THE Radisson Hotel at Granger Bay has dropped its SAS affiliation and is now known as Radisson Blu. Many will know its incredible terrace with incredible views and fine food at Tobago’s but only a handful of locals will likely know it for its accommodation.
There are few things as luxurious as taking a holiday in your own city, especially if it’s just an overnight jaunt that requires a small bag of luggage.

The Radisson is in the process of upgrading guest rooms. Some of those that have not yet benefited from refurbishment are getting a little scruffy around the edges, but still provide luxurious accommodations.

The new-look rooms will have a far more contemporary flare (and pared down décor) and I understand a discussion is currently underway about using a broad blue and white stripe in upholstery which I think is splendid – a perfect look for rooms that overlook the sea.
The immediate appeal though is the buffet lunch at Tobago’s. At R225 there are better-value-offerings elsewhere but the selection is outstanding and the food quality good. If you pace yourself (as I did) it can take the place of lunch and dinner and suddenly it costs half the price!

If you’re smart, you’ll take time over the cold selection. Here are the healthful options such as pasta salads (the pesto mayo with baby spinach and olives is delicious) as are the Med-style pickles (even though the calamari was a little sharp at the back of the throat.) A dish not often available on buffets (and costly to produce) is marinated artichokes. 

If you’d rather have something with more of a French bent, there’s divine goat’s cheese, rocket, roast peppers, baby spinach, olives and asparagus salad.
The chicken Caesar is also good – with jewels of pancetta and parmesan curls (but if you’d rather make your own there are simple salad ingredients at the ready).

Take a break before going for the hot selection which while tasty is a little more pedestrian.
The curry is always good (they have a Tandoori oven) in the kitchen and do wonderful Indian dishes such as the chicken breasts with minted yogurt which are very good and tender.

Often there’s Norwegian salmon too which is lovely served with a citrus salsa. The veg selection is also worthwhile: roast garlic mash, honey-roasted butternut and aubergine and courgette tians among them.
I feast on the cheese selection (with pickles and chutneys) because most of the other desserts contain sugar.

JP had conniptions of joy over the baked cheese cake. Others at the table also raved about the glazed citrus tart and the choco brownies.
As a luxury hotel restaurant, wine prices are not out of kilter.
There’s the delicious Brampton Chardonnay at R120 or you could splurge on the fabulous Iona Sauvignon Blanc that’s listed at R225 a bottle. We routinely drink tap water with ice and lemon rather than costly (and usually carbon-footprint heavy) bottled water or even soft drinks.

Overnight guests only pay half price for One Spa treatments. More information from eldoray.smit@radissonblu.com.
Radisson Blu 021-441-3000.

AS it is with families where one sister is prettier and more popular than the other, so too it is with related restaurants where, irrespective how good, they have less attention then they deserve. It was Uitsig restaurant that put Constantia Uitsig farm on the culinary map with the late Frank Swainston wooing diners with superb Italian-inspired cuisine.

To his credit, Clayton Bell has not only kept some of Frank’s signature dishes alive – the trippa alla Fiorentina and Marquise au Chocolat among them, but has also introduced items that are more contemporary.

My Animelle con I carciofi, veal sweetbreads with procuitto, artichokes, baby peas in a Verjuice sauce can proudly stand alongside any dish that popular sister La Colombe serves. The mushroom tart, field mushrooms overlapped on a delicious disk of puff pastry, is perfect to begin with or as a light lunch on its own.

Although I’ve written about The Uitsig Country Hotel here before, it deserves a second look-in for its unpretentious and comfortable décor which made it one of our favourite places.
Our cottage 16 had a grand view of the mountains and a wonderful fireplace which meant rather than explore the farm or the rest of Constantia, we curled up in the oversized armchairs in front of the crackling fire with a book, or watched TV or, most romantically, the colour of the mountain changing as the afternoon progressed.

This hotel is highly recommended for luxury getaways that won’t require a second mortgage.
www.constantia-uitsig.com

Locals will remember the hoo-hah surrounding the opening of Cap de Classique de Oudekraal on the Atlantic Coast where The White House advertising agency stood previously. The merits of building on such pristine land aside, it is an unrivalled location sandwiched between The 12 Apostles and the ocean.

More elegantly and appropriately called The 12 Apostles Hotel or 12A, the property now is a deluxe five-star where exquisite attention to detail (and an in-house wedding planner) guarantees a special visit.

Perhaps better suited to sunny climes when it is possible to enjoy the pools and mountain walks, The 12A is has a four-floor main hotel that includes the excellent Azure restaurant and the sexy Leopard Bar and two accommodation wings.

We were in the Llandudno wing with mountain views to the left and unrivaled sea views ahead. Rooms are decorated with coir matting which adds texture and a look rich in beach-house detail like shell encrusted mirrors. The sitting room on a lower level has two chairs and a couch that converts to a bed.

Breakfasts are legendary at Azure with a vast selection including sparkling wine and oysters but it is at dinner when the delicious blue décor becomes a cocoon of comfort and hearty dishes like crayfish cocktail in a zingy Marie Rose sauce to start and a divine chicken and prawn Malay-style curry satisfy.

Chef Roberto de Carvello has a separate menu that incorporates Fynbos from the hotel’s kitchen garden on the mountain. The Fynbos Springbok shanks are headily redolent of what Khoi cuisine could have been.
www.12Apostles.co.za 021-437-9000.