Johannesburg

Beautiful African Elephant

READY FOR A BREATH-TAKING DINING EXPERIENCE? Dinner in the sky lifts off at Fairway Hotel & Randpark Golf Course Sky Events will be taking 22 diners up 40m in the sky at a time,  for the next few months at the award-winning Fairway Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort. With a wonderful 360 degree view of the Randpark Golf Course greenery, guests will enjoy either breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacks, prepared by the Executive Chef and his excellent team. Sky Events and award-winning Chef Jean-Piere Siegenthaler’s menus for  the airborne guests are mouth- watering and include taste bud treats such as baby potato and goats cheese terrine,  duck leg confit, topped with forest mushrooms and  Cappuccino cheese cake. Wine orders are taken prior to ‘take-off’ and all guests are securely strapped in. “Safety is our major priority,” says Hilary Elmira owner of Sky Events. “German TÜV certification norms have been adhered to – the toughest safety ce...

Best Advice for Dining Out in Winter As South Africans, we want to enjoy ourselves as much as possible when we are able to take a break, especially when we do decide to eat out.  Many South Africans are incredibly discerning when it comes to the restaurants they choose to frequent, and it is vital that the experience lives up to our expectations. This is particularly true during the winter season, when restaurants see an uptake in traffic due to our preference to stay indoors against the chill. According to Pellie Grobler, Head Chef of the acclaimed Pretoria based five-star restaurant The Black Bamboo, there are some basic factors to look out for when seeking out the perfect restaurant during the chilly seasons, which could potentially mean the difference between a dismal or a divine winter evening out. “Eating out is definitely a treat for most of us, and since many of us have to limit the costs of luxuries like restaurants, the simple fact is that people expect...

Cape Winemakers Guild hails 30 th Auction of exceptional wines The annual Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild Auction, the South African wine industry showcase of rare, outstanding wines with creative flair and great diversity, celebrates its 30 th milestone on Saturday, 4 October this year. Benchmarking winemaking excellence with wines of remarkable lineage and enduring quality, crafted in small volumes exclusively for the auction by members of the Guild; this year’s auction will see the culmination of three decades of winemaking prowess. Open to private buyers from the outset, the first Guild auction was held in Johannesburg on Saturday, 7 September 1985 just three years after the establishment of the Cape Independent Winemakers Guild as it was called then, by eight enthusiastic winemakers in the home of founding chairman Billy Hofmeyr, at Welgemeend in Paarl. By 1985, membership had grown to 13 winemakers, whose very first auction wines constituted an impressive...

Sunday 7 September - 11.00am to 3.00pm at the “Old Mill”, Magaliesberg The Spring Wine Festival, will be held on Sunday 7 th September, in aid of the Woodland School in Magaliesberg.  Our emphasis is on tasting South Africa's best wines in a tranquil outdoor setting. To this end, more than 100 producers will present in excess of 600 products for the adult tasters’ enjoyment. This is a family festival, with supervised entertainment for children whilst the parents relax and enjoy the wines in the countryside.   . It is a relaxing, fun family day and great value with over 600 products available for tasting ( designated drivers get in free ). About This Event In 2001, Woodland School in Magaliesberg approached Cellar Rats Wine Tasting Club to assist them with an annual fund raising event, and the Cellar Rats Spring Wine Festival was born. Since then the Cellar Rats Spring Wine Festival has become a majo...

NESCAFÉ DOLCE GUSTO BRINGS NEW YORK BARISTA AND FAMOUS COFFEE ARTIST, MICHAEL BREACH TO SOUTH AFRICA   Internationally renowned, New York based coffee artist and barista Michael Breach will soon be showcasing his incredible talent on South African shores in June thanks to an exclusive collaboration with NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto. Growing in popularity, coffee art is rapidly becoming an expected element of coffee appreciation. Nowadays, no flat white, cappuccino or latte is seen as complete without some form of embellishment, be it a heart motif, leaf pattern or if the barista is really good, perhaps some kind of a figurative element. No one knows this better than internationally acclaimed ‘fine art coffee portraiture artist’ Michael Breach. Michael is widely lauded as the Da Vinci of coffee art, a barista with an ability to perfectly capture people’s faces with his amazing portraiture, by creating images using a toothpick to stroke the coffee cream into the crema or foam i...

Travel with Corne Schalkwyk : Live your journey : The DSTV team of KykNet recently travelled to Uganda to visit with myself and our team at Marasa Africa who own some of the most impressive...

Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival Get ready to let your hair down, breathe in the sea air, enjoy the finest wine and dine on the freshest oysters Knysna has to offer! Start date:   04 July 2014 End date:   13 July 2014 The  Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival  promises a jam-packed programme filled with food, sports, adventure racing, parties and fun for the whole family! Running from 4 to 13 July, it’s sure to be the best 10 days of your winter. The festival is heaven for foodies, who can expect a whole lot more than just oysters. Tuck in to boerewors and other braai goodies from Pick n Pay’s Ultimate Braai Master stall and enjoy meals and produce from local restaurants and farms. But that’s not all!  There are over 100 sporting, lifestyle and gourmet events planned for this year that will be sure to keep everyone in your family thoroughly entertained. Venues:   Garden Route, Knysna, Plettenberg Bay, George, Port Eliz...

SAVUTI CAMP INTRODUCES UNIQUE ‘SLEEP-OUT’ EXPERIENCE IN THE LINYANTI Wilderness Safaris Savuti Camp has introduced a unique, sleep-out option for adventurous guests on outdoor decks overlooking the wildlife-rich Savute Channel in Botswana’s Linyanti Swamps.  Situated a 20-minute drive or 45-minute boat trip away from the camp, the two new ‘sleep-out’ decks offer guests a truly secluded, up-close-and-personal wilderness experience and the exceptional opportunity of sleeping under the stars. Famous for the fact that between 1980 and 2008 it stopped flowing altogether, the Savute Channel is now a deep, clear waterway that attracts a variety of wildlife and anything can be seen from the deck, including hippo, kudu, buffalo, waterbuck, impala, baboon and good birdlife. Guests enjoying the sleep-out experience will be treated to a range of night sounds as they drift off to sleep, as well as an array of sightings as they wake up to a beautiful sunrise over the channel. ...

Tsogo Sun’s new Vigour & Verve brand – for coffee and everything in between The launch of the Vigour & Verve coffee shop brand by Tsogo Sun heralds a new direction for the company and a pioneering move for the country as the group establishes strong new brands to carry its extensive food and beverage offerings to greater heights.                         “We have more than 85 restaurant brands across our gaming and hotels portfolio and we realised it would strengthen our offering substantially if we invested in strong brands that could be implemented in selected venues within the group,” says Louise Sevel, Group Brand Manager, Tsogo Sun. “At Tsogo Sun we are taking our brands very seriously – we have a range of good brands, and now we are adding to them with more of our own brands, in preference to partnering with established brands.” Kevin...

Rich Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 1 1/2 cups whole milk 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 4 large egg yolks 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract INSTRUCTIONS Prepare an ice water bath by filling a large bowl halfway with ice and water; set aside. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a large heatproof bowl and set aside. Combine cream and milk in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and whisk in cocoa powder until incorporated. Add chocolate and whisk until completely melted and smooth; set aside. Whisk egg yolks in a large bowl until smooth. Gradually add sugar and whisk until mixture is pale yellow and thickened, about 3 minutes. Slowly pour about a quarter of the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so the hot mixture doesn’t scramble the eggs. Pour chocolate-egg mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over low he...

CARNIVAL CITY PARTNERS WITH GAUTENG MOTOR SHOW This year’s Gauteng Motor Show cranks up the kilowatts as Carnival City, Gauteng’s ultimate leisure, gaming and entertainment destination, joins forces with this thrill-a-minute motoring event as the official hospitality sponsor. Taking place on 25 – 27 July at the Rock Raceway, Brakpan, the 2014 Gauteng Motor Show offers pulse-racing action and excitement for all ages and interests, and an entertainment line-up unlike any other motoring event in SA. Nearby Carnival City Casino and Entertainment World, bursting with opportunities for fun and entertainment on every level, is the ideal partner for this popular weekend adrenalin fest. “Carnival City was identified as official hospitality sponsor to the Gauteng Motor Show due to its vibrant, fun and energetic brand.  Naturally too, because its location, infrastructure and ability to host locally and internationally acclaimed events simply made it the perfect fit!“ sa...

EXCITEMENT BUILDS FOR IMPI CHALLENGE GAUTENG                    The action packed IMPI Challenge heads to Gauteng for the last time in 2014.  Taking place at the picturesque Van Gaalens Cheese Farm ( Hartebeespoort / North West Province) on Saturday, 27 September 2014, participants can look forward to a fun-filled experience like no other.                    “ Fitness is the key,” says Charl Souma, who boasts two IMPI Elite Race wins.  “The fitter you are the easier you will get through the obstacles.  Strength isn't as important as aerobic fitness.  I use the gym for strength work and I run often, regularly taking part in both road and trail races.  No matter what event you enter, you will definitely have more fun if you put in some training”. “A clean diet will de...