THE long-standing Schwarma Co in Norwood, Johannesburg, on the ever-changing but consistently weird main drag, is an institution.

It is one of those extremely rare places where the quality of the food doesn't decline year by year.

This place has a massive following who swear by the falafel, houmus, tahina and brinjal salad.

There's little wonder then that, on an average weekend day, there's nothing less than mayhem at the falafel counter. 71 Grant avenue, Norwood. 011-483-1776.

ROMESCO REVISITED

ROMESCO Sauce, once the darling of many continental-style restaurants locally, became sidelined long ago.

I don't know why. It's a fabulous sauce - a traditional Catalan concoction, thought to hail from the 14th century and remodelled with tomatoes and peppers from the new world in the 19th century.

A sauce so thick it's almost a dip, it is heady, pungent and incredibly flavoursome, and the ingredients list tells you why: the basics - although they vary - are almonds or hazelnuts, red peppers, tomatoes, garlic, fried bread, oil and vinegar.

Often eaten with seafood or with grilled, roasted or raw vegetables, Romesco Sauce is also unspeakably good with braaied chicken or lamb. Recipes vary wildly.

I was delighted to discover a whole host of them together, listed within the great recipe site The Daily Meal. Go to www. thedailymeal.com/best-recipes. Search Romesco.

WINE LABELS WINGE

MOST food pairing suggestions on wine labels are utter nonsense (you're only getting this sort of ramble on lesser wines; top wines maintain a dignified silence).

Presumably, someone with slightly more wine nous than Joe Public decides what information to put on the label?

"Goes well with chicken and fish dishes," opines one mid-priced white wine from the supermarket.

Goes with fish? Really? So, should I assume this wine will marry equally well with tuna sashimi, sea bass poached in a cream sauce and kabeljou cooked in a hectic Pakistani curry? Clearly that's absurd.

Why mention the fish? Why not mention the general flavour set or specific ingredients? A pinkish wine on top of my fridge proclaims "goes well with picnic food".

So, anything eaten outdoors ? Salami, satay noodle salad, strawberries and cream, Vietnamese Banh Mi and mackerel pate all recommended? They might as well just write "goes well with food". Time we had some more useful information than this.