Custom 4

So you want to improve your skills and unravel the best in you? Do you want to develop your career or business or organizations image? Then look no further. This page will give you all the upcoming events in Southern Africa and the contact details. It will also highlight to you the functions i manage to attend. If you have upcoming events that you want to market or pictures of your functions, email me on farai@primefocusmag.com

Where Montecasino Outdoor Event Area Montecasino Boulevard, Fourways, Sandton, Johannesburg When st WEEKEND! Fri 17th Oct: 6pm - 11pm Sat 18th Oct: 11am - 4pm Sat 18th Oct: 6pm - 11pm Sun 19th Oct: 12pm - 5pm 2nd WEEKEND! Fri 24th Oct: 6pm - 11pm Sat 25th Oct: 11am - 4pm Sat 25th Oct: 6pm - 11pm Sun 26th Oct: 12pm - 5pm Tickets on sale July 2014 Please note: No Under 18's will be allow in the venue.

Everybody who is anybody who loves food and wine can rub shoulders with the who’s-who of local and international foodies and winos at Spier’s second Secret Festival, taking place at Spier Wine Farm on 25 and 26 October. Loads of talks, presentations, workshops, tastings and dinners will take place throughout the weekend and weeks leading up to the festival, with the emphasis being on what’s hot-and-happening in the world’s culinary trends as well as the benefits of biodynamic farming. Culinistas who will be speaking, eating and sharing recipe secrets during the conference (R800 per person), taking place on Friday 25 October, include: Marije Vogelzang from The Netherlands and describes herself as the first ever “eating designer”. Marije is also the author of Eat Love and will speak about her ideas around the concept of eating design. On Friday evening she will invite guests to participate in a unique, old-fashioned eating experience when she will serve a variety of food cooked in clay. Tickets are limited (R650 per person and includes a three-course meal). Lily Vanilli is from the UK and known for her unusual, often otherwordly, cake creations. With a client-base including the likes of Sir Elton John and fashionista Alexander McQueen, her audience are in for a right regal treat, with a twist in the tale, when she shares some recipe secrets. All the way from the US is Robert Sayre. He is the creative director of the Conflict Kitchen in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and his take-away restaurant only prepares meals from those countries the US is clashing with! He will explain how fast food can stimulate discussion with his patrons. Capetonian Sam Woulidge is a columnist and the author of Confessions of a Hungry Woman . She will invite the audience to take part in her exploration of the links between what we eat and what it reminds us of. A South African chef who wears many other creative hats (including artist and designer), Jacques Erasmus is the owner of Hemelhuijs. Like Sam, he will also focus on how and why memories are triggered by certain foods. Spier’s cellar master Frans Smit and his winemaking team will present a workshop where the audience will be invited to blend and make their own wine. On Saturday 26 October, French biodynamic wine advocate Nicolas Joly will present a seminar on the philosophy of biodynamics in wine farming. One of the key talking points in this four-hour long discussion (R900 per person) will be the benefits of this age-old method of winemaking. His Clos de la Couée de Serrant is often rated as one of the world’s top dry whites. Also get ready for the festival’s usual favourite, the Secret Home Dinners! This time the dinners will be spread over the five weekends in September and October that lead up to the festival in order to give as many guests as possible the opportunity to take part numerous of these fabulous dinners. Dinner hosts include Abigail Donnelly ( Taste food editor), Raphaella Frame- Tolmie (House & Leisure food editor), Zama Memela (head chef, EasyEating), Carmen Niehaus (Huisgenoot, You and Drum food editor), Herman Lensing ( Sarie food editor), Gary Cotterell ( Business Day Wanted editor), Peter van Noord and Johan van Zyl (journalists), Errieda du Toit (RSG’s Glanskok and content director of Kokkedoor ), Hetta van Deventer (TV presenter and restaurant culinary manager) , Caro de Waal ( Food24 ’s editor), the winners of reality TV show Kokkedoor and Matt Allison (urban farmer and writer). Click here for more information and bookings . But, there is even more to look forward to! The free Spier Secret Market on Saturday 26 October opens at 9am and lasts until 3pm, so do go and enjoy a day out with the family! Expect the best of the region’s culinary delights on offer; fresh baked goodies, fabulous pop-up restaurants, all sorts of produce fresh from the farm and even entertainment for the little ones. On the day you can also taste some of the best South African chenin blancs in a expo presented by the SA Chenin Blanc Association.

We all have that one friend who lacks any common sense especially at the braai, and Marina Sea Salt wants to hear the publics’ dumbest ways to braai. As a spoof of the popular Dumb Ways to Die, Boomtown has created the competition to find SA’s dumbest ways to braai stories. As part of a brand awareness exercise, and launched this week, the competition runs until July 31st, with the dumbest ways to braai to be featured in a Marina Sea Salt ‘ditty’ and possibly as part of its radio advertising. To add your Dumb Ways to Braai visit the Marina Braai Salt Fan Club on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ MarinaBraaiSaltFanClub