Business breakfast meetings are part and parcel of city living. We asked food guru Anne Stevens for her favourite morning venues.
Harvey’s, 465 Innes Road, opposite Mitchell Park, Morningside
Telephone: 031 312 5706
The breakfast menu at Harvey’s reads like someone’s fantasy list for a final meal. How many people would have oysters first thing in the morning, or parma ham wrapped around a fig and walnut cream cheese, served with strawberries and rocket? But moving on from those, and cold papaya and pear soup with pinenuts, there are items that make me squeak with delight. How about blinis topped with sour cream, smoked salmon and caviar? Or kidneys served on barley risotto with a shiraz and shiitake reduction and smoked haddock on chive mash with cheddar and wholegrain mustard sauce could be top of the pops. The not-so-adventurous can have standard breakfast items, and the child within everyone should be satisfied with eggy bread with soft-boiled eggs and Marmite soldiers. In true Andrew Draper style, there’s always a clever play on the breakfast theme, including marmalade ice cream topped with honey granola. The bad news is the venue is only open for breakfast at weekends, from 8am, but arrangements can be made for business breakfasts and other events.
Ocean Terrace, Oyster Box Hotel, 2 Lighthouse Road, Umhlanga
Telephone: 031 514 5000
Along with its venerable neighbour, the Beverly Hills, the new Oyster Box offers a formidable breakfast buffet. And, as with the other grande dame of hotels, it is breakfast with a great view of beach, sea and sky. Even if you are forced indoors from the terrace to the cool blue and green interior, it’s a remarkable way to start the day. On the buffet (R185) you have, of course, all the fruits, cereals, yoghurts, pastries, cold meats, cheeses, smoked salmon and … yes, oysters and sparkling wine. Get the most for your money, I say. Then think of Eggs Benedict, or haddock in a cream sauce. I’m not so sure about tandoori chicken or lamb shish kebabs at that time of the day though. The a la carte selection features items like Eggs Benedict, Onassis and Florentine, oats with whisky and cream, and Bea Tollman’s own assembly of scrambled eggs on a toasted English muffin with hollandaise and smoked oysters.
Market, The Courtyard, 40 Gladys Mazibuko (Marriott) Road, Greyville
Telephone: 031 309 8581
If tranquillity is what you need at the start of the day, it’s hard to beat Market. Sitting outside under the trees near the fountain, it’s easy to believe there’s no working world out there. And the food ain’t half bad either. The muffin of the day recently was bacon, spinach and feta: served with real butter, and teamed with a good cappy, it hit the right spot. So did Eggs Benedict topped with citrus Hollandaise and crossed with spears of fresh asparagus. For the sweet-toothed, there are cinnamon and banana hotcakes with crème fraiche and honey, home-made honey granola with vanilla, plums and yoghurt, and – a twist on the American favourite – French toast with crispy bacon and lemon curd instead of maple syrup. All the old standards are represented too, but my money would be on courgette and corn fritters with roasted tomatoes and crème fraiche. And, for something completely different, butterbeans with spinach and poached eggs on rye.
Quarters Bistro, Quarters Hotel, 101 Florida Road, Morningside.
Telephone: 031 303 5246
Light, white, airy and chic, boutique hotel Quarters’ dining room is the ideal spot for a business breakfast, catering for all tastes in serene surroundings. You have the full Continental buffet and all the staples of the traditional English breakfast, plus items like potato rosti and grilled banana. But that’s not what takes me there week after week, year after year. The Eggs Benedict, and the more upmarket Egg Onassis, featuring smoked salmon instead of ham, are still the best in town, properly served on a toasted English muffin. If you’re not into rich, try French toast with red onion marmalade, bacon, roasted plum tomatoes and Parmesan shavings. For the truly, deeply hungry, there’s an open omelette topped with ham, roasted cherry tomatoes, cheddar, avo and rocket. Pumpkin and raisin bread with grilled bananas, mascarpone and pumpkin seeds can also be teamed with bacon, and croissants served with scrambled eggs, smoked salmon and caper berries. And the service is generally as efficient as the kitchen.