Bucket Scene: Billy G - Suncoast Casnio

Last night saw the official opening of Billy G at Suncoast Casino and Entertainment World in Durban. With the ongoing expansions to popular Durban hotspot situated on the famed Golden Mile, everyone is keen to see what Tsogo Sun has in-store with their new additions to their establishment. This restaurant forms part of the first of the expansion to open, it is also the 5th of its kind in South Africa and is proudly part of the Tsogo Sun brand. It offers guests a full upmarket buffet, with an extensive selection of dishes to suit any palette. 

The opening saw many of the who's who in the Durban entertainment and sporting industry in attendance, including Sketchy Bongo, Mo Magic, Odwa Ndungane and not forgetting, everyone's favourite politician tuned socialite, Logie Naidoo. With the seating for 320 people, the restaurant offers a unique dining experience, whether you want to be seated inside, close to the buffet or outside near the Sundeck to marvel at the Indian Ocean in all it's splendor. 

With the formalities concluded by the Suncoast marketing management, and introduction of the managers and Su Chef's, it was time to sample what the buffet had to offer! The various stations have plenty for you to chose from, hot meals, cold meals, salads and deserts, it had them all! Always with a buffet I get confused as to wear to start, a nice thing about Billy G is that all the food is sort of placed in order whereby you have the salad bar and appetizer station next to each other, with a selection of fresh vegetables, cheeses, cold meats and dressings to customise your own salad. 

Moving onto the hot meals, the pizza station caught my eye with 3 options on offer, veg, chicken and beef. There were also curry's and rice, a carvery and stir-fry options. The next station offered sides for you mains, from roast potatoes, to gravy and sauces for your meats or even pasta and sauce. There is also a sushi bar from where you can get all of your favourites! 

After making a few trips to the buffet and trying to sample most that was on offer, it was time to end the night off on a sweet note, onto the deserts! If you thought selection for the mains was good, the desert if even better! To start off, they have a soft serve ice cream machine! Along with that, fresh hot waffles, a selection of toppings and sauces for that, puddings, which included a firm South African favourite, malva pudding with hot custard. Moving on to the cake selection, there was chocolate brownies and banana bread and a fridge full of tarts and trifles. 

With a great selection like this, you would be expecting to pay an arm and a leg to dine here, but it's not the case at Billy G. R199 per person gets you entrance to a world of variety and it gets better if you are a Suncoast loyalty card holder, with various discounts offered to those on select status. There is also special rates for children between the ages of 4 to 7 who pay R50, 8 to 12 pay R100 and pensioners pay R120. Operating times are Tuesday to Sunday lunch, from 12h00 to 15h00 and dinner is from Monday to Sunday, 18h00 to 22h00. 

Bucket Scene: Lupa Osteria - Ballito

Ballito, once a small coastal town which predominately was cane fields once upon a time, is now one of the fastest growing towns in KwaZulu Natal. With the growth brings about new opportunities for business and while this town already has some gem of eateries, it's ready to welcome another and we went down to try it out. Lupa Osteria, is no stranger to the Durban restaurant scene, having already established stores in Hillcrest, Westville and Durban North, it was time the Dolphin Coast got a taste of what they're cooking. The name coming from Italian origins with Lupa being the immortal Roman wolf goddess who helped establish the city of Rome and Osteria originally meaning a place that serves wine and simple food, it has now been taken up a notch with a bit more that is catered. The masterminds behind the brand are Chef and Owner Chris Black and Owner/ Entrepreneur Guy Clever, they've built the restaurants name up in a tricky Durban market and has become a popular destination for families and friends to gather around for some good food, as they offer a great variety to suit even the fussiest of eater and have a great range of beverages. 

Lupa Ballito opened its doors to the public last Friday and last night I was invited to come dine at the new venue. Located in Ballito Lifestyle center, one of the original go-to malls up the coast has undergone a drastic revamp and a much needed one. The strip mall is now more lifestyle orientated has a great new food market and restaurant layout, Lupa Osteria is located at the key front side location and features an outdoor deck area as well as an outdoor bar area which is all soon to be open. The interior is decorated superbly, with a rustic Italian feel and the pasta making area concealed in glass at the entrance of the shop. The bar is magnificent with green marble tops, and a wide selection of wines, spirits, beers and craft beers. 

On entering we were warmly greeted by the host and seated promptly, our waiter was soon at our table telling us their range of drinks, I opted for the house brew on tap, called Wolf Lager, appropriately named for the restaurant, it is brewed by Cape Brewing Company exclusively for Lupa Osteria. This golden lager is crisp, refreshing, easy on the palate and fruity notes, perfect for a summers day and perfect for a meal. Having frequented the other Lupa's before, I wanted to try something different for a starter, something that I haven't already tried so I opted for the Italian Nachos. Now while we're all used to getting crispy tortilla chips drenched in cheese, avo and sour cream, these ones were a bit different. On the plate laid crispy fried ravioli, filled with 3 cheeses with a fiery arrabbiata dipping sauce to accompany it. Normally ravioli is a bit dry but these was the total opposite, the filling was moist and flavorful, the panko coating was crisp to perfection and the frying didn't take away the moisture of the pasta. Overall, it was superb and a great starter to have on your own or to share. 

Being an Italian restaurant, I wanted to keep the theme going, deciding whether to go for a pizza or a pasta was my hardest decision but being seated close to the pasta prep area, I couldn't help but want to try out their freshly made pasta. I went for the Fettuccine Con Pollo, which on the menu is described as "Chicken and a mix of mushrooms, light cream, garlic, white wine and toasted pine nuts". I'm a sucker for fries and one of the sides were parmesan fries, even though we were having pasta, I needed to try these! After having a shot of the house made lemoncello, it was the perfect palate cleaner to prepare us for the mains, I was keen to try the house made pasta, I haven't had freshly made pasta before and really was looking forward to it. Lupa say that their pasta is extruded through a die cutter made from bronze creating a rougher texture on the surface, thus allowing the pasta to grip more of the sauce. This was evident from every bit of my main. The pasta was cooked al dente, it was light but captured all the flavours on the plate. The meal was light but filling at the same time, the toasted pine nuts added great texture to the dish, normally I am a fan of added extra chili and garlic to my pasta dishes but for this it was not needed. 

Having devoured the entire mains, little space remained for dessert but having a look at the menu, Lupa has a good few options for those with a sweet tooth, one that sticks our for me is the chocolate and caramel fondant which is served with ice-cream but I settled for a scoop of gelato. With five flavours to choose from, I went with the caramel, served in either a bowl or a cone, the scoop is a rather generous portion but with every spoonful leaving your mouth wanting more, it wasn't an effort to finish. The bowl option comes with a sugar cone slice in it, so you sort of get the best of both worlds if you want a cone purely to eat but don't want to deal with the rest of it. The gelato itself is light and creamy, the flavour not too overpowering and definitely a favourite for all ages. 

Overall, I can only see Lupa Osteria in Ballito being as successful as the other branches, apart from offering a wide variety of cuisine, the laid back atmosphere, attentive staff and great location will make it a popular spot for most locals and holiday makers. I'll definitely be returning to try out more things on that menu soon and to see the rest of the restaurant take shape when the deck and outdoor bar is open and running. 

Bucket Scene: Lupa Osteria - Westville

There was much fanfare about this place "Lupa" that the people up the hill kept raving about, for most of you who don't know, the expression "up the hill" means the climb up that dreaded Fields Hill to Kloof and Hillcrest. Many who reside there don't venture down the hill apart from work reasons and many who reside down the hill don't head up for any reason! Now there are a host of top restaurants up there but the one that kept coming up in conversations was Lupa. So much so it enticed many to venture up the hill to try it out for them self and they were not disappointed.

Though if you were like me, lazy to make the travel, we were in luck as owners Chris Black and Guy Cluver decided to expand their eatery or "Osteria" as they call themselves, which in Italian means a place that serves wine and simple food, to pastures down the hill in close proximity to us, good thing to as I've been there 3 times since and each time provided something different so I thought I'd share my experiences.

The Westville branch opened late last year and was an instant hit in the area with most of the nights being fully booked. So after many attempts I finally managed to get a booking before the end of last year, albeit a stand by booking for myself and a couple of mates. Being on the waiting list we were asked to wait at the bar, but in truth I could spend the entire evening there with a pizza and a cold beverage. The setup is quite funky with low lighting, high tables and stools, classy bar setup with a variety of craft beers, commercial beers, an assortment of spirits and great selection of local wines. They also have a cocktail menu but for me, just a double whisky on the rocks whilst we waited.

Now I like to look at a restaurants menu prior to visiting, luckily Lupa have the entire menu on their website but even though I probably spent a few hours going through the menu on the website in my own time I still wasn't sure what to order once we were seated. I eventually settled for the Marinara Pasta. A selection of prawns, mussels and calamari, served in a rich tomato, chili and fennel sauce with a home made pasta of your choice, I chose the spaghetti. The meal was good, not great but good. The flavour from all the seafood was evident, none being overcooked, none over powering and it was a great melody tied up with that fantastic sauce. It didn't blow me away though but I did enjoy it, hence I thought that's why they called it "Osteria", simple food. The serving was quite large, so it definitely justified the price.

Upon my second visit I was tempted to try something from their Secondi Menu, I was sold on their Chicken Marsala. A crumbed chicken fillet, pan fried with a sauce of mushrooms, Marsala wine, Gorgonzola and cream. I'm one for fried foods so this was right up my alley, for my sides I decided against going for the usual starch of potatoes, though their Tuscan style potatoes are damn good! But I opted for the creamy parmesan fettuccine. I cannot begin to tell you how well it worked with the main. The chicken was done to perfection, crispy on the outside, soft and moist on the inside. The sauce was legendary and has me salivating for it as I type this. The fettuccine as I said was the perfect partner for this dish. All the elements blew me away and it was then I realised what the people from the top of the hill were talking about all this while! and all that for a R100 seemed like a steal compared to other eateries.

My third visit came not to long ago as I decided to have one of my many birthday dinner celebrations at Lupa Westville. It was my birthday so what the hell, went all out for 3 courses. To start, I shared the Rotolo of Spinach, with ricotta, mushrooms and a brown sage butter. Seeing that I was going to have a meat as my main I might as well balance it out with the veg starter. I love spinach and ricotta pies and this was very similar to that, the sage butter was the cherry on the top.

For mains I went for a combo, half a chicken peri-peri roasted in their wood fired pizza oven with pretzel dusted calamari. Priding themselves on organic chickens, I expected it to be on the smallish side but I was wrong, it was a healthy half a chicken with an equally healthy serving of calamari tubes.The calamari was excellent, I'm one for crumbed and fried but the pretzel dust proved to be a welcomed difference to the norm. The chicken was superb as well, strong peri- peri flavours and perfectly roasted in that wood fired oven. Again, instead of opting for potatoes as a side I went for the Zucchini fries. a healthy and tasty alternative. All that for R110, portions were more than adequate and could easily satisfy anyone without having starters or desert.

Speaking of which, desert, there was a lot to chose from, a salted caramel popcorn sundae caught my eye but being stuffed from the previous two courses  I opted for something small. Always been a fan of creme brule so I settled for just that. Many places stuff up on the sugar, some being too thick or too burnt but a layer as thin as film, crystallised just right as you break through to the soft, creamy cool creme underneath. It along with a cup of cappuccino was the perfect way to end the night. 

Out of my 3 visits to Lupa Westville I was never left disappointed, from the decor to the food and the service, it leaves one satisfied after getting good quality and a keen price. Which brings me back to the name Osteria and its meaning, "simple food and wine", yes while the food may be simple, it is great food and of good value, their vast selection of wines to chose from make the name apt. After the success of Westville they have recently ventured further to Durban North, which I understand is packed on a daily occurence. Another thing thats new to Lupa is that they now serve breakfast, another thing for me to try soon!

Various branches

• Hillcrest: 140 Old Main Road - 031 765 3059 - hillcrest@lupa.co.za
• Westville: 124 Jan Hofmeyer Drive - 031 266 8793 - westville@lupa.co.za
• Durban North: 6-12 Swapo Road - 031 941 1181

Website: www.lupa.co.za

Twitter: @lupa_osteria

Instagram: lupa_osteria
Facebook: LupaOsteriaSouthAfrica

Bucket Scene: Sidebar

For those that know me, if I say I'm going out to eat or if someone asks me to recommend a place to go out to eat in Durbs, 9 out of 10 times I would say go to Spiga D'Oro. Often people joke with myself and friends that we have shares in the place, we don't but what keeps us going back is multiple things. The good and friendly service, the amazing quality of food that keeps to standard every time we go there and that family atmosphere you lack at many establishments. All of this makes Spiga great and hence you will find us there often.

A few months back, after their renovation and downsizing of the restaurant in Florida Road, they opened up the Sidebar. I, like many thought the space would be used as an extension to the restaurant but instead Marco and the team had other ideas. They turned it into an amazing bar with high stools, high tables, dimmed lighting and amazing rustic decor. The huge wooden doors that greet you at the entrance gives you this shed like feeling, which essentially what it is, the red brick interior adds to that industrial type look with exposed steel sections and rough edges. It offers the patrons a different experience all together but still has that Spiga touch to it.

Come to think of it, after they opened you feel the area needed something along the lines of this. It's a more vibey, trendy spot for people of all ages to come in, relax with their mates, have a drink and even order the great food that Spiga has on their menu. Whilsts not being over popular like other places on the strip, where one hardly has place to walk let alone sit, the Sidebar has that niche sense to it. It's perfect when you're with a bunch of friends looking for a quick bite as the restaurant at most times does have a waiting list or booking requirement. This place also serves as a place to wait for your table at the restaurant while enjoying a drink at the bar.

Speaking of the bar, it is the focal point of the place, the long counter which you would expect to be wooden but instead is cast concrete with a glaze finish that helps reflect the light off the over hanging glass rack. Besides stocking all your favourites, the bar stocks a host of Craft beer, with some of the bigger name local craft brewers available on tap.

Further down the bar, it opens up into a nifty court yard with some wall hanging plants and open sky which doubles as a smoking area. It's perfect for a hot summers day to chill out there with a few cold ones with your mates. The Sidebar is available for hire and they have been hosting quite a few events of late, most recently art exhibitions and even a live band. For more on whats going on there, check their Tumblr feed: http://sidebar031.tumblr.com/

Address: 200 Florida Road, Durban
Telephone: 031 303 9511
Twitter: @SpigaDurban
Instagram: sidebar031
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sidebar/

Spiga D'oro Durban North

I'm going to start off by saying that I'm not a food critic but I do like good food and Spiga D'oro, otherwise simply known as Spiga to many of their patrons is sort of an institution of good Italian food in Durban. If you follow me on twitter, you would know this is one of my favourite places to have a meal with friends, in fact we regard ourselves as "Spiga Royalty" since almost everyone that works there knows us (and are probably tired of seeing our faces). The restaurant is synonymous to the Florida Road district and one can say it is a landmark of such for the area, hence when I got an invite to attend a special dinner at the new branch in Durban North, it did feel a bit strange to head out to my favourite Italian eatery but in an opposite direction to the vibrant night life and buzz that goes along with that part of Morningside.

The new branch as stated before is located in Durban North on Mackuertan Avenue, it is also quite a popular spot for the area with many other restaurants and bars located on the strip but unlike Florida Road which tends to attract the, younger crowd, this part of town is a tad bit more laid back and easy with the more middle aged/ family people. The first thing I noticed when I entered the new restaurant was the amount of space there was compared to the original branch, granted on Florida Road they are tight for space, given the design of the structure they're in but with this new establishment, the open design is very welcomed and the the roof with exposed trusses giving the spot a greater volume which adds to the roominess. 

The menu's are more or less the same as the other branch which has everyone's favourites but after chatting to owner Marco Santoniccolo, he explained to us the broader scheme of things. They have installed a wood fire over, in which they intend of doing daily meal specials such as oven cooked meat dishes apart from oven baked pizza's and pasta's. They also plan on catering for every part of the day with proposed coffee bar/ bakery that opens in the early mornings to serve the early risers, coffee and a selection of the favourite breads or pastries. A little later in the day the sandwich bar opens that will serve a wide variety of sandwiches and rolls. At 11am the main restaurant will open for business for sit in dinning, there are a licensed alcohol vendor and have a fully stocked bar which serve Heineken on tap!

The purpose for our invite was to give honest feedback on the premises, during our time there, the one thing that stood out for me was how relaxed the atmosphere was. We're so used to the fast paced and loud hustle that goes along with Florida Road, this dinning experience on the other hand was so peaceful that one didn't have to raise their voice during conversation. But getting back to the important part, the food! We indulged on a full 3 course meal of starter bruschetta, a wonderful seafood marinara pizza and chocolate volcano for dessert. All bearing the same standards that one associates with Spiga D'oro to go along with the same friendly service that we are accustomed to. 

On the whole, the place has potential to make itself a landmark of the area like its sister branch has done in Morningside. It's a different concept but still offers the same great food and service but with a more family orientated atmosphere. I'd like to thank Marco, Sergio, Karla and the team for the invite and wish them everything of the best for the new premises, we'll be sure to frequent this one as well so the new staff can get to know the members of the "Spiga Royalty" ;)

Recipe: Creamed Spinach Pizza

With my fasting month around the corner, I'd thought I share with you one of my favourite vegetarian creations. Well I cant really take credit for it as there are some restaurants that make the very same dish. We'll start of with the ingredients, I wont give the recipe for the pizza dough since many prefer different ways on making theirs.

Ingredients.

• tomato sauce
• spinach
• butter
• cream
• milk
• mushrooms
• black olives
• feta
• cheddar cheese
• mozzarella cheese
• salt
• ground black pepper
• garlic flakes
• italian herbs
• dried basil

Chop your spinach and cook it with 1 tablespoon of butter, add 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 tea spoon of ground black pepper. Once the leaves have wilted, add your chopped mushrooms. Allow for them to turn dark grey/ black. Add 100ml of cream and 100ml of milk. Allow to cook on low heat. Whilst adding your garlic flakes and italian herbs. If the mixture doesnt thicken, add a teaspoon of cake flour. Once the creamed spinach is ready, take off the stove and allow to cool.

On your pizza dough, spread your tomato sauce making sure its covered equally. Sprinkle the dried basil over and if you want to you can also drizzle some olive oil over it. Then add your creamed spinach mixture to the top, again spreading it evenly. 

Then proceed to add the olives, and the cheeses, being feta, cheddar and mozzarella. You can add more garlic flakes and ground black pepper to the top if wanted. Put it in a preheated oven at 180 and cook until the cheese has melted. Slice and enjoy!