I would not order again unfortunately. The bread was over-toasted and the toppings were underseasoned. The day saver however was a pork medallion sandwich. The flavour and sauce that accompanied this sandwich was out of this world! The sandwich was stuffed with hearty portion of carrots and coriander that gave it great fresh finishing.

 Olive and artichoke open sandwich R45

Pork medallion sandwich R50

 

The staff of Origin are extremely friendly and chatty and be sure to ask their suggestion if you are overwhelmed by all the choices.

 

 

Location: 28 Hudson street

Opening hours: Monday - Friday 07:00-17:00

                            Saturday - Sunday 09:00-14:00

                            Public Holidays 09:00-14:00

Contact details: info@originroasting.co.za

                            021 421 1000

Website: Origin Coffee roasting

 

A hour of free parking is available at Cape Quarter that is a block away from Origin.







Emily Moon - My favourite this year

One of my favorite restaurants I visited this year was Emily Moon situated near Plettenbergbay! We celebrated some family birthdays there and it was a afternoon of beauty, delicious food, drinks and my favourite - ATMOSPHERE. I have just realised time and again that a place without atmosphere rarely is successful.

The décor of Emily Moon is a combination of bohemian and african sjeik. Emily Moon is built on a hill with the most majestic view. Someone at our table described it as the Serengeti but with a hill.

The pictures themselves will tell the story on their own.

 

 
We were there on a Sunday and utilised the set menu which was R155pp for a three course which I found very reasonable compared to numerous restaurants in the Cape region. They also serve excellent sushi and have great platters to share between the table. They are open for lunch, drinks and dinner and the menu changes regularly. Emily moon also houses lodge and self-catering facilities so you can dine and sleep in this special place.
The starter options were:

Asian tuna spring rolls with a wasabi sauce

 Peri-peri Chicken livers served with bread

Coriander and baby corn fishcakes

And other options we unfortunately did not try were

• Thai seared beef salad
• Roasted tomato soup with grilled bruschetta

For mains the options were:

 Basil pesto grilled yellowtail with roasted baby potatoes and a spinach and putanesca sauce

 Peri-peri or lemon & herb baby chicken with basmati rice and a side salad

Botswana free range grilled beef sirloin with cilantro mashed potatoes ( BEST MASH EVER) , mushroom sauce and summer vegetables.

Other options were:

• Fresh West-coast mussels and prawn pasta

And finally for dessert the options were

 Berry and chocolate pavlova with cream anglaise

Classic vanilla Crème Brule

Hazelnut and chocolate brownie served with vanilla ice-cream

 

All this lovely food were enjoyed with some refreshing wine and cocktails. The wines ranges across the price scale and are not your typical big names but matches up with the food choices to give you an overall pleasant culinary experience.

 

 Refreshing mojito

Berry sorbet style daiquiri

 

The service was excellent and the chef Chris visited the table numerous times to make sure we are satisfied. All the staff interact with all the diners and this contributed to a relaxed feel.

 

To end off the wonderful experience at Emily Moon you can even enjoy the 'powder room' with a magnificent view.

 

 

So please make sure you visit this gem in the Southern Cape when you drive by. I wish this place was near Cape Town. A visit to that region won't ever go by now without a Emily Moon visit.



 

 

E-mail: info@emilymoon.co.za

Telephone number: +27 (0)44 533 2982

GPS coordinates: 34° 0041 South
                               23° 2219 East

Website:Emily Moon

 





High tea at The Table Bay Hotel

I love high teas! It’s a ritual for my mother and I to do one at least yearly. The ultimate and most famous high tea is at the Mount Nelson. If you have never been to one I would suggest that you visit them first. It’s a great excuse to dress pretty and spend a wonderful afternoon with loved ones. It’s also a great idea for a birthday party.

Today I want to tell you about another less famous but just as good high tea I went to recently. This high tea is more modern than the one at the Mount Nelson and it consists of three courses - deal clincher! They have a smaller selection of teas than the Mount Nelson so the bigger focus is on the food.

This high tea is at The Table Bay hotel situated in the V&A Waterfront. For R185 pp you receive the following:

First course – A selection of savoury they bring to your table

• Biltong and goat cheese quiche ( my favourite)
• Curried chicken quiche
• Spinach and feta quiche
• Mini vegetable wraps
• Mini salmon and cream cheese sandwich
• Mini egg mayo sandwich
• Mini cucumber and cream cheese sandwich

Some of the teas they offer with the first course are different kinds of white, green, black and blue teas or you can order some coffee or hot chocolate.




First course. The quiches are not shown in the picture.

 

Second course – Their famous scones they bring to your table

• Fruit scones
• Plain scones
• The above served with cream, lemon curd and jam.



Tier if scones

 

Third course – A large selection of sweet treats you can choose from at the dessert table

Desserts

• Chocolate mocha mousse in a chocolate cup
• Raspberry amarula crème Brule
• Coffee crunch praline roll
• Cointreau-steeped strawberry Romanoff
• Table mountain roll
• Cinnamon and sugar little hearts
• Milk tart in glasses
• Koeksisters
• Chocolate dipped strawberry tuxedos
• Mixed fruit jelly
• Mini croquembouche
• Seasonal fruit pavlova cream puff swan

Warm puddings

• Malva pudding
• Cape brandy pudding
• Sticky toffee pudding

Cakes

• Rainbow baked cheesecake ( My ultimate favourite – I still want to figure out how they create the rainbow pattern and its topped with delicious white chocolate)
• Flourless chocolate cake
• Fresh fruit custard cake
• Lemon meringue
• Carrot cake

Another different selection of teas you can choose from.



Just look at that rainbow cheesecake!

 

 Cute chocolate cups filled with mousse.

 

Unlimited choices!

 

Everything is created with detail in mind.

 

They have innovative desserts as well as classics such as the koeksister

 

Other options to consider

• Tea royal at R225 pp that includes the three courses and a glass of Graham Beck Brut.
• Tea royal premium R315 pp that includes the three courses and a glass of Taittinger Brut.
• Sinful delight at R100 pp which is the third course(dessert) only and one type of tea.

The lounge in which you enjoy the high tea is very colourful and majestically decorated. Classical music plays in the background as one would expect at a high tea. The service is excellent and the manager checked in numerous times to make sure that we were satisfied.

I was there during the week so the lounge was also filled with a lot of men in suits busy with business lunches so if you want the more relaxed feel maybe rather go in the weekend.

Come hungry, pace yourself, try everything and enjoy! Forget about the calories! You only live once!

For more information visit their website
Contact them at (021) 406-5988