Just don’t mention videos or chopsticks
● How about keeping cool this summer thanks to a designer fridge with a hefty R700,000 price tag?
Now you can, after Smeg, the Italian maker of upmarket household appliances, unveiled their latest range in collaboration with fashion house Dolce & Gabbana on Wednesday evening.
Ironically, the Sicily is my Love event at Smeg’s Bryanston showroom was held on the same night the Italian fashion duo were forced to cancel their Shanghai show after accusations of racism.
The topic of that controversial ad, which saw a Chinese woman struggling to eat spaghetti with chopsticks, hardly came up, though, as guests mingled in the store.
After greeting SAA’s head of marketing, Kim Thipe, I say hello to singer J Something who tells me about his “new baby”, a liquor range called Jin Gin which provided the night’s tasty cocktails.
No sight, though, of any food to complement the drinks, except for boards of cheese and olives, as I greet another musically inclined guest, Themba Nkosi, who many know as DJ Euphonik.
The house music maestro tells me that next month he and fellow DJ Black Coffee will be bringing cult street-wear brand OffWhite to the country, with a pop-up store in trendy Braamfontein.
Then it’s catching up with Norma Gigaba, who turned up with Zu Ngcobo, whose sister Thembeka is married to police minister Bheki Cele.
We avoid chatting about that cellphone video, though I have to tell the wife of our former home affairs minister I’m surprised to see her out and about. “I’m not a politician, why should I hide?” says the IT exec.
Then it’s greeting other familiar faces such as TV presenters Nandi Madida and K Naomi before J unveils that Fab28 fridge.
Afterwards we are entertained by J’s band, Mi Casa. We also finally get to line our bellies with tasty morsels including a citrus chicken salad, arancini balls and meatballs with fettucini — with not a chopstick in sight.