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Category Archives: EVENTS

Team with locals to get publicity

 
I will be heard

I will be heard

A chef has gone back to his old school with a new way to develop the market in his local area.

Chef proprietor Matthew Sankey of Sankey’s Seafood Brasserie in Tunbridge Wells has teamed up with his old school to collaborate on a pop up restaurant opening in July.

Sankey, a former student at the school, has been working together with current pupils on the decor, the service, the menu and how to cook the perfect signature dish – Sankey’s Smokie – which requires the keen young chefs to skin and poach fish, make a roux and grill the dish to perfection.

He garnered publicity in local media including print and radio, which will not hurt his existing trade.

Its a good way to get noticed and a good way to put something back as Mr Sankey said: “There is a serious shortage of talented chefs in this country and I am convinced this is partly down to the fact that the skills needed are not part of the National Curriculum so it’s great to see that Hayesbrook school takes this seriously.”

 

Burns Night: A must for every chef

 

Macsweenies 'real taste of Scotland' haggis

Love it or hate it on Burns Night it’s all about Haggis!


Normally anything to do with the word ‘burn’ inspires fear and panic into the hearts of all ye valiant chefs.

January 25 is the one day where Burns- Robert Burns to be exact – is to be celebrated and championed.

My mother hails from a long line of stalwart Glaswegian battle axes and Burns night has always been a big thing in our house.

If you’re unsure of what it is -leaving out all the historical hoohah- it is simply a night of food and drink with a heavy Scottish twist. Och aye!

Rather like Jesus, whose birthday we celebrate every 25th of December, we celebrate Rabbie Burn’s birthday on the 25th of January- he is Scottish Jesus.

Strangely, customers who have no idea who Burns was are happy to drop £50 for whiskey-tinged food on that one night of the year. The important questions however are what to serve?

You’ve got two options really, you can either go traditional or you can give it a wee twist.

Traditionally it goes cock-a-leekie soup (leeks, chicken stock, rice/barley), haggis with neeps and tatties (potato and swede) and Clootie Dumpling or Typsy Laird (sherry triffle).

This is the classic option and recipes are two a penny on line.

For a contemporary twist let’s take advice from some of Scotland’s top chefs.

Tom Kitchin went for Haggis cannelloni. Derek Johnstone went for Haggis bon bons with Arran mustard and Glenkinchie whisky mayonnaise. Hardeep Singh Kholi went for Haggis Baba ganoush. And Richard Massey went for Cranachan Soufflé with Raspberry Sorbet.

Perhaps the most important thing – and this can’t be stressed enough – is to have a good and long supply of proper Scotch Whiskey!

And secondly to indulge your guests with the proper traditional performances by hiring entertainers to sing, dance and rambunctiously recite the Burns poems at various stages of the meal.

Remember it’s Scotland. It’s not refined, sophisticated dining- it’s not the Robert Brulé night. It’s loud. It’s messy. It’s fun.

If you stick to this mentality and serve some half-decent food you can’t go far wrong.

For inspiration and menus’ in London take a look at these venues: The York & Albany, Browns Hotel and the Narrowboat.

 

 

Dine Mile High

 

Dine Mile High – Now boarding for Beirut

By Hazel Lubbock – 26 Apr 2013

In the capital, there’s a restaurant for just about every cuisine from around the world, from Iranian to Korean and Peruvian (ceviche is the dish of the moment). The food is undoubtedly delicious, but no matter how many plastic palm trees are used to decorate the place, there’s often no escaping the fact that you are in London.

Experiential restaurant Dine Mile High is about as close as you can get to travelling to a frenzied market in Italy or a laid-back beach bar in Mozambique without leaving the country.

Last month, the sensory pop-up completely transformed an old Royal Mail sorting office in Notting Hill into a Pan Am-style restaurant that harked back to an altogether more stylish era of travel. The destination: Gothenburg. There was reindeer, elk and lingonberries on the menu, served by an entertaining cabin crew – helped along by the martinis and negronis shaken at the bar – and a DJ.

In May, diners can ‘fly’ to Beirut. The restaurant, at a secret location on Regent Street, will be kitted out in the style of a café in 1950s Lebanon, with a feast prepared by former Moro chef Oliver Templeton.

At check-in, passengers are issued with passports and boarding passes, and ushered into the departure lounge for pre-departure cocktails. A charismatic captain and red-lipped hostesses work the room interactive-theatre-style until the gate is announced.

New-season asparagus is paired with labneh (a thick yoghurt) and sour cherries. Squid comes with salsify (a root vegetable that tastes a bit like oysters) and braised celery. The main event is, of course, roasted lamb – the celebratory meat of choice across much of the Middle East – alongside a delicate tomato and almond salad. To finish, an updated British classic of rose and pomegranate jelly with custard lightly flavoured with cardamom.

The pop-up flies monthly, landing somewhere in London (via Sicily) from 12–22 June 2013.

‘Destination Beirut’ runs 1-4 May and 8-11 May 2013, and tickets costs £65 for four courses; for more information and to book contact Dine Mile High (www.dinemilehigh.com)

MILE HIGH LANDS IN LONDON – Destination Göteborg

An innovative new series of immersive events will launch this year combining food from one of London’s most exciting young chefs with music, cocktails and a little creative interaction.  Popping up in West London four times in 2013, Mile High will transport adventure-seeking guests to a fantasy ‘city break’.

Mile High is inspired by the golden age of 1950s air travel, when legroom meant doing the twist and turbulence was a byproduct of the steward’s cocktail shaker. On arrival, air hostesses in Pan-Am inspired attire will welcome guests to the departure lounge, home of Mile High’s airborne DJ division. Diners can enjoy ‘check in’ Campari cocktails and gourmet bar snacks served with pencil moustaches and a smile before embarking on Mile High’s first foodie destination: Gothenburg, Sweden.  Access to the departure lounge bar will be available from 9pm for non-diners to enjoy cocktails and tunes spun by one of Mile High’s talented guest Djs.

With the underground pop-up movement already established in East London, Mile High will bring an extraordinary culinary and creative experience to a secret location West London, unlike anything else the area has seen before.  Talented ex-Moro chef Oliver Templeton will serve up a Scandinavian four-course feast fit for a Norse king. Departure lounge Smorgasbord snacks will include: Fresh Roe, Dark Rye Sourdough served with Smoked Reindeer and Pickles

Guests will then enter an intimate space taking inspiration from the best of Swedish design and sample Pan-fried Scallops with Puréed Potato, Charred Spring Onions and Crispy Garlic, followed by Crayfish, Brown Shrimp, Smoked Bacon, Soured Cream, Dark Rye and Tarragon, then Chargrilled Elk with Golden Beetroot, Mushrooms, Dill and Cucumber Salad and rounded off with Lingonberry Ice Cream with Carrot Cake Crumble and Licorice Meringue (a vegetarian menu is available on request). Whilst dining guests will enjoy the performance of Mile High’s unique cabin crew, ensuring a true evening of escapism and style.

Mile High have even partnered with West Sweden Tourist Board and Sunvil Discovery to offer guests to their first event the chance to win a tailor made, three day, foodie trip for two to Gothenburg- so one lucky table really will be needing their passports.

Mile High will host four destinations throughout the year, which so far include: Beirut in May, Sicily in June and Mozambique in September, see below for full dates and more details.

Mile High is brought to London by four cousins from the creative Templeton family: Anna, Ollie, Will and Ed who share a wealth of experience from the event, theatre, culinary, cocktail, music and advertising worlds.  

 

Destination Göteborg

13th-16th March and 20th-23rd March

Return Ticket £65

Departure Lounge ticket £15

Secret West London Location

 

Destination Beirut

1st-4th May and 8th-11th May

 

Destination Sicily

12th-15th June and 19th-22nd June

 

Destination Mozambique

18th-21st September and 25th-28th September

 

Ticket Prices

Destination Dinner ticket – £65 (Wed to Sat) – Included in the price are two classic cocktails, departure lounge snacks, a four-course meal prepared by ex-Moro chef Oliver Templeton and his team, wine with supper and music from Mile High’s airborne DJ division. You may also be lucky enough to have a drink with the captain.

Weekend Departure Lounge ticket (Fri and Sat) – £15 – Late lunch? Our departure lounge ticket gets you a lovingly-made cocktail and an evening of music courtesy of Mile High’s airborne DJ division. The lounge opens at 9pm and closes when the captain says ‘doors to manual’.

Mid-Week Departure Lounge ticket (Wed and Thurs) – no charge – Rough week? Book a table for you and your friends (min. 4 people) at our stylish departure lounge bar. The lounge opens for cocktails at 9pm and closes when you suddenly remember that breakfast meeting the next morning.

 

 

Hollywood Hepatitis – thank Puck

 

Hollywood royalty like Drew Barrymore, Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant may all have Hepatitis A picked up at a post-premiere party. The trio were attending a US post-premiere party for ‘Music and Lyrics’ on February 7 which was catered by Wolfgang Puck’s company. It emerged later that one of the cooks had Hepatitis A.