Bucket Scene: Starbucks comes to Durban

Last night saw the VIP launch of the first official Starbucks store in Durban, which saw the whos who attend, from A-list celebs, down to coffee addicts, it was abuzz with activity, song and dance. Situated at 233 Florida Road, this branch is truly iconic to the brand and a one of a kind in SA. It's the third South African city to get this global coffee brand, after Johannesburg and Pretoria, beating our rival coastal city Cape Town. While there are many reasons for the coffee giant opting to open in Durban before the Cape, us locals aren't too phased about it as we get to enjoy the goodness that they provide. For me it was my first time experiencing Starbucks as when abroad I never got the chance to try it out. The entire experience blew me away as I found out just how this is more than just a run of the mill coffee shop. 

Speaking at the launch, CEO of Taste Holdings, and former Durban boy, Carlo Gonzaga said that the location of the store played a pivotal roll in making the brand focus on opening in KZN. It was a neighborhood orientated store, something that was different to the others already in South Africa. Each Starbucks store is unique, with layouts and decor to suit the area it is in. Starbucks on Florida Road is chilled and relaxed, with custom made furniture and a design that is easy going yet bold. The store is also is one of three in the country to boast a Reserve bar, which only 5% of Starbucks worldwide have. The reserve bar offers exotic roasts with a unique one to each bar. This is certainly a must for all! 

The Starbucks menu itself is quite expansive and while coffee is usually enjoyed warm, Gonzaga says that almost half of their sales are contributed from their cold offerings. One which got the most attention was the Caramel Frappucinno. I had one myself, and as a big lover of all things caramel, I'm glad that I tried this! Usually with ice coffees, it's heavy on the ice but Starbucks use smoothie type liquidizers to get the ice crushed to a small size, which blends well with the coffee. Another one which I quite enjoyed was part of their festive treats menu, the Toffee Nut Latte. Their signature roast, with a dash of toffee essence and nut, topped with whip cream. It was indeed heaven in a cup. 

Apart from just drinks, Starbucks has a great selection of food and desserts, with sandwiches, rolls, cakes and pastries on offer. There's also a wide variety of coffee's on sale, roasts and blends from all over the world, along with mugs and collectables. Starbucks Durban opens to the public on Saturday 25th of November with the second store in Durban, opening at Gateway in early December. Be sure to get down to Florida Road early on Saturday morning to be one of the first to enjoy this global brands great offerings.

Krispy Kreme Durban

Well if you didn't know already, Krispy Kreme has hit the East Coast of South Africa! Yes, the doors were officially open to the public this morning at 7am and judging by the mass sleep-out over night, many of the locals couldn't wait to get their hands on the sugary goodness! I was lucky enough to attend the VIP opening on Monday night where members of the media and local celebs got to experience not only the delicious selection of donuts and drinks but also go behind the scenes to see how the donuts are made!

With much fanfare, the VIP opening was all that it was hyped up to be, with local artists consisting of Kyle Deutsch, DJ Deemo and Sketchy Bongo wowing the crowds with their chart topping hits and the Fudart food truck providing mouth watering burgers to whet the appetites of the guests before the opening of the store. Guests were then led in by limited numbers so they could get the full Krispy Kreme experience. Servers greeted us with big smiles and asked us to select any 12 donuts of our choice to fill up the dozen box, the selection is phenomenal! From the original glazed to the gourmet, of which the New York Cheesecake was my favourite, everything was packed and fresh! Along with our box of 12, each guest received a dozen of original glaze to go along with it. 

Next up was choosing our beverage of choice, Krispy Kreme is renowned for their great coffee's which compliment their donuts oh so well but being Durban, I needed something to cool me down from the humidity. They have a great range of chilled drinks too, I opted for the Peanut butter & cookie milkshake which was incredible! We were then given a guided tour of the kitchen, which started off with the making of the dough for the great donuts, it then gets put into the giant donut making machine, called the 270, which can make 3274 donuts in an hour on full production! The dough makes it way through the cutters which cut and shape it, it then goes through the proving conveyor and then dropped into the hot oil river, flipped over to ensure even frying and then almost immediately gets galzed to seal in that freshness and great flavour. It is essentially ready to eat right then but they pass through a cooler which cools them down for further prep. 

For the gourmet donuts, they then get taken to different stations for the various toppings. I tried my hand and making a few and I have to say, it's a skillful art that needs lots of patience and lots of practice to perfect! Working with the delicate donuts is no easy feat as I learned the hard way with my first failed attempt but eventually I sort of got the hang of it and got a thumbs up from Kwanele my helpful supervisor. All in all it was a great experience and a fantastic way to summon the opening of a great global franchise on our door steps. I can foresee myself going back again and again for more Krispy Kremey goodness, and if you're in the Umhlanga area, be on the look out for the "Hot Now" red sign, which this is switched on, it means there is fresh donuts in production!

Pictures by Al Nicoll photography

Tsogo Sun: Coffee & Chocolate Expo - Suncoast Casino

This weekend see's the Coffee and Chocolate Expo being held at the Suncoast Casino & Entertainment world from the 1st to the 3rd of May. Get ready to have your taste bud's explode with the various flavours and combinations that await you at this years Expo, there will be barista's perfecting the right blend, chocolate work shops and many more on offer.

We all love chocolate and most of us cannot live without coffee, this expo showcases some of the best in the world of both, so it's the ideal opportunity for you to see and taste the goodness that these two things have to offer. Coffee connoisseurs will enjoy the Coffee Theatre as they will be able to appreciate and learn about the origins, roasting and pouring of pure coffee beans from the selected roasteries. 

For the first time at the Expo in Durban, after two successful years in Jhb, the  KZN Barista Championship will be also taking place, visitors to the show will see the best in coffee professionals battle it out for the title. This event always draws big public interest, so be sure not to miss it!

For the Chocolate Lovers, there will be workshops with top executive chefs, where they will teach you to transform dreams into reality to enhance your lifestyle, home and tantalize your chocolate edition. 

The Cocoa Mokka Music Lounge is a must visit area, to sit back and relax with your favourite cup of coffee, wine or craft chocolate beer and be entertained by some of KZN's favourite Indie Bands, featuring Motherland.

Event Dates: 1-3 May 2015

Location: Suncoast Casino & Entertainment World

Ticket Prices: R60 for Adults, R40 for Kids under 12 and Pensioners. (tickets available through the website)

For more information, visit coffeechoc.co.za, email info@coffeechoc.co.za or follow @SUNCOASTDurban on Twitter.

Bucket Scene: Republik

When it comes to guys, there's just two B's you need to keep them happy, Beer and Burgers, well there is one other B but for the sake of keeping things clean I won't mention it. Now you take those two things and enhance it, you get Craft Beer and Gourmet Burgers, open up a place that serves just that and you're onto something special. I'm not sure if that was the thinking behind opening the place but I'd like to think Matt Richardson and Tayne Draper had something similar in mind when they decided to create Republik. 

Their motto is "For The People", their aim is to encourage everyone around to eat responsibly and act responsibly by going back to our roots through means of handcrafted, great tasting, high-quality, natural and free-range produce, while striving to act in a a socially responsible and environmentally sustainable manner. It's a mouthful, I know but so is their burgers! Seriously though, we live in an age where people accept the most unnatural, over processed, food as suitable for consumption and by eating these things on a daily basis, we're only doing more harm to ourselves so it's great to see a place that doesn't stand for that ish. 

I've visited the guys down at Durban North a few times since they opened and never once left disappointed, the staff are friendly and ever willing to help with your choice of burger and they add that family type value to the place, a quick example would be Matt remembering myself and my friends after visiting them for the first time 3 weeks prior, knowing what we ordered and what we preferred. You don't find that genuine client service in a hurry and that was one of the things that blew me away with Republik. 

Enough jibba jabba and onto the main part, the food and drink! They have a wide selection of Craft Beer, mostly local and they have a number of them on tap. In fact they have so many, they even have a separate menu for it! All the local favourites can be found including Darling Brew, Union Brewers and Jack Black. The nice thing about the menu is that it gives you a brief description of each beer so you know exactly what you're ordering as many other places that serve craft just have in the fridge for you to choose. 

The food, I love my meat and since I do not eat beef do to religious purposes, I more than often find myself eating chicken most of the time but I was glad to see Republik do offer a lamb patty option that comes in at an extra price but for me, if its good quality lamb, no price is too much. They also have an ostrich option, if you prefer the big lean bird. The menu is pretty straight forward, you choose your base, you choose your patty and then your toppings. If you're on Tim Noakes, your base can be a no bun base, if you don't want a roll but still don't want just a patty you could go for the hipster option which has portobello mushrooms substituted for the buns. Sides include, shoe string fries, zucchini fries or sweet potato crisps. All of which are served with a honey mustard dipping sauce which is the bomb. 

If you want something different, you could always try their specials of the week which includes a choice of 3, their beef burger, lamb burger or chicken burger. I found myself going for these on all 3 occasions that I have visited for dinner and every time I have been pleasantly surprised. They keep to their word with only the best and freshest produce and no matter what their chef concocts in his kitchen, it always tastes damn good but by far my favourite has to be their "Chips, Cheese and Mutton gravy Lamb Burger Special". Inspired by a Durban favourite, Johnnies Roti, this burger had everything in it that made it local and true to Durban. I have no idea where they got the mutton gravy from but it was authentic curry and work so well with the cheddar cheese and thin, crisp potato fries. Whats also great is that you can pick this burger up with two hands and eat it, many of these other gourmet burger place tend to put so much on the burger, that it becomes a mission just to eat it.

If you're looking for something other than burgers, they do sell salads and rolls, with your choice of toppings. Also other than beer, they also make some damn fine coffees, yes they have a menu for that too! Explaining the various variants. The other day I found myself there to meet a friend for coffee. I ordered the Cotardo which is fairly new on the Durban coffee scene but a great inbetweener from your espresso or cappuccino, now you're going to want something sweet to go with your coffee, thankfully they stock a selection of donut delightness from Wicked Donuts. 

Over the place is another winner in my books and a must visit. While their food range might not be extensive, they concentrate well on the ones they have and make your experience worth while every time. I don't have to say I'll be visiting them often because I already have!

Address: Unit 8 Broadway

               Durban North

               Corner of Adelaide Tambo and Broadway

Twitter: @republikdbn

Instagram: RepublikDBN

Facebook: Republik

Website: www.republik.co.za

Tsogo Sun: Cafe Vigour

Yesterday I was invited to the official launch of Tsogo Sun's new bistro styled coffee shop Cafe Vigour. It falls part of the Vigour and Verve brand that is run by Tsogo Sun but on a smaller scale and is aimed more for their casino resorts. The one at Suncoast is the first in the country and opened its doors in April this year, so far its proven to be a hit with the locals with over 12,000 guests served since. 

The decor of the shop is very unique and chic, it offers the patrons a stylish yet relaxed atmosphere with their large lounge type arm chairs and warm lighting. The shop is located close to the entrance of the complex so if you want to pop in for a quick cup or a bite to eat, one doesn't have to venture through the building to get there. 

Upon arrival I was greeting by Suncoast's PR Manager, Nicole East who told me more about the place and the idea behind the concept. We were treated to a tasting plate prepared by Executive Chef, Justin Oliver which had some of the various items on the menu for us to sample. The plate consisted of:

• mini french toast stack with grilled banana and bacon with syrup
• mini tandoori lamb pizza
• salmon fishcake on a sweet thai stir fry
• smoked salmon and avo wrap
• and to end off a Durban classic, mini butter bean and lamb bunny chow. 

All the components to each item was brilliant with the different flavours taking your taste buds on an adventure of sweet, to savoury and spicy. The food on offer in the menu has a good variety and strays away from your typical boring coffee shop food with that touch of chic that the brand is trying to build. So apart from getting your breakfast options, sandwiches, cakes and muffins, there is a lovely selection of burgers, pizzas and wraps. 

We ended off the way we started, on a sweet note with crispy, fresh, waffles covered in warm syrup and ice cream with some sweets. It was a fitting way to end a great morning spent with the team at Tsogo Sun Suncoast. The next Cafe Vigour planned is at Silverstar Casino in Gauteng.

World Baking Day

As mentioned before in my blog, I cook BUT I don't bake. I'm not sure what it is but I just never had the passion to bake a cake or cookies for that matter. This all changed last Friday as a Stork paid me a visit... No it didn't bring a baby but rather a box filled with baking goodies. Odd that I would receive all this and a note that was attached explained why. Sunday, 20th May was deemed "World Baking Day" so the awesome guys down at Stork decided to send off these boxes of baking goodies to a select few blogger's to celebrate the day and get creative and to tweet their cakes to @ILoveBakingSA using the hashtag #caking

that's not me...

In my box was a cake (thank goodness since I've never baked a cake before), a block of Stork margarine, a packet of icing sugar, a limited edition World Baking Day apron and loads of decorative sugary treats!
Seeing that the cold front graced Durban that weekend, I wanted something to warm me up but at the same time be an awesome tasty treat. "Dom Pedro" popped in my head for some reason. So I stuck with that theme. I sliced the cake in half and made a mixture of Kahlua and warm water which a spread over the cut sponge. topped it off with some cream, cherries and chocolate sprinkles.

cut in half.

Now for the icing! Using half the block of stork margarine, I mixed it with 2 cups of icing sugar till it turned fluffy white. In a bowl I mixed 1/4 cup of boiling water with 2 teaspoons of coffee granules. I added that mixture to the icing as well as a tea spoon of vanilla essence. I continued to mix the icing until it turned a light brown colour, not knowing if it was ready, I had to do a taste test....then control myself from not eating all of the tasty coffee flavoured cream.

As a kid I watched my mom bake 100's of cakes and ice them with ease, trust me, that shit is harder than it seems and icing this cake proved to be a challenge! I decided to decorate the cake with the given treats but it with my shoulders ready to give up after a round of golf things didn't turn out the way I wanted it too. Over all, I was impressed with myself for what I had accomplished, even though the end product didn't look that great, it tasted superb!