So, you had Valentine’s Day all planned out with a night at home where you go all out to declare your love for your significant other. However, you hadn’t figured on Eskom throwing a spanner in the works with rolling blackouts. So now, your romantic evening is at risk of being plunged in the dark by load shedding. Here are some tips to Eskom-proof your Valentine’s Day.
1 Check the schedule
This might seem like an obvious one, but a surprisingly high number of people are still caught off guard when the power goes out. Check your local schedule to see if your area will be affected by load shedding, so that you can plan ahead.
2 Dinner by candlelight
There are few things more romantic than dinner by candlelight. If you are planning dinner at home, pull out all the stops and put candles all over the room to make it look and feel extra romantic. This not only provides light should the power be out, but it also sets a romantic tone to the entire evening.
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3 Cold dinner
By cold dinner we don’t mean a dinner that’s supposed to be warm, but now it can’t be heated up due to load shedding. We mean a delicious cold feast such as sushi platters. Many sushi restaurants don’t need power to prepare their dishes (assuming that they have cooked sushi rice already waiting and that you don’t want any tempura dishes). Order a platter for two and enjoy this at home, by candlelight. Another idea is to embrace the German tradition of Brotzeit. More commonly known as a cheese and meat board, this includes a selection of cold meats, cheese and fresh bread.
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4 Plan ahead for drinks
If you had plans to keep the bubbly cold or serve some cocktails with dinner, well load shedding may impact that. Plan ahead and buy some ice on the way home or earlier in the day. Then a few hours (about two to three), put the cold beverages in a cooler box and chuck most of the ice over it. This should keep the drinks cold for the evening.
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5 Find a restaurant with a generator
No candles, sushi, meat and cheese board or ice? Then look for a restaurant that has a generator. There are still a number of restaurants that have space for Valentine’s Day. Hotel restaurants are usually a safe bet as most hotels have backup generators. For example, the Radisson Blu Hotel Waterfront is hosting a five-course sit-down dinner that includes a red bush chai spiced butternut soup, a duo of prawn and pomegranate gravadlax, lamb loin with Spanish chorizo and cilantro potato dauphinoise and, for dessert, a layered Tonka bean and berry panna cotta with pavlova madeira macerated cherries, salted liquorice noodles and cherry soil – to name just a few of the delectable love treats. A vegetarian menu is available on request. The DaVinci Hotel and Suites on Nelson Mandela Square is also hosting a Valentine’s Day dinner with a delicious three course meal and wine. Spoil your taste buds with deep fried calamari, sirloin steak topped with truffle butter, decadent chocolate and more.
Don’t let Eskom pull the plug on your Valentine’s Day. With a little planning and forward-thinking, you can make this one to remember.
