Mosaic

I first read of Mosaic when it stormed to the top half of the annual Top 10 list of restaurants in South Africa. The restaurant is the real attraction of the Orient Hotel, and its relative remoteness means that staying over after a long dinner is preferable.

Mosaic was definitely the best fine dining experience I have had. Compared to Test Kitchen, I found the food more playful, interesting and yes, more tasty. Compared to Harrford House, the experience was warmer and more intimate. The decor keeps with the hotel's overall theme, with many intimate booths instead of tables. The service was excellent- managing the right balance of being always available to fill the glasses, and giving enough space to enjoy the experience.

The dining experience starts even before you enter the restaurant - a small tart with black truffle and a vegetarian wrap in rice paper. Deceptively simple, yet an amazing start.

Together with the freshly baked bread, the first of the appetizer courses appeared - a line of biscuits/breads with a few different mouses; and the highly memorable butternut macaroon. No really, even after the full meal, the butternut macaroon comes up as one of the highlights. This was followed by "corn on the cob" - a playful take that forever mars any future corn on the cob.

The chef, Chantell Dartnall, then personally came around to go through the menu and the highlights. To give a measure of how good the service was, not only did she remember that M is a precatarian, she also went through the rest of the menu to ensure that there were no issues with any of the other items. The current menu - Roots & Shoots - is itself a work of art, and in addition to the main menu, there are additional pages detailing individual items such as the components, the inspiration behind the menu item and and even the source of the key ingredients. There are actually two menu options on offer - the Market is approximately 6 courses while the Grande is approximately 9 courses. We had the market and it was just over 3 hours; not sure I will ever have the appetite for the Grande!

The last of the appetizers was the beautifully presented Tuna ceviche topped with salmon roe. It was the best ceviche I have had outside Peru.

The first course was a beetroot course in approximately 5 different preparations. M absolutely raves about this course - and the beetroot mouse was amazing. The salt crusted beetroot, which was sliced tableside, was equally impressive - and was the first of a few playful menu elements.

The second course was my favorite - not only for the amazing presentation but also for its incredible taste. Fava beans, courgette and peas have just never tasted better.

The next course featured an amazing contraption. A repurposed coffee percolator, with some fresh vegetables was used to heat up and infuse a seafood broth which would eventually go over a scallop dish. The hot broth made some of the drier ingredients on the scallop dish perk up, bringing the dish to life. The broth was amazing - the preparation even more so.

Apparently the scallop dish was not suitable for precatarians, so M had a langoustine with tomato dish. 

Next was a palette cleanser, of a carrot sorbet and candied carrots. M loves carrots, so this shot up to the top of her favorite courses for the evening.

For the main course, I had the roast goose breast and goose liver, while M had the butter poached halibut. This was my least favorite course - it was not bad, just not as memorable as the other courses.

The desert course had two options and featured a spork. The first option was a chocolate course with a cake, ice cream and other chocolate pieces. It was a good desert, but not as spectacular as the "Recipe for Desert" - a deconstructed almond cake, together with a side of mango and passion fruit jelly (in the eggshell), almond milk (in the bottle) and rose essence (the love potion). Put it all together and eat - absolutely spectacular!

There was offcourse petit fours and coffee to end off the spectacular meal.

Mosaic was an amazing experience, and a great meal. To paraphrase the words of the sommelier, "anyone can make amazing food with great ingredients, true skill lies in making amazing food with humble ingredients". Mosaic was an experience that I want to repeat- again and again.

The Orient Hotel

Building a boutique hotel outside Attridgeville would not make much sense in most times - but the Orient Hotel is more of a destination on its own; not just a hotel. Set inside a private reserve, the hotel provides a peaceful gateway, a short distance from Johannesburg. The hotel is offcourse best known for its restaurant Mosaic, but while you are there, visiting the Tienie Pritchard Museum is definitely worth while, and you can take walks in the reserve also.

The hotel is set in an oriental theme, but not in a tacky fashion (ala Monte Casino). Underlying the theme, it is clear that it is the 21st century. Each room is decorated to a theme of a current or fabled oriental region. I had initially booked "Nineveh", but was upgraded to "Samarkand". It's 5 star luxury complete with absolutely fabulous service.

Room rates include a great breakfast in the morning. It starts off with freshly baked pastry and a fruit smoothie.

This is followed by a course of four small dishes - fruits, oats, smoked salmon and a berry panna cotta. 

The main course was French toast with ham and basil pesto for me, and a mushroom egg bennedict for M.

Yes, it's an expensive getaway but Mosaic is definitely worth staying over for.

Tienie Pritchard Museum

The Orient hotel is full of sculptures from celebrated South African sculptor, Tienie Pritchard, including a full blown museum dedicated to his works. I didn't know of his works, although I have seen his "George Harrison" or "The Miner" statue many times outside Eastgate Mall. The museum gives a run down of his many works, with photos and details of works that are not on display. There are some stunning pieces and it's well worth a visit.

Dullstroom

Dullstroom is well known as fly fishing destination and it is a great destination for a relaxing weekend in general. The village itself is quite small with a few shops; and it can also be a great base to explore this part of Mpumalanga. We stayed in a self catering farm chalet (Dullstroom Cottages), a few km out of town; and that was really part of the charm. I don't think it's a place that merits a return visit if you are not into fishing; but definitely works for a few days away.

Art of Food

Having "gourmet" as part of your name usually implies trying very hard to be posh, but not quite getting there. Art of Food in Dullstroom lives up to this stereotype- it's more Tashas than Test Kitchen. The food is very good, and very well priced; but portions are quite large and so is not very conducive to a multi course meal. Of the three dinners we had in Dullstroom, this was the best - so if you are staying over in Dullstroom- make a reservation.

Pilgrims Rest

Pilgrims Rest lies on a spectacular twisting mountain road between Graskop and Lydenburg - and it's a great drive despite the potholes and slow trucks. Sadly, the town itself is a bit of a let down. Not all old houses and buildings need to be maintained - and this is one such case. There are the requisite curio stalls, some restaurants and pubs, and a great pottery and glassware shop. Maybe, I just don't find the era interesting, Pilgrums Rest is a nice curiosity; but it's nothing special.

Curio D'Afrique

Graskop is a strange location to have a shop specializing in African Art - not just the curios that every tourist attraction hosts; but really impressive sculptures from across the continent. But there is a steady stream of visitors that go to God's Window and surrounds, so there is a market.

The quality and range of items is amazing - masks, fertility artifacts, statues, bead work, sculptures - it's worth visiting just to see the great range of artwork. And the prices are very reasonable - in fact for some items it may be cheaper to drive to Graskop, stay the night and buy the artworks than buy equivalent works in Johannesburg.

The Pinnacle

It is less well known than God's Window, The Pinnacle has had some development since my last visit with a central curio stall, better parking facilities and more fences by the cliffs. The pinnacle rock is the highlight, but there is also the top of the waterfall nearby.

God's Window

The view of Blyde Canyon from the cliffs at God's Window is breathtaking, especially on a clear day. It has been 5 years since the last time, and remains an impressive sight on a return visit.

Basic Income

One platform that I really liked (and perhaps the only one) from the EFF in the last elections, was their proposal for the Mandatory Basic Income. For some reason, I have seen two very interesting articles on the same issue in the past two weeks - the first discussion was on the Freakonomics podcast, while the second was an article on Vox.com on an experiment in Kenya.

The concept is simple - give every citizen of a country a guaranteed base income. Some models have the income go down as the citizen gets paid by other sources (employment, investment); while others have such income as supplementary to the guaranteed income. In most models, there is no other state support (such as unemployment insurance). South Africa already has something that can be used as a base - the child support grants and other similar social grants; but the amounts are minuscule and sometimes may incentivise the wrong things.

In my mind, basic income should be a foundational platform. In South Africa's Bill of Rights (Chapter 2 of the Constitution), as well as the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights envisage that all persons have the right to shelter, food, water, health care and education - and this is an area that most countries fail. The basic income, as expanded upon by the Freakonomics podcast manages to be the rare initiative that makes sense both as a libertarian and a liberal - it manages to address freedom of choice and meet the social need.

If the basic needs are met - it frees up capacity for individuals to pursue their ambitions - be the best artist they can be without wondering how to put food on the table; or train to be the best sportsperson as you don't need to worry about how to put in 8 hours a day at work and 6 hours a day in training; or start the business you want without fear of living on the streets; or send your children to school because you don't have to rely on them to get work.

Funding basic income is obviously a problem. For the tax payer - it's easy - it's a tax break. But the approach may spur innovation and small business; so it's not necessarily a tax hole. And off course, how much is basic income? A basic income of R4500 (which I think was the EFF value) per person in South Africa equates to roughly 225 billion Rands, a month - a fifth of South Africa's annual budget! One can take the approach of - basic income but nothing other than basic infrastructure (roads, airports etc); or adjust the income parameters to have different values for children than adults. 

As the Freakonomics podcast highlights, there is potentially a very big looming robotics and automation revolution - one that might further reduce job security; and further entrench the gig economy. In such a scenario, basic income may not be a luxury - it may become a necessity. It is something that needs further investigation.

Gauteng Philharmonic Orchestra - Music from the Silverscreen

Two of the points I made about the JPO were that it needs to perform on more suitable days (like the weekend) and that it needs to perform more accessible pieces to attract new audiences. The Gauteng Philharmonic Orchestra, based in Pretoria seems to have addressed both of these points - they perform on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons, and while their programme for the season is varied - it certainly features some very accessible pieces; such as the performance this past weekend.

The programme featured a variety of orchestral (and some choral) pieces from a variety of movies - Lord of the Rings, Titanic, Crimson Tide, Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Prince of Egypt and most of the Star Wars Symphony and finishing off with a wonderful Clarinet (or was it an Oboe?) piece from the little known "Made in Heaven". It was also a nice touch to include projection of movie excerpts during the performance - although the excerpts were not directly aligned to the music itself.

The choral performance was unfortunately weak - the voices just didn't project well enough (and it was particularly noticeable with the theme song from Prince of Egypt). Other than that, it was a wonderful concept and a great performance. 

The orchestra does not perform too many times; but they are certainly worthwhile to keep track off and support.

Tesla will be here ... someday

Friday, and for that matter, the weekend was dominated (rightly) by political news. So, it slipped past most media notice that Elon Musk will bring finally bring his Tesla to the country of his birth. As noted by Musk himself, the Tesla 3 is the culmination of a very long strategy on how to make mass scale electric cars a reality - and in a country blessed with sunshine, it's about time.

I was considering getting a new car this year - and I did go to have a look at the i3. But despite many promises by BMW, I am yet to actually get a test drive (and they have stopped keeping me up to date every Friday with excuses). But the i3 (and the Nissan Leaf) are rather poor cousins when compared to the Tesla - especially in terms of range. Whereas the i3's extended range is about 200Km, the Tesla's starting range will be about 340Km. The Model S' extended range is already in the region of 430Km, which is plenty for most use cases in South Africa.

But the key to Tesla is the whole package that it brings together - not only the car, but also the charging network. In every country it operates in so far, it has built out the charging network, so I expect that it will be the same in South Africa. 

I did some calculations with the Nissan Leaf, and also with the i3 and now with Tesla. Even with escalating electricity prices in South Africa, the cost per Km is less than a 3rd of a petrol vehicle. Yes, the initial investment is significantly more; but I think the numbers will work out over the long term (assuming warranty and service levels are the same as Model S and X). 

But it will be a long wait - the Model 3 is only scheduled for delivery in the US at the end of 2017, and I expect SA to be the last of the Left Hand Drive markets to be available; so nothing before end of 2018 at the earliest in my view; probably mid-2019 realistically. 

I think I can stretch my current car until then - and it allows me to save up :)

Movie Lies

Information is Beautiful has a wonderful set of infographics detailing the accuracy of movies to real life - on a scene by scene basis. I have only looked at a few - but it is quite fascinating how some of the movies diverge and how, sometimes, the over the top scenes are not lies (in Wolf of Wall Street off course :))

The Box Comedy

I have heard a lot of the American stand-up comedy scene and process - comedy clubs that host a number of comedians in one night; all having a few minutes on stage. The established stars come to hone their jokes for the big shows (the ones that are for 60 - 90 minutes), while others come to try establish themselves. It's meant to be experimental; edgy and a whole lot of variety.

My experiences of this set-up has so far been quite disappointing. My one experience in New York was disappointing (that was more due to my poor choice of venue I think); and venues in South Africa (such as Parker's) tend to cater towards more established comedians on most evenings. I have been meaning to go to The Box Comedy show, at the PopArt Theatre in Maboneng, for a while now - but it's Sunday evening shows are impractical towards waking up early for Monday morning. Last night was my first experience - and the first for most in the absolutely packed room - and the format is much closer to the American stand-up comedy scene than I expected.

The line up was mixed - young comedians just starting out (the youngest, Panch Gasela was 16); to the established star in Kagiso Lediga; together with a one joke cameo by Loyiso Gola; and a longer, unscheduled set by SA Got Talent host Tats Nkonzo; and a superb host in Mpho Popps. The jokes were varied - and yes, some fell flat - and some of it was definitely experimental. 

Overall, it was great - one of the best comedy shows I have attended actually; and the best R50 I have spent in a long time. The Sunday evening shows may be impractical for every weekend, but perhaps next time I have a late Monday start, it would be a great way to spend Sunday evening.

Movie: The Big Short

The Big Short is somewhat like a re-enactment movie from the History Channel - with a bit less voice over, way better acting and arguably far more informative. Charting the path of three groups of investors who went against the established understanding of the US housing market - it is probably the most easily communicated story on the 2007 financial crisis. 

The negativity and the derision received by the three groups is in itself enlightening - how people in general do not like to hear contrarian positions; and how difficult it is to motivate contrarian positions. In addition, the story makes a very pointed link that the financial crisis was not just as a result of people who did not pay careful attention - but rather, that the position was a direct result of fraud and abuse of insider knowledge. 

And most worryingly, because the underlying cause of the 2007 meltdown was not really addressed - it is likely to occur again.

Movie: Spotlight

It is somewhat ironic that a new media organisation, First Look Media, financed the Oscar winning movie about investigative journalism in the old media world. With The Intercept, First Look does have some of the characteristics of investigative journalism; but that is more due to the seed of its formation with Snowden's leaks. 

What Spotlight shows, above all else, is how difficult investigative journalism really is - not only the amazingly long time it takes to really understand a story, identify sources, the emotional toll on the reporters and above all else - get the story right. It is the complete opposite of most modern media - publishing before verifying, publishing without getting the complete story or even understanding whether there is a story. 

And in some ways, Spotlight asks the really difficult question - would a similar investigation be even possible by today's media - or is this really the homage to a lost profession? At the end of the movie, Stanley Tucci's character says - "keep doing what you do" - but are there really that many investigative reporters left in the world?

History of Philosophy (Without any Gaps)

In late 2014, I came across a book covering classical philosophy - but what drew my attention more was the mention that the book was the result of a series of podcasts on philosophy by Professor Peter Adamson. While I considered buying the book, and even took down the name of the podcast - I didn't really pay attention - as I was not really into podcasts.

Then in January 2015, I discovered Serial - season 1 was winding down; and I was hooked - both on Serial and podcasts in general. Podcasts have become my defacto travel companion; and the History of Philosophy Without any Gaps series is the only one (apart from Serial) that I really started from the beginning. And after 260+ episodes; I have finally drawn level with the most current episode (now also covering History of Philosophy in India).

Prof. Adamson takes a broad perspective on Philosophy (sometimes, it can be argued that it's too broad) - covering not only the staples such as logic and argument; but also topics such as theology. But the beauty of this approach is - that it becomes more than just a recitation of philosophy. The podcast becomes an exploration of the intellectual development of human ideas - of how human thought has changed over time; and how ideas have built upon various interconnected and often surprising threads. And through all of this, there is the overall economic, political and religious history that overlay these developments. 

While there is philosophical jargon (which I don't understand, or to be honest care for); and some interviews and guests get too enthusiastic about their specialisations; the endeavour itself is a massive undertaking. The style of presentation is also worth commending, despite some cheesy puns and a proliferation of giraffes and Buster Keaton; Prof. Adamson makes the topic of the week interesting and engaging.

This is in effect an attempt at a singular compendium of how human intellectual thought has progressed - and there is a very long way to go. As covered in the podcast series; Philosophers have always valued commentators and their contributions to preserving philosophy. Prof. Adamson has probably already become the supreme commentator when it comes to how many he has commented upon; and what he has set out to perform. I hope that it continues till we get to Prof. Adamson commenting on his own achievements when the series catches up.

Xiaomi RedMi 2 - The Really Long Usage Review

I bought my Xiaomi RedMi 2 exactly a year ago in Hong Kong. I had originally wanted the Mi4 (which had just launched) but getting a guaranteed genuine Xiaomi phone was surprisingly difficult. This is because one of the networks has (had?) a monopoly, and the Mi4 specifically was only sold through the Xiaomi outlet at the time. Even in that store, there was a daily limit of sales for non-contract phones - making the whole purchasing experience rather surreal. The RedMi 2 was more widely available, cheaper (which allowed me to also balance out my iPhone purchase) and less hassle to get.

It's my first proper Android phone, and I was immediately more receptive of using it in comparison to other Android phone I had tried - especially various Samsungs. This is mostly due to the MiUI Android fork used by Xiaomi. The interface is sleek, and very iOS like. That said, there are still a lot of small interface issues that I just haven't managed to figure out - like can I get rid of the Google search bar on the main screen or at least reduce the estate. 

My other major gripe relates to the level of Google integration- my contacts are annoyingly integrated so searching for a name to call brings up email addresses and I keep getting notification updates on gmail when I have read emails on my iPhone (or desktop). The contacts part can be suppressed but doesn't seem to be permanent - every time I update or some other random even seems to switch it back to integrated mode.

I use the phone as my work phone, so I have had really good usage. Most of my blog posts in Hong Kong were done on the phone, and the photos were superb. I haven't had issues with memory limitations, but then I do use a limited set of apps, and clear my memory often of unused apps. I have had some occasional issue with volume (both microphone and speaker) but it seems to be difficult to work putt a pattern.

Overall, I am very happy - although I would probably just get another iPhone as a work phone in the future. Xiaomi just launched phones in South Africa, and it is definitely a good alternative to other Android phones. If I were to get another Android phone, it would definitely be a Xiaomi.