Short but very sweet…

We have just returned from another great holiday back in South Africa.  It was a quick 9 day visit but we had a great time seeing family and friends and came home tired but happy.

We landed Friday and went straight to a mouth-wateringly delicious dinner at Cubata in Sydenham, Port Elizabeth.  My Parents took Hubbie and I there a year ago and we have never forgotten the food and so we requested a visit there as part of our bid to eat all the food we have been missing.   We were not disappointed! 

If you have never been to Cubata I would highly recommend it.  The layout is very basic with mismatched pictures hanging on the walls as well as some new photos of the building of the Port Elizabeth World Cup Soccer stadium. The layout is open plan with wooden benches to sit around. You have to bring our own alcohol but soft drinks are available. It is always busy and when looking around the room there is a true mixture of people and cultures enjoying the food.

The menu is basic Portuguese and we ordered prawns and ribs with a side of chips and Portuguese rolls. The food was truly delicious and lived up to all our expectations.  The owner is very friendly and was so happy to hear that ad just landed from Genève and had requested to come there for our first SA dinner.

Cubata shows that it does not matter what a restaurant looks like, if the food is excellent the people will be calling weeks in advance to book a table. Here is a review I found online: http://www.eatout.co.za/Restaurants/8325/Port-Elizabeth/Seafood-Portuguese/Cubata-Portuguese-Grill-House.

On Saturday the 9^th July was Jess and Gareth’s wedding.  It was a beautiful sunny winter’s day and a truly great wedding.  Jess looked beautiful and Gareth looked like a cat that got the cream.  It was so nice to catch up with friends and dance the night away.  It all just ended too soon! 

The happy couple

They had “the photo booth” there which was great fun and provided lots of entertainment and funny memories particularly the more everyone drank.  Below is one of the photos of Hubbie and I but you can look at all the other funny pics at http://www.booth.co.za/jess/.

One of our "the photo booth" pics

Whenever we are in Port Elizabeth my Parents really go out of their way to spoil us, particularly with the food we miss. We managed to fit in breakfast at Mugg & Bean, brunch at the beach, a braai, pickled fish (Hubbie’s request) and, another highlight, my mom’s lamb shank.

Mom's lamb shank...yum!

Then it was off to the Kruger with Hubbie's Mom.  We always love our time in the Kruger and this time was no different.  It was so nice to see Hubbie’s preggie Sister and our Niece, who is as cute as ever!

Although we were only there for a couple of days we managed to fit in a long drive which included a skottel brunch at a lookout point where we watched elephants playing and drinking in the river while we were eating.

Then it was the long drive back to Boksburg with everyone in tow where we were greeted by Hubbie's Dad.  Once back I headed off with my Sister and managed to meet up with my Friend for a quick chat over cake and coffee.   I spent the Friday night with my Sister and her Hubbie making homemade pizzas and watching a movie, which was just what was needed after the long drive.

Then on Saturday we had a surprise baby shower for Hubbie’s Sister and she was really surprised.  So many friends and family were able to join us at Cafè Gawila (http://www.legatocoffee.co.za/default.php?ipkCat=2&sid=2).  They really decorated the place so nicely the buffet breakfast was delicious.  We were told to try the Hazelnut Cappuccino and we are so glad we did. It was creamy and nutty and perfect after our big breakfast.

The room was beautifully decorated

The hazelnut cappuccino

Hubbie’s Sister was so spoilt and will need a big car to get her back to the Kruger with all the gifts in tow.

All the gifts

It was so good to see our families and friends again. Visiting always makes us miss South Africa.

Then it was back to Genève on the A380. Oh well I guess good things have to come to an end. We had an awesome time and are already counting down till our visit in December...only 170 days to go!

Cake or no cake; that is the question…

I LOVE food!!! I don’t think this statement comes as a surprise to my friends and family (hence the name of the blog).  You all know this to be true and while we are being truthful, I will add that I may have a slight preference for all things sweet (although I would not say no to a good steak, prawns...).

My particular interest and passion is with coffee shops and cafés.  This love affair started during high school when I spent many an afternoon with friends, at the coffee shop called Friends, catching up over a cuppa coffee or two or three and a slice of cake.  

This trend continued during university, where we mainly still went to Friends but expanded a little, well as much as our student budget would allow, and we tried other places like Dulcè (Greek chocolate cake...yum) and whatever place was open at the Shark Rock Pier under Barneys (this place has changed ownership and names many times so I lose track of what it was called when).

Then came the good old faithful Mugg & Bean.  First it was reserved for the bigger cities and then little PE got one and know we have few.  You basically get what it says on the tin, decent food in big portions. I have to admit that I don’t think I have ever had a slice of cake from Mugg & Bean, those enormous slices scare even me.  I do enjoy their giant muffins though!

When I moved to England and started exploring our little town of Leatherhead, I sadly stated to Hubby that there were no good coffee shops.  It took some time but now, six years later, there are a couple of chain, Costa Coffee and even a Starbucks (good? bad?).  There is also an Italian coffee shop called Amici (http://www.simplyamici.com/caff-3-w.asp).  They make lovely lunches including paninis, salads and pasta but the best is their chocolate fudge cake. I honestly think it is the best chocolate cake I have had in a very long time, if not ever and that is saying a lot!

I have tried many other places in London and Hubby and I even ventured to the Portobello Market to visit the Hummingbird Bakery (http://hummingbirdbakery.com/) so we could try their famous cupcakes. All I can say is it was well worth the trip.

As children, my Sister and I always baked cakes and biscuits with my Mom and always fought about who could lick out the bowl with the cake mixture.  So maybe that is where my love of cake actually began!  Towards the end of our stay in England I started trying to bake myself again. I had made cupcakes for our birthdays but I wanted to learn some new techniques and decided to do a baking class at Cakes 4 Fun (http://www.cakes4fun.co.uk/).  I decided on the Baking Masterclass 2: Famous Cakes. This was a day long course from 10am to 4pm and we made a Red Velvet cake with cream cheese frosting, a Swiss Roll and a Sachertorte. It was great fun and I am sorry I did not discover their courses sooner as I would have loved to have done many more.

The Red Velvet cake with cream cheese frosting I baked at Cakes 4 Fun

So after being here in Genève for a month now I have tried a few coffee shops in the area and at the moment my favourite is Le Pain Quotidien (http://www.lepainquotidien.ch/). The direct translation to English means “the daily bread”.  

At Le Pain Quotidien

 

Waiting for our order

Hubby and I have gone there a few times and tried a few different options. We had a breakfast there where I selected muesli and yogurt and Hubby had some pastries. We have also tried a few lunch options, including a salmon and philadelphia open sandwich, a club sandwich and a hummus and chicken open sandwich. We have also tried their chocolate muffin which has a nutella soft chocolate centre. Their coffee is also good and is served in a cup without a handle.

Salmon and Philadelphia open sandwich

Club sandwich

Hummus and chicken open sandwich

Coffee and Nutella filled Chocolate Muffin

All in all we have enjoyed all the food we have sampled there so far and at the moment it is my fav!

We are jetting off to SA this week for Jess and Gareth’s wedding. We can’t wait to see our family and friends (and eat all the SA food we miss).  So excited...