sandbar camps bay – argus day and lance armstrong

the sandbar - camps bay - cyclists cruising past

The Sandbar in Camps Bay is in the perfect location generally, but today it was the perfect spot to sit and have lunch and watch the Argus cyclists come zooming past.

I had been up and about much earlier in the day to go and see my hero- Lance Armstrong  on his final approach a couple of kays away from the finish line.  It was all a bit too quick and brief, and I was totally overexposed to the awesomeness of the moment, I forgot to scream out a little message for him. Managed to get some pics though.

and there he is hardly slowing down round the corner

just a flash of awesomeness and perfection

Anyway a quiet little lunch turned into a very social afternoon, and our table for two became a table for ten, with old and new friends popping in and out.

The Sandbar do a great burger, with mandatory crispy fried onion rings (a crucial element) and chips.  The Chicken caesar salad is also pretty good.

nacho's burger @ the sandbar in camps bay - delicious

chicken ceasar salad at the sandbar

All round a stunning little spot for breakfast,  lunch or just a coctail in the most stunning location.

Next year I am going to overcome my fears and get on my bike (I see the smiles and can hear the mumbles all the way to Dawson Creek, Canada).

great views all round from the sandbar

kalky’s and kalk bay harbour

an institution in kalk bay

 I love Kalk Bay! It just seems to get better.  There are so  many little treasure trove places to visit its a mini adventure everytime I go.  I have so many ‘favourite’ places to visit when I am there, I rarely get to try any new ones, but on Saturday I got to go to Kalky’s for the first time. 

I have always seen and heard about it, but quite frankly thought it was far to grungy and greasy looking to go into.  What a pleasant surprise! I was with friends who wanted to eat fish & chips so off we went. 

very busy inside kalky's

 The place was packed and there was a steady queue at the counter.  The very generous and reasonably priced portions of battered fish and chips kept rolling out the kitchen.  All served on stainless steel plates and bowls and at wooden bench tables covered with red plastic table cloths.  Lovely! 

My friends ordered grilled yellowtail (which is green on the SASSI list), fishcakes and a salad which comes with an olive oil and coriander, pesto type dressing (which I thought was quite impressive given the surrounds), and everything was delicious (I had a little sample of each). 

very fresh fish and chips

 All the fish is freshly caught and available right there at the harbour. 

One of the highlights was a very charismatic waitress ‘Gadija”. 

Gadija - a delightful waitress

  I’m looking forward to going back when I want an authentic, local fish and chips eating experience. 

kalk bay harbour

buy some fish to take home - such fun talking to the fisherman

local kids fishing in the harbour

grand cafe & beach- granger bay

girls night out @ the grand cafe & beach

We had a fabulous girls night out to the Grand Cafe & Beach in Granger Bay on Friday night.  It’s quite amazing how they have turned an old rusty boat building and yard into a private beach and one of the trendiest restaurants in Cape Town.

a private little beach in front of the restaurant

It’s a sister to the Plett and Camps Bay Grand’s and has the same menu apart from the additional pizza oven (very nice indeed).

They are still going through a bit of an attitude crises as is common among new and uber trendy restaurants that have just opened in Cape Town, and are very strict around bookings for both drinks and dinner.  They seem to ‘lose’ bookings often, so luckily we had our printed confirmation. This same ‘situation’ was experienced by other friends of mine on the same night. One wonders what will happen in winter when the vast cavernous space inside will need to be filled with ‘locals’, I suspect the attitude will have changed by then.

sunset at the grand

The menu is small and in my view a little bit ordinary and limited for the premium prices that you pay. The food is good enough and among us we ate the linefish, calamari, fillet and the sirloin tagliata with shared salads and chips.

The tagliata  which is what I ordered was in my opinion the most interesting item on the menu and was delicious.  Lovely slices of grilled sirloin, with  a soy, garlic and chilli dressing, topped with rocket and parmesan shavings.

sirloin tagliata @ the grand

It’s a lovely chic little spot with an older crowd, but I think it would be more fun if they allowed more people into the bar and to create a bit of a vibe.  At a outragious R52 for a gin and tonic, I won’t be going there all that often.

nice for sundowners

the sandbar – bushmans river kenton

 

arriving by boat on NY eve

This is one of those restaurants that without a visit to, the summer holiday to Kenton on Sea is not quite the same. Its kind of like a ‘house boat’ restaurant and floats on the banks of the Bushmen’s river – a little way up and surrounded by dense aloes and other vegetation. It can be hit and miss on the food and service, but I am a bit emotionally connected to the place and really love going there by boat.

It has changed ownership but still does pretty much the same type of food.  They are known for fish & chips, calamari and prawns. It’s pretty basic Eastern Cape, holiday fare (apparently this is the way the locals like it). They have a nice selection of wine.

We went there by boat for an organised New Years eve party. The trip around sunset was lovely and we pulled up to the Sandbar drinking Graham Beck Brut Rose and listened to the distant sound of bagpipes. It was a misty evening so this was quite a special moment.

loving the pink bubbles

enrico’s keurboomstrand

some of my favourite kids

I love Enrico’s and its one of those very special restaurants that gets to be located in a jaw droppingly beautiful spot, right on and overlooking Keurboomstrand beach. Many of my favourite restaurants  ’in special locations’ are worth visiting because they are just that, located in beautiful places.  Enrico’s is one that would be worth going to even if it was located in Gauteng (which it was in Melville as Roma).  The Pizza’s are exceptional (in my top list in SA) as is the seafood.

On my recent stop over in Plett en route up the coast we went there for a late lunch.  Simply wonderful.  I loved the wine list printed on an empty magnum wine bottle and the house wine, the origins of which are kept a big secret,  are delicious and very pleasantly priced.

lets have the white and the red please