Date: 3 November 2010
Hosts: Johan & Antonie
Group: 10 people
If I had to pick 1 word to describe last night ... it would be FAIR.
Venue was nice...we were seated outside - got a bit chilly towards the end, but we wanted smoking seating so cant blame anyone for that :)
From what i saw it looked like a nice, cosy meeting place inside for a few social drinks after a hard day at the office.
The service was good.
For most the food was delicious - Their portions are fairly big (I definitely understand why they have options for 'half' portions on some of the items :)
The steaks, with the exception of one, weren't done as ordered. Rare & medium orders came out well done. On the flip side...the eisbeins are huge and definitely value for money!
All in all we had a good time once again :)
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
THE BARNYARD, WILLOWBRIDGE
Date: 5 October 2010
Hosts: Lida & Nolene
Group: 14 people
We decided to take the group to The Barnyard for their Awesome 80's show.....and it was absolutely awesome!! Well done for putting up such a great show!
The atmosphere was stunning and they had us up and dancing between the tables.
We had platters made for the tables (sadly no one took photo's of these) - so this time no one could (or would have dared) complain about the food as we had organised it ourselves :)
I definitely recommend watching a show at the Barnyard!!!
Hosts: Lida & Nolene
Group: 14 people
We decided to take the group to The Barnyard for their Awesome 80's show.....and it was absolutely awesome!! Well done for putting up such a great show!
The atmosphere was stunning and they had us up and dancing between the tables.
We had platters made for the tables (sadly no one took photo's of these) - so this time no one could (or would have dared) complain about the food as we had organised it ourselves :)
I definitely recommend watching a show at the Barnyard!!!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
THE MOUNT, DURBANVILLE
Date: 3 August 2010
Hosts: Don & Rita
Group: 8ppl
"Durbanville's hidden jewel"- definitely!!
Probably the best dinner to date!!!!! Venue absolutely stunning (not too difficult to find)...food fantastic and the service excellent!
For the first time - we were all seated round a big square table where we could all see each other and have a conversation without shouting to get the person on the far ends attention. This made for a stunning atmosphere!
Starters to try: Trinchado (no off-cuts here), Snail sandwhich (tastes better than it sounds lol), Kanonkop firecrackers, Grilled Calamari & Stone bread....all delicious.
Mains were fairly big portions and definitely the best steaks we've had.
Wasn't easy deciding on what to have though....Curry, Espetada, Seafood.....or one of their famous steaks.
They also have a variety of specials for the day & some delectable desserts for those with a sweet tooth.
Everything was done to absolute perfection - well done The Mount!
We will definitely be going back for seconds :)
http://www.themount.co.za/
Hosts: Don & Rita
Group: 8ppl
"Durbanville's hidden jewel"- definitely!!
Probably the best dinner to date!!!!! Venue absolutely stunning (not too difficult to find)...food fantastic and the service excellent!
For the first time - we were all seated round a big square table where we could all see each other and have a conversation without shouting to get the person on the far ends attention. This made for a stunning atmosphere!
Starters to try: Trinchado (no off-cuts here), Snail sandwhich (tastes better than it sounds lol), Kanonkop firecrackers, Grilled Calamari & Stone bread....all delicious.
Mains were fairly big portions and definitely the best steaks we've had.
Wasn't easy deciding on what to have though....Curry, Espetada, Seafood.....or one of their famous steaks.
They also have a variety of specials for the day & some delectable desserts for those with a sweet tooth.
Everything was done to absolute perfection - well done The Mount!
We will definitely be going back for seconds :)
Monday, June 7, 2010
KRUGMANN'S GRILL, V&A WATERFRONT
Hosts: Gillian & Chris
Group: 9 people (+Mike :)
Lovely venue. We were seated in one of their 'private' rooms - perfect for bigger groups as it's nice and quiet. They also have a cigar lounge with a variety of cigars available.
Service was great and the food EXCELLENT! They are not cheap, but the quality of the food is well worth it!
Starters were lovely - Chef's tasting platter is worth a try and big enough for 2 people to share. The tomato soup looked and, I was told, tasted equally good! They have their own unique sushi menu - not a very big variety, but very interesting.
For mains, I had the stacked chicken - couldn't finish as the portion was huge. Steak (with the exception of 2 steaks that came out cold) was delicious and done to perfection! AND they have the big fried onion rings - Mmmmmmm yum. Burgers were also quite big and very tasty.
For desserts we settled for our normal coffee's and Irish coffee's.
One thing they need to look at is updating their website - as they still have their old menu on there...with the old prices.
We had a lovely time and I will definitely go back there if I want to spoil myself with a nice meal and a good bottle of red wine :)
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
JIMMYS KILLER PRAWNS - TABLE VIEW
Hosts: JJ & Elzanne
Group: 14 people
Last night was well worth venturing out into the cold and rain for dinner club.
Food was fabulous and the company equally great!
Starters were lovely - Bets even had Malva pudding as a starter which I though a GREAT idea as I never have space for dessert :-) Their sushi is stunning and fairly priced (pity we didn't go on their sushi special night...next time :)
They have a build-your-own platter menu or a choice between set platters. On it was everything from mussels, grilled halloumi, spicy chicken to fish and calamari. Everything was tasty + the platters included a plate of their famous prawns!
The other favourite was their Surf 'n turf - VERY decent portions.
Even their steak was delicious and done to mouthwatering perfection.
We went to Jimmys Killer Prawns 3 weeks ago for lunch and I was a bit worried after raving about their food, that we'd be disappointed when we went there again. I had no need to be worried, the SERVICE & FOOD WAS ONCE AGAIN EXCELLENT!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
ADEGA - WILLOWBRIDGE
Hosts: Dave & Bets
Group: 10ppl (including some friends from overseas)
What was meant to be a nice dinner at Hussar Grill Willowbridge turned out to be an AWESOME evening @ Adega !!! Confusing?? Let me explain...
We arrived at Hussar only to find that they have seated us in a non-smoking section after we'd booked a month in advance AND confirmed twice with them telephonically. First their extractors weren't working & then someone else came and told us that it's because they close their smoking section in the evenings??? Would have been nice if they had told us that over the phone, but it was obvious that they were fumbling around for excuses.
Anyway we went in search of another restaurant in Willowbridge and found Adega - who were very accommodating and even opened the one section to get us in.
Food was great and the service excellent (thank you Henriet)!
They have quite a variety on their menu & we got so lucky landing up there on a Tuesday because they had 1/2 price on sushi, oysters for R4,90 and great specials on steaks and prawns! Everything was delicious except maybe for the lamb shank that was a bit tough. I haven't seen so many empty plates in a while :) They were also very leanient when it came to the menu and even made up a special starter for Rita. No one ordered dessert - there was just no space after all the juicy prawns and steaks.
We haven't been that lucky with recent venues and I'm very glad we went there. I'm sure we'll keep Adega in mind next time we want to go out for a nice supper.
(oh corkage R25 and I must add that I LOVE their red wine glasses - I'm sure the whole bottle would have fitted in one if we tried)
STUNNING EVENING, THANKS EVERYONE :)
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
MAESTROS, MILNERTON
Date: 2 March 2010
Hosts: Simon & Annabelle
Group: 14people
I think we've officially found the restaurant with the worst service.
As most of us had been to Maestro's before, we were looking forward to last night's dinner as we'd all only had good experiences there and the view from the restaurant is stunning! The view hadn't changed but as for the service... They had 1 waiter serving our table of 14 AND the whole smoking area! It took extremely long to get our drinks - bonus points for those of us who took our own wine and didn't have to wait :)
Their menu is very interesting and we kept ourselves busy reading all the different names given to dishes...Steaks with names like Lindsay Lohan : rehab to Angelina Jolie.
Starters was ok when it eventually arrived - maybe a bit over prised for the size of some of the starters. R46 for 3 stuffed calamari tubes???
Mains: I must say the burgers looked lovely. The Veal Picata & the Mussels Riesling were 2 definite winners! Not all the steaks were done as requested and because of there only be 1 waiter (I'm assuming that was the problem) - most of the food arrived cold. The one piece of steak was just sinew - needless to say the dogs got their 'doggy bag'. The line fish was ok - not very tasty.
After several complaints from our host for the night - the owner came to apologise to our table (which was greatly appreciated) yet it didn't make the slightest change in the service. Even the Kahlua coffee's we ordered was sent back as there was NO Kahlua in the coffee?!?
I can't think of anything else to say about the venue so I would like to end of with a statement that someone made last night: The whole reason why we're doing the dinner club and the blog (besides for the good company) is to try out different restaurants, to see if they can cater for bigger groups and to give feedback to anyone who's interested. Hopefully it also gives the restaurant owners and managers an idea of which areas need improvement on if any and to give praise to those places who impress us every time!
Hosts: Simon & Annabelle
Group: 14people
I think we've officially found the restaurant with the worst service.
As most of us had been to Maestro's before, we were looking forward to last night's dinner as we'd all only had good experiences there and the view from the restaurant is stunning! The view hadn't changed but as for the service... They had 1 waiter serving our table of 14 AND the whole smoking area! It took extremely long to get our drinks - bonus points for those of us who took our own wine and didn't have to wait :)
Their menu is very interesting and we kept ourselves busy reading all the different names given to dishes...Steaks with names like Lindsay Lohan : rehab to Angelina Jolie.
Starters was ok when it eventually arrived - maybe a bit over prised for the size of some of the starters. R46 for 3 stuffed calamari tubes???
Mains: I must say the burgers looked lovely. The Veal Picata & the Mussels Riesling were 2 definite winners! Not all the steaks were done as requested and because of there only be 1 waiter (I'm assuming that was the problem) - most of the food arrived cold. The one piece of steak was just sinew - needless to say the dogs got their 'doggy bag'. The line fish was ok - not very tasty.
After several complaints from our host for the night - the owner came to apologise to our table (which was greatly appreciated) yet it didn't make the slightest change in the service. Even the Kahlua coffee's we ordered was sent back as there was NO Kahlua in the coffee?!?
I can't think of anything else to say about the venue so I would like to end of with a statement that someone made last night: The whole reason why we're doing the dinner club and the blog (besides for the good company) is to try out different restaurants, to see if they can cater for bigger groups and to give feedback to anyone who's interested. Hopefully it also gives the restaurant owners and managers an idea of which areas need improvement on if any and to give praise to those places who impress us every time!
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
ASHLEY'S, GOODWOOD
Date: 2 February 2010
Hosts: Lisa & Schalk
Group: 12 ppl
So...do I start with the food or the restaurant?
Lets do food first. They have specials on every day of the week - everything from Seafood to Livers &; Mash. Tuesdays specials are 500g ribs with chips and the liver with mash - GREAT value for money however I still can't get myself to like the idea of eating livers. Starters were good, although a shrimp cocktail is just not the same when there's no avo (did i not see tons of avocado's in the shops?), the snails looked lovely and I was very happy when I saw that they actually give 2 skewers for the mushroom starter :-D Mains were big portions and only half of us actually managed to finish our food - very uncommon for our group. Fillet Royale - Delicious! but also very rich so be prepared. They didn't have any pork schnitzel available, but the veal schnitzel was good. Pasta's were lovely. (sorry guys no pics of the food this time round as we all managed to forget our cameras at home - the exception being Rita who only 'discovered' her camera while we were having after dinner drinks lol)
Then I suppose we're onto the Restaurant then...
It's a typical family restaurant. They seated us at tables of 4 next to each other - we couldn't push the tables and benches together as no one would have been able to get out unless the whole row gets up. This was therefor not a very social dinner as you could only really speak to the 3 other people at your table. Being a dinner club - we like to be social and catch up on what everyone's been up to over the last month. This is also why I can't really comment on everyone's food, as I had no idea what food was ordered by the table on the other end.
Their ladies toilets were definitely not cleaned regularly (I'm not even calling it a restroom)- both basins were blocked and half full with dirty water, the towel roll to dry our hands was also sopping wet - needless to say, we were not impressed.
The overall service was good except for 1 or 2 problems with orders that came out wrong.
Ashleys is what it is - a family restaurant with great daily specials.
Hosts: Lisa & Schalk
Group: 12 ppl
So...do I start with the food or the restaurant?
Lets do food first. They have specials on every day of the week - everything from Seafood to Livers &; Mash. Tuesdays specials are 500g ribs with chips and the liver with mash - GREAT value for money however I still can't get myself to like the idea of eating livers. Starters were good, although a shrimp cocktail is just not the same when there's no avo (did i not see tons of avocado's in the shops?), the snails looked lovely and I was very happy when I saw that they actually give 2 skewers for the mushroom starter :-D Mains were big portions and only half of us actually managed to finish our food - very uncommon for our group. Fillet Royale - Delicious! but also very rich so be prepared. They didn't have any pork schnitzel available, but the veal schnitzel was good. Pasta's were lovely. (sorry guys no pics of the food this time round as we all managed to forget our cameras at home - the exception being Rita who only 'discovered' her camera while we were having after dinner drinks lol)
Then I suppose we're onto the Restaurant then...
It's a typical family restaurant. They seated us at tables of 4 next to each other - we couldn't push the tables and benches together as no one would have been able to get out unless the whole row gets up. This was therefor not a very social dinner as you could only really speak to the 3 other people at your table. Being a dinner club - we like to be social and catch up on what everyone's been up to over the last month. This is also why I can't really comment on everyone's food, as I had no idea what food was ordered by the table on the other end.
Their ladies toilets were definitely not cleaned regularly (I'm not even calling it a restroom)- both basins were blocked and half full with dirty water, the towel roll to dry our hands was also sopping wet - needless to say, we were not impressed.
The overall service was good except for 1 or 2 problems with orders that came out wrong.
Ashleys is what it is - a family restaurant with great daily specials.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
LA MASSERIA, DURBANVILLE
Date: 5 January 2010
Hosts: Don & Rita
Group: 10ppl
Our first dinner of 2010 :)
We had a small group this month, but still managed to eat and drink enough for 20ppl lol.
La Masseria is an old house that they've converted into a restaurant. Big venue with a lovely outside section.
The food was good - don't ask me to name anything by the menu names as it was all foreign to me :)
No one had starters aside from the bread baskets on the table.
Being an Italian restaurant, their speciality is pasta and home made breads - I had the trio of pasta which was lovely and way to much food! They have a 'bottomless' meal where you could choose from a selection of foods set out on a table inside. It looked lovely although we would have preferred more warm foods in this selection as everything from the chicken to the mussles and meat were all served cold, only the pasta was warm. Didn't stop a few of us from going back for seconds :)
The veal topped with parma ham also looked delicious and the Dorado topped with a tomato salsa was very tasty!
If you're looking for a cheap night out and a quick meal, this wouldn't be the place to go as even their pasta's start at R85per plate and white wine per glass R22 - R35
But other than that, the service was good and quality of the food excellent!
Hosts: Don & Rita
Group: 10ppl
Our first dinner of 2010 :)
We had a small group this month, but still managed to eat and drink enough for 20ppl lol.
La Masseria is an old house that they've converted into a restaurant. Big venue with a lovely outside section.
The food was good - don't ask me to name anything by the menu names as it was all foreign to me :)
No one had starters aside from the bread baskets on the table.
Being an Italian restaurant, their speciality is pasta and home made breads - I had the trio of pasta which was lovely and way to much food! They have a 'bottomless' meal where you could choose from a selection of foods set out on a table inside. It looked lovely although we would have preferred more warm foods in this selection as everything from the chicken to the mussles and meat were all served cold, only the pasta was warm. Didn't stop a few of us from going back for seconds :)
The veal topped with parma ham also looked delicious and the Dorado topped with a tomato salsa was very tasty!
If you're looking for a cheap night out and a quick meal, this wouldn't be the place to go as even their pasta's start at R85per plate and white wine per glass R22 - R35
But other than that, the service was good and quality of the food excellent!
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