Restaurant: Doppio Zero - Claremont

Oh dear. how the mighty have fallen! Is it just me or is this restaurant under new management? Inexperienced waitron, cream-clogged food (way too rich and congealed), disgusting balsamic vinegar (it might not be balsamic at all) and, wait for it, a new television in the restaurant. I just told a dining partner the other day that it was my all time favourite place to eat that is not pompous or too expensive and always guarantees to please. I am bitterly disappointed :-(

R8ing 5 - 1 (for the tv) = 4/10 I am afraid!

Narona

A comfortable, welcoming, sidewalk cafe with friendly staff. Nice place to chill. Reasonable prices. Fresh espresso, and ok red wine. Chips were light and crispy. I had a slightly burned burger though and they do not stock chutney! There were people smoking outside on the pavement and the smoke constantly blew into the restaurant.
Unfortunately, there was a tv as well -1 point.
6/10 for now-but has potential.
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Theatre: Salome

If you can get a seat to see this play before 29 May 2010, get one! It is a magical play directed by Geoffrey Highland that will leave you enthralled! Don't let the fact that all the actors are third year theatre students put you off. Under Highland's direction, lets just say, everything he touches turns to gold (and silver and red...). You will also not want to miss the dance scene - much more imaginative than I thought the dance of the seven veils could be! The costumes are a delight of different textures and really do set the scene of this decadent play. This is definitely a case where you can get off the couch and come to the theatre at 8 pm until 29 May 2010 (that is the Arena Theatre - 021 480 7129).

Rating 9/10

P.S. Don't lose your head!

New R8er: Munchy Mouse

Hi Everyone. There is a mouse in the house and his duty is to rate cheesecake! Yes, that is his forte. So if you are a fan of cheesecake, watch the restaurant ratings to see his take on cheesecake! I present to you... Munchy Mouse!

Restaurant: La Comia

There is a little coffee shop attached to Builder's Warehouse. I went to the one in Tokai (Constantiaberg as they call it) after strenuous shopping. I had a lovely lasagna and my partner had a delicious Thai chicken wrap. The coffee was good and the service was quick and cheerful. The food was prepared quickly and well and the menu was quite extensive for a little coffee shop. It was also well decorated (as it should be, considering that Builders Warehouse is next door). There was a huge television playing a sports game that was loud and obnoxious though. This ruined the mood somewhat. All in all, not a bad place to get a bite to eat when you are shopping for nuts and bolts. Take a pit stop at La Comia. It is cheap and cheerful.

Rating: 7/10

Restaurant: Chef Pon's Asian Kitchen

I went to Chef Pons again and it was a lovely experience. Once again I was offered a taste of the house wine before ordering a bottle. I am really enjoying the service in Cape Town at the moment! I had prawns with chilli and basil again and it was heavenly. My dining partners had the green chicken curry and the cantonese chicken. Highly enjoyable food all round!

A new thing at Chef Pon's is that you can now sit outside on the pavement as well. This is not really my scene but it is another option.

I always like to have a fortune cookie for dessert. It is strange when your fortune cookie has no message. At one stage, I was convinced that I was going to die because I had no fortune. I have since outgrown that craziness (partially) and urge you not to take it as a sign of bad luck!

Still a great place to dine when you want to go out for a safe meal (safe because you will not be disappointed - but definitely not boring).

Rating: 9/10

Restaurant: Cafe San Marco

I recently went to Cafe San Marco at the Waterfront. I have been frequenting this restaurant for more than a decade now and I keep coming back! It is a cheerful place to get a good cup of coffee and a reasonable yet delicious meal.

One negative is that there needs to be more than one red wine by the glass! But they were kind enough to let me taste the house wine before ordering it.

San Marco is the place to go when you need somewhere to grab a good meal but do not want to break the bank or end up in the food court. The rotolato is amazing. I really miss the puttanesca sauce though, I wish that they would bring this back (although that may have been back in the days when there was different management).

For those who want to know, this is how you are supposed to make a cafe latte:

You do not ask the customer to pour it themselves (as at Tank). Please also note that this picture was taken after I had added a sachet of sugar so it was even more perfect when it arrived at my table.

Rating: 8/10

Restaurant: Wharfside Grill - Mariner's Wharf

It is a charming experience to go to the Wharfside Grill in Hout Bay. Not only is the restaurant rich with harbour facts and paraphanalia, but you should expect to have a genuinely good time while eating delicious food. The service is slick and professional but still manages to be warm.

It is still a bit pricey, which suggests that they may be catering for the tourist more than the local. I think that they should have a loyalty club or local discount of some kind to get more patronage from the locals - but that is just my opinion.

Price aside, for a good night out, I would recommend the Wharfside grill for its rustic charm and quaint atmosphere, excellent service and quirky decor.

Rating: 8/10

Restaurant: Tank

For a while, tank was one of my favourite restaurants. Unfortunately, lot has changed since then. And there has been gradual deterioration for about 3 years now.

Where Tank has slipped:

• The ostrich was very boring
• The beef fillet is good (cooked well), but nothing compared to the one with the wasabi mashed potato that they used to do
• The service, although cheerful, is not as professional as it used to be
• It is still pricey
• The restaurant is dead during the week where it once was more vibey and popular
• There were inconsistencies with the cutlery - some people had different knives to others on the same table
• The fish tank was in serious need of a clean
• The wine is very expensive (but also delicious)
• There were broken taps in the bathroom and some plants were removed from the bathroom
• They really should not expect you to pour your own latte and then add too much milk! This is a major no-no. It takes skill to pour a perfect latte with layers and then to take it to a table without messing it up. I would expect at least that level of skill from a restaurant of this caliber.

Upsides:

• There is no television in the restaurant area
• Delicious wine
• The sushi is amazing, especially when there is Yellowtail
• The decor is still good
• Food presentation on the plate is good
• The location is convenient and pleasing to visit

I hope that this restaurant is going to improve and not go belly-up! For old times sake and the memory of the delicious food and excellent service they used to provide.

Rating: 6 /10

Restaurant: Pakalolo's Hout Bay

With flys buzzing around us and drunk patrons wondering into the non-smoking area and puffing away merrily, this was not the best experience. I ordered a plate of nachos which ended up being the most expensive packet of Doritos I have ever eaten (literally-they were Doritos) and my partner had a mediocre fajita.

As a reprieve, I had been there before and had a good experience but that was not on a Friday night.

R8ing: 5/10
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Restaurant: La Cuccina

A charming a la carte restaurant in Hout Bay that is beautifully decorated, interesting and, most importantly, serves delicious food. I recommend that you give it a try, but only if you have a lot of time on your hands! The service is painstakingly slow! I would also avoid the filter coffee. It might be organic, but it needs to taste good too. However, this restaurant certainly gets a bonus point for not having a television. R8ing: 7/10
P.S. They have a dinner menu from Wednesday to Saturday now too.
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Take-out: Steers

I do not, in principle, eat Steers food because of their disgusting advertisements that are derogatory to women (Steers has, in the past, released almost pornographic adverts on a Friday when the BCCSA closes, so that they can run all weekend until they get shut down on a Monday). Unfortunately, I was given a Steers burger and chips for lunch. So I decided, since it was already paid for and the patronage was not from me, that I would check it out. The chips were absolutely squashed, drenched in oil and had hardly any seasoning. I feel as if I might have a coronary as I write this. The burger was ok, decent size with fair garnishings but a bit dry. All in all, the chips made me gag and the burger was ok. Nothing, of course, excuses the adverts.

R8ing: 1/10

The 1 is for the decent burger size and garnishings. By adverts alone, give Steers a miss. Wimpy is also South African so try them rather.

Advert: KFC

KFC has really hit the bottom with its constant ads promoting the worst example of the battle between the sexes. Do they honestly think that it is vaguely ok for a husband and father to be rude to his own wife who is carrying his child? And to teach a boy to disrespect his mother? Are they insane? To top the ad marketer's incompetence, the husband's penalty is to eat KFC on the stoep. So is KFC a punishment? Must be. And this is just one of the ads!

R8ing: 0/10 for complete rudeness-based advertising for artery clogging crappy food.

Why eat KFC anyway? It will definitely look like you have a baby growing in your bum-if not triplets!
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Movie: Avatar

Wow, this is the best movie that I have seen in a long time. It is a wonderful fantasy movie with just enough reality to make you really get into it. A stunning concept and superb technology makes this movie truly awe inspiring. The 3D effects were subtle but powerful. I have not had such fun at the movies since I was a kid. Go and see it for yourself!

Rating: 10/10

Remember that you simply HAVE to watch this in 3D at the movies as it is an awesome experience. Don't wait to watch it on DVD as it will not be in 3D! Please also book in advance as most of the shows have been sold out!

Diner's Delight

You have got to register with Diner's Delight if you would like to get great discounts at fantastic restaurants. All they ask in return is for you to complete a questionnaire the following day. The questionnaire is short and hassle free - well worth the discount. I felt like I was getting paid to do my r8ing job at last :-)

Speaking about discounts, they go something like this (per restaurant):

10% first visit

15% second visit

20% third visit

25% fourth visit

5% for the rest of the year until the new year when you start at 10% again.

But don't just listen to me, check it out for yourself:

http://www.dinersdelight.co.za/

There really are some wonderful restaurants listed. Follow the easy steps to set up a reservation!

Rating: 9/10

Happy Dining!

Warning: just make sure that the restaurant does not forget to give you the discount!

Pool Place: Stones Long Street

From the days when it was still M*A*S*H, I went to play pool at this location in Long Street. When it changed to Stones, it still kept the pool vibe going and then added the Manga paintings arrived, it became even more funky! I was therefore, a tad shocked a few years back to see a dancefloor taking up most of the pool-playing area. Fortunately, this has gone and there are tons of pool tables available once again. However, the decor is strange. Half of the cool paintings have been replaced by out-of-proportion nudes (tasteful as they may be), there are dragonfly lights on the wall and... never in all my born days did I expect to see Fashion television at Stones! What the hell does FTV have to do with a pool bar? I thought that those things were complete opposites!

If you would like to wait 3 hours for a drink at the bar (where they do not have Savanna or Hunter's Dry???), go to toilets with doors that do not close, listen to the same CD and have the same song repeat at least 4 times (sometimes back to back) then I recommend Stones as the place to go.

Their saving grace however, is that there are enough pool tables, the cues are in relatively good order and the machine did not swallow any of our R5s.

Rating: 5/10

Restaurant: The Olive Station

I went to the Olive Station today and was mostly disappointed. Although the hot food was delicious, it was extremely expensive! It is a self-serve restaurant which feels a bit like a canteen. The deli food looked very enticing though but I would not recommend the pies. They are not like regular pies as they are baked in bread and not in pastry. This makes them very dry and not nearly as tasty as a pastry pie.

I would not say that this was a wonderful dining experience. For the price, I would at least expect to be served the food!

Rating: 4/10

You can get tasty food for less money and with service. Give it a miss!

Movie: 2012

This is a typic action-packed, end of the world movie where there are far too many last minute escapes and co-incidences. Utterly unbelievable but, for those in need of an action fix, there is certainly plenty of special effects and the usual annihilation 'entertainment'. It was actually entertaining if you are willing to switch your brain off for a while - and it is a long movie!

Rating: 6/10

Spoiler alert: The whole theater burst out laughing when the surviving humans decided to inhabit Cape Town 'The Cape of Good Hope'. Don't they know that we are xenophobic?