The Adderley Hotel has opened in the old Kotlers building. I had an excellent sandwich at Bowl their first floor restaurant. Bowl joins other one-word restaurants like Stake (previously 0932), Mao and Salt at the Ambassador. The chicken noodle sandwich was recommended off the Light Lunch Bowls menu and, at R30 is good. I’ve always liked the creamy taste of Thai paste with coconut and although it would be difficult to eat by hand, it does work as a sandwich. Think chicken breast and Thai noodles on top of lettuce and tomato.  

The interior is sharp (black molded plastic chairs and beveled table-tops with excellent timber flooring that looks original and interesting lighting. There is a curious gap in the brickwork that makes me think of a crematorium oven or entrance to a tunnel or vault.

I have just returned from a short address by Fair Lady’s editor Suzy Brokensha to PRISA at the Relish restaurant in Gardens. Suzy had a bad bout of laryngitis but still managed to deliver a few fascinating insights into the editorial shifts that have happened at her magazine. She spoke of the competitiveness of the womens’ magazine market and briefly alluded to new developments such as Associated Magazine’s sale of Femina to Media 24, InStyle’s launch, Shop’s closure, etc. Her core message to public relations practitioners relates to the issue of targeted communications, ie that her pet hate is receiving ‘blanket’ emails that have also been sent to her editorial counterparts on twenty other magazine titles. PR people should analyse the individual magazine’s editorial focus, feature line-up, etc and then tailor the message to each title.

Yesterday marked my first day outside an office for five years. I visited Dr Stuart White, a chiropractor, in Camps Bay, for a consultation. Have long believed in this discipline and a little stiffness from the flight back from the UK was all I needed to make an appointment. I have brought back copies of Grazia from the UK. It’s the fastest growing mag brand in the world, with a fantastic mix of fashion, gossip and short features. Add to that the British edition of GQ with Daniel Craig on the cover and the Times and Guardian newspapers. I can honestly say that the big reason I travel so often to the UK is to bring back all the latest media and to get ideas from what is the most sophisticated media landscape in the world. The Sun and News of the World, however destructive some people might think they are, are very successful and tap into a need. SA is moving towards a similar fascination with celebrity, though I hope it never matches the UK set up.

Greetings from a very chilly Manchester, England. With the international charter airline Globespan flying Cape Town-Manchester direct for the summer season, I decided to book a four day trip. I managed to snaffle a soccer ticket to a Manchester United home fixture against Everton on Wednesday night. Even if you are not a soccer fan, or hate sport in general, the passion and reverence for football in these parts is startling.

I do not want to harp on Cape Town experiences while here, but the trip abroad is a welcome respite from efforts to furnish my newly purchased apartment in Three Anchor Bay. Kieck Lifestyle, the Canal Walk store, has given me more grey hair than I'd care to have at thirty-one years of age. I have to implore Berkman blog devotees to please chat to me before commissioning this store to do your furniture. Jus before I flew, I had the most fantastic facial at the Renaissance Environ Skin Care complex on Bree Street. Charnelle was the therapist concerned and she used all sorts of electric currents and potions to ensure the product really went to work.

But back to Manchester. My hotel is in a funky area of the city called Salford Quays, very close to Old Trafford football stadium. Manchester has tons of what I call chic grit. It is grimy but trendy. I have bought some cool G-Star merchandise, as well as Zara and H&M. I had champers at the Moet Cafe inside the Harvey Nichols department store, and marvelled at Paul and Joe clothing in Selfridges.The designer Dries Van Noten also has a concession in the store.