STER-KINEKOR - CINE PRESTIGE

I did something this morning that I have never done in my entire "50" something years, now don't laugh, as its most probably no biggie for anyone else but me... I was offered two complimentary tickets 

(Thanks to Fay from thesparklinglabyrinth) to view the premiere of the movie "Chef" at

 Cine Prestige at Ster-Kinekor Gateway....and the problem being you may well ask? 

As a workaholic, 10am on a Thursday would normally have been a "no no", but I threw caution to the wind and abandoned my work and accepted the tickets.

 I took along the youngest "Kiddiewink" (15yrs old) and surprise, surprise he didn't mind coming along with his mum (perhaps the offer of a Wimpy breakfast before this early movie swung it).

I think at this point I need to mention to you, that I am not a regular movie goer and never have been, as I prefer to wait for a movie to come out on DVD and watch in the comfort of my own home, usually in my PJ's and laid out on the couch or in my bed with snacks and drinks at hand. However I had heard that Cine Prestige was a different and luxurious kind of movie experience and I was curious.

The Cine Prestige has its own "Prestige" private lounge where you can sit very comfortably away from the normal foyer madness and meet up with friends before or after a movie. All the usual chocolates, cool drinks and popcorn are available to buy along with muffins and coffees etc. 

Exclusive Cine Prestige Lounge

The calm of the lounge

Ster-Kinekor flagship site at Gateway has two Cine Prestige cinemas and are 3D-enabled, the screens can accommodate any new title that is released in this format.The cinemas are equipped with the latest digital projector technology and quality surround-sound speaker systems, providing viewers with the latest in cinema technology. 

Moi relaxing and ready to recline

Comprising of 39 seats each and you are seated in very comfortable, large, reclining red leather seats, with a personal snack side table...very handy. Another unique "Prestige" experience is that you can pre order platters of food and drinks and they will be served to you in your seat.

A selection of foods and platters to suit all tastes

For the "Love Birds" there are several seats that don't have the middle arm rest, so if you are looking to do something romantic and different for your loved one, book the Love Nest seat,wine and some platters.

Unfortunately the movie was changed at the last minute from the Chef to the movie Blended, due to the coding not being received for the Chef movie. (More about the Blended movie in a future post)

What I can say..is the Cine Prestige experience was luxurious and enjoyable, even though it comes at a premium price R110 per ticket (discounts apply with cards) it will make going out to the movies more enticing especially for the likes of Moi, as it really was like being in the comfort of your own home,but with the large screen movie experience.It seems like more visits to the Cine Prestige will be on the cards in the future with hubby and I think I will book the love nest seat and the chocolate dipping platter, just a pity I can't wear my PJ's.

Check the Ster-Kinekor website for more details

BELUGA GATEWAY {REVIEW}

Some of you may have read my previous reviews on various restaurants, cafes etc.and I know I am a harsh critic, but being a "mature" diner you need to understand that I have eaten many meals out in all types of restaurants over the years and lets face it, eating out is not a cheap past time,
so to put it simply and bluntly....
I work hard to earn my money and I don't settle for crap.....

Obviously my reviews are based purely on my personal taste,opinions and experiences at the time of the review, all this being said I very rarely give a mediocre or average restaurant a second chance, 
as I really don't want to waste more of my good money. 

So how did I Beluga rate?
My son turned 20 years old a couple of weeks ago, so we decided to eat at Beluga in Gateway, even though I have eaten a couple of times at Beluga in Cape Town this was my first time trying this offshoot, which opened a year ago.
 Beluga in Cape Town has always pleased me and I was expecting great things from my "local" Beluga. 

If I am not mistaken this 350 seater eatery is housed in the 
old Pop Art Cafe Club premises, 
which is a double volume cavernous space. 

We opted to sit outside on the sidewalk terrace and unfortunately that's where things started to go somewhat "pear shaped". 
The outside area is dark, as there is very little lighting and we all had the same problem...we couldn't read the menu even the "Kiddiewinks" with their young eyes complained. 
After voicing our concerns, the waiter brought us a candle to light our way! 
The candle happened to be an electric flickering flame to resemble a candle, 
hence it shed no light whatsoever....reading between these lines....can you sense my frustration already?

We proceeded to move to a table along side the windows hoping the light issue would be resolved and guess what, it wasn't, so after table move number 3 
we ended up inside the restaurant. 
At this point I started to have a sense of humour loss, as the lighting inside the main restaurant was really no better.Regardless, we all battled to read the extensive menu and it all sounded "delish". 

First off I ordered my compulsory Strawberry Daiquiri, as Beluga pride themselves on their cocktails, 
so I waited with anticipation and what arrived was a glass full of sweet slush puppy syrup with no garnish!

Strawberry Daiquiri R58

I am not even going to comment further on my SD other than     

to offer some advice to the management of Beluga... send your barman down to the Oyster Box Hotel in Umhlanga to learn how to make a good SD.

Lets move onto the food.....

We all opted for Belugas set 3 course menu selection at 

R165, 

as it covered lots of our family "likes". 

We all chose the pan fried Calamari with Ginger and Chilli and what arrived was a large portion of perfectly cooked calamari with a tasty plate drizzle of 
Chilli and Ginger, 

a big thumbs up all round!

Ginger & Chilli Calamari

For our mains we all ordered different dishes, which I like as I get to taste

 everyone's food.

"Kiddiewink 1" 

Decided on the Sticky Beef ribs

 which he enjoyed.

 "Kiddiewink 2" 

Chose the Angry Chicken Curry, 

named after the angry chef that totally ruined the dish by overdosing with salt.

"Hubby" 

Unfortunately picked the Slow-Braised Lamb Shank,

 which he was assured was a good portion for a hungry man, I could see his face drop when a minute shank appeared before him and to add insult to injury he declared it tasteless! 

"et Moi" 

I ordered the Kingklip with buttered mash and beurre blanc, 

which didn't look very appetising but the taste was good.

Kingklip

After mixed reviews on the mains it was onto the 3rd and final course and 

my "fave" part...the puds. 

No contest here, as we had all heard so much about the

 White Chocolate Beignets.

Lindt White Chocolate Beignets

 Lindt white chocolate,vanilla bean ice cream and butterscotch sauce and for me being a "chocoholic" this was promising to be a great end to our otherwise disappointing meal. 

One bite into the white chocolate fried ball revealed a hot melted chocolate centre, which was very rich, in fact so much so, I could only eat the one and add to that the butterscotch dipping sauce and the whole dessert was just too rich and too sweet. 

If you follow my blog, you will know from many of my reviews and posts that I loooove chocolate, but this dessert must go down on record, as being the richest "pud" that I have ever eaten. 

Even "kiddiewink 1 & 2" couldn't help me out, so sadly my plate went back to the kitchen minus just the one ball, a little butterscotch and some ice cream, again for me this is unheard of!

To finish off this rather long review

the atmosphere is lacking, the service was average, but the food was to say the least disappointing on many counts. 

I feel that to try and roll out an award winning fine dining restaurant formula to another province is a challenge for the owners and can often fall short and in my opinion sadly this is what has happened to Beluga. 

The final bill came to R940 inc. a tip. There was no wine only beers, cool drinks and my Strawberry Daiquiri!

Would I return? 

Unfortunately not, but I would most definitely visit the tried, tested and established Cape Town branch.

Just a final note....kindly ditch those unhygienic large open jars of brightly coloured jelly beans, its a nice idea, but I witnessed both the waitrons and customers stuffing their,no doubt dirty,grubby, germ ridden hands in, to grab handfuls.
It brought to mind the "bowl of peanuts on the bar" story that did 
its rounds years ago!
Yuk!

To read previous post on Beluga

BELUGA (GATEWAY)

Call 031 584 7430

www.beluga.co.za

Physical address: 

Shop G347 

Gateway Theatre of Shopping

 Umhlanga

Durban

Opening times:

 Sunday to Thursday 12 noon - 10pm. 

Friday to Saturday 12 noon - 11pm.