The problem locally is that every mom is wheeled out for lunch by sons and daughters, sons-in-law and daughters-in-law and grand-children. Some devoted hubbies have been conned into substituting the mothers-of-their children on this highly over-commercialised Sunday, if the natural mother has Gone to Jesus or is on the other side of the globe.
Consequently restaurants battle to cope with demand, notwithstanding several outlets which routinely shut on Sundays opening specially for Mother’s (and Father’s) days, St Valentines and the like.
If I come to the office on a Sunday, I like to end whatever task I’m tackling, lock-up and leave before about 12:50 to get me to whichever club I’ve decided to grace with my presence! for a midday, almost communal, Sabbath meal.
Last Sunday, however, I was down-loading, editing and cropping photographs and opted to finish the job. After all, procrastination is the thief of time!Arriving at City Bowling Club about 25 minutes later than usual, the place was packed with casual visitors turned away from their favourite restaurants because of the Mother’s Day crush.
Had I ordered immediately, I could have been served one of the very last portions of roast pork, crackling and all the trimmings (US$5 with koekusters and ice-cream), but gallantly allowed a couple to get in first, while downing a much-needed refreshingly chilled article of a moderately intoxicating nature.
When I was finally told — definitively — there was, sadly, no scoff left, it was virtually too late to move on to any commercial restaurant. Attempts to raise my old china, Angus, to establish what time the kitchen closed at Harare Sports Club were fruitless as he’d left his mobile charging in a rush to get there to watch Formula One.
I arrived at Le Leone Rouge (HSC’s Red Lion bar) seven minutes after last orders although, frustratingly, pre-ordered and paid for food was still being served for maybe another half-hour. A plan to order “something” from the next door Maiden Public House (nee Keg & Maiden) came to naught on discovering literally hundreds of folk fighting their way to pay a small entrance fee to see the Man United game.
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Having eaten a light breakfast before 8 — with a power cut most of the rest of the day — I was seriously peckish by the time the few restaurants which trade Sunday nights opened.
So, soon after that I arrived at Coimbra in The Avenues, an old pal: attorney, racehorse owner, sportsman and farmer (still ?) Peter Moor asked me to join his table. His charming wife, schoolteacher, Louise was there, as were one of their three sons and a schoolmate, an interesting couple from Hermanus in the Cape. (He’d been judging entries in the thoroughbred industry’s Yearling Sales and was a descendant of Stewart Meikle), plus one other.
My hosts had already had starters so, despite craving caldho verde, (Portuguese “green” soup) I went straight onto join almost everyone else with half-a-piri-piri chicken and chips, mostly eaten enthusiastically with increasingly greasy fingers. And that graphically illustrates how hungry I was. I much prefer cutlery!
The rest of the table did serious justice to some good Cape red wine, which made the Hermanus pair feel at home. (They were off to the Falls and Chobe the next day.) I sipped a brace of Pilseners and most of us ended with dinky crème caramels.
So much did I enjoy Sunday night at Coimbra, that, next day, I lunched at its main rival restaurant, Cascais in Samora Machel. Chef-proprietrix, the lovely, leggy Lusitanian lass Paola tells me they will finally be moving to a new site in Glenara Avenue, Highlands in a couple of months.
Here I did have caldho verde, with two generous slices of spicy chorizo sausage lost in whatever greenery was the principal component. (In Portugal it’s curly- or sea-kale, here we use spinach, chard, rape or dark green cabbage.)
I’m totally convinced Cascais’ piri-piri chicken is the best in the world…obviously including Coimbra’s….but the chips at Coimbra knock Cascais’ into a cocked hat. (Which is why I often have Cascais’ Portuguese savoury rice, or those whole boiled potatoes which usually taste as if they could have done with another minute or two’s boiling, as “starch”!)
Two new puddings are on Cascais’ menu: citrusy lemon cheesecake, which I suspect was as nice as it sounded and the very generous portion of Molotov pudding (an El Porko special, light but rich in eggs and caramel) which I thoroughly relished.
Both restaurants charge similarly. Cascais’ soups are US$3 (the shrimp cocktail at US$5 is delicious and fine value); half a piri-piri chicken with chips and a fringe of salad costs US$10,50; puddings are US$4.Coimbra shuts all day Monday, otherwise opening lunch and supper daily; Cascais closes Saturday lunchtime, chete.l [email protected]
