Bucket Scene: Pop-Up Society

A few weeks ago we were invited to the new visual menu launch of Pop-Up Society in Glenwood. For those who are unfamiliar with the restaurant, you clearly don't have social media, as their milkshakes were the most instagrammed milkshake in South Africa! Having been open for just under 2 years now, head chef and co-owner Rev Batohi decided it was time to change things up and hence the new menu. I don't really venture out to Glenwood much and once I got to Helen Joseph Road, I wondered why? The place was buzzing! It took me quite a while to find parking. Most of the eateries were quite full with patrons, the area had a great vibe and a nice mixture of eateries and bars for everyone.  

Pop-Up Society has this "cool kid on the block" vibe going for it though, with it's funky colours and contemporary style, it does stand out from the rest. It has a lovely large outside deck as well as place inside the renovated house for seating, in total it can sit 120 patrons. It also has a full serviced bar if you just want to pop in for a drink. 

The theme for the evening was a visual menu and the setup for the media was just that, a visual feast with menu's put up to see just exactly what we were munching on, Chef Rev made the meals in bite sized servings so we could taste a bit of everything, and get a sense of what he had in mind with this new menu. So many times we go to restaurants, read the menu but don't really have an idea what we getting on the plate, with Pop-Up Society you won't have that problem. They try to keep most ingredients as fresh and organic as possible, and that transcends into the flavours you get from their food. 

Some of my favourites from the night were the chicken wings and the asian style riblets, full of flavour and have me licking my fingers. As you can tell I am a big fan of finger foods to this menu was right up my alley. The burger menu looked great and while I'm not a beef eater, I was very glad to see a lamb burger on there. I tried the lamb kofta which was given as a taster, and it was also great, tender, spiced well and can only imagine how good it would be in a bun. Guess I have to come back to see for myself. 

While the new menu is great, fan favourites from the old menu still remained, like the death by chocolate milkshake, another must have from Pop-Up Society I'm told by many. It probably was the reason their Freakshakes were made so famous, Chef Rev makes his own chocolate ganache which he adds to the "craze shake". Apart from just meals for one, Pop-Up Society also offer platters to share, which needs a pre-order but the variety offered is great. Overall, this place really stands out with its food, giving it a gourmet take on fast food. We will be back to try more from the menu, especially that milkshake!

Details:

Pop-Up Society

Address: 132 Helen Jospeh Road, Glenwood

Reservations: 031 201 5566

Facebook: durbanpopupsociety

Instagram: popupsociety

Bucket Scene: Eora - Kitchen & Bar

Like I said from the start, this segment is to discover new places that are a step away from the norm, we're so used to our usual places we go to that we forget the fun in exploring and trying out new places. A couple weeks back my mates wanted to go out for a quiet dinner and drink, instead of opting for our usual hangout I suggested we try Eora, a new Mediterranean restaurant that opened up in Umhlanga that was getting raving reviews from people who have tried it. I followed them on instagram, had a look at what to offer and it was a done deal. Everything looked good on pictures so it was time to see if the food tasted as good as it looked.

Located at 190 Ridge Road in Umhlanga Rocks, the venue is located conveniently at the entrance of the village area with ample street parking and paid parking available at the centre across the road. We were greeted by our hostess and seated upon arrival. The decor is quite cool and I like the fact they have posters of old South African products that served as the art. Being a bar as well, they serve a host of drinks abd cocktails, the craft beer however is limited to local KZN brewers, so there isn't much variety but at the same time, it's nice to see them promoting the local guys and giving them exposure as they're normally outshone by Cape Town or German brewers. 

While enjoying our local beers we ordered a few of the starters to munch on, they have a good range of starters catering for every ones taste buds. We opted for the crispy calamari and satay chicken, both of which were awesome. The calamari as the name suggested was crispy, coated in a light tempura style batter and fried till crisp, served with a harissa mayo that just  made the taste buds tingle, it was also quite a healthy serving as they don't feel shy to load the bowl. The chicken satay was perfect, the chicken was well spiced and cooked just right, moist and full of flavour. What I liked about the starters is that you can also choose to have them as tapas which is bigger in size. So if you're looking to go out and have some snacks instead of full meals, this is now an option. 

Tapas/ Starters selection

Onto the mains, there are mains to choose of the menu and they have weekly specials written on a chalk board above the entrance. Being a lover of lamb I was sold on the lamb burger that was offered on the menu. Others at the table ordered the Hake and Chips, Steak with mushroom sauce and Sword Fish with prawns. 

Lamb burger

My burger looked great and just like the pictures had me salivating just by looked at it. Organic lamb patty with melted mozzarella topped with tomato relish, served on a toasted bun with sweet potato fries on the side. I like to eat my burgers the way its meant to be eaten, with both hands but due to the size of the patty and the bun being a tad bit too crispy, I couldn't force my mouth open that wide, yes its that big of a burger! I opted to use the utensils instead, the patty for me was a bit dry, but the relish sort of made up for it in a way, the bun as said was a tad bit crispy as well, which made it a bit tricky to eat. 

Hake and chips

My mates on the other hand enjoyed their meals, fish and chips which to be honest is very hard to screw up was great but he felt the chips were a bit oily but its chips... that's the best way to have it. The other enjoyed his steak, cooked well and very tasty. The swordfish was done to perfection, had great flavour and prawns were great too, his only gripe was that the portion was too small as he was still a bit peckish after the meal, I guess that's why they have dessert on the menu but his form of dessert was another craft beer. 

Swordfish and prawn

On the whole, my dinning experience was great, yes my burger wasn't what I expected it to be but everyone else that's had it loved it so it could just be me. Never the less we had an awesome time and the service was top notch. There's loads of things on the menu that I still want to try, including a tapas evening so I will definitely pay them more visits in the future. They also serve breakfast daily from 7am till 11:30am.

website: http://www.eora.co.za/
instagram: http://instagram.com/eorarestaurant
facebook: www.facebook.com/eorarestaurant

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

Dining with Tsogo Sun

When one has to think of Durban, the first thing that springs to mind is its beautiful beaches. Situated on the East Coast of South Africa, it boasts the warm waters of the Indian ocean that washes onto miles of KZN's shoreline. There is no doubt that it is Durban's biggest asset and its why the City undertook a major revamp to the main promenade before the 2010 World Cup. At completion, the promenade stretches over 5 kilometres and is rated as one of the best in the world along with cities such as Rio and Miami. 



With a world class attraction such as that, it was only time before the hotels along the beach front began to do face lifts and renovations to match the new look. Tsogo Sun being one of them, is one of SA's largest hotel groups and boasts 8 hotels in Durban. They have 5 along the beach front and the two oldest being the Maharani and Elangeni, both of which recently under went renovations.



Last week I was invited to the relaunch of the Hotel, although the Elangeni and Maharani being two buildings separated by an apartment block, it was interesting to learn that they now function as one hotel. Whether you're staying at the Maharani Towers or Elangeni, you can make use of all the facilities both have to offer. Which is quite cool, as both offer many great bars, restaurants and a spa. 



The evening started off at the Panorama bar situated on the second floor of the Elangeni Tower, it was one of the floors that was renovated and it clearly showed with a fresh coat of paint, some lovely new additions like a Froyo stand for the kids but main focus was the bar for obvious reasons. Gentle lighting with clever use of LED's gave the bar a welcoming feel. The bar leads onto the deck where the pool is situated, pity that due to the weather we were restricted to sit inside as its perfect for sundowners or evening drinks with mates. The bar offers various cocktails served up by their trained mixologists.






After the meet and greet with Tsogo Sun's Social Media Manager and the other invited guests, we made our way down to the new Grill Jichana which has taken place of the Jewel of India. Before making our way to the restaurant we were taken through to the other establishments, Connors Bar which really has an English Pub feel to it and then we popped into Daruma Japanese restaurant. It really is one of the gems of the hotel as I have been told on numerous occasions of how it is really one of the best Japanese eateries in SA and that all the food on offer, from Sushi to the Teppanyaki is absolutely delicious. 




There after it was time to dine, but before being seated the manger of the Grill gave us a tour of their specially made temperature controlled glass wine room. They have a vast selection of wines both local and international, I'm not a wine drinker of note hence a small tray that was lying on a table to the side caught my attention. On it was some of finest whisky's money can buy, which included Johnnie Walker King George Blue Label Whisky. 




Once back at the table, a melody of salads were pre-ordered for us, veg, chicken, duck, seafood and beef. All of which were accompanied by special dressings, the one which I really enjoyed was the chicken with pomegranate dressing, which had a bit of everything with the spiciness of the chicken, crisp leaves of lettuce and the sweetness of the pomegranate dressing worked wonderful together. 




Before ordering our mains, we were educated on the selection of meats, cuts and pairing of sides that compliment each meal. I opted for the Duo of Lamb which was a double leg chop and double rib chop. Both cuts marinated in a special rub and grilled to a medium rare, to perfection. I ordered Bafana chips (think cut fries) and onion rings as sides and a Madagascan Pepper Sauce which I was told has quite a bite. The rub which the meat was marinated in tasted superb, which made my pepper sauce redundant but I did use it as a dip for my chips and onion rings. The lamb was grilled perfectly, having that char grilled crispy on the outside and the meat a juicy pink inside. As you could imagine, it didn't last very long on my plate.



The mains along with the starter salads was pretty filling but there was always place left for dessert! The pick of the bunch was the Chocolate Bomb, what it essentially is, white chocolate mousse with normal chocolate mousse, inside a duo of chocolate ball, which then has hot chocolate sauce poured over it and when the shell melts it sort of explodes, exposing its contents. 5 types of chocolate was a bit much for me so I opted for the de-constructed milk tart which was equally good. Two layers of milk tart with caramel sauce and berries was a lovely way to end of the dinner. 



Once the evening was concluded, I had a chance to walk around the hotel as well as outside to have a look both buildings. The Maharani which is almost 40 years old underwent a full revamp, very cleverly they used the old external lift shaft as a lighting well which houses colour changing LED's which really makes the building stand out for the rest. Both buildings also received a new coat of paint so they really look fresh and new. Overall I am very impressed with what Tsogo Sun has done, its a great investment not only in their asset but to Durban's Golden Mile.

Recipe: Tandoor Roast Leg of Lamb

 

Ingredients

 

1 leg of lamb (between 800g-1kg)

2 bulbs of garlic

whole black pepper corns

fresh rosemary

fresh thyme

2 tsp olive oil

3 tsp minced ginger

1 tsp minced garlic

6 minced red chilli's

5 tsp Tandoor spice chili powder or ordinary chili power.

1/2 cup yoghurt.

2 onions

2 potatoes

 

marinated lamb before roasted

Method

 

Wash and rinse the leg of lamb thoroughly, make deep slits into the meat, clean the garlic and stuff the cloves into these slits made in the leg. Also stuff the whole pepper corns, rosemary and thyme into the slits. In a large bowl, mix the olive oil, minced ginger, minced garlic, minced red chili's, tandoor spice and yoghurt. Once everything is mixed properly, rub the mixture onto the leg of lamb, make sure you massage the mixture into the meat as you want the flavours to soak in. Cover the leg and place in the fridge to marinate over night. After a nights rest in the fridge, place the leg in a deep oven tray and preheat the oven to 180 degrees. 

 

Roast with potato and onions on the side

Peel and wash the onions and potatoes and cut into chunky wedges and place into the tray along with the leg to roast, turn after 15 minutes and allow the other side to roast there after repeating the process.Turn the leg only twice then allow it to roast on 140 degrees. It depends on the individual on how well done they want their roast, I liked mine well done with the meat falling off the bone so it took just under 2 hours to roast.

 

adding the stock to make the gravy

You can make a simple gravy for it like I did if you find the meat might be dry. You'll need two onions and two tomato's, both must be minced fine and added to a pot with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp minced garlic. When turning the leg of leg, scoop some of the excess water and add to the pot as this will serve as the stock. Allow the gravy to thicken and use this to have with the meat.

 

tomato gravy

 bon appetit!

 

 

 

Gourmet Burgers

Everyone loves junk food, even the health freaks that give you the stare when you're munching down on you KFC burger, they secretly crave the bite of the fatty goodness. Now while we all like eating these foods that clog up our arteries, its important to have them in moderation and not over indulge as they will send you to your grave faster than Robert Mugabe takes to step down as Zimbabwean leader.

One of the most popular junk food has got to be the burger, no not "hamburger" we're not American, we call it a burger, some from the retarded country also call it a sandwich but lets not even go there. I, due to my religious beliefs abstain from beef so I mostly eat chicken fillet burgers, but occasionally I like to have the lamb variant. Normally I'd go down to the takeout joint and get one, but they tend to sell those normal patties which is nice but in all honesty, you want something, um thicker? So I decided to make one at home. How hard could be right?

First things first, the ingredients
200g Lamb Mince
2 chilli's (green or red)
1/4 onion
1 egg
1 clove garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp English Mustard

Chop your chilli's, onion & garlic, mix into your mince, then add your salt, black pepper & mustard. Finally use just a tiny bit of your egg white (about a tsp) not too much! you just need a bit to help bind the mixture. Knead it well and form a size patty to your desire.

You can either fry it in a frying pan with some olive oil or braai it. Just remember not to burn it! I did mine on low heat and had it covered so the meat could steam up and get cooked, rather than just let the outside get seared. Well mine was a rather big size patty so its best to have let it get cooked right through. Once done, let your imagination take over in what you want in your burger. I settled for a toasted bun with a bit of mayo, a bed of lettuce, slice of tomato, crumbled greek feta with tomato sauce.