October flew by!

October has gone and November has come!

We've been through so many changes during October I just didn't have time to blog!
Firstly I went on leave and moved house - Maritzi took care of the shop while I was gone. And while I went on leave and moved house, The owners of Victoria Eatery came and gave the shop a big internal operation (electicity wiring, plumbing etc) and a little bit of a face lift while they were at it.

We closed shop for 4 days and gutted the kitchen to redo it again - and I must say it works like a dream, I never could imagine that this little kitchen could have so much space!

Purple rain fairy and homebaking

My my my what an interesting month we had!

First off there was Casual Day where some of our customers showed up in fancy dress. Our early morning coffee customers are already a nice chatty bunch - we always have such a nice buzz here in the mornings, everyone has become friends with everyone and it's one big group chatter, jokes and laughs.

So when Michelle from the Purple Shop showed up here as the Purple Rain Fairy she lifted the atmosphere to an almost festive feel.

Springday!

The first of September always tends to be a bit of an anticlimax for me; I remember when I was still at school the big hype throughout August, the planning of the outfit (we were allowed to wear casual non-school-uniform clothes), the excitement to look pretty and springy etc etc etc just to have mother nature throwing us a curve ball and send the next cold front in full vengeance on the exact day we planned to celebrate the coming of spring. Well ... 20 years later and today was no exception (at least I didn't have to plan an outfit to compete with the other prettier girls to at least feel like I could be in the running for "Miss Spring") but today the wind blew through our alleyway in a serious attempt to cleanse every corner from any morsel of dust or dry winter leaf that might be hidden in a crevasse somewhere, and deposit it right inside our little shop.

Spring, hayfever and other bodily functions

It's the first week of August and spring is in the air. It's already starting to get light earlier in the mornings - the sun starts to rise as I carry out the tables, chairs and umbrellas for the day whereas a couple of weeks ago it was still midnight dark while walking in and out the shop with furniture. Isn't it strange how the extra light makes the early morning furniture moving feel less menacing than when it's dark?
Together with the returned light comes the flowers the Western Cape is famous for this time of year, and together with the flowers, comes the pollen floating through the air and of course then the hay fever follows....

Here are a few pictures of the beautiful flowers I'm surrounded with in the arcade. Just a pity my sinuses and

Time flies

My oh my it's been long since I've been here!

Not much has happened since my last blog, I locked myself out of the shop the other day - with my keys (the only set in town) inside, but I managed quite well to break into the shop without calling the professionals.
I took a couple more photos of customers the past weeks, so I guess I'll just put them on here for all to see while I try to figure out what to write.

This is Melany and Ana Voigt - Melany used to help out here every second weekend

Maurice - the water guy

Anel Henn and her newborn son (I can't remember his name though - I think it might be Thomas?)

My beloved parents, Alysia and Albert... our biggest supporters :)

Annalisa Prak - the cup, no mug, no cuppa coffee girl

And finally, now all can see what Maritzi, my waitress/righthand-girl looks like.

Hope you all enjoyed the photo show - I think that'll be all from me for the time being.

Cheerio!

Winter is here!

This has been a week of freezing, teeth clattering weather.
I guess I shouldn't really complain because even though this week has been cold we had the most perfect weather last week - a summer in the middle of winter.
The owners of our little restaurant came for an official visit yesterday.

Felix's amazing technicolored cupcakes

We had a birthday party today, Felix turned 1 !!!!!

I spent all Friday making, baking, throwing away, baking again and icing amazing technicolored cupcakes. Aveline asked me to bake them about 2 months ago already but I wanted them to be absolutely fresh so I waited until the last minute to bake them - all 72 of them :)
She dropped off the 3 primary colours food coloring and I had such fun mixing colors! Blue, Purple, Yellow, Orange, Green and Red.

Moussaka like a true greek

Our meal special of the week was Moussaka with rice and a side salad. You'd be surprised how many people here in Hermanus don't know what Moussaka is. I reverted to the description of "the Greek version of Lasagna with tomato infused minced beef, baked aubergine and lots 'n lots of cheesy cheese sauce".

Efervescent tablets in the blood and Vuvuzelas

Today is the day, the BIG Soccer World cup opening day, the day that has been on countdown from since about 5 years ago.
I've never been a big soccer fan, I don't know the rules and in general I'm not very interested in sports.
This morning started with a light buzz in the air. As we packed out the shop for business, the first customers showed up in their yellow and greens and big smiles.

Freshly beaten hands and other kitchen disasters

Today was to be a day spent baking, I started the morning making Caramel dumplings and custard to pair (as a dessert) with the Oxtail I served for lunch. It is a really easy recipe and I was happily beating the dough with the electric egg beater just after 9h00 this morning. When all was mixed, I switched off the beater and tried to remove the dough sticking to the ends with my fingers when the beater started beating again and got my hand stuck between the 2 metal beaters.

Popeye and scaling fences.

My boss's bird, Popeye escaped yesterday afternoon from his cage in front of our sister shop OKASIE. As soon as I heard the news, I rushed in the direction passers-by saw him flying and as Popeye is quite a vocal bird, I was able to follow his voice (screeches) to the Anglican church's (enclosed) garden.
I talked to him, I whistled Jan Pierewiet - the one song he knows the first line of (on one note may I add), I tutted, I pleaded, I shouted, I coaxed, but the bird just sat high in the monkey puzzle tree tutting, whistling and talking back.

Of weekends, Mondays and Chowder

My my my does a weekend and a Monday go by on the fly!
After a lovely off weekend filled with rugby, chicken curry and a braai on the beach; I'm back in Victoria Eatery and Monday is on it's back already!
Off course I couldn't stay away from the "baby" entirely this weekend, so I popped in on Saturday for a quick cup of coffee, which only ended an hour later after a coffee, a rusk and two beers with some regular customers (since it was my off day, and the birthday of one of those regulars, I allowed myself to indulge a little).

Hey hey, it's Friday!

Today is Vanessa's last day before she goes on holiday - she showed up this morning with a sore throat, I hope she doesn't spend her holiday sick in bed.

While the cold winter wind indiscriminately blows wet slices through every pedestrian, our little shop radiates warmth and cosiness - sweeping the windblown wet pedestrian right into our door. The first coffee seekers showed up here this morning at 07h15 and they kept coming until mid morning when the coffees started being accompanied by hearty breakfasts. Luckily Maritzi works on a Friday which gave me some time to chat with the customers - an attempt to create the feeling of a visit rather than just going for coffee.
Our local coffee shoppe baby, Felix, comes for a visit every week morning with his parents, Aveline and Tom.

feelslikegrannyshouse-pudding

Today was Thursday.... Pensioners day.
Yesterday I planned to make fresh lambs liver and onions with mash and salad for today's special, but the promised liver never showed. So I strolled along the meat counter in Pick 'n Pay staring at the different types and cuts of meat, rummaging my brains (and my imaginary taste buds) for inspiration: "Chicken? No I made a chicken curry the other day. Lamb? I'm not inspired for another lamb stew. Beef? Oxtail? Oops no oxtail either...... Mmmmm what about a good wholesome beef stew? and a nice hot desert?"
So I settled for a Beef and red wine stew with yummy - feelslikegrannyshouse-sago pudding and custard. We introduced the beef to red wine, onions and garlic and let them get to know each other intimately while marinating for the night. Then we added some veggies, cream and yogurt to the mix and slow cooked them till they're just right for a feast of the palate. Coupled with the sago pudding,custard and topped with a dollop of melting apricot jam it made comfort food deluxe - what better to have for lunch on a windy four-seasons-in-one-day here in lovely Hermanus?

First post and first attempt

After being open for 7 months and surfing the waters through our first holiday season in December, January and February, I now have time to take a peek into the world of blogging. The off-season (winter time) is starting now and even though I have time to blog, I hope I still won't have so much time on my hands that I spend all my time writing.
Victoria Eatery, the restaurant I manage feels like home. I've been here since before opening, planning, designing menus, decorating - almost like preparing for the birth of a new baby. The birth day - October 5th 2009 went by with all the expected and unexpected dramas - my mother came by for moral support, but after the coffee machine didn't show, the ordered coffee didn't arrive and the milk order only showed up at 15h00 that afternoon, she saw her youngest daughter running around with her hands in her hair and decided to pitch in and start waitering (for the first time in her life - bless her).
Now I guess we are in the late teething season (our coffee machine showed up the next morning, in perfect working condition) and we're starting to learn how to expect the unexpected.
I'm hoping to be able to write regularly - there are so many stories in a restaurant, everyone walking in here has his or her story; every dish we prepare has a story; every person working here has her own story and I hope to tell them all.