Bits of Carey

Our second day we woke up to the sound of birds chatting away merrily, the clouds were grey and it was drizzling a bit so we got up at our own pace, put our hoodies on and we were off for our full farm house brekkie at the guesthouse.  Now that our stomachs were nicely lined, we walked around the town looking at the cute little shops, stopped for a coffee here and there and when it was a “suitable” time(11ish) to start “tasting” wine we headed for Kloovenberg…

We walked in from the cold and were warmly invited to come in and taste their wine and olives.

Beautiful decor

They have loads of products from dukkahs, salts, chutney, jam, infused oils, soap. The extra virgin unfiltered olive oil was my absolute fave!

They had a special on their unlabelled “white to red” rose – delicious and easy drinking – so we stocked up

We spent so much time at their cellar that all the other ones were closed! Just as well, because we went a bit “bossies” there!

Preserved figs, green olives in lime juice, smoked olives, dried parisian figs, +-18 bottles of assorted vino( we couldn’t choose!).

Farmer’s Arms is an authentic pub to check out, had a drink there with the fireplace going…good times.

Oh, what was quite nice, is that although Riebeek Cellars farm was closed, they have a little tasting shop in the town open till 4pm, so on our way home we got some of their lovely brut, chenin blanc and some port.

So we are rather stocked up now – for a weekend or two! ha ha!

For din dins we decided to book a cosy table at Bar Bar black sheep, and a cosy table it was, right next to the fire…

I love the rustic, uncomplicated decor, we just felt right at home…

Our waiter was so enthusiastic and gave lovely suggestions and Maynard, the chef brings the food to the tables himself and is very happy to talk about the origin and inspiration behind his dishes – Top class guy.  For starters J had french onion soup with gorgonzola toast(Oh my goodness gracious – magnificent!) and I had a Roasted butternut salad with loads of seeds, pinenuts and pomegranite served with a burnt aubergine yoghurt dip and a sweet pomegranite dressing(fresh, flavourful and stunning combinations – fab presentation)

For mains, J had a tender T bone steak, rare, with Parmesan sauce served with monster chips! yum! I had a delicious tomato based seafood stew topped with crusty bread, comfort food at it’s best. Slight critism: I found it a tad salty, but over and above that the seafood was fresh and tasted like the ocean.

And….for desserts we shared a white chocolate cheesecake (which really was to die for) and a strawberry and cherry “split” – fresh strawberries with creamy vanilla icecream with a cherry sauce….So simple yet, so so delicious!

So if you are looking for good honest Bistro food, look no further!

2 days down, 1 to go!

Next post is Paternoster

Happy Mid week all!

Over and out from chilly Cape Town

C x

First of all, I need to admit that I am geographically challenged! J and always book on the last minute when we decide to go away. So we had Paternoster in mind, we attempted getting accomodation there, but all the places we called were fully booked! The next plan, was Riebeek’s Kasteel, “it’s just around the corner from Paternoster!”, umm…no! When we arrived at Traveller’s rest Guesthouse in Riebeek’s Kasteel, we were told Paternoster was about 100 k’s away! oops! I thought it looked too green and luscious and no coast in sight! Oh well, no harm done, we enjoyed our weekend in the quaint little town of Riekbeek’s Kasteel.

As we were taken through the lush garden and shown to our room, and all the stress of the week just wilted away as we absorbed all the beauty around us…

After we settled in, we went to the Traveller’s Rest Restuarant – just a few steps away.

Very warm and cosy, has a English pub/morrocan feel, if that makes any sense at all.

Our waitress, Alta, was lovely and helpful and we chose her recommendations…

A tomato and celery soup

Although they stated celery, it was not evident, which is good in my case. It was well balanced, perfectly seasoned thick creamy tomato soup with a few shreds of basil. Yum Yum YUM!

My main: I know it looks boring, but they said their steaks are the best, so I tried the rump steak with veggies on the side ( I’m trying to cut down on the fried carby foods for a while).

I had mine medium, cooked to perfection. Lovely pepper sauce and crispy steamed veg.

J had the fillet with sob sob…fried chips

Sorry, not good photie. The fillet melted in your mouth, served with beautiful mushroom sauce on the side and the most divine…aah hum..looking chips ever, thinly sliced and fried until crispy!

For dessert J had the creme Brulee

A picture speaks a thousand words…a winner…soft creamy and velvety custard covered with beautiful hard brittle( I had to sneak a spoonful )

And I had a cuppucino, and it was a lovely one I might add.

So all in all, we had a delicious meal and enjoyed it with a bottle of Riebeek Cellar’s Brut.

If you come here, don’t come with expectations, just enjoy what they have to offer and you will be pleasantly surprised.

And that was our first night, full tummies and relaxed…with another 2 days of eating and drinking ahead of us!

My next post entails our day out wine and olive tasting at Kloovenberg and our dinner at Bar Bar Black Sheep.

We did manage to get to Paternoster on Sunday – which was fantastic, but that will be my following post.

Have a good week all

C x