Chefs must rediscover excellency

Exhausted by the hunting and gathering of yesteryear, chefs countrywide seem to have thrown in their kitchen towels and settled for a style of cookery found in budget boarding houses and hostels. When was the last time you ate out and really enjoyed your meal?
Last Sunday, George and I followed the busy Enterprise Road a few kilometres out of town. Just beyond the crumpled sign pointing to Gletwyn Bar, and the artistic sign indicating Hay Hill Weavers, a large green and white sign on the left hand side showed the way to Gecko Gardens.
We arrived just after 1pm, and parked on a grassy verge attended by a security guard. Inside, a narrow garden path, opened up onto smooth green lawns shaded by msasa and palm trees.
In sunny, landscaped areas, roses, lavender and pretty shrubs were in full bloom. The Sunday buffet was well underway, and we sat at a heavy wooden table, angled on the sloping lawn.
For a few minutes we sipped our cokes and listened to the velvet sound of Luck Street Blues, one of Harare’s longest established and most popular bands. Every Sunday and on Wednesday evenings, Luck Street Blues entertains guests at Gecko Gardens.
Our waiter told us that the night before, there had been a wedding reception under a marquee for 250 guests. As we collected our first course, cream of vegetable soup, there was a flurry of little people arriving for a kiddies’ birthday party, several metres away, behind the now empty marquee. Two jumping castles were inflated in a matter of minutes, one with running water and a long foofy slide.
The vegetable soup was tepid and nothing to write home about, but the antics of a jolly clown leading the children on a wild goose chase through the garden was a useful distraction.
Roast beef with Yorkshire pudding, and chicken curry and rice were offered as the main courses. The roast beef was tough and sinewy, and the accompanying pepper sauce seemed inappropriate with the Yorkshire pudding.
Cubed butternut was bland and slightly undercooked, while mixed vegetables baked in a cheese sauce were soggy and overdone. A mixed green salad served in a creamy sauce on a large silver platter looked appealing, but by then I had lost my appetite and gave it a miss.
Pudding was milk tart, with scoops of vanilla ice cream, casually served out of the box, with a pleasant strawberry coulis. After a disappointing meal, I always hope that a well-made pot of tea or well-brewed coffee will partially make up for any shortcomings. In the event, my tea was ready-made in a mug with a tea bag.
In spite of our disappointment with Gecko’s Sunday lunch, the dulcet sounds of Luck Street Blues and the mellow voice of lead singer Andrew, with favourites such as Stand by Me and Ain’t No Sunshine when She’s Gone, kept us happy for over two hours.
 The party food of popcorn and hamburgers, chocolate cake and jugs of lemonade did look appetising, so perhaps adults drew the thin end of the wedge last Sunday at Gecko Gardens.

Gecko Gardens
Tel: 494612
-comments to cmalakoff@-gmail.com