Restaurant - Tjing Tjing, CBD Cape Town

13 June 2014 - What a delightful place in the middle of Cape Town's CBD. A colleague from Pretoria's partner recommended the place. It's above 'Dear Me' (not been there yet).

It has a wonderful atmosphere - you can sit out on the balcony, but there were a couple of smokers out there and a bit chilly, so was quite happy to sit on a very comfortable couch.

FOOD - Ordered a cheese platter - this is generaly a safe option when there is a group of ladies catching up - something for everyone. There was a lovely selecion of cheese, preserves, meet, bread.

DRINKS - The server was very helpful and gave me a taster of different red wine options.

SERVICE - Very helpful and friendly.

VALUE FOR MONEY - very reasonable

RECOMMENDABLE - 7/10

Website

Restaurant - Rick's Cafe Americain- Gardens, Cape Town

13 June 2014 - This place's decor really resonates with me, the high ceilings, wooden floors, casablanca photos on the walls and vintage look.

What is a bit frustrating for such a large premises is that there is only one loo for ladies.

FOOD - The cheese platter is delicious; they have a selection of tapas, which is quite tasty too. I have pleasant memories of the cheese platter so can and will recommed it.

DRINKS - They have a lovely selection of differnt wine and also per glass wine selections.

SERVICE - Friendly

VALUE FOR MONEY - Quite resonably priced and very friendly servers.

RECOMMENDABLE - yes! 7/10

Book: Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

It is not often that I find a book that draws me in from the first page.  Embarrassingly, actually sadly, I knew very little about the life and accomplishments of Steve Jobs.

He wanted to change the world, and wow did he manage to shift humankind with his art and genius through the Mac, Pixar, iPod, iPhone and iPad.

I am in awe - clearly he was not the easiest person to work with, but what inspires me is that he knew what he wanted and did not compromise on quality or his vision and pushed individuals and teams to achieve in fact over-achieve, things that nobody ever thought possible. Even though he was not an easy soul to work with, those working with him pretty much new where they stood; he had no problem to let those around him know if something sucked, or the best thing in the whole world - being honest was more important than being liked. 

The author - Walter Isaacson has captured the story with great sensitivity - it is however funny how he zooms in on specific details, e.g almost every time he refers to Steve's house he mentions that it was not furnished.

The life of Steve Jobs does make you reflect and wonder what you are doing with your life - what is the legacy that you are leaving that will change the world?

Highly recommended book 9/10

Restaurant - Nana -Chicago

What a wonderfully quaint spot for breakfast. Nicole (lady I was renting from) introduced me to this fabulous place. All their food is sourced from local farmers. 

FOOD - This is possibly THE most decadent piece of French toast that I have ever had. Cheese cake filled french toast with coconut!! This was then smothered in a fruit compote. We shared this plus grenola (muesli) & yoghurt. It was absolutely divine! 

DRINKS - opted for tea, but I don't think tea in general in the US is their strong point, so also had an Americano. Both came in delightfully big cups. 

SERVICE - I was truly impressed by the server. She recognised Nicole and welcomed her then she introduced me to the place and also indicated what dishes they had won awards for and which items on the menu is highly recommendable. 

RECOMMENDABLE - DEFINITELY! 8/10

Restaurant - Lou Malnati's - Chicago

One of the first things that was mentioned to me when I said that I was coming to Chicago was that I should have deep pan pizza. I am more of a flat based-Papaccino's down the road kinda-girl, but happy to try something new. 

There are a couple of franchises across the city. Naturally I opted for the one within walking distance. The place was packed with a 15 mins waiting time. What was quite nice is that you can order your pizza while you wait as they take 30 mins to make (!). 

FOOD - The pizza I went for was the traditional Chicago one with a buttered crust (how decadent!). The filling is quite similar to a Margarita but has some or other meat in it. It was OK, a bit bland, but there was chilli flakes on the table which gave a bit of oemph to the flavour. 

DRINKS - opted for pink lemonade. 

SERVICE - fair, we waited some time for the bill. 

RECOMMENDABLE - if this is the place for deep pan pizza, try it out. I still prefer my thin-based Roquefort pizza from up the road. 5/10

Race - Energizer Night Race 5km, Chicago

What a fun run, I've not run a 5km race for quite some time, so it was a pleasant change. The last time I did a time trial of 5kms I did it in 33 mins, so was stoked when I completed this race in 30 mins - whoo hoo!

There were about 900 participants. Quite festive with everyone wearing bunny ears and their head lamps. Again, a fairly pricey race, $35, but there was a great goodie bag including a t-shirt, headlamp, sunscreen, razor and a fair amount of coupons for stuff. 

There was some fun warm up excercises before the time - even a 'Pump up the Jam' tune thrown in!

Apart from the 'miggies' everyone choked on towards the end, the city skyline in the dusk was quite breath taking. 

Restaurant - Downtown Dog, Chicago

After a visit to the Hancock Centre (amazing views!), I tried another hotdog. As I had not really enjoyed the first one and thought that I should at least give it another try. 

FOOD - It was recommended that I try a 'char' dog, meaning that the sausage is grilled, this made an improvement to the taste, however, the hotdogs are not my favourite. I gave it a shot and it is not for me. 

DRINKS - tried the pink lemonade, quite sweet, but refreshing. 

SERVICE - you order at the counter. Fast & friendly. 

VALUD FOR MONEY - yes, not bad. 

RECOMMENDABLE - if you like hotdogs then this place us great. 

Restaurant - Sunny Side Up, Chicago

This was ons of those hidden gems I discovered via TripAdvisor. I would never have discovered this on my own. I sat in front of a window and the coffee flowed ( I LOVE the milk/cream that gets served here- not one bit healthy, but whenever was anything decadent healthy!)

FOOD - The Oscar Benedict was recommended by the server. This is the normal take on eggs Benedict, but includes asparagus, crab meat and tomatoes, and (of course) served with potatoes (everything seems to be served with potatoes here). The crab meat was a bit cold, but when I queried it, that is apparently how it is served, personally I would have preferred it warmer, but it was nonetheless delicious.

DRINKS - bottomless coffee and continuous topping up of water was great. I did start feeling like an Energizer  Bunny after a couple of cups. 

SERVICE - very friendly, fast and efficient. 

VALUE FOR MONEY - $19.89, so about R200; however can't really compare rates to SA. 

RECOMMENDABLE - definitely a wonderful find. 8/10

Restaurant & Show - The Second City - Chicago

When I did the Lincoln Zoo run on Sunday and standing in the long beer queue, one of the ladies I got chatting to recommended I go and see 'The Second City' as it is something very typical to Chicago.

I was uhming & ahing whether I should go - boy would I have missed out if I had not gone. What a fabulous evening. 

The Second City is where famous names such as Bill Murray, Tina Fey and Steve Carrell all started out. 

The talent for this evening was: 

It's quite an intimate area, with everyone cosying up, you can order drinks and food before and during the show. Pub grub / finger style food. The evening is filled with comedy skits and impromptus. A LOT of fun, I am always in awe by these actors that think so fast on their feet. It was the stage manager's last evening so we were treated by her farewell and and extra hour performance!

DRINKS - I ordered an 'Angry Orchid' ginger apple cider - delicious ($6)! They have a selection of wines, quite surprised at how pricey even the per glass prices are, the cheapest glass of white wine is $7.25! Just over R70 for a glass of wine! 

FOOD - had the tender chicken, basically three big chicken nuggets served with fries. It comes with tomato sauce and a choice of two other sauces, the waitress recommended chipotle and I also chose honey mustard. The honey mustard was my favourite. Quite a large portion, which I polished.

SERVICE - there was initially a bit of a wait, but once everyone had settled in the server was around more regularly. 

VALUE FOR MONEY - I sat next to two very friendly bankers also in Chicago for a conference - the waitress had put my food on their bill and they kindly paid for me. But I think it was about €14 in total. 

RECOMMENDABLE - yes! the show is brilliant and great to grab something there to eat and drink during the show. 

Show 9/10 | Food 6.5/10

Restaurant - The Chicago Art Institute Café

Oh what an experience and visual sensation to get to see all the works of art that was taught in art history. It was raining in the morning so a great way to escape. 

Before I started on the tour of the insanely massive art museum I fuelled up at the Museum's restaurant. It's buffet style with a choice for every palate. 

A margarita flatbread had just come out of the oven, so I was sold. Was in need of a caffeine boost so opted for a coffee. 

DRINK - the coffee was quite big, nothing too special. (Am Missing my morning kickstarter - haven't quite found the equivalent here). 

FOOD - the flatbread pizza was a different take on the normally very doughy pizza base. Really enjoyed the flavour and texture. 

SERVICE - fast & efficient. 

VALUE FOD MONEY - About $6

RECOMMENDABLE - lots of choice, clean eating area. You can sit outside when it is not raining. Yes, quite pleasant. 6/10

Restaurant - Burger King, Cape Town

On a lazy Saturday afternoon, while lazy ing about in front of the television there was an advert for hamburgers (not Burger King). Mark had been to the one in Cape Town when it opened. I've only had BK in London, but remember really loving the big juicy BBQ patties, so we decided to go on an outing to Cape Town CBD for a BK lunch. 

We were not the only people who had that idea! It was packed and the line designations a mess. 

Mark had the Double King burger with cheese and I opted for a Whopper meal. Both came with fries and Pepsi (bottomless). 

Sadly the meal was very disappointing. The patties were paper thin (resembling McDonalds' patties- don't get me wrong,  I LOVE my McDonalds, but not when I expect a juicy patty). 

The meal gave us both such indigestion that I will reluctantly support them again. 

I did however like that on the receipt you get a voucher for e.g. onion rings on your next purchase. 

Accommodation: Greenlea, Pretoria

Greenlea – Irene

If I were to ever move back to Gauteng, I would move to Irene. What a lovely suburb. Generally when I fly up to Gauteng I stay with my Mom in Val de Grace, but this trip conflicted with other guests staying with her,  and knowing that I would have a lot of work pressures and would have been tempted to socialise at my Mom’s house, I booked myself into a guesthouse. After a quick Google search, Greenlea popped up – I liked that they are very “green”, their response time to my email and booking was super quick and they did not break the bank – R500 per night including breakfast.  After a long day of an early morning flight, and choc ‘n block day of meetings, I was eager to settle in for the night. The walls are quite thin, so the sound does tend to carry a bit – my next door neighbour fell asleep with the television on while watching soccer, and only turned it off at 05:20 (!)  – I raised this with the host the next morning, and it was all sorted out. 

I went for an early morning run on two mornings – jeepers, I had forgotten how icy cold Pretoria can get as we head to winter – the kind of cold that goes straight to the bones. What a lovely area to run in – I loved jogging around “The Oval”. Apparently Irene has quite a serious running club that meets every Tuesday evening – would love to try and fit that in next time.

The breakfast was pretty standard – different cereals to choose from, and a hot breakfast of bacon, eggs, and grilled baby tomatoes (I prefer baby tomatoes) –

The rooms are very spacious, firm pillows – I prefer softer pillows, but it was comfortable. The room does not come with a hairdryer, but one was easily and quickly organised.

Bathroom – there was not much space to put out cosmetics – just a funny wire shelf, the towel (only one for showering was provided and one hand towel) – seemed a bit thin, especially for a four star establishment, but it did what it had to.

I did comment in my feedback form as well – that it would be good to let guests know what specific greening initiatives they have in place – they use it as a marketing tool, but other than saying that we need to save electricity there is not much information on it – e.g. if there is a reason each guest only gets one towel – give the reasoning behind it.

All in all it was a pleasant experience, and I will stay there again.

Recommendable 8/10

Restaurant - Kalkies, Kalk Bay

Last Sunday (25 May), Mark and I went to Kalk Bay, we have not been there in ages. 

'Kalkies' has been mentioned a couple of times as the greatest fish & chips joint. I felt guilty of betraying 'Snoekies' in Hout Bay (my favourite for fish & chips). 

There was a lot of peole, but the line moved pretty swiftly. 

DRINKS - We both had red Grapetisers

FOOD - they have a wide variety on their menu, including Snoek heads and grilled tuna. We opted for the hake & chips. The portions were very big, nice big pieces of hake, but sadly not that tasty. The thick batter takes away from the taste. The chips were really nothing special. The condiments on the table is very synthetic tomato sauce, chilli sauce & vinegar. A great sponsorship opportunity for All Gold! 

SERVICE - pretty standard, you order your food at the counter, find a seat, then they bring it when it is ready. 

VALUE FOR MONEY - R40 for the fish & chips. I think we paid R120 including drinks. 

RECOMMENDABLE - if you are on a budget and want something quick it is OK, but on general I think there are a lot of other places to rather try in Kalk Bay. 

Accommodation - Khaya iBhubesi in Parys

Khaya Ibubezi Parys

I was fortunate enough to join one of my clients at their team building and leadership course in Parys. The venue was Khaya Ibubezi.

What a lovely venue, I think they cater predominantly for teams and corporate functions.

The food was incredibly tasty, with a wide selection at each meal, and each dish delicious; unlike other places that make food en masse where everything starts tasting the same. 

There are a number of different room options. I stayed in “Pumba” – a lovely room right on the water. What a treat to get into bed and find a hot blanket! The décor is very stylish with a lot of carefully selected details.

A cherry on top of the experience of the venue was my morning jog – it was incredibly misty, but you could see the silhouette of the trees over the river. Running in the mist is wonderful, there is a peacefulness and calmness to it – it was quite a flat run, with very few cars or anyone on the road. I was transferred back to my childhood with the early morning smell of khaki-bos from the small holding we had when my Dad farmed with roses, and the smell of an early morning fire took me back to my Grandparent's farm in Northem, where we used to heat up a “donkey” (a contraption built outside where you make a fire to heat up water for the house). 

What a wonderfully serene way to start the day. 

The venue is great, I am actually tempted to host out next team building / strategy session there!

Restaurant - The Clark Street Dog

After 'The Blue Man' show at the Briar theatre (which incidentally is amazing and highly recommendable) I was hungry (again!). Reverted to my trusted TripAdvisor, and saw 'The Clark Street Dog', and then took the opportunity to experience a traditional hotdog. 

DRINKS - opted for Dr. Pepper, have never had one before, quite sweet and I can understand the appeal. But a bit too sweet / synthetic for me. 

FOOD - the hotdog had onion, a gherkin, slice of tomoto and chillies. It all looked a bit bleak.  I didn't opt for fries; hungry, but not that hungry. The hotdog was OK, perhaps I did not order the right thing. When I left I saw the onion rings that looked amazing and someone had a chilli dog that looked a lot more appetising than mine. 

SERVICE - nothing special

VALUE FOR MONEY - the place is a bit of a dive, but very reasonably priced. For my hotdog and drink I paid $5.25. 

RECOMMENDABLE - currently not based on what I had. Perhaps yes if I had ordered something else. 4/10

Race - Lincoln Park Zoo 10 km

Hot! Did not expect Chicago to be this hot and humid in the spring - definitely not complaining! It is however not that easy to run in. My time was a shakey 01:11:something. Still not hitting that 1 hour mark... Annoyingly stopped a couple of times to catch my breath.

Whenever I travel I keep an eye out for races in the area, a great way to see places that would not necessarily be on the itinerary. Am not the biggest fan of zoos, but was very impressed, this one is free to the public and immaculately looked after, and the animals very healthy. I was super excited when I came across the run.   

The online registration process was very easy. It is a lot more pricey than races in SA, $45 (approx. R450), which I suppose is comparable as it includes a t-shirt, and hey, how often do I travel here? 

As easy as the online registration was, the on the day number and t-shirt collection was a balls up. Loooong queues; the race was starting at 08:25, and at 08:10 there was still no end to the queue in sight. Thank fully somehow the lines miraculously opened up and number and t-shirt successfully collected. No time to try and find tog bag area, so had to run with pack, luckily not too big, but clunky nonetheless. 

A really pleasant run with three water stops. There were a couple of volunteers running in animal suits, felt really sorry for them in the heat! 

The end was an interesting experience, instead of getting a medal you get food! And a lot of it!

Bagels (didn't take one), but did take- the banana, apple, Firecracker Jr. popsicle, bottle of water, bottle of Gaterade (first one ever), Clif Bar - white chocolate macadamia nut energy bar PLUS (!) a voucher for beer and pizza! Loooong queues (again) for beer & pizza, but didn't mind. You get to meet lovely people. Not a keen beer drinker, and have not had beer in goodness knows how long, but I reconned, why not, going to have full experience!

All in all a great race!

Restaurant - Wildberry Pancakes and Café - Chicago

After a loong haul to Chicago via Munich (approx. 20 hours in the air, not including transfer & layover times) I was again motivated to work harder and make more money so that I can fly business class direct, mind you as my Mom always says, 'think big'. I need my own Boeing!

Knowing that I would be exhausted I decided to plan very little for my first day. However, jet lag does not play that game and at 04:30 I was wide awake. I did get 6 hours solid sleep, so was ecstatic and started planning my day and week.

One of the apps that I have is 'TripAdvisor-City Guides' and I decided to follow one of their recommended itineraries - 'Walking Tour of Public Outdoor Art in the Loop'. It was great, like a treasure hunt looking for the statues of Picasso and Míro and the beautiful Flamingo by Calder. The architecture is AMAZING. The lines, the colours and art of the ages fitting perfectly together like a jigsaw puzzle. After reaching the Millenium Stadium and experiencing the amazing 'Cloud Gate' or 'The Bean' I was HUNGRY! Did a quick search on TripAdvisor for the closest watering hole, of preferably not something that is a food chain I could get at home. Wildberry pancakes was recommended (and closest). All I could think was - feed me, feed me now! The place did not disappoint.

DRINKS - as I arrived at my table there was already a big glass of ice water- most welcome after the long walk in the sun. The soft drinks are refillable. They have a whole list of different flavours of lemonade, I was boring and stuck to original. It came with a thick juicy piece of lemon ($2.75). Wonderfully refreshing.

FOOD - They have a very wide selection of food. Two guys next to me was enjoying their 'skillet' looked delicious and a big portion. (I think it is in the region of about $10 for the skillet, and incidentally for a dollar more you can add a 'special pancake' - which is pretty much a meal on its own!) But, as they specialise in pancakes I opted for their 'Rocky Mountain'- two pancakes filled with: onion, green pepper, ham, scrambled eggs, cheese and topped with creme fresh! The ingredients was not all cooked to a soggy mess, everything was lightly cooked, still a bit crunchy and you could taste all the individual flavours, with a tiny hint of sweetness of the pancake dough- DELICIOUS!

VALUE FOR MONEY - total was in the region of $13 for the lemonade and pancakes. I think that is quite reasonable. There is also free wifi, which is an added bonus.

SERVICE - sweetest, most petite, friendly waitress, she recommended I go for the Rocky Mountain- great choice!
RECOMMENDABLE - definitely! 9/10