Spiced Brown

Before reading this please note that the content of this post is rated R18 and is not suitable for younger readers (No lol, not really, just kidding.. well kinda). "Best buns in town and the Burgers aren't bad either". It took me just over a year to psych myself up and finally visit Beefcakes in Illovo.. and Boy oh Boy was it worth it!! I went with a friend of mine, who is super fun and was also keen on visiting. We definitely had a great evening. Truth be told, even up until we got there, I had no idea what to expect... slightly nervous, a bit excited and part anxious. So here's the deal and this is what you need to know. What is Beefckes? Well, Beefcakes is a Burger and milkshakes restaurant, coupled with an amazing bar and drink as well as host to comedy and drag shows. (Now you can see why I had to psych myself up to go). Anyway, I think the words I'm looking for is basically like a Hooters, but for ladies and gay dudes. Gentlemen ... DO N...

Nestled away on 7th avenue in Parktown North / Parkhurst is The Pudding Shop. But don't be fooled by the name, as it is NOT a dessert / patisserie store. The Pudding Shop is on the same property as the La Cucina Di Ciro restaurant. The vibe at the Pudding Shop is very oriental to say the least. It's quite a hippie zen like joint. Picture tranquil / indian music playing in the background with "please switch your phone to silent" signs in the restaurant. It's also very eco-friendly with natural lighting and lots of plants and green creepers on the walls. The ambiance is perfect for a chilled Sunday afternoon brunch/lunch. The menu is also quite small with mostly vegan/vegetarian dishes and 2-3 dessert items. I opted for the Indian tasting plate which consisted of samoosas served with a sweet ans sour coconut and chili sauce, chili bites served with a lime, coriander and red onion compote and bhaji squares od cous cous, sweetcorn, ...

Sugar and spice and all things nice! The launch of The Tea Merchant in Melrose arch and it's official opening took place on the 5th December.  Being a tea lover, I absolutely had to make a visit there. I have never really been a coffee person but I think growing up in an Indian household, tea was always on the menu for breakfast and after supper so I grew up having masala tea (chai tea) and we later switched to Rooibos.  The moment we entered The Tea merchant, our noses were greeted by a variety of pleasant aromatic scents. I automatically felt relaxed and calm as I took my first sip of one of the many tea's on sample. There are a variety of fruitty, black, rooibos and green tea's available. Each with it's very own unique flavour, scent and taste.  The shop is cute, invitingly warm and cosy and the owners are suuper friendly and helpful. You can purchase the various tea's in the form of tea cones, loose tea (by weight) or in tins or tea bags. There are ...

To be totally honest I have never watched SA Master Chef or ever really been a fan or taken a liking to the show. But I do absolutely LOVE Indian cuisine so when I was at Monte Casino passing by Aarya - Master chef SA Deena's restaurant I thought I would pop by and try it out. I remember a while back when he won Master chef all the hype about it and now that there has been another Master chef SA I found it quite fitting to be at the restaurant after all the hype and media around it had died down.  It's quite a small little restaurant situated in the piazza section of Monte so we had to wait a little while before being seated as it was full. We browsed through the rather teeny tiny menu which I was quite surprised (It was literally an A4 sized menu). Despite the range of choice being small from the menu we decided to still try a few dishes off the menu. (Being vegetarian limited the already small menu for me to select form). In any case, we opted for the paneer which wa...

I have never been a fan of Sushi.. Maybe it's because I'm vegetarian, although I have given it a bash a few times.. All sadly disappointing my taste buds. However, the same day we ventured to Bubble Tea, we also had home-made sushi :) .. and boy oh boy was it YUM-O!!! I think the thing is that veg sushi always put me off because of the sea weed paper. After my very talented brother, sister in-law and sister crafted some nifty California rolls and Spinach and cream cheese Dim Sum, I grew rather fond of Sushi. My sister has been ranting and raving about the sushi at YuMe in Parkhurst, so I visited YuMe to see what all the fuss was about. I must admit, for me, who never really took a liking to sushi, YuMe did well. The California rolls were delish! And the spinach dumplings were great (a bit on the chewy side but still divine). The plates moving along the sushi-go round (sushi conveyor belt) are colour coded according to price and up on the wall so you know how much...

Most people cringe when it comes to exercise. I think you need to find something (and I mean an exercise) that you enjoy personally, be it a hula hoop, yoga or swimming.  Due to many of our busy lifestyles, and note I say busy, not active.. we end up paying exorbitant gym membership fees and large sums of money for supplements and vitamins. That was until I stumbled across this on the net. BEING PAID TO EXERCISE!!! OMG! (well kind of).  This subway station in Moscow, to create awareness, fitness and gearing up for the 2014 Olympic Games, will accept 30 lunges or 30 squats in return for a subway ticket?!! Wowza! The machine was installed by Olympic change to get ordinary people involved. All you have to do is stand on the platform and the machine will count down from 30 measuring/detecting your lunges/squats! When you're done, viola! Ticket received!  If you fail to do all  30 squats or lunges, there is no penalty, you just have to pay for your ticket....

Chilling. Thinking. Dreaming. This is Bubble Tea's slogan. Gourmet Coffee Bubble Tea mixology has recently opened up shop in the village green shopping centre - 127 Greenway road, Greenside.  I often visit the Woolies there to do my grocery shopping as it is down the road from where I reside. I was very excited to know what this "Bubble Tea" thing was about as I watched it being set up and built during my trips to Woolies. The grass wall with the bright yellow Happy.me just caught my eye and I knew it was something I definitely had to check out.  Bubble tea is also known as Pearl Milk tea or boba milk tea and is a Taiwanese tea-based drink invented in tea shops in Taichung Taiwan, during the 1980's. Most bubble tea recipes contain a tea base, minxed with fruit or milk. Ice blended versions are usually mixed with fruit or syrup, resulting in a slushy consistency. Most bubble teas come with small chewy tapioca balls, commonly called pearls.  This past...