Flavour London Issue 9

for people who love local food

London | Issue 9

WIN!

THE BEST OF BRITISH A hearty tribute to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

A luxurious stay at The Grove

Taste of London

Celebrating world-class cuisine at Regent’s Park

From the Ocean to the Capital Mitch Tonks and Jack Stein bring us the best from the sea Follow us on Twitter @flavourlondon

Dare to Desire?

Opulence to the extreme at our delectable destinations

www.flavourmagazine.com

2_FL_Ad_Scanpan_IFC:Layout 1 24/11/2011 14:02 Page 2

Editor Nick Gregory Email: nick@flavourmagazine.com Art Director Bruce Mytton Email: design@flavourmagazine.com

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Advertising Jemima Greenacre, Director of Sales Email: jemima@flavourmagazine.com Miranda Coller, Account Manager Email: miranda@flavourmagazine.com Photography Dianna Chaccour

welcome

Contributors Cheryl Cohen, Nick Harman, Duncan Shine, Jack Stein, Zeren Wilson, Mark Andrew, Peter Lawrence, Sriram Aylur, Emily Conradi, Megan Owen, Shu Han, Ben Norum, Mitch Tonks Flavour Magazine 151-153 Wick Road, Brislington, Bristol, BS4 4HH Tel: 0117 977 9188 | Visit: www.flavourmagazine.com

Welcome to the latest edition of flavour

For general enquiries Peter Francomb Email: peter@flavourmagazine.com

and a bumper British bonanza of recipes, great places to eat, drink and

For competition entries Email: competitions@flavourmagazine.com

sleep as well as some fantastic produce

© Copyright 2012 flavourmagazine.com All rights reserved. Material may not be reproduced without permission of flavour. While we take care to ensure that reports, reviews and features are accurate, flavourmagazine.com accepts no liability for reader dissatisfaction arising from the content of this publication. The opinions expressed or advice given are the views of the individual authors, and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of flavourmagazine.com

For more information, please contact Peter Francomb Tel: 0117 977 9188 Email: peter@flavourmagazine.com Visit: www.flavourmagazine.com Competition Terms & Conditions In addition to any specifically stated terms and conditions, the following applies to all competitions.

All information forms part of the rules. All entrants are deemed to have accepted the rules and agree to be bound by them. The winner will be the first entry drawn at random from all the entries sent back after the closing date and will be notified by either post, email or telephone. The prizes are as stated; they are non-transferable and no cash alternative will be offered. All entrants must be at least 18 years old. Competitions are open to UK residents only. One entry per person. Proof of postage is not proof of entry. flavour accepts no responsibility for entries lost or damaged in the post. Entrants agree to take part in any publicity material relating to the competition. The name of the winner will be published in the next edition. The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

Prizes do not include unspecified extras (such as travel). All prizes are subject to availability.

Please state if you do not wish to receive any further correspondence from flavour or competition organisers. You may be required to collect your prize.

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appropriate that we give our head of state the column inches she has earned over the last 60 years. We have a terrific

Inside...

‘Best of British’ feature for just this eventuality on page 17, and as seen on our front cover British Fine Foods have got it bang on with a scotch egg, a pork

04 WIN!

A luxurious overnight stay for two at The Grove, Narberth 10 In Season

Cheryl Cohen and Matthew Driver cook-up the best of the season’s produce 17 The Best of British

Celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee with our choice selections 37 Desire

The finest that money can buy 51 Taste of London

Celebrating world-class cuisine at Regent’s Park 71 From the Ocean to the Capital

Mitch Tonks and Jack Stein bring us the best from the sea

Please recycle this product.

beginning of June and so it’s royally

pie and some picalilli...

You will find most of our team at Taste of London this year and we feature a few of those showcasing their fare on

page 51, as well as a decadent Desire feature on page 37, where we hope to give you some ideas if you’re looking to escape the city for a few days. This is all more prudent as, while I write, the sun is truly making its presence felt.

As always, we would be very interested in hearing about any foodie news that’s going on in the next few weeks, especially as we build up towards the Olympics.

Well done!

Nick Nick Gregory

Front cover image courtesy of BritishFineFoods.com

flavour magazine provides effective communication through design. We specialise in brochures, corporate identity, advertising, direct mail, marketing and design for print.

We have a reputation for clear, creative solutions to communication problems for a number of corporate, sports, financial, charity and leisure industry clients.

We maintain the highest of standards, throughout each individual project and our client relationship.

We pride ourselves on delivering distinctive designs and ideas that will get you noticed.

We all know what’s going on at the

If you have any news or events that you would like to share with us here at flavour then email enquiries@flavourmagazine.com

this month What a Gem! Add flavour to your food, and a sparkle in your beloved’s eyes! It’s time to start scanning the supermarket shelves for the ultra-bling limited-edition TABASCO® Pepper Sauce, Diamond Jubilee pack. Decked out in red, white and blue, this special edition pack is not only a collector’s dream, it’s also offering every person in the UK the chance to win a one carat, brilliant round diamond, set by Royal Warrant holder William & Son of London. Open your bottle carefully, and if it has a special white insert under the cap you’re the lucky winner.

COMPETITION WINNERS

Only 600,000 of these special limited edition packs are being made. Sure to be a hit with Tabasco® Sauce fans, they will be on-shelf during May and June 2012, throughout the Jubilee celebrations. What’s more, the sparkling prize is worth a fantastic £15,000!

So, rush down to your local supermarket or convenience store, grab a box... and find that diamond!

WIN! A luxurious overnight stay at The Grove, Narberth – The perfect retreat!

The Grove offers a truly intimate and sumptuous dining experience with warming log fires throughout the house. The winner can look forward to great food, fine wines and flickering candles at The Grove.

Congratulations go to James Davies, who wins a weekend break for two at Kesgrave Hall.

Melanie Wilson, who wins an overnight stay for two at The Swan at Streatley.

Andrew Rodwell, who wins a limited-edition starter pack of KOPI Coffee.

Well Done!

WIN!

Nestling in the heart of the beautiful Pembrokeshire countryside, The Grove has established itself as one of Wales’s finest restaurants and a leading small luxury hotel with 12 intimate guest rooms and four traditional cottages.

Experience the warmest of welcomes and fantastic Pembrokeshire produce in the hands of a great chef, Champagne in your suite on arrival and a candlelit dinner for two in the award-winning restaurant!

All competition entries will be entitled to a 20% discount on room bookings at The Grove.

To enter, send an email to WIN@thegrove-narberth.co.uk quoting Flavour London Competition.

Call: 01834 860915 Visit: www.thegrove-narberth.co.uk Terms and Conditions: Rooms are offered subject to availability and must be used before 23 Dec 2012 (excluding school and public holidays). Entries will be accepted until the closing date of midnight on 30th June 2012. Only one entry per email address per competition will be accepted. All entrants will be added to The Grove and Flavour mailing lists unless we are instructed not to do that at the time of entry. The 20% discount offered to all competition entrants added to the Grove mailing lists cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer and only applies to the standard room rack rates.

Wine OF THE Gococo like the pros Madonna has made a career out of spotting the next big trend and now has identified the next big thing in a rather different arena.

Madonna is one of several A-listers to invest in Coconut Water. The coconut water trend is gaining fast momentum in the UK as its appeal lies in the health benefits.

Gococo, proud sponsors of Olympic sprinter James Ellington, provides fast, natural hydration in its 500ml bottles. Packed with potassium, it is the natural healthy drink.

Up your game, drink Gococo Coconut Water.

www.gococodrinks.com

MONTH Tim McLaughlin-Green, sommelier and wine consultant of Sommelier’s Choice, was shortlisted for the Harpers & Queen Sommelier of the Year award.

His philosophy is to search for and work with familyowned wineries, producing high-quality wines in small quantities, aiming for something really special.

For the month of June I have decided I will be selfindulgent and suggest my wine of the year so far.

WILD HONEY ORGANIC from New Zealand Organic, raw, unpasteurised manuka honey now in the UK

A very dear friend, Mitch Tonks, cooked spaghetti with seafood recently at an event. This dish was full of flavour, sweetness from the mussels, summer taste from ripe tomatoes and intensity from the sauce (see recipe below).

Well here is my wine, a great match for this great dish – a Viognier from Bolgheri, which is on the coast of Tuscany about one hour south of Pisa. The wine is called Giovin Re and is a 2009 from Michele Satta’s winery. Michele is a maverick, producing wines with grape varieties that are not typically found in this area, the desire to produce Viognier came from his love of wines from the Rhone Valley.

Giovin Re has the finesse of great white Burgundy, with the added touch of peach and apricot notes, the benchmark for a good Viognier. It is silky smooth in the mouth with an oiliness and spice in the mid palate; minerality is the surprise for the last note in the mouth.

Manuka honey is renowned for its natural antibacterial, antioxidant, healing and immune-boosting properties. To enjoy these health benefits to the full, it’s best to seek out a genuine, certified organic, raw, unpasteurised Manuka honey taken directly from the beekeeper’s own hives that have proven bioactive properties.

Every now and then you find wines that just tick every box and this is one of them, with only 6,000 bottles produced this is an extremely rare wine, it has also won best Italian white wine for the past three years, voted by the Italian Sommelier Association. If you can get your hands on some I highly recommend it.

www.wildhoney.co.nz

Available from The Wine Library and Sommelier’s Choice. Price £30-£35.

All wines available from:

www.sommelierschoice.com

D WOONRTHE STREET Tramshed Shoreditch, EC2A 3LX Tramshed sees Mark Hix go back to a neighbourhood he has a close connection with. The famous Tramshed building on Garden Walk and Rivington Street was designed by Vincent Harris and built in 1905 as an electricity generating facility for the Tramway System.

Having lived in Shoreditch for many years, Mark is keen to create something that will work in harmony with the local community.

020 7749 0478 Gaslight Grill Battersea Park Road, London SW11 This is a modern steakhouse set in neo Edwardian surroundings with all the grills matched with dipping sauces – such as venison with pineapple marmalade. There will also be a gin palace featuring a wide variety, including some locals, and a selection of real ales

Coco di Mama After a successful launch on Fleet Street, Italian restaurant Coco di Mama is already adding another venue. This time they’ll be opening on the corner of London Wall and Moorgate, but with the same style of Italian food at the original venue. The new venue will be open for breakfast (for breakfast ciabattas and more) and lunch.

SliderBar Burger van Lucky Chip is coming to Soho, taking up residence in the Player Bar. You can expect a slider-sized selection of juicy burgers along with a late license, cocktails and music.

Expect up to 12 various-sized burgers on the menu, burger matching, floats and more.

The Gate This vegetarian restaurant serving ‘Indo-Iraqi Jewish’ food is already popular in Hammersmith and is now coming to Islington, just around the corner from Sadler’s Wells Theatre.

Expect a menu that changes monthly with several signature dishes and plenty of organic wine.

WE’RE JAMMIN’ Pear and Elderflower Jam is the second in a new range of speciality jams from Kitchen Garden. Featuring the amazing ‘Catillac’ variety of cooking pears from Painswick Rococo Gardens and flavoured with delicate elderflower, this lovely jewel-like jam is gorgeous spread on scones with thick clotted cream, used as an ingredient in summer trifles or served simply with hot buttered toast.

For an exclusive promotion, simply go online, order £15 or more (plus p&p) and put the code FLAVR2 in the box marked ‘Notes to seller’ and Kitchen Garden will include a FREE 227g jar of Pear and Elderflower Jam.

www.kitchengardenpreserves.co.uk

Reader Offer

ROYAL TEA PARTY

London’s most extravagant FREE tea party

The Duke of York Square in the Royal Borough of Chelsea is hosting London’s most extravagant tea party in honour of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee on Sunday. Modelled on the infamous Buckingham Palace Garden Parties, the festivities run from 10am until 5pm.

The Duke of York Square invites the public to join in the royal celebrations with a FREE luxury tea party. High tea will be served to guests and classically British biscuits, cakes and sandwiches will be on offer, as well as Champagne for those who really fancy toasting the celebrations in true British spirit!

In keeping with the royal activities, all guests are invited to dress for the occasion of receiving ‘tea with the Queen’ – there is a grand prize for the best outfit!

T: 0207 351 2888 E: cadogan@halpern.co.uk

WIN! The Royal Warrant Picnic Hamper –A picnic fit for the Queen from British Fine Foods

WIN!

COCKTAIL OF THE

MONTH

Over 1000 award-winning British products, Gifts & Hampers All produce included in this hamper holds the Royal Warrant, is of exceptional quality and sourced from all over the British Isles, making this a true taste of Britain! (Serves 4-6) To win simply send your details including your address, email and telephone number to competitions@flavourmagazine.com quoting British Fine Foods Jubilee Competition.

Call: 01892 890690 www.britishfinefoods.com Terms & Conditions: Closing date for the competition is 30th June 2012. Standard delivery is 9am-5pm Tuesday-Saturday.

BRITISH PUBLIC SHUNS RECESSION IN FAVOUR OF A LAUGH As news headlines continue to be dominated by doom and gloom recession-related stories, it’s no surprise that the people of Britain are looking for some light entertainment.

choose a great sense of humour over dashing good looks as comic duo Ant ‘n’ Dec (8%) featured higher on the list than reality TV personality Mark Wright (6%) who came fourth.

A recent survey carried out by Kingsmill reveals that UK residents are itching to host a Big Lunch with top comedian Michael McIntyre providing the entertainment.

More than half of British children (53%) are keen to get together with their friends and neighbours and the survey results prove that certain celebrity guests wouldn’t go amiss for a happy lunch celebration.

Over a third of UK mums and dads prove that comedy prevails, as 35 per cent would choose a comedian to sit at their lunch table. Funnyman Michael McIntyre (15%) topped the list as the most popular lunch guest as Stephen Fry’s (12%) quick wit and dry sense of humour saw him steal second place in the poll. Mums prove that they would

National Top Five Fun Lunch Guests Children 1. Ben 10 2. Peppa Pig 3. Wayne Rooney 4. Rastamouse 5. The Simpsons

Parents 1. Michael McIntyre 2. Stephen Fry 3. Ant ‘n’ Dec 4. Mark Wright 5. Jamie Oliver

Bar Manager at The Capital, Cesar Da Silva, has been inspired by celebrated chef of the moment Athinagoras Kostakos, who took the helm at the Capital Restaurant recently to create a special Greekthemed cocktail.

The Capital Breakfast Martini Cesar this month is inspired by Spring and the first crops of Rhubarb.

Ingredients 50ml – Snow Queen Vodka 30ml Rhubarb puree – if you have time prepare yourself by poaching fresh stems 1 tea spoon Marmalade – ideally Seville Oranges sweetened with natural honey and not sugar Splash of Pomegranate juice

Method Chill the martini glass. Combine all the ingredients along with ice into a cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously for a few seconds and then finally strain into the martini glass.

Finally garnish with an orange twist.

Enjoy!

r Readeffer: tO Ticke r £35 5) 2 foFLAVOUR3 e (Quotalid Thur & s V ssion Fri se

— Celebrating world class cuisine —

21-24 JUNE 2012 - REGENT’S PARK Discover London’s diverse cuisine at the world’s greatest pop-up restaurant festival.

Savour the best in international flavours from 40 of London’s hottest restaurants, see world class chefs live on stage and explore fine food and wine from top producers.

Celebrate summer in the city with Taste of London, the gourmet event of the season.

Restaurant line up: Asia de Cuba ● Aurelia ● Barbecoa ● Bar Boulud ● Benares ● Bocca di Lupo ● Cinnamon Soho ● Club Gascon ● Coq d’Argent ● The Corner Room ● Gaucho ● Gauthier Soho ● Iberica ● Kensington Place ● L’Anima ● Launceston Place ● Le Gavroche ● Massimo Restaurant & Oyster Bar ● Maze ● Meursault at L’Etranger ● Opera Tavern ● Petrus ● Pollen Street Social ● Rhodes 24 ● The Savoy Grill ● Tamarind ● Theo Randall at the InterContinental Hotel ● Whitechapel Gallery Dining Room ● Yauatcha ● plus pop-up restaurants from Action Against Hunger & many more Taste of Thailand restaurants: Blue Elephant ● Busaba Eathai ● Ora ● Patara ● Suda

For tickets, visit tastefestivals.com/london or call 0871 230 7132 Calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras. Booking and transaction fees apply. Offer applies to standard tickets purchased in advance for Thursday and Friday sessions. Saving calculated on door price.

Like us

> flavour fab foodie reads

For bookworms who love nothing more than cooking up a feast for family and friends, our monthly selection of new releases is enough to keep anyone entertained!

fab foodie reads Pick of the Month!

Virgin to Veteran: How to Get Cooking with Confidence SAM STERN Quadrille, £20 Move over Jamie, here comes Sam Stern! A must-have new release from the country’s most prolific young culinary writer.

Guiding beginners in the kitchen down the path to gastronomic greatness for the past seven years, Sam Stern is no stranger to the world of eating well and telling us how we can do it too. Published while Sam was still studying for GCSEs and A-Levels, Cooking Up A Storm (2005), Real

Food Real Fast (2006), Get Cooking (2007), Sam Stern’s Student Cookbook (2008) and Eat Vegetarian (2010) all received critical acclaim, and now the 20-year-old prodigy returns with Virgin to Veteran; a contemporary cooking masterclass designed to get teens, 20and 30-somethings into the kitchen and cooking with confidence.

From mastering the basics to insider tips and techniques, this book will teach you everything you need to

become a confident cook. From fast food to slow, food to go or eat in, healthy to greedy, there’s something in the over 100 masterclass recipes featured to match every mood, budget and lifestyle.

WEBER’S BARBECUE ANYTIME JAMIE PURVIANCE

HASHI– A Japanese Cookery course REIKO HASHIMOTO

Barbecues are not just burgers and hot dogs. With Weber’s Barbeque Anytime you can create impressive, healthy dishes perfect for everyday dining to large social banqueting all-year round. Not only is the book full with over 190 inspirational recipes, it contains everything the avid barbecue enthusiast needs to know.

You will find expert answers to common questions about barbecuing, handy tips and advice on safety, upkeep, fuel and lighting methods, plus useful ingredient grilling indexes and a barbeque prep school.

Whether you’re completely new to Japanese cookery, or you already know your ramen from your mirin, Hashi contains a host of inspiring recipes for everything from simple home cooking, to dishes for entertaining. Reiko Hashimoto grew up in Kyoto and runs a widely-acclaimed cookery school from her home. With more than 12 years’ experience of teaching cooks of all abilities, Reiko has created recipes that are designed to build confidence, as well as to challenge. Her clear and precise style succeeds in demystifying a cuisine that can sometimes seem somewhat daunting, and she explains how to create delicious and authentic dishes without spending much at all.

Hamlyn, £15.99

Absolute Press, £20

EAT YOUR VEG ARTHUR POTTS DAWSON OCTOPUS, £25

Vegetables are elbowing their way back into the foreground: many people are consciously deciding to reduce their intake of meat. This could be through the successful Meat Free Monday campaign or just a desire to save money, reduce environmental impact on the planet or just to live a healthier life. This new book from chef Arthur Potts Dawson is all about putting vegetables at the centre of the plate and provides a little help to flip the way we look at and cook them. It isn’t a book about being a vegetarian and it isn’t a vegetarian cookbook. It’s a new way of life that celebrates vegetables and puts them forefront...

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> flavour in season

At their best

right

Yoghurt pudding and poached rhubarb Serves 4 Ingredients Pudding 2 large eggs 50g caster sugar 1 vanilla pod 235g thick, natural yoghurt Zest of 1 lemon and ½ orange, finely grated Juice of 1 lemon 15g plain flour Rhubarb 4–6 sticks rhubarb Coarse zest strips of ½ orange and 1 lemon 1 star anise 300ml water 1 seeded vanilla pod

Rhubarb The appearance of rhubarb at markets after long, cold winters is always a cheerful sight. These beautiful bright pink stalks remind us that spring possibly isn’t too far away. Rhubarb was first grown in the UK around 1760 for scientific purposes, with indoor rhubarb a recent 19th-century occurrence.

It has a long history of medical usage, dating as far back as 2700 BC in China where among other uses, it was utilised to ward off plague. In 1759 a Chinese emperor forbade the export of tea and rhubarb to the Russians after a border conflict in the northern part of China. Rhubarb is classified as a vegetable and it goes well with oily fish and fatty meats. Try pairing it with mackerel or pork belly. In the UK market, the first delicate pink-hued rhubarb is forced indoors. It’s followed later in the season by outdoor-grown strains.

Although it doesn’t have the same fragile flavour, it holds a well-deserved place in our crumbles and pies and works beautifully with this yoghurt-based dessert.

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100g granulated sugar 100g honey METHOD 1 Preheat oven to 180˚C. Place a large baking dish or tin with a little water in the oven.

2 Separate the eggs – be especially careful that none of the yolk gets left with the white (the other way round is not so crucial). Beat the egg yolks in a bowl with threequarters of the caster sugar until thick and pale. Split the vanilla pod and scrape the seeds into the yolk mixture (reserve the pod). Mix well with the yoghurt, lemon and orange zest, flour and lemon juice to taste.

3 Bring a full kettle to boil.

4 In another bowl add the remaining sugar with the egg whites and whisk to soft peaks. Gently fold the whites into the yoghurt and yolk mixture.

5P our this mixture into a smaller baking dish and place this into the larger dish. Pour boiling water into the larger dish until it comes halfway up the side of the smaller dish.

6P lace in the oven and bake for 30–40 minutes. Check occasionally that there is still sufficient water in the large dish.

7W hile the yoghurt pudding is baking, prepare the rhubarb. Put the water, zest, sugar, honey, star anise and leftover vanilla pod into a pan over a low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Bring to the boil then set aside for about 15 minutes to allow the flavours to infuse. Chop the rhubarb sticks into roughly 4 cm pieces.

8C heck the yoghurt pudding is ready: it should be light brown on top of a light sponge, and like a custard underneath.

9J ust before serving, remove the vanilla pod and pieces of zest, warm the syrup again to hot but not boiling and gently poach the rhubarb for about 2 minutes until tender but still holding its shape.

Remove immediately from the pan.

Serve on warm plates: rhubarb pieces just to one side with a light covering of the syrup and the yoghurt pudding next to and around the rhubarb.

> flavour in season

Every month our seasonal selections come from Cheryl Cohen, director of London Farmers’ Markets which runs 18 weekly markets throughout the city.

Matthew Driver, a contestant in MasterChef 2011, has worked in the London restaurant scene, as a private chef and now as flavour’s recipe developer...

now

For more information contact: www.lfm.org.uk www.twitter.com/londonfarmers

Smoked mackerel

Smoked mackerel with spring onion, fennel and watercress salad with mustard dressing and croutons Serves 2

If you usually buy smoked mackerel from the supermarket, do yourself and your taste buds a favour and instead buy direct from a fisherman and you won’t ever go back. Mackerel at farmers’ markets is caught by our fishermen from small day boats, often line caught and as fresh as you can get. Smoked, it’s often sold as a whole fish rather than fillets, succulent and flavoursome. Full of omega-3 fatty acids and tasty too. This salad is great for spring; the robust flavours of the mackerel stand up well to the zingy watercress and crunchy fennel.

Ingredients

Wild garlic Also known as Ramsons, you’ll find bunches of slim, green, wild garlic leaves on our farmers’ market stalls from Ted’s Veg to Brambletye Farm and naturally, The Garlic Farm. Alham Wood Dairy wraps them around their little Lambos buffalo milk cheese.

Pasta maker Giovanni Carleschi of Simply Italian is passionate about using local, seasonal ingredients in his products and uses wild garlic to make wild garlic pesto. If you spot wild garlic growing wild, usually in woodlands but also spotted in inner London parks and open spaces, you’ll not mistake it for anything else. Tear off a piece of leaf and the pungent aroma is an instant giveaway. Use it in sauces, soups and salads, add to mashed potatoes, make pesto with it, and stir into a risotto. Like other delicate leaves it will wilt immediately (think spinach) and leave behind a delicate breath of garlic.

1 medium smoked mackerel 2 medium spring onions ¼ fennel bulb 1 bunch watercress, washed and picked through 1 slice stale white bread, cut into approx 1 cm cubes 6 tbsp virgin rapeseed oil 1 tbsp cider vinegar 2 tsp English mustard ½ tsp runny honey Fine sea salt, sea salt flakes and ground black pepper METHOD 1 First make the dressing. Mix together the mustard, honey, cider vinegar and 4 tbsp of rapeseed oil in a clean jam jar or small bottle with a lid and shake vigorously to blend. Taste, season with fine sea salt and adjust ingredients as preferred.

2 Next the croutons: heat 2 tbsp of oil in a pan then fry the cubes of bread until golden all over. Remove from the pan and drain on kitchen paper.

3 Debone and remove the skin from the mackerel and break the flesh up into bite-sized pieces.

4 With a mandoline or sharp knife, very thinly slice the fennel and spring onions.

5 Mix together the fennel, watercress and some of the dressing and then arrange the salad. Place the watercress and fennel first on the plate, in a small pile, then lay on the pieces of mackerel, with sea salt flakes and black pepper, and finally the slices of spring onion over the top. Drizzle over more dressing and arrange the croutons roughly around the outside of the plate.

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asparagus... h is it r B e b o t d u o r p

Fun Asparagus Facts!

• An asparagus spear can grow 10 inches in a 24-hour period.

• There are less than four calories in each asparagus spear!

• Asparagus was first cultivated by the Ancient Greeks 2,500 years ago, and used as a medicine!

• The world’s leading exporter of asparagus is Peru.

• During the season we eat an average of 4.6 million spears each day as a nation.

• The ‘proper’ way to eat asparagus is with your fingers – even the Queen would eat it this way.

• The majority of British asparagus is harvested by hand.

• Asparagus grows from ‘crowns’ planted in the ground. It takes each crown three years to produce harvestable asparagus, but after that the same crown will keep producing asparagus for years.

An asparagus crown has an active life of around 15 years. However,

Dean Edwards’ Baked British Asparagus, Pancetta and Black Pudding Salad Baked British asparagus teamed up with the smoky flavours of pancetta and black pudding; add into the mix a perfect poached egg with a runny yolk, what more could you ask for?

Cooking time: 20 minutes Preparation time: 10 minutes Serves: 4

Ingredients 100g smoked pancetta 4 pieces black pudding, sliced 1-2cm thick 2 tbsp white wine vinegar 4 medium, organic, free-range eggs Mixed salad leaves 2 bundles British asparagus Oil for frying Salt and pepper for seasoning Dressing 1 tbsp sherry or balsamic vinegar 3 tbsp olive oil ½ tsp wholegrain mustard 1 tsp honey

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£23.8 m was spent on asparagus in 2011, proving that Brits love the spear-shaped vegetable. And as asparagus aficionados will testify, young British asparagus is among the tastiest and most nutritious in the world...

the oldest plant recorded reached a staggering 120 years!

•A sparagus needs harvesting every day because if you don’t cut the spears they turn to fern and become a plant!

•T here is no large scale exporting of British asparagus as the domestic demand is so high it often outweighs the supply.

• Asparagus is an aphrodisiac.

www.british-asparagus.co.uk

Method 1 I n a little oil fry the smoked pancetta until golden then remove from the pan and drain on some kitchen paper.

In the same oil fry the black pudding for 7-8 minutes turning once.

2P lace the asparagus on a tray, drizzle with olive oil and bake in an preheated oven to 200°C / 180°C fan for 6-8 minutes turning once.

Meanwhile, in a deep pan bring some water up to a rolling boil, add the white wine vinegar and crack in the eggs. Turn

off the heat and leave to cook for 6-7 minutes for a runny yolk, remove from the water and drain any excess water on some kitchen paper.

3 Whisk up the olive oil, vinegar, mustard and honey and season with a small pinch of salt and a grind of pepper.

4 Place a small handful of salad leaves on a plate along with the asparagus and the black pudding, top with the poached egg, scatter over the pancetta then drizzle over the dressing.

Valentine Warner’s British Asparagus Cigars This is a great little snack for parties, so simple, a winning little time saver.

Double or triple the recipe as they disappear quickly.

Cooking time: 20 minutes Preparation time: 15 minutes Serves: 16 sharing Ingredients 2 bundles of British asparagus

3 Drain and cool the asparagus in cold water then drain again, making sure it’s thoroughly dry with a tea towel.

4 sheets of readymade filo pastry

4 Cut the asparagus ²⁄³ of the way down, either discarding the lower stem or saving it for a soup, such as pea and Asparagus and sorrel.

50g butter melted 2 handfuls of finely grated Parmesan Salt Black pepper Method 1 Pre-heat the oven to 190°C 2 Cook the asparagus in well salted water, cooking it for only 1–2 minutes once it has come back to the boil.

5 Take one sheet of filo pastry and brush it lightly but thoroughly all over with butter. Cut each piece into four. Place each asparagus spear along the bottom of your filo piece and roll snugly but not over tightly.

6 Picking it up with your fingers brush the outside with butter again, then scatter the grated Parmesan thoroughly over the top of each cigar.

7 Lay them down on a tray lined with greaseproof paper with the outside edge of the filo facing down on the paper, this stops them unravelling when they cook.

8 Once done grind over with a heavy bombardment of black pepper. Place in the oven for 15-18 minutes until deep golden and crispy.

Dean Edwards’ British Asparagus Tortilla A twist on a classic Spanish dish, a really speedy dish ideal for a quick family dinner.

Cooking time: 15 minutes Preparation time: 10 minutes Serves: 4 Ingredients 1 bundle British asparagus 1 courgette, thinly sliced 15g unsalted butter 2 cloves garlic crushed 200g Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and diced 1 red onion, sliced 6 medium eggs, beaten and seasoned with salt and pepper

Method 1 Plunge the asparagus into boiling salted water, bring back to the boil then cook for 2-3 minutes, drain then plunge into ice water.

2 In a non-stick pan fry the sliced courgettes in the butter then add the garlic and cook over a medium heat for around 6-7 minutes until almost sticky.

3 Parboil the potatoes and cut into cubes, then add the potatoes and the onion to the

pan and cook until softened.

4 Place the asparagus into the pan then add the seasoned beaten eggs. When the eggs have just set around the edges, transfer to a pre heated oven set at 200°C for around 6-8 minutes.

5 When cooked turn out onto a plate.

6 Cut the tortilla into slices then serve with some dressed salad leaves.

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Galvin Demoiselle A chat with the Lady of the House

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alvin Restaurants and Harrods teamed up in March and opened Galvin Demoiselle restaurant in Harrods’ iconic Food Halls.

Galvin Demoiselle is the fifth London offering from Galvin Restaurants, the family-run collection of French restaurants founded in 2005 by Michelin-starred chef brothers Chris and Jeff Galvin. Sara Galvin, wife of Chris, is Patron, having spearheaded the concept and design for the new bistro-style restaurant.

True to the tradition of Galvin Restaurants, Demoiselle offers high-quality French cuisine combined with the Galvin’s family hospitality and exceptional service.

In a unique, elevated location, overlooking the bustle of the Food Halls, the restaurant serves up 14

to 55 covers and is designed to complement the famed interiors of the Hall in hues of sage and rust.

Crafted by the Galvin brothers, the menu focuses on premium, seasonal ingredients and combines Chris and Jeff’s signature dishes such as confit pork cheeks and tarte tatin, with exclusive creations for Demoiselle including a delectable baked lobster fishcake served with warm vinaigrette of fresh ginger and chives.

Ideal for shoppers looking for light dishes and refreshments, the restaurant also offers a Soups & Potages of the Day menu with highlights including wild mushroom veloute and potage of mussels and curry spices, along with a selection of patisserie and a Demoiselle Afternoon Tea.

Flavour caught up with Sara Galvin to check on Galvin Demoiselle’s early progress.

How have the first few weeks at Galvin Demoiselle gone?

As openings go, rather smoothly. We have been blessed with inheriting a very experienced front of house team who have all worked for Harrods for many years and have embraced the ethos of Galvin Restaurants. Plus Chris and Jeff’s expertise in the kitchen.

Having taken the project through from start to finish, what have you brought of yourself to the party?

Without wishing to sound too dramatic, I have put all of me into this project! I felt that I best represented the person who would be dining in Demoiselle and created a restaurant that I would myself love to visit.

Do you have to almost go ‘fast food’ or are the customers still expecting a dining ‘experience’?

How did you come about the name Demoiselle?

For the name and design of the restaurant we took our cue from the Grade II listed food hall that Demoiselle is situated in. This is a very striking room that reminded us of a grand garden or orangery. We wanted a name that was feminine and the word demoiselle in French translates as dragonfly or nymph, so we felt it perfectly encapsulated the space and concept.

What attracted Galvin to Harrods and how does that complement your own brand?

We have always looked to put restaurants into areas that excite us and where we feel that the addition of a Galvin restaurant would be an enhancement. The food halls at Harrods are iconic and it is a privilege to be aligned with such a world-renowned brand. We both have a reputation for luxury and so it perfectly complements what we do.

Will you be sticking to the same menu formula?

Has it been a challenge to focus on solely a lunchtime menu for the shopper?

The menu will change every few months. The focus was more on what the diner would want and we felt that this would be a selection of lighter dishes, but these can all be taken anytime of day from 11am when we open to closing at 8pm.

I don’t think we could ever do ‘fast food’, however there are no hard and fast rules with the menu and the opportunity is there for the guest to have one dish such as the soup du jour, with perhaps a glass of Champagne! Or an endive, Roquefort and walnut salad starter followed by a cocotte of slow-cooked Cornish lamb with apricots, almonds and cous-cous. It’s entirely up to the guest to choose what dining experience they wish to have with us.

Will Chris and Jeff be in the kitchen? Who is heading it up otherwise?

Chris and Jeff along with myself have devised the menu.

We have entrusted the day-to-day kitchen operation to a very good chef who has worked with us for several years. We are also working very closely with the Harrods’ chefs who, like the front of house team, have embraced our vision for this restaurant.

Is the competition furious?

We are a competitive bunch. It’s always furious! But our desire is always to please the guest.

And finally, what next?

A restaurant in Edinburgh is looking very likely. Watch this space…

Galvin Demoiselle | Ground Floor | Fruit, Vegetable and Pantry Food Hall Harrods | 87-135 Brompton Road | Knightsbridge | London | SW1X 7XL Telephone 020 7730 1234 | Visit www.galvinrestaurants.com 15

A food writer and wine consultant, Zeren Wilson will leave no stone unturned in his quest to find the hidden gems of London’s food scene and bring it to you on a plate. Check out Zeren’s restaurant review site for a taste of what he has to offer: www.bittenandwritten.com

shop at the back for added “kool”. TexMex is finished. Long live Sex-Mex. www.labodeganegra.com

CEVICHE The Peruvian dining scene has started to hit London, and Martin Morales is the first one to touchdown with his little gaff in Soho. Raw fish, Peruvian lime, chilli, a grind of sea salt – and lots of Pisco Sours. After a raucous opening party we can confirm that Pisco is a supreme “fire starter” that gets a party hopping.

Nibble on some Yucas (fried cassava) at the bar, or go large with Arroz con Mariscos, a mixed seafood and rice dish with aji amarillo and rocoto chilli – a good booze buster. This Soho newcomer is another fun addition to the “crawl” in W1, sure to send your night spiralling into decadence. Twisted fire starter. www.cevicheuk.com

LA BODEGA NEGRA Serge Becker has brought his own particular brand of Mexicana to London from New York and is described variously as a maestro and a “cultural engineer”.

Most famous for his notorious Box Club which takes burlesque to new salacious heights in NYC and London, he now enters Soho with established UK restaurateur Will Ricker. Tacos in the sharply designed bar upstairs are worth a shot – seared steak or prawn pressed our buttons – or slow-roasted lamb with fiery salsa in the shadowy downstairs restaurant with entry through the sex

LOT 18 The clever chaps from Lot 18 have an ambitious credo: to revolutionise the way the British buy wine. Working with wine producers around the world, this members’-only site will offer limitedtime opportunities to buy handcrafted, rare wines in small quantities. After great success in the USA after just over a year, they’ve now brought the business model to the UK, with a big focus on selecting wines of true merit. “Only one in every 15 wines we taste go onto our list,” owner Philip James told us.

Opening offers included Francis Ford Coppola’s winery Inglenook Estate in Napa Valley, and Château Pontet Canet 1995. Having met the team at the UK launch, we can confirm they have some serious industry experience on board. www.uk.lot18.com

www.bittenandwritten.com Follow Zeren on Twitter: @bittenwritten

THE MODERN PANTRY Anna Hansen’s The Modern Pantry has launched a tempting season of wine tasting menus to go with her adventurous and globetrotting cooking. We attended the first in the series, a Riesling tasting menu with tempura-battered oysters, black fried squid and king oyster mushroom pot stickers, among other palate-wakening combinations, served alongside Rieslings spanning Germany, Alsace, New Zealand and Australia. Next up in the series will be ‘Natural Wine’, ‘Best of British’, ‘Bad Press grapes’ and ‘Wines from New Zealand’. Anna was recently awarded an MBE for her contribution to British cooking, having cooked alongside Fergus Henderson before opening her own place. www.themodernpantry.co.uk

CLOTILDE DAVENNE WINE Clotilde Davenne used to make Chablis for one of the top Domaines before striking out solo with her own 8.5ha estate. Alongside some top vineyard sites in 1er Cru Montmains and Grand Cru Les Clos, she also makes some delightful sparkling wine, a méthode champenoise Crémant de Bourgogne made with 2/3 Chardonnay and 1/3 Pinot Noir.

The purity and precision of the fruit is particularly thrilling as there is no liquer d’expedition at all. The addition of sugar after fermentation has finished in most Champagne-method sparkling wines, keeping this razor sharp and super lean. Zero flab, zero faff, it’s like a blast of mineral freshness from a mountain stream – a wake-up call for the senses. www.genesiswines.com

flavour–the best of british

Flavour presents

THE BEST OF british 17

flavour–the best of british

Celtic Marches

Stratta Why did Stratta raspberry vinegar win the ultimate Great Taste award for the Ambient Product of 2011? Simply put, the quality of each carefully sourced ingredient, the sheer quantity of fruit going into the process and the passion and care with which it is created.

Sweet fruit vinegars, flower vinegars, fruit balsamics, infused olive oils, preserved fruits... all produced with one aim – to be the best!

Abrahalls is a new cider from award-winning liqueur producer, Celtic Marches.The full flavour of the cider comes from a blend of bitter, sweet and sharp apples, left to fully ripen in the orchards.

Abrahalls is the perfect refreshment for a long summer evening, delicious on its own or mixed with a shot of their Number Nine liqueur for a fruity twist.

Visit the Celtic Marches online store – all postage and packaging is free.

Visit: www.celticmarches.com

HG Walter

Organic and free-range butchers HG Walter Butchers, in Barons Court, are as British as they come, offering the best quality meat as well as a selection of artisan cheeses, charcuterie and delicatessen products.

have been recognised for providing some of the finest British produce to both the professional and home kitchens – all supplied with friendly enthusiasm.

A family-run business and supplying some of the top London restaurants, HG Walter

Retail and wholesale delivery throughout London.

Nationwide delivery available.

Stratta 33 Vicarage Drive, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN20 8AP Call: 01323 732505 Visit: www.stratta.org

GOOD Home Foods Love GOOD OIL – Special edition bottle out now!

What’s not to love about this delicious and healthy hemp oil from Devon that comes in a stylish, limited edition bottle?

But GOOD OIL is not just a pretty addition to your vegan kitchen cupboard – with 26 times more Omega 3 and half the saturated fat of olive oil, hemp oil is the healthiest of culinary oils with all the essential amino acids. It’s great for your heart and joints, and because it’s rich in GLA, it’s great for your skin too!

Its light, nutty and nutritious taste makes it an ideal companion in salad dressings and you can fry with it too – it tastes delicious! Simply use it like an olive oil in everyday cooking.

(Available from Tesco,Waitrose Sainsbury’s, Ocado. RRP £5.99) HG Walter 51 Palliser Road, Barons Court, London W14 9EB Call: 0207 385 6466 Visit: www.hgwalter.com

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Call: 01271 858377 Visit: www.goodwebsite.co.uk

flavour–the best of british

British Fine Foods tHE VERY BEST ARTISAN PRODUCE DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

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warded ‘Best Food Mail Order Supplier 2010’ by Gourmet Britain, British Fine Foods provide great quality produce to your door in one convenient delivery.

Andrew and Pam Harper set up Britishfinefoods.com just over three-and-a-half years ago because of their passion for great quality British produce, and they find nothing more enjoyable than sharing wonderful food and wine with their friends and family at home.This passion has been replicated at British Fine Foods so that everyone is able to share their love of fine produce.

Unique range of British Gormet Gifts – perfect for Father’s Day on June 17th Their incredible Gourmet Pork Pies with the option of having ‘Pops’ or ‘Dad’ inscribed on them in pastry, are a particular touch that will warm the cockles!

‘Royal Warrant – if it’s good enough for the Queen it’s good enough for us!’

More than 1,000 of the finest British products are sourced for all occasions and there is no better time to showcase them than during this Jubilee summer.

The Jubilee Party Selections, Picnics and Hampers are a range of selections for different Jubilee gatherings, all of which include Royal Warrant Holder Produce.

The Jubilee Garden Party and The Jubilee Party Hamper also include bunting!

‘All food arrives in temperature-controlled boxes’ British Fine Foods work closely with the most talented artisan producers from across the British Isles who truly love what they do and this is represented in the food that they produce. And the team believe in paying a fair price to these producers we are lucky enough to have in this country, while also working very hard to keep the products delivered to your door at competitive prices. Explore the website for more information.

Call: 01892 890690 Email: info@britishfinefoods.com Visit: www.britishfinefoods.com

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flavour–the best of british

Munchy Seeds Pack the Perfect Picnic Snacks Munchy Seeds are the UK’s leading roasted seed snack supplier and produce a delicious range of quality roasted seed snacks to munch on, either in ‘handy’ snack pack sizes for ‘on-the-go’ or re-sealable tubs for sharing. Packed to the brim with guilt-free goodness, they are available in a variety of deliciously nutritious sweet, savoury, hot chilli and new Choccy Seeds chocolate flavours! Exceedingly tasty, mindful munching!

Munchy Seeds are packed full of essential vitamins and minerals, protein and fibre, feeding your body and brain whilst

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sustaining energy and concentration levels for longer.

Munchy Seeds snacks are free from gluten, cholesterol and artificial colours and flavourings and are suitable for vegetarians and coeliacs.

Visit: www.munchyseeds.co.uk Twitter: @munchyseeds Facebook: MunchySeeds

flavour–the best of british

Hampers TheWenlock Fox

Taste a Flavour of the Olympics People from all over the world will be indulging in all things British this summer and after the sporting events, food and drink will be at the top of many visitors’ lists.

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ritain has a wide range of culinary offerings and new to the table is the Wenlock Hamper from food group HEART of ENGLAND fine foods.The town of Much Wenlock in Shropshire is recognised as the inspiration for the modern Olympic Games, dating back to the local competitions founded by doctor William Penny Brookes in 1860.

Wenlock Hampers celebrate this heritage by offering a truly local food and drink experience with all products sourced from artisan producers within a 26.2 mile radius of Much Wenlock - a marathon’s distance!

All the food and drink items included in the hampers have been carefully selected to ensure that they are high-quality products that will give people a true flavour of Shropshire.

The hampers come in different sizes of traditional wicker hamper and limited edition Wenlock Olympics gift boxes with ambient and chilled options. Products include chutney, jam, infused rapeseed oil, meat, cheese, chocolate, nuts, liqueur, beer and wine – all made in Shropshire.

in this year of the Olympics. You can treat yourself, or friends and family, to a tasty memento of the Games while all the sporting action unfolds.

A Wenlock Hamper will provide a delicious and topical taste of Britain

Call: 01743 452818 Visit: www.heff.co.uk/shop

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flavour–the best of british

A Jubilant

Royal Feast

Although the weather of British summertime will, as always, be unpredictable and uncontrollable, the season this year promises to be one filled with plenty of cork popping, champagne pouring and community spirit as people enjoy and embrace the memorable and momentous occasions that our country is set to experience. London will fall into the limelight in July as it plays host to the 2012 Olympics, and what better way to get into the British spirit ready to showcase our country than with the Diamond Jubilee.

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o celebrate 60 years reigning as our Great British Queen, a number of events are scheduled to take place during the four day bank holiday weekend, which will run from Saturday 2nd to Tuesday 5th June. In particular, nationwide lunch celebrations will take place on Sunday 3rd June to coincide with the Big Jubilee Lunch (organised by the Big Lunch initiative), presenting the perfect opportunity to catch up with friendly faces and loved ones, whilst enjoying classic British food and drink.

To celebrate with neighbours in your local area, street parties present the perfect opportunity to enjoy the nation’s favourites on a miniature scale.Therefore why not feature prawn cocktail vol au vents, bite size pork pies, scotch eggs, and sausage rolls on your party menu, in addition to a Ploughman’s style feast of cooked meats, cheeses and delicious chutneys? For the dessert spread you could serve home-made mini apple pies, union jack themed cupcakes, and helpings of a traditional trifle – the design of which is versatile enough to be altered to accommodate different taste preferences.You could even go for the traditional party favourite of jelly, but jazz it up with different flavours and textures by adding tasty

fruits or a cheeky tipple. A taste-bud tingling Bellini jelly made using peach juice and something sparkly could be perfect for the adults, whilst a Wimbledon themed fresh strawberry jelly served with cream could accommodate the more innocent partygoer.

If you would prefer to celebrate the historic event on a smaller and more intimate scale with close friends and family, a traditional afternoon tea could be the perfect option, with a cosy selection of classic smoked salmon, cucumber, and egg sandwiches, deliciously warmed scones with jam and clotted cream, and a beautiful array of irresistible cakes, which should of course feature the much-loved Victoria Sponge.When creating your own treats however, do not be afraid to add personal touches to the original recipes, to make the delights as memorable and special as the occasion itself!

Most importantly, and whatever your plans, enjoy yourselves and have a jubilant weekend. Even if you only stretch as far as a tasty English Muffin, toasted Crumpet or full English for breakfast, a coronation chicken sandwich for lunch, and fish and chips for dinner, embrace the Jubilee spirit and feel proud to British.

For information about events being held to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee, visit www.thediamondjubilee.org or www.thebiglunch.com

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flavour–the best of british

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The Great British

Strawberry

Sweet, juicy and plump, British strawberries are undeniably the taste of a good summer. Sweet Eve is a new variety of British strawberry. Packed with sweetness and flavour it’s in season from June until October and it tastes like strawberries used to taste!

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good strawberry is like a burst of summer sun – whether you’re picking your own straight from the field, eating strawberry pavlova for afternoon tea, or enjoying punnet after punnet at Wimbledon, strawberries are the taste of sunshine. To make the most of their natural sweetness and intense flavour enjoy them at room temperature.

Sweet Eve is a truly British strawberry, both bred and grown in this country. Unlike other varieties which are imported from abroad but grown here in the UK, Sweet Eve has been developed specifically for our Great British climate. It thrives in the special weather conditions of this country, meaning it is sweeter and more flavourful when ripe.

• Strawberries contain more vitamin C than the equivalent weight of fresh oranges, and like most fruit and veg, they are low in calories, high in fibre and can help to boost our intake of antioxidants • Just seven strawberries (80g) provides your recommended daily amount of vitamin C

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Around 15 million punnets of the berries will be grown and eaten between June and October this year alone.

Eating strawberries dates back to Henry VIII’s royal court, and we Brits have always been fond of the sweet, aromatic fruit which signals the start of the summer. With such a historic and long-established connection with strawberries, it’s hardly surprising that so many of us have fallen into the trap of using the same staple recipes to showcase our English strawberries. Try something different from our collection of simple serving suggestions to truly make the most of that taste of summer.

• Strawberries are an excellent source of vitamin K and manganese, as well as folic acid, potassium, riboflavin, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, copper, magnesium, and omega-3 fatty acids • Strawberries contain significant levels of phytonutrients and antioxidants which help to fight free radicals (which can

damage cells and are thought to contribute to the formation of many kinds of cancer). These antioxidant properties are believed to be linked to what makes the strawberry bright red • Strawberries were historically used medicinally to help with digestive ailments, discoloured teeth and skin irritations

Sweet Eve Strawberry Tapas This is such a simple and easy way of serving fresh, ripe seasonal strawberries at the end of a relaxed supper party. Everyone can get stuck into their preferred flavour combinations, and can taste each accompaniment. Ricotta is an Italian whey cheese and can be found in most supermarkets.

Let the sweet and fragrant taste of Sweet Eve strawberries speak for itself, or enhance it by dipping in this wonderful array of spices and flavours.

Serves 4 / Preparation time: 15 minutes Ingredients

Method

500g fresh Sweet Eve strawberries

Hull and clean the strawberries, removing the green stem with a teaspoon. Now slice the strawberries in half, and place them in a serving bowl on a tray. Prepare 5 more small bowls, all to be served on the same tray.

100g Schwartz black peppercorns 100g red peppercorns 250g GalbaniŽ Ricotta cheese ½ teaspoon of Schwartz ground cinnamon 100ml of aged traditional, balsamic vinegar from Modena Zest of 1 unwaxed lemon 100g unrefined soft brown cane sugar

Using a pestle and mortar, lightly crush the black peppercorns, and then place them in a small bowl, on the same tray as the strawberries.

Lightly crush the red peppercorns, as above, and place them in a separate bowl, again on the tray. Mix the ricotta in another bowl with the ground cinnamon.

Pour the balsamic vinegar in a small bowl.

Place the lemon zest in another bowl, and mix in the sugar.

Serve the prepared tray to your guests, and they can dip each strawberry into the flavours alternatively.

Sweet Eve Strawberry Hawaii Slush This is a delicious, healthy drink that you can make with children for afternoon tea in the summer or as a pudding after their meal. If you make the recipe using freshly squeezed orange juice it will taste so much better than carton juice. Serve the slush in a tall glass with an umbrella and straw for an instant party feeling.

Serves 4 / Preparation time: 15 minutes / Freezing time: 2 hours Ingredients

Method

250g Sweet Eve strawberries

Firstly prepare the fruit. Hull the strawberries and slice them in half. Peel the bananas and chop into chunks. Peel the mango and cut the flesh into cubes.

Slice the peaches into quarters. De-seed the watermelon and chop into chunks.

2 ripe bananas 2 ripe mangos 2 ripe peaches Âź watermelon 250ml of fresh orange juice 2 tbsp of honey 2 tbsp lemon juice

Place all the fruit on a plastic tray or baking tray that is covered with greaseproof paper and put in the freezer for two hours, until the fruit is solid.

Place the frozen fruit in a liquidiser or blender. Add the orange and lemon juice and honey and whizz until smooth.

Pour the Sweet Eve Strawberry Hawaii Slush into tall glasses and serve.

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HG Walter Organic and free-range butchers

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family business, started by Peter Heanen 40 years ago and now run by sons Daniel and Adam and daughter Clare, HG Walter’s shop in Barons Court is a foodie’s heaven – not only does it offer best quality meat, but also a wide range of artisan cheeses, charcuterie and delicatessen products.

Their reputation has been built solely on quality, achieved by working with the best of Great Britian’s’ farmers and producers.

The beef is pure-bred Aberdeen Angus, hand-selected to meet HG Walter’s exacting standards, and traditionally reared on open pastures in Ayrshire, Scotland. It has the natural marbling and firm fat covering that’s essential for succulent and tasty meat. They also age prime cuts of beef on the bone for at least 28 days in specially designed cool rooms. Hanging beef

in this way is something most sellers have sacrificed in the cause of lower costs, but it dramatically improves the taste and texture of the meat – the difference is simply stunning.

As lamb is a seasonal product, HG Walter uses various breeds from different regions throughout the year, from a Cotswolds Suffolk Cross during the spring, a Texel from Lanarkshire during the winter months and a superb Salt Marsh from Anglesey, North Wales.

There is always an offering of the best quality free-range pork whether it is from farmer Hugh Norris’s Black Duroc and Hampshire pigs, or Richard Vaughan’s rare breed Middlewhites.

They are very proud to supply some of London’s best restaurants, including The River Café, The Square and Petersham Nurseries, working with chefs who are as

passionate about food as they are and understand the importance not only of animal husbandry but the quality of how the meat is processed.

The chefs are at the top of their field because they strive for excellence, a trait conducive to HG Walter.

Testament to that quality has been their recent recognition: The Smithfield Awards National Product Evaluation 2011; Gold for the Beef and Guinness Pie, Bronze for the Chicken, Porcini Mushroom and Shallot Pie and Lamb Masaman Pie. They have also been voted Best Small Butcher Shop in Great Britain, and Best Butcher in London and the South East.

HG Walter are delighted to pass on their enthusiasm, providing ready advice on cuts, preparation and cooking. Visit the shop in Barons Court and see for yourselves why this is such a special butcher’s – you’re assured of a warm welcome.

HG Walter, 51 Palliser Road, Barons Court, London W14 9EB Call: 0207 385 6466 Visit: www.hgwalter.com

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> flavour cristini

Cristini

Angelo Grazioli is the restaurant manager of Cristini in Lancaster Gate, and he talked to Zeren Wilson about the workings of this exciting Italian eaterie...

How did you get involved in the restaurant business?

including the wines matched with the food, for the complete experience.

I grew up in my father’s restaurant and being Italian I was surrounded by people who loved food, and then I trained as a chef.

What are you most proud of at Cristini?

What constitutes a good meal for you?

Richness of flavour and simplicity of ingredients, and it’s about using flavour as an expression.

What are your early food memories?

I was raised by a German woman and she used to prepare a great dish she called ‘Mish Mash’. It was a very simple dish of potatoes, carrots, green peas and sausage stewed for a couple of hours.

Recent memorable food experiences?

I love caviar on freshly baked bread when I’m lucky enough to enjoy this! At a little restaurant called Giuseppe’s Place in London Bridge I was very impressed with a pasta dish with lobster and garlic sauce. It was just perfect.

What does having good service mean to you?

Cristini 28 Sussex Place Paddington London W2 2TH 0207 706 7900 www.cristini.co.uk

Making sure the customer is taken care of from beginning to end. It’s important also not to be noticed too much during the meal when you’re not needed, and understanding what the customer needs without them having to ask. It doesn’t take much to be kind and to treat customers as friends. I grew up in the business so this comes naturally to me. It depends also how you react to requests, and also to really mean it when you recommend something, it should be a personal thing, not forced. I particularly like it when a customer lets us choose their meal from beginning to end,

I’m proud of the fact that we let customers discover new flavours, and am happiest when I convince them to follow my recommendations. It’s the combination of wine and food that I think we do well, and is what I am most keen on.

Which other cuisines around the world excite you?

Japanese food is amazing and I have a passion for Japanese culture. It’s only recently that there has been any kind of Western influence there so it’s still very traditional in many ways.

Your website is very sophisticated, is this down to you?

Yes, I wanted the website to be a big statement and to almost over deliver. I realise the website maybe raises a different expectation to the look of the restaurant, but it’s a danger I’m willing to take. I’m interested in serving the food and then hoping that the simplicity and quality of the service comes across. The chef Paul Lonergan has been involved with Cristini for ten years and has fantastic experience.

Which are your favourite wine regions?

I tend to prefer Tuscany and further south and I particularly like the Super Tuscan wine Sassicaia.

Chat does the future hold for Cristini?

Cristini will be the starting point for something bigger so we’ll see what happens!

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The

Pizza Pilgrims

A religious experience

The Pizza Pilgrims are pizza’s Holy Grail.

Nick Harman catches up with them and their ‘bee’ in Berwick Street market

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p until the late 1980s, Berwick Street was a ‘proper’ market.

Fruit and veg stands lined both sides with produce sold by weight and not by the ‘scoop’. The market went downhill in the ’90s partly through apathy and a new rule that only allowed stalls on one side of the street.

Lately though there have been signs of resurgence; the traditional old veg stalls probably won’t be coming back in any number, but independent food outlets are creeping in. If people aren’t prepared to do their veg shopping in Berwick Street then, the reasoning goes, perhaps they’ll eat their lunch there?

The Pizza Pilgrims, aka Thom and James Elliott, certainly think so and they’re currently pushing out really rather lovely pizzas to hungry local workers.

“We came here because Soho is so much fun,” says James, as both spring sunshine and a bitter wind bear down on his flapping awning. “You meet the most amazing characters here. It’s a really cool street and everyone’s independent.”

And they came here by van, a little green Piaggio Ape (‘Bee’) three-wheeler of the type you see whizzing around the tiny lanes of ancient Italian towns. Little more than a moped with a cab, these things are as iconic as Vespas. The Pilgrims’ example is a bit different to the norm though, they have a pizza oven in theirs. So where did it come from?

“I found a guy who’d buy us a standard Ape in Italy and ship it back for us,” explains James, “but he wanted £1,200 just for the delivery alone. We thought, well for that money we could go and get it ourselves, and then the whole project snowballed a bit. We decided to do a trip that took in all the great foodie parts of Italy.’

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> flavour the pizza pilgrims

The Ape only went 34mph top speed and they discovered it wasn’t allowed on motorways. So they flew out to Calabria and drove it slowly up the west coast minor roads on a food pilgrimage – hence their name – through the Amalfi coast, Solerno, Naples and Rome. Six weeks on the road and the Ape didn’t let them down once. Try that with your Ford Tippex.

The stone oven was fitted here in UK, its enormous weight reducing the top speed still further, and was made by ‘Matt from Essex’ who James says has “the perfect combination of an engineering degree and experience running a restaurant. We debated if should we use wood to fuel it and I went back to Naples to check.

I learnt that it just has to be a naked flame, electric kills a pizza. As long as you have a big flame, one that will scorch the pizza, then gas is okay.”

Their mobile oven runs at about 450 degrees, and as James says, at that heat the dough cooks so quickly it doesn’t have time to go crispy and you get the elasticity that pizzas should be all about.

Their dough is set to rise in a friendly local pub’s kitchen overnight. As in Naples the Pilgrims use 00 flour and a combo of sour dough starter and fresh yeast, the sour dough being made up of remnants of the previous day’s dough. “We were told that the old dough is like a wise old man blended with the youth of the fresh yeast while the overnight long slow rise is very important for flavour. The heavy, fast yeast mix some people use means the dough is actually still fermenting even after you eat it, which makes you feel bloated and fat.”

Being in a market comes in handy for them. “We get all our fruit and veg from the guys here on the day, which is great as I’m terrible at ordering stuff in advance,” admits James. “The first week they were a bit offish, calling us apprentices and saying ‘oh you’ll never last’ etc. But free pizza seems to win hearts over and they really are genuinely great people and good to us.”

It’s all a perfect symbiosis of supplier and enterprise and it’s good to see the Pilgrims’ little Bee helping give Berwick Market its buzz back. The pizzas are different every day, but feature seasonal produce, great cheeses and they go down a storm.

I left the Pilgrims with their lunchtime queue growing fast, munching on an excellent calzone they’d given me. The Pilgrims sure seem to have got the right religion and what’s more it’s tasty too. 

The Pizza Pilgrims can be found most weekdays at Berwick Street Market, Soho from midday onwards but check their website www.pizzapilgrims.co.uk and twitter feed@pizzapilgrims before making a pilgrimage.

Images Al Stuart.

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> flavour simple simon design

simplesimondesign beerd

Simple Simon Design understand bars, restaurants, cafes and hotels – they spend most of their lives designing them.

A dedicated craft beer and pizza venue for a client more typically known as a traditional brewer. The refit had to be completed in less than three weeks and to a tight budget. Now, widely featured by the design media of many countries, this Bristol bar is fast becoming the uber-stylish craft beer venue, by which others are measured.

They know how and why they work and they have a wealth of experience in supervising installations and managing them on time and on budget. They pride themselves on tailoring their design solutions to suit their clients’ markets. The team at Simple Simon Design care deeply about good design and how that improves the customer’s experience but, above all, they care about their clients’ success.

“Simple Simon Design have really hit the nail on the head. It’s a pub, a good old-fashioned boozer, and it looks like one – but there’s that hint of eclectic canteen cool, beat-up Brooklyn diner chic that makes Beerd a real winner.”

WeHeart.co.uk design and trend blog site.

Whether your a fledgling business or a multiple operator Simple Simon Design is here to help!

Please get in touch we would love to hear from you.

Simple Simon Design Ltd 5.10 Paintworks Bath Road Bristol BS4 3EH 0117 972 5976 www.simplesimondesign.co.uk Twitter: @simplesimonhall and @simplesimonj 32

A subtle makeover from interior designers Simple Simon, who seem to have the knack of turning pigs’ ears into silk purses when it comes to restaurants.

Mark Taylor Fork Magazine and Bristol Evening Post

> flavour simple simon design

mint and mustard The restaurant team that had already received a Michelin Bib Gourmand and been runners-up in 2011’s Observer Food Monthly Restaurant of the Year, wanted an environment for their new restaurant that echoed the quality of their food. So Simple Simon Design modelled the new restaurant on traditional Keralan houses.

“The restaurant looks fantastic – we get a lot of compliments from our customers. It’s truly a unique space, that represents what we wanted to say about Kerala and the mint and mustard experience.”

Ajit Kandoran, owner and restaurateur.

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> flavour hackney

Hackney

by Ben Norum

Hackney’s not the first place that comes to mind when you think of gastronomy or dining out. But just as rapidly as the area is shaking off its impoverished reputation, so its foodie credentials are growing. Flavour seeks out London’s culinary cool...

34

ER’S INSID MET GOUR DE GUI

Broadway Market

Hackney Central

The beating heart of the borough’s foodie scene, Broadway Market (www.broadwaymarket.co.uk) has for many years been a gem in Hackney’s crown. On a Saturday the street is packed to bursting with a mix of stalls, punters and locals enjoying the café culture it’s created. Highlights include the Climpsons café (www.webcoffeeshop.co.uk), where they roast their own rich flavoured coffee; spicy Vietnamese sandwiches from Bánhmi11 (www.banhmi11.com), and the lovely Kim of The Rotisserie Co (@TheRotisserieCo) and her drool-worthy spit-roast chicken-mobile.

The latest addition is the appropriately named Market Café (www.market-cafe. co.uk), a new restaurant from the team behind the Benugo chain. Sitting quietly on the corner, it’s become a hub for the area’s trendies to sip on cocktails while they tuck into small and large plates of hearty yet delicately presented dishes. A plate of slow-cooked lamb served with unctuous wet polenta is a stand-out that exemplifies the café’s British meets Mediterranean leanings well.

A stone’s throw from Broadway Market is a contender to its throne. This traditional centre of Hackney is far from heaving with foodie goodness, but with the launch of Hackney Homemade Market (www.hackneyhomemade.com/food) in the grounds of St. John’s Church, this is starting to change. Visit from 11am every Saturday for produce including duck, hen and goose eggs from Mersham Shoot (@MershamShoot); cheese from the self-named ‘Dark Lords of Cholesterol’ Fratelli Formaggio and seasonal picks such as wild garlic and oyster mushrooms from Brambletye biodynamic farm. Hang around to eat too, with street food such as Japanese katsu curry from Alley Katsu (@AlleyKatsu), meltingly tender beef brisket ragu and contrastingly delicate cannoli from The Hungry Wolf (@HungryWolfLtd) and salt beef quesadillas from VadaszDeli (@VadaszMasaDeli). Not to mention a cupcake or three from Hackney Wick based producer Lush Mush (www.lushmush.com).

> flavour hackney

Muto lumiere

THE hungry wolf

lumiere

vadasz deli

fratelli

There’s no coffee to go with your cake at the market, but you can get your caffeine fix at Pacific Social (@PacificSocial) around the corner on Clarence Road. Grab a bite of avocado-topped toast sprinkled with dukkah and generously drenched in lemon juice while you’re at it if you’re still feeling peckish. Oh, and bring a record if you have one, there’s a-bring-your-own vinyl policy.

under the London Overground services.

Their wares are yet to come to fruition, but are due any day now. They’ll then join the likes of London Fields Brewery (www.londonfieldsbrewery.co.uk) and the East London Brewing Company (www.eastlondonbrewing.com) in marking Hackney’s unprecedented beer boom.

Kingsland If you’re more about the tea than the coffee, then you’ll want to head down Dalston Lane to the Kingsland Road area where Haggerston Tea Room (@HaggerstonTea) is nestled by the station which lends its name. Over 30 types of loose leaf tea are served by the pot, and the friendly banter is as limitless as the top-ups. Food offerings come from local producers including sweet treats from aforementioned cake maestro Lush Mush and toasted sandwiches using homemade chutneys.

Heading further north-east in the vicinity of Homerton and Clapton, Hackney becomes all the more undiscovered.

As is often the case, this is where things get really cool. Chatsworth Road (www.chatsworthroade5.co.uk) boasts a weekly Sunday market that changes with the seasons. Regular foodie highlights of yet another bustling Hackney market include Shoo Foo Doh, who cook Japanese okonomoyaki ‘pancakes’, and Kimchee Cult (www.streetfoodie.com) serving flavour-packed, mouth whacking Korean slider burgers.

Brewing, quite literally, around the corner is the brand new Hackney Brewery, based in a railway arch

Among a plethora of achingly cool pop-up shut-down venues scattered along the unassuming road you’ll find Cakey Muto

Chatsworth Road

(www.cakeymuto.com), which may just be the most outrageous cakeshop you’ll find. Think blood, gore and all things lewd plonked atop a cake and you’ll have an idea what it’s like. But you won’t believe it until you see it.

And how can Hackney top that? Well, with the one and only Lumiere, of course. The brilliantly crazy Russell Brand look-a-like runs his eponymous bar like an eccentric family home. Or, perhaps more like a nursing home but for mad young people.

He’ll wait on you, bring you drinks, shove every food under the sun into blenders to create wacky cocktails and share his naturally vibrant energy with you. Once you’ve entered, you may well not leave for hours but with regular live music, art exhibitions and more you’ll feel exhilarated when you do.

It’s because of places like this that Hackney should be grateful it’s still not at all like the West End. Let’s keep it like that...

35

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Ideas to satisfy a taste for the finer things in life...

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Splendour by the Seaside

Christchurch Harbour Hotel

Escape to the coast this summer, with a few days by the sea in Christchurch, Dorset. Just a stone’s throw from London, by train or car, wake up to incredible views over the harbour, take in the coastline with breathtaking beach strolls, relax at the hotel’s luxury Harbour Spa and taste summer on the South Coast, with a stay at the Christchurch Harbour Hotel & Spa. The hotel’s two AA Rosette Harbour Restaurant and its Terrace, with an outdoor grill, serves exceptional flavours from the landscape and waters of Dorset, with al fresco dining an absolute must. From mouthwatering moules marinière, to a bucket of crab claws or a sustainable fish grill, The Terrace is a fantastic place to enjoy a light lunch or simply watch the sunset across the water, with a drink in hand.

A few steps across the lawn, perched on the water’s edge, is the award-winning eco-built restaurant The Jetty. Recently awarded the South West’s Best Restaurant, The Jetty is headed up by Alex Aitken, one of the South’s most respected homegrown chefs. The food here is impeccable, from locally caught fish, crab and lobster to exploring farmers’ markets and foraging in the New Forest, Alex and his team have a very simple food philosophy – keep it fresh, seasonal and bursting with local flavour.

Tucked away on the South Coast, the Christchurch Harbour Hotel and its restaurants are in the perfect location, with something for everyone – couples can enjoy a weekend escape, combining coastal spa treatments with delicious

food overlooking the water, as families experience the great outdoors taking in the coastline with kayaking adventures.

If you have children then crabbing at Mudeford Quay is just a short stroll away from the hotel. From here you can hop on-board Mudeford Ferry over to Hengistbury Head, where you can enjoy a fantastic coastal walk around the base of the head and back via Mudeford Beach, with its sugar-almond beach huts and spectacular views of The Needles.

Explore the bustling market town centre, with its many independent shops, pubs and cafes and magnificent 11th-century Christchurch Priory. You can also visit Alex Aitken’s sister restaurant, at The Kings Arms, for a succulent Josper-grilled steak, or relax with a cocktail in the hotel’s bar.

Christchurch Harbour Hotel & Spa 95 Mudeford Christchurch Dorset BH23 3NT 01202 483434 www.christchurch-harbour-hotel.co.uk

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romantic escape

Montagu Arms Hotel Montagu Arms Hotel Palace Lane Beaulieu New Forest Hampshire SO42 7ZL

The Montagu Arms Hotel will exceed all expectations; the timeless elegance and delectable Michelin-star restaurant will make your stay anything but ordinary.

This beautiful 17th-century country house hotel can be found in the quaint village of Beaulieu nestled in the heart of the New Forest – the perfect romantic escape, with sumptuous bedrooms, effortless charm and exquisite service.

01590 612324 www.montaguarmshotel.co.uk

Michelin-starred chef Matthew Tomkinson offers innovative, intricately created dishes at the Terrace Restaurant using fresh organic and local ingredients – one of the finest restaurants in Hampshire.

For a warm pub atmosphere enjoy rustic country fare at the AA-rosette awarded Monty’s Inn, located just next door to the Montagu Arms.

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Perfect luxury retreat

The Grove Nestling in the heart of the beautiful Pembrokeshire countryside, the Grove offers the perfect retreat to relax and unwind in luxuriously intimate surroundings. In a short time the Grove has established itself as one of the country’s finest restaurants and leading small luxury hotels.

The focus of every stay at the Grove is of course the award-winning food. The menus pay homage to Pembrokeshire produce, and vegetables and herbs from their extensive kitchen gardens and local hedgerows. The kitchen is headed-up by the extremely talented Duncan Barham, whose distinctive style of food draws people from far and wide.

For those in need of a little retail therapy, the trendy market town of Narberth with its boutiques and cafes is on your doorstep. For the

more adventurous, walk the world-famous Pembrokeshire Coastal path or the stunning Preseli Hills.

The Grove Molleston, Narberth Dyfed SA67 8BX 01834 860915 www.thegrove-narberth.co.uk

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Country House Living

BOVEY CASTLE Bovey Castle is a five-star hotel set within its own private estate on Dartmoor National Park and is a throwback to the grandiose extravagance of the 1920s.

The charm and opulence of that time has been retained through striking period furnishings and decoration, creating an ambience of unpretentious splendour.

Using and giving back to local food producers is integral to Bovey Castle, with ingredients sourced from the moorland and coastline to create seasonally

changing menus in both The Edwardian Grill and Castle Bistro restaurants, led by head chef Marc Hardiman. The quintessentially English affair that is afternoon tea retains its ceremonial glamour through its evolving choice of delicacies, best enjoyed from the panoramic window seats in the Cathedral Room and Adam Room. Bovey Castle is living at its finest.

Bovey Castle North Bovey Dartmoor National Park Devon TQ13 8RE 01647 445000 www.boveycastle.com

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Escape to the Country

Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa

Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa is one of the UK’s finest country house hotels, located within a private estate of 500 acres and just six miles east of the beautiful city of Bath.

Relax in the elegant and luxurious rooms and suites; indulge in fine dining in the Michelinstarred restaurant The Park, or enjoy informal all-day dining in The Brasserie with its pretty garden terrace perfect for al fresco dining.

Unwind in the award-winning spa or explore the estate on horseback. Take a gentle jog along the woodland trail, play a spot of croquet on the lawn, or a set or two of tennis.

Lucknam Park is the ideal place to leave everyday life behind.

Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa Colerne Chippenham Wiltshire SN14 8AZ 01225 742777 www.lucknampark.co.uk

This summer, stay 4 nights for the price of 3. Room rates start from ÂŁ330 per room per night, inclusive of full English breakfast and VAT, based on two adults sharing.

Please call reservations on 01225 742777 or email reservations@lucknampark.co.uk for further details.

VETIVER

AT CHEWTON GLEN a new restaurant for a new era

Truly cosmopolitan and quintessentially English – Vetiver is an original.

A nexus of beautiful conservatories, intimate dining spaces and a stunning new wine room, Vetiver is as formal or relaxed as the mood takes you.

Although the menu is English at its core, the chefs combine carefully sourced ingredients with cosmopolitan flair to create seasonal menus to tempt and delight. Gone are some of the traditions that can stifle the enjoyment of a good meal and in their place is Vetiver, a restaurant perfectly balanced to take the dining experience at Chewton Glen forward to new heights.

Vetiver is far more than a stunning refurbished restaurant; this bold design is symbolic of the new menu concept that has been launched.

Every month Head Chef, Andrew Du Bourg and his brigade develop a new seasonally inspired menu. The new à la carte menu is eclectic with a diverse range of cosmopolitan dishes sitting alongside Chewton Glen favourites.

Fuelled by guests’ requests, there is much less formality and you can dine and enjoy one course and a glass of wine after a busy day, or make an evening of it, as you would have done in the past. There is far greater choice including main courses from the grill, an evening trolley special and a greater variety of vegetables and salad dishes.

At lunchtime the three-course £25 ‘Daily Set Lunch Menu’ complements the à la carte menu and on Sunday this is replaced by the Sunday Lunch Menu at £35. Although the menus are completely new, traditional signature dishes still

feature. As with everything at Chewton Glen, a service charge of 10 per cent has already been included in these prices so there are no surprises awaiting you at the end of your meal!

To go with the stunning new restaurant and menu, they have also made changes to the wine list. These include many favourites but there is also an expansion into many lesser-known countries and grape varieties that will perfectly match and complement the new Vetiver menu.

Vetiver at Chewton Glen New Forest Hampshire BH25 6QS 01425 275 341 www.chewtonglen.com

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Splendour by the Seaside

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Indulgence

The CaryArms “The Inn on the Beach” exudes charm, fun and values of a good English pub with all the style and comfort of a boutique hotel. The very best of gastropub food complemented by accommodation and activities rival the finest hotels in the country.

Daily changing menus reflect coast and country in equal measure, big windows show off views across Babbacombe Bay and beyond. In the winter a crackling

log fire, slowly cooked specials and the lure of a local pint makes The Cary Arms feel special and secluded. In the warmer months, dine outside and watch life in the bay unfold from the terraces.

The Cary Arms Babbacombe Beach South Devon TQ1 3LX 01803 327110 www.caryarms.co.uk

Charlton House Spa & Hotel Charlton House is an atmospheric country house hotel located on the outskirts of Shepton Mallet in Somerset, only 18 miles south of the city of Bath.

Guests to the house are given the warmest of welcomes and the most memorable of stays. The house is relaxing and tranquil with a richly designed theatrical interior, 28 individually designed bedrooms and a celebrated award-winning restaurant where local produce is used to deliver an exceptional dining experience.

Charlton House Spa & Hotel Shepton Mallet Nr Glastonbury Somerset BA4 4PR 01749 342008 www.bannatyne.co.uk/hotel/charltonhouse

The faithfully restored 18th-century-style Orangery is the ideal venue for special events, weddings, private parties and business meetings, with its delightful dual aspect on to the original walled garden and lawns.

The superb Moroccan-themed thermal spa includes a massaging Hydrotherapy Pool, an aroma-infused Laconium, a Crystal Steam Room, invigorating Finnish Sauna, Experience Showers and an Ice Fountain.

Brownsword Hotels

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Amberley Castle Romance

Dinner for two in the most magical location, set against the backdrop of a 900-yearold castle, Mistletoe Lodge is the ultimate location for a very special dinner for two. The tree house within the grounds of Amberley Castle offers private dining during the summer months. Enjoy the romance

of this unique experience before retiring to the castle.

Amberley Castle Near Arundel West Sussex BN18 9LT 01798 831992 info@amberleycastle.co.uk www.amberleycastle.co.uk

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The Bath Priory Very fine dining

The Bath Priory offers an exceptional gourmet experience. Under the direction of Michael Caines MBE, head chef Sam Moody delivers sensational seasonal menus, matched with an exemplary wine list, service that is discreet but attentive and a stunning sun terrace

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that is the perfect place for pre-dinner drinks.

The Bath Priory Weston Road Bath BA1 2XT 01225 331922 mail@thebathpriory.co.uk www.thebathpriory.co.uk

Lower Slaughter manor Country House Escape

The village of Lower Slaughter in the heart of the Cotswolds is the epitome of English village charm.

Lower Slaughter Manor Lower Slaughter Glous GL54 2HP

Stay in the luxurious surroundings of the Manor House or indulge in the comfort of the cosy village inn, Washbourne Court.

01451 820456 info@lowerslaughter.co.uk www.lowerslaughter.co.uk

Wherever you choose to stay you will enjoy great local food, clear Cotswold air and total relaxation.

Washbourne Court Lower Slaughter Glous GL54 2HS 01451 822143 info@washbournecourt.co.uk www.washbournecourt.co.uk

Andrew and Christina Brownsword have built up somewhat of an empire in luxury hotels, from country retreats like Gidleigh Park to city escapes such as The Bath Priory, marrying their passion for hospitality with their creative flair for delivering that perfect getaway.

Flavour caught up with CEO Nick Halliday to find out the ins and outs of producing the finest collection of hotels within the Brownsword umbrella‌

Brownsword Hotels

The Bath Priory

Gidleigh Park, Devon

www.brownswordhotels.co.uk How long have you been involved with Brownsword Hotels?

In 2004 I left Malmaison to head up ABode Hotels. I was attracted by the vision shared

by Andrew Brownsword and Michael Caines to create a collection of city hotels that embraced quality at every touch point.

What was behind the expansion?

The demise of von Essen brought some great properties on to the market, hotels that have a long history and loyal customer base and Andrew and Christina had visited and enjoyed.

Purchasing four new properties was the catalyst to bring the hotels together under the Brownsword umbrella.

Which is the flagship hotel for the group?

The Bath Priory was the first hotel purchased by Andrew and Christina in 1994. As a family it was a property they knew well and when it came on the market they saw an opportunity to return it to its former glory. They have placed their own style and design influences and embodied their own warm hospitality in the team. Gidleigh followed in the footsteps of the Priory and as home to Michael Caines, where he has held two Michelin stars since 1999, it is of course a very special part of the business overall.

Food ethics? How much leeway is there between hotels? Are they standard, formulaic menus? How do you promote seasonality in the menus?

Our philosophy across all the hotels is to offer the best local and seasonal produce. Michael’s ethos underpins the menus across the hotels but each head

chef will interpret with his own style and has autonomy within his own kitchen.

Is this purely business or is there a passion for hotels/food behind the acquisitions? Do you need to have that passion for the product?

Hospitality has to be a passion. To be successful it needs commitment, dedication and enthusiasm on every level and this will always deliver a winning formula. We are incredibly lucky to have owners that genuinely care about the business and engender this in their teams.

Looking for more urban or country ventures? Was that a prerequisite?

A London property would be great in the future and town or country will always be driven by Andrew’s instincts for what makes a really great hotel. This could be an industrial building or former country house, it is all about the potential.

being brought into play across the new properties. First and foremost, Michael’s priority is cooking and his delivery of two Michelin-star food at Gidleigh Park, the rest is an added bonus.

Is there an ethos/motto/mission statement that the group works to?

It is early days but quite simply Andrew and Christina have empowered their teams to deliver great hospitality, creating the right ambience and making sure every guest feels special.

Future plans?

This is stage one in a new era for Brownsword Hotels, we are getting the product ready, putting the right systems and people in place and then we will be shouting about it.

Any other business?

Watch this space!

With the economy what it is, what makes you stand out and be able to forge on?

These are challenging times and people do choose carefully how they spend their money. Delivering excellent customer service, great food and offering luxury at the right price point, giving guests the feeling that they have had a wonderful experience and value for money, that will keep us going.

How much has Michael Caines to do with Andrew Brownsword’s interest?

Is he the face of the group?

Michael is extremely influential, his passion and talent defines the food standards across the hotels and is

Andrew Brownsword with Two Michelin-starred Michael Caines 45

3

THE POWER OF Strapped for cash but dying to dine in style?

Nick Harman checks out three fine restaurants where the bargains are located at lunch.

Morgan M

Novikov The menu promises ‘cheery’ tomatoes, which is good because no one likes surly ones do they? The food’s fine but the spelling’s a bit suspect at this London outpost of Arkady Novikov’s empire.

His new place is two restaurants actually – Asian and Italian – both a world away from the cliché of ‘beezneesmen’ lounging thickly around the bar orbited by ladies of a professional mien.

Some say the foam bubble has burst, but Morgan Meunier is clearly having none of that. My fish dish boasts a bubble bath fit for Joan Collins on the side, but I’m not complaining because it tastes just great.

Moving south from his Islington outpost, the eponymous Morgan M has opened a second restaurant just a flying oxtail away from the Smithfield Meat Market. Now the cooking that delights the well-heeled residents of Islington can be experienced by people who work for a living. Better still, at lunchtime it can be eaten for just £21.50 for two courses, £25.50 for three.

The room is subtle; posh yes but not intimidatingly so. You can see at a glance that there’s good linen and fancy cutlery and that you’ll be expected to know how to use both, but those of us over 25 are okay with that.

My ceviche of monkfish, winter salad of artichoke soubise, broad beans, confit tomato and almond with a lime dressing is just plate-scrapingly brilliant. Approving noises suggest C is also loving his mushroom cannelloni, garlic purée and broth.

What is even more surprising is that lunch offers a £22 set menu option in the Asian half, a price that seems rather too good to be true given the elegant staff and plush surroundings. Here a display of fruit, vegetables and seafood gives a faux-rustic air, an oligarch’s market, rather than a farmer’s one.

We crunch crudités and are given more without asking. The lunch menu is simple, a range of starters and then your choice of salmon teriyaki, chilli garlic beef fillet or mixed Asian mushrooms. We sit back and admire the low lit, chic room.

The eponymous cheery tomatoes come in profusion, enough for four people, a mix of Italian and Asian flavours leveraging coriander, red onion and a smart dressing. White miso soup is a bit lacking in salt, but perfectly okay and the kappa maki are generous in number and we dunk them cheerfully in the soy.

Baby pakchoi kimchee are fridge cold, but crisply steamed and that kimchee delivers the right level of fieryness.

Okay you can get all this cheaper in Chinatown, but not in a room like this or with this level of presentation

Seared “Poisson du Jour” (cod in this case) with celeriac cream, beignet of crayfish and tarragon, lemon broth also makes the back of the net bulge. It’s perfect cooking; not too much on the plate but each part with distinct individual flavour. C meanwhile hunkers down over his slow-braised French rabbit, celeriac purée, “Pomme Croquette” and creamed cooking liquor and loves that too.

J’s salmon teriyaki looks terrific; the marinade a glossy black coat on a generous hunk of fish that’s been grilled just right. He likes it and I like my chilli garlic beef fillet. You don’t get much of it, but what you get is butter soft, nicely rare and with depth of flavour to balance the garlic and chilli.

Passion fruit soufflé and sorbet with crème anglaise is almost perfect, the soufflé is superb the crème anglaise a bit thin. Nothing serious. C goes for French farm cheeses which earns us a supplement of £7.50, but they are very good cheeses, I know because I stole a few from him.

Dessert is a green tea brûlée that is beautiful to look at and even nicer to eat, unctuously creamy and with a friable topping set against a knob of ice cream.

We bust the budget with our choice of wine by the glass, but otherwise Novikov lunch is a cost-effective way to sample the Mayfair life without owning your own utility company.

And this is a steal of a meal – a taste of MM’s superb haute cuisine at a silly low price

Novikov Restaurant & Bar 50 Berkeley Street, London W1J 8HA

Morgan M 50 Long Lane, London EC1A 9EJ

(Pictured left-hand page)

Racine Why doesn’t the French government give Henry the chef/patron of Racine the Legion d’Honneur? Okay he’s not actually French, but he’s doing more for classic French Bistro cooking in London than, sadly, many a native is doing in France these days.

You know it’s going to be good as soon as you walk in – it smells right and it looks right. A bistro tout naturel and not a poor pastiche. There are single diners, always a good sign, and people of all ages. No poseurs, no kids waving cameras around, just people who know good food when it lands on their plates.

And at these prix foux you’d want to eat lunch here every day. This isn’t just good value for Knightsbridge, it’s good value full stop; £17.75 for three courses? You could pay that for a plate of sandwiches around the corner and you wouldn’t enjoy them a tenth as much.

The cooking is simple, at least in ingredients, the skill comes in getting it right. Leek and potato soup is not rocket science but this is velvety smooth and the leek and spud are in perfect balance, it’s Wales meets Ireland in a friendly and everyone’s a winner. E had the wilted escarole, Bayonne ham and goat’s curd salad, it brought sunshine to the table.

Everyone loves a gratin and E loved hers made from smoked haddock and mussels.

Undyed smoked haddock is always a delicious piece of fish and when you add cheese you just make it better. Not sure about the mussels though, the gratin would get full marks all on its own. My Toulouse sausage confit, poached duck egg, lentils and mustard was brilliant.

The hint of the smoked bacon in the sausage and its cheerful plumpness all suggested it was a well sourced piece of pig, juicy and happy to be on the plate.

Add a snappy crème caramel ice cream, a nice spin on a classic, and some poached rhubarb and cream sponge pudding and you’ve got cheap lunch just the way everyone likes it. Light, flavoursome and cooked and served by people who care about food not fashion. Tres, tres bon.

Racine 239 Brompton Road, London SW3 2EP

Boxpark Take it away Boxpark. Nick Harman discovers tinned restaurants in Shoreditch that do what they say on the can

I

t’s an unseasonably warm morning and I’m shedding coat, jacket and jumper at high speed. From loudspeakers strategically mounted around Boxpark, the foghorn sounds of Florence and the Machine are blasting out and, what with the smells of multiple cuisines mingling on the air, I could be at a summer music festival instead of on top of a pile of shipping containers.

We’ve all seen cargo ships with these containers stacked up like Lego parts for giants, but the possibilities for other uses have largely been ignored.

Now someone has grouped them into one place and created a retail destination that’s rather unique.

On the corner of Bethnal Green Road and with a fine view of Shoreditch House on one side and the railway on the other, Boxpark is right on the beating heart of trend in its location. Nine units out of 60 are food focused, so I bravely attempted to eat in them all in one morning. Now safely back from A&E I can report on what’s on the menu.

Foxcroft & Ginger F&G use products from small suppliers in the country and seasonal products from Borough Market. The coffee is great, the mini rolls a bit hard on the teeth. Eggy bread with honey roast ham, cheese and béchamel and honey was very tasty and the pastries excellent.

There’s plenty of outdoor seating to enjoy breakfast or brunch when the sun’s out.

Hop Namo Hop Namo does the Banh Mi Vietnamese baguette, which I don’t find as exciting as some people do. Tasty nonetheless and better than a soggy sarnie obviously.

Better are fresh rolls of Vietnamese

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rice paper filled with rice vermicelli, salad and herbs with a plum dipping sauce and the spicy soup and the chargrill lacquered pork. Prices are low and the food vibrantly fresh.

Mexway Okay full disclosure means I have to admit I’d be happy if I never ate another Mexican dish again, especially the ubiquitous foil-wrapped baby called a burrito. However I do buy into the freshness and I do like their guacamole.

Mexway also sells tacos, salads and tortilla chips for takeaway and the food’s not at all bad and is certainly fast.

Frae A no-fat alternative to ice cream, frozen yoghurt really comes into its own when the heat is on. Frae have a range of flavours and a host of toppings and the green tea Frae with a nuts and fruit topping was really rather excellent.

Cyber Candy Okay not exactly food but an awful lot of fun with Hershey’s, Lucky Charms and Twinkies, strange sodas and Japanese candy and other weird world sweets. If you know any small boys, a selection of goodies from here will make you into a hero.

Crussh Juices aplenty here, even though the juice wave broke a few years back.

These are all good for you and refreshing, I liked the cactus juice one a lot. The new zero noodles in the soups are non fattening but are filling.

Pieminister Pies and plenty of them all made in Bristol using fresh, British, responsibly sourced ingredients. Chose any pie

from the range and add extras of mash, minted peas and rich gravy. Try the Matador pie – British beef, chorizo, butter beans and sherry – as it’s ace.

Chop’d Fresh meals the way you want to mix them. This is going to be huge when the sun is out, with healthy options and light tasty bites. The tofu comes from nearby Brick Lane and chicken from Formans, a 105-yearold, family-run company in Essex.

Bukowski Burgers are everywhere in London and they’re in Boxpark too. I found the meat too compacted for my taste, the texture not right; the fillings OTT in this otherwise cool burger bar, but others seemed keen. Nicely twicely cooked chips made me a lot happier.

Boxpark Bethnal Green Road, EC1 www.boxpark.co.uk If you fancy eating out of the box, Boxpark will be in Spitalfields for the next five years. Food & beverage opening times Mon–Sat 8–8pm / Thurs 8–10pm / Sun 10– 6pm.

the spice king Lamb Biryani Also known as ‘The Spice King’, Sriram Aylur is Executive Chef of St James’s Park’s The Quilon, the only Michelin-starred restaurant in the world specialising in Southern Indian food.

Cinnamon C

The best beer to accompany this is Brewsters pale ale (Lincolnshire, 5% abv), a fresh, and crisp pale ale with floral hop aromas that give way to a citrus grapefruit flavour.

Serves 4

100ml refined oil

Ingredients 500g boneless lamb cubes

50ml ghee

300g Basmati rice

1 cinnamon stick

For the Marinade 2.5g fennel seeds

2 bay leaves

5 cardamom pods 1 stick of cinnamon 4 cloves 2 bay leaves

innamon is one of the oldest spices known and is grown in India, Sri Lanka, Burma and Bangladesh, but in my opinion the best comes from Sri Lanka. One has to be careful when using cinnamon as it can overpower a dish and delivers a very strong, bitter flavour.

5g chilli powder

It can be used in its bark state or powdered. If used in a bark state it is best to put it in hot oil to maximum flavour.

It’s usually used with a mix of spices and has the unique ability of blending well with sweet and savoury dishes.

75ml yoghurt

Like all spices cinnamon needs to be stored in an airtight jar in a cool place.

www.quilon.co.uk 50

2g turmeric 2g coriander 10ml ghee 10g ginger paste 10g garlic paste Salt For the Masala 4 slit green chillis 300g sliced onion 2 sliced brown onions 100g sliced tomato 10g chopped mint leaves 2g shahi jeera

4 cardamon pods

Method 1 Wash and pat dry the lamb and keep aside.

Dry roast the fennel, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaf and grind to powder.

2 In a clean bowl, put the above powder, turmeric, coriander and ginger garlic paste, ghee, yoghurt and salt and mix together.

3 Marinade the lamb and keep in a cool place for four to six hours. In a clean pot bring the water to boil, add shahi jeera, a little oil or ghee, half of the chopped coriander and mint. Add washed basmati rice and cook

till the rice is 3/4 done.

Strain and keep aside.

4 Heat the mixture of ghee and oil and top the whole garam masala, chilli and onion. Sweat the onion and add the sliced tomatoes and cook. Add the marinated lamb and cook till 3/4 done.

5 Spread the boiled rice on top of the lamb evenly. Sprinkle chopped coriander, mint leaves and browned onions.

3 Bake with a sealed lid in a preheated oven at 180°C for 15 to 20 minutes or alternatively put on low flame griddle.

Once the steam comes out remove from griddle.

Gently mix and arrange on a serving platter, garnish with fried onion and coriander.

Taste of London

Celebrating world-class cuisine Flavour is delighted to be showcasing Taste of London this year and we are equally looking forward to being there on June 21-24 to check out the fabulous array of produce on offer.

We have highlighted a few of the great producers over the next few pages and hope that will give you ‘a taste’ of what’s going to be tickling your buds over the gastronomic weekend.

Don’t forget, we are also running a reader offer whereby you can pick up two tickets (valid Thursday and Friday sessions) for just £35 when you quote Flavour35 on the taste website.

Do write in and let us know how you got on and what producers really grabbed your attention.

We’ll see you there... The Flavour Team

For tickets, visit tastefestivals.com/london or call 0871 230 7132

Flour Power City Bakery

So how did Flour Power become the best-loved organic bakery in London? Well, it all began in 1999, in a shabby old disused bakery in Hoxton Street.

They had a head full of ideas: to use simple, good ingredients, to make bread the oldfashioned way, to keep it organic wherever possible, to avoid unnecessary additives, and to take an ethical approach to business. Oh, and not forgetting the most important one: to put a bit of love into every loaf.

Four years of rocketing sales later, they relocated to Lewisham. Nowadays their team of more than 40 bakers and pastry chefs create speciality organic breads, sourdoughs, pastries and cakes that are enjoyed by thousands of customers every week. They now supply more than 80 markets around London and the Home Counties and you’ll find them in all the best coffee shops, delicatessens, speciality food retailers, and even in some of the top Michelin-starred restaurants around London.

Five Valleys Cordials

Flourpowercity Bakery Ltd Unit 5b, Juno Way Elizabeth Industrial Estate London SE14 5RW Call: 0208 691 2288 Visit: www.flourpowercity.com

Find us on

Stand PR6

Five Valleys Cordials is based in the beautiful town of Stroud in Gloucestershire.

The Cotswold countryside is their inspiration and the Five Valleys, with their bohemian values and artisan industrial roots, is their spiritual home, with the cordials striving to be great but not taking themselves too seriously. ◆ Highly Concentrated Dilutable Cordials ◆ Great With Still or Sparkling Water ◆ Unique Flavour Combinations ◆ All About Quality & Taste

Email us at: info@fivevalleyscordials.co.uk Visit us at: www.fivevalleyscordials.co.uk

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Find us on

Stand E4

The Tomato Stall Tomatoes have been grown in the Arreton Valley, Isle of Wight, for over 20 years. The special conditions, which include higher than average levels of sunshine, help to create the perfect environment for producing tomatoes.

The Tomato Stall began selling tomatoes directly to the public at farmers’ markets over 10 years ago.

It was in these early days that they started to experiment with making their own unique, 100 per cent pure and completely additive-free tomato products in small batches using only single tomato varieties.

Call: 01983 866907 Visit us at: www.thetomatostall.co.uk

Find us on

Stand G4

La Bandiera –

Award-winning single-estate extravirgin olive oil

Premium Olive Oil Connoisseurs of olive oil will delight in tasting the exceptional extra-virgin olive oil from La Bandiera. This delicious oil is produced in the traditional wine growing area of Bolgheri on the Tuscan coast – home of super Tuscan vineyards of Ornellaia and Sassicaia.

full-bodied olive oil, endorsed by the IGP in recognition of its quality and origin.

A recent winner in the 2011 Great Taste Awards, La Bandiera olive oil is available for delivery throughout the UK in sizes ranging from 250ml bottles up to five-litre cans.

The team at La Bandiera continues to use the traditional methods of selecting the best time to harvest the olives to ensure the acidity level is low, thereby creating the perfect blend. The result is a smooth yet

Find us on

Call: 0207 243 5150 Visit us at: www.labandieraoliveoil.com

Stand C6

Simply Ice Cream Rico Picante – Simply Ice Cream creates heavenly, indulgent, naturally-flavoured ice creams and sorbets. There are over 30 imaginative flavours in the range, including the award-winning Heavenly Honeycomb Crunch and all are made the old-fashioned way and whipped by hand in small batches.

Simply Ice Cream is celebrating this historic summer by releasing the Simply British box set, a trio of red, white and blue ice creams or sorbets to bring a touch of national pride to your table. Simply Ice Cream also offers a bespoke flavour service for those who want to commemorate their own special summer event.

Call: 01233 720922 Visit us at: www.simplyicecream.co.uk

Find us on

Stand A3

Peruvian chilli sauces Bring your food to life Rico Picante is led by a brother and sister team with a passion for chilli sauces and family roots in Peru, where nothing symbolises the strength and vitality of that vibrant cuisine more than the aji chilli.

So they have created a premium range of authentic

sauces made from fresh Peruvian aji and natural ingredients; a blend of fragrant, fruity flavours using traditional family recipes. Their sauces will be complemented shortly with a range of marinades and purées that will add sparkle to your dishes.

Find us on

Stand PR27

Call: 01462 451062 Visit us at: www.ricopicante.co.uk

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The Cornish Cheese Company Home of Cornish blue cheese handmade on the farm Beating off 2,600 entries from 26 countries, The Cornish Cheese Company scooped the ‘World Champion Cheese 2010’ award and since then has not looked back.

The simple production process is carried out entirely by hand, relying on their skilled cheese makers to produce a Cornish blue different from the traditional English blue cheeses such as Stilton or Dorset blue. The blueing occurs with a little help from nature and by piercing the cheeses each week with stainless steel rods to allow in air, which helps the blue mould, spread right through each cheese.

The cheeses are distributed throughout Britain by a network of wholesalers or can be bought by mail order, direct from the farm.

Call: 01579 363 660 Visit: www.cornishcheese.co.uk

Find us on

Stand PR24

Six O’Clock Gin

Il Gelato di Ariela

Combine precisely balanced Six O’Clock Gin with their perfectly matched Six O’clock Tonic to create your own moment of “ginspiration”.

A blueprint for gin deserves the same balance, poise and precision, which Edward’s great grandson, Michael, uses to make Six O’Clock Gin. Inspired by his forefather, Michael carefully selects and balances Juniper with six other botanicals to chime together as sweetly as any timepiece. Orange Peel adds a citrus in delightful harmony Call: 01454 418046 Visit: www.bramleyandgage.com

Find us on

Stand PR9

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with floral Elderflower. The result is a clean, smooth and richly flavoured gin.

Edward was known for restraint in gin consumption and looked forward to Six O’Clock, his own time for ‘ginspiration’.

Il Gelato di Ariela was born in 2006 when founder Ariela could not find the authentic gelato she was accustomed to in London, as her family had been making gelato in Italy for 40 years.

It was then that she decided to make her own using only the best natural ingredients, following her family recipe and banning all artificial colours and flavourings. These gelatos are the sweetest Find us on taste of Italy!

Call: 0208 803 5344 Email us at: info@ilgelatodiariela.com Visit us at: www.ilgelatodiariela.com

Stand K6

Karaway Bakery

Apulia Blend

Karaway Bakery is a family-run Russian fusion bakery offering a mix of products from traditional authentic Russian and Lithuanian rye breads, sweet pastries and savoury piroshki to unique artisan breads with a modern twist.

The ‘Cellina of Nardo’ is the first olive to turn ‘sweet’ and this variety, with its hints of berries, is now Italy’s pastry chefs’ best-kept secret – perfect for cakes, cheese or ice creams with no preservatives, dyes or thickeners. Olivotto’s range will make an impression

The products are handmade in the traditional, natural lengthy fermentation processes using only natural authentic highquality ingredients without any artificial additives, flavourings or preservatives.

Call: 0208 534 4458 Visit us at: www.karawaybakery.com

straight away and is launching at Taste of London.

The team hope to welcome you at their stand where you will get the opportunity to sample this exciting, brand new product!

Call: 0207 740 1717 Visit: www.theoliveoilco.com

Find us on

Stand PR1

Find us on

Stand A6

See flavour at Taste of London Celebrating world-class cuisine Looking to promote your produce, champion an event or just want to chat about all things food and drink?

Come and talk to us at Taste of London and you could be brightening up these pages in the next edition...

Have a look at our latest issue online!

Call us: 0117 977 9188 Visit us: www.flavourmagazine.com Follow us: @flavourlondon

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> flavour drake’s restaurant

Drake’s Restaurant flavour caught up with steve drake, proprietor and head chef at drake’s restaurant, Ripley…

K

eeping a Michelin star for eight years running is a testament to everything Steve Drake, with his wife Serina, has built up over the years in the gorgeous Georgian Clock House building in the village of Ripley in Surrey.

with different menus and ideas, different dish combinations.”

though, and we’re growing into the space and our food is improving all the time.”

He’s keen to get away from the traditional image of what it means to be a Michelin-starred restaurant.

His career has taken him from Southend Technical College in Essex, to The Ritz hotel in London and some of the best restaurants in the country. He won the Roux Scholarship in 2001 and worked with Marc Veyrat in Annecy as his prize before opening Drake’s in 2004.

“The image that I don’t like is the traditional French posh Michelin restaurant, and that’s what we’re trying to get away from; that stuffy atmosphere, and especially in a little village I think it’s quite hard to shrug that off. I think we just about manage it and everything is going really well for us.”

Steve has his chef buddies in the limelight, naming Sat Bains and Simon Hulstone among them, and was pleased to see Brett Graham do well at the World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards.

With a focus on simplicity and clarity of flavours, Steve is unswerving in his philosophy on what drives his creative process.

“The food here is very much flavour focused and we try and keep it uncomplicated as much as possible, that’s the philosophy behind it, and it’s something that we work on a lot. We don’t really decorate or garnish too much, and appearance is usually the last thing we focus on. It’s all about flavour and taste.”

Steve spends a lot of time sitting down with the team and talking about flavour combinations, and which ones they’d like to incorporate on their menu, which is constantly evolving.

“We have a Flavour Discovery menu but every night we also have a Surprise Menu which is six courses. Nearly everyone chooses it and it’s great when regulars come back, as we can give them a different menu every time, and it keeps us excited as well; we can play around

“I had a brilliant meal at The Ledbury recently, so I was really pleased for Brett.”

He’s also planning a trip to Japan with a group of chefs.

I mention to Steve that his sommelier Thierry Sauvanot matches some wonderful wines to the menu, and he appreciates how important this is to his food.

“There seems to be a real drive and energy there at the moment.”

“I first worked with Thierry in the early 1990s at Chez Nico in Park Lane when I was a Chef de Partie. He’s great.”

“I’m ambitious. I’d like us to achieve a second star and I know that’s difficult but it’s an ambition, a goal we’re aiming at. I think it’s all about being individual in everything we do, be a bit quirky, a bit unique, including the wine list as well. We’ve been talking with Thierry to explore ways we can make this really individual to us too, so it’s good fun and we enjoy it.”

He has a good working relationship with wife Serina, with both of their duties clearly marked.

“I look after the creative side as much as I can, and Serina looks after the business side. It’s so easy to get distracted when you’re in a creative industry, to get so wrapped up in a leaking roof, or the tree that needs pruning, that you really need to know how to manage it. You’d have no time for the creative side if you were distracted too much, which is what I live for in the first place, so I try not to get so involved in operational stuff so I can spend more time on the creative side, which is why people come. It works well

So what next for Drake’s after nine successful years and a loyal clientele?

Drake’s Restaurant The Clock House High Street Ripley GU23 6AQ 01483 224 777 www.drakesrestaurant.co.uk 57

Now in its sixth year, The Glynde Food & English Wine Festival is a unique event set in the stunning grounds of Glynde Place, near Lewes overlooking the Sussex Downs and home to the VIIth Viscount and Viscountess Hampden.

Viscount Hampden, festival founder, highlights the marvellous showcase that the festival offers: “I’m delighted that our event attracts some of the finest English winemakers and that we are able to champion these very successful vineyards,” he said. “We’re also hosting a selection of wonderful artisan food producers, exciting chefs and some really hands-on experiences at the festival this year.”

Over the weekend, you can explore English wine through tastings and tutored sessions, go foraging with local expert Joe Nixon, learn about

food and beer matching or pick up tips from producers in the How To… tent. John Torode will also be on hand to teach masterclasses over the weekend – but sign up early, as these will be a sellout!

For the budding young cook in your family, children can join the Kitchen Academy running all weekend encouraging the next generation of chefs to learn dishes they can then make at home – from sushi to quesadillas. The Kid’s Area will also offer plenty of activities for the younger generation to make sure they’re entertained all day!

The chef stage is one of the highlights of the festival, is free to all and offers a wealth of talent including John Torode, Dhruv Baker, Peter Bayless, Tim Anderson (MasterChef winner 2011) plus best-selling cookery book writer and actress Lisa Faulkner.

For more information and to book tickets for the festival and the Feast, visit their website:

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John Torode explains why he’s back at the festival again this year: “Beautiful setting, great producers and award-winning English wines – it’s going to be a fantastic weekend.”

Not to be missed and new for 2012, is the Summer Feast hosted by John Torode and Dhruv Baker. Held in the main marquee on the Saturday night of the festival, it will be a chance to try some stunning food and enjoy the striking surroundings of Glynde Place into the evening.

This festival is growing every year – and is certainly on our one to watch list, especially as it is just 45 minutes from London!

FREE

wine tasting glass when you book a ticket online

We have a top-notch line-up of some of the country’s best chefs demonstrating some great dishes.

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Parle of wisdom Globetrotter Stevie Parle talks to f lavour about the Dock Kitchen and his new book.

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here is a snake charmer’s hypnotic power at work when reading a Stevie Parle menu. They evoke faraway places with a procession of words that read like an Aladdin’s cave of ingredients: agretti, mastiha, black cumin, sumac, za’atar.

Looking at his menu as we sit down for lunch, you may judge it looks like a mishmash of styles, lamb biryani sitting alongside pluma Iberico, nettle and sea beet pasta nestling alongside a chilled soup of Iranian pistachios, cucumber, poemgranate, rose and saffron water – it’s a magpie approach to constructing a menu, one that successfully cherrypicks dishes inspired by those he’s encountered and enjoyed on his travels.

“I’m cooking the food that I love, but there is a style there, a perspective.”

Stevie’s travels around the world have underpinned his culinary direction and indeed the style of the Dock Kitchen, his first restaurant. He’s completely in tune with the emotional effect that food can have on people, its power to flick the culinary synapses and evoke memories.

“Food has a a transportative quality.

When you taste things you feel like you’re in a new place. When you smell a curry leaf it’s so exotic.”

It’s important to Stevie that the kitchen brigade is in tune with his thinking.

“I’d like to travel more, but we send the chefs away often to places like Istanbul and Lebanon, and we’re sending them to Galicia in Spain for example. Collecting ideas and adapting things is really important.”

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Stevie’s influences are wide and varied but he cites India, North Africa and in particular Lebanon, as countries that have inspired his cooking the most.

as we’re always changing things, so I don’t have a problem coming up with recipes each week. I’m very proud to be writing for them.”

“There is some extraordinary food in Lebanon. Good food there is so accessible, bags of rose petals, piles of vine leaves, fresh za’atar...” He trails off, momentarily transported to a faraway market with its heady smells and noisy clatter.

The Dock Kitchen Cookbook distils many of the ideas and recipes that the restaurant is now noted for, and Stevie is happy with the end product.

The space in which Stevie has opened his first restaurant is a unique and quirky one.

Designed by Tom Dixon in a converted Victorian wharf building, part of an urban generation project, it overlooks the Grand Union Canal in Ladbroke Grove.

Preserved brick arches and and beamed ceilings have been retained, interspersed with collections of furniture and lighting from the Tom Dixon shop beneath. It’s a thrilling restaurant space that creates an edgy contrast between modern design and timeless simplicity, the open kitchen taking centre stage in the room.

“I’m glad we are where we are, and it’s an interesting restaurant model.

I’m in control, we don’t have the same pressures to maintain certain margins on the food, and because of this I’m able to be quite eccentric.

I wanted a restaurant that’s really comfortable, glamorous and relaxed.

There’s a new range of furniture every year so it will always be changing.”

Stevie’s profile is now beginning to bubble over into the mainstream, with his regular weekend slot in The Telegraph, and with the release of his second cookbook.

“I’m really enjoying writing for The Telegraph, it’s a proper newspaper.

We generate a lot of the recipes here

“I’m pleased it feels fresh. I like the light filled photography from Toby Glanville.

When you see the book you want to pick it up, and it has a very tactile cover. When you see the food you want to cook it.”

As we taste another dish, some deep fried Vietnamese Gio Thu (brawn) with toasted rice and pickles, we chat about his rapid 10 year rise, beginning with The Ballymaloe cookery course in Ireland, then landing a job at The River Café at 17. Moro and Petersham Nurseries are also on his CV, as well as plenty of travelling and time spent living in Japan and Malaysia.

When talk turns to the future and the next step in his career, he imagines a gearshift compared to what he has done to date.

“I’d like to do a tiny, really expensive restaurant, like in Japan, just 15 seats.”

Maybe like Momofuku Ko in New York? “Yeah”, he says. “Exactly.”

Stevie carries himself with a poise and a calmness which shows a cool confidence in what he has created here. Does he feel a weight of expectation that may curtail this?

“People often forget that restaurants get better the longer they’re around. We’re growing.”

Seared radishes with radish leaf miso pesto Ingredients

Top-to-Toe Eating

by Shu Han LEE

1 large bunch of whole radishes 1 small handful of toasted pine nuts or almonds 2 cloves garlic 2 tbsp naturally fermented white miso Generous pinch of unrefined sea salt, freshly ground black pepper Extra virgin olive oil Squeeze of lemon

Following the brilliance of Fergus Henderson and his St John’s Restaurant, nose-to-tail eating has gotten chefs to reconsider and even be excited about ears and trotters and cuts that have previously been discarded.

It just makes a lot more sense for the environment and your own pocket, to fully use and appreciate all that has been sacrificed to feed your stomach. I think we need to apply this to vegetables too, a sort-of “shoot-to-root” or “topto-toe” eating. It pains me to see people pluck the tops off beetroots, or the outer leaves off cauliflower, when the whole plant is perfectly good to eat.

I’ve used the radish here as an example, its blushing pink roots are much-loved

in spring, but its leaves are actually just as delicious, with a nice mustardy bite not unlike rocket or watercress.

It’s nonsense that people are willing to pay for those little leaves in their salads when you can get equally tasty ones free. I’ve moved away from the usual raw salads here though. Many don’t realise this, but radishes are great cooked! I don’t mean mushy, tasteless, over-boiled radishes; pan-seared ones still retain a slight refreshing crunch. At the same time, their sharpness mellows, and their light sweetness comes through, a great contrast to the salty peppery pesto.

I’ve given a slight Asian twist to this vegan-friendly pesto, using miso instead of Parmesan for a savoury depth.

If you want to find out more about this recipe, just do a search on my blog, Mummy, I can cook! mummyicancook.blogspot.com

Method 1 Prepare the radishes, separate tops from bottoms. Chop the bottoms into equal-sized pieces, halved or quartered if large. Wash the tops to remove any dirt from the leaves and roughly chop.

2 For the seared radishes, heat some oil over medium-high heat, and when just sizzling, add the radishes cut-side down. Season, and sear until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Flip and repeat on the other sides.

3 For the pesto, combine all the ingredients except lemon in a mortar and pestle, or a food processor, adding the evoo as you go, enough to make a smooth paste. Finish with a squeeze of lemon. This will keep in the fridge for a couple of days if submerged under oil.

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In-between filming BBC One food programmes such as Nigel Slater’s Simple Suppers and Simon Hopkinson’s The Good Cook, BBC Executive Producer Peter Lawrence somehow finds time to tend his organic garden...

Diary of a

r e n e d r a G n e h c t i K ck enough. When I almost can’t eat it qui s like ‘New Year’ it’ the first salads come, the hearty of t Mos . for the veg grower st on their last lea at or d, use dlings winter veg are nches and the summer see tre ir delicate t, legs. The spuds are in the ran vib of p sion. The daily cro pas h wit up ing shed out cru spr are t some m the ground every day (no e lik l fee green leaves snipped fro s of the fridge) really doe l fee you plastic bag at the bottom ent mom ing, even. For a brief for t hur yog a fresh start. Invigorat ing hav and giving up alcohol g, gin jog up it ing l tak cal e lik ary – I se resolutions are moment g! win breakfast. Of course tho gro leaves, they just keep on my ‘Salad Daze’ but the life on the With every exciting new ing away. fad r the plot, there is ano e eaten hav I ths mon two In the last li than I cco bro ing out spr ple pur more now the but would ever wish to record ing way giv are s out spr delicious violet one be may s re’ The s. wer to yellow flo ars dropped spe al fin the t, ves har more t a few into boiling water for jus ted butter. mel h wit minutes and served so, alas, but ly ven hea is r The flavou s a poignant is the plant’s fate. It’ are pulled up ms time when the thick ste the end of – p hea the and resigned to months at 12 ted las has t tha a journey its day. had has least. That’s life – it sprouting Thankfully the tiny purple weeks ago, few a d nte pla ds, broccoli see s journey iou car are now starting their pre well too y onl w through the soil. I kno only m, the e tur nur I that no matter how slugs the st Fir it. e mak l wil about half ters ngs you The have a go, then the birds.

I but ks wee few will have a precarious l wil s ant inf se the t can only hope tha of last year’s follow in the footsteps months. crop and keep me fed for

g circle of life Amidst this ever-evolvin p that never cro remains one perennial rainbow stems The rd. cha up: seems to give allotment as don’t just brighten up the do a similar they catch the sun; they y strip the all usu job on the plate. I l the stems boi , lks sta leaves from the er, then wat ted sal y vil hea in quickly ves hold lea steam the torn leaves. The giving th wor s it’ a lot of moisture so before p cho al fin a and e them a squeez warm bowl. a in ms ste the h wit reuniting peppery olive I like to drizzle with a pepper and ck bla oil, a few grinds of It’s a ce. jui on lem of a good splash p but it cho k por a for h dis e great sid too – it ce pie can make a worthy centre red, yellow h wit t par certainly looks the h the wit ng sti tra con ms and white ste to make ugh eno d goo s It’ . ves lea verdant ther, oge alt t you consider giving up mea And be? may sli mue taking up jogging, the plot. so life goes on down on

Visit Peter’s website at: www.petelawrencetv.co.uk

The Victoria A proper pub, great food, Arthurian legend.

Zeren Wilson jumps on his trusty steed...

I

’m having lunch in Richmond.

Or East Sheen. Both apply.

Close to Chiswick, Barnes and Gunnersbury. It all sounds perfectly delightful, dahhling. Ladies who lunch and all that jazz, right?

Hailing from Norf London, I choose to take the ‘rock’n’roll’ route and exit at Mortlake overground. Mortlake seems to reverberate with an echo of Le Morte d’Arthur, Sir Thomas Malory’s 15th-century translations of a Middle French re-telling of the demise of the Arthurian legend – the unlovely stretch of Sheen Lane looks grim at this point.

The Victoria pub reveals itself after a 15-minute walk, nestled on the edge of Richmond Park – an Avalon of sorts. Chef and co-owner Paul Merret will be familiar to some from several TV stints, including Economy Gastronomy on BBC2, Saturday Kitchen, and a couple of books. His CV is a ‘proper chef’s’ one, working at The Greenhouse with Gary Rhodes, and later helping him open The People’s Palace at the Royal Festival Hall – I remember Paul from being an underling tray carrying runner here in 1994. He later went on to earn Michelin stars at both L’Interlude and at his second stint at The Greenhouse.

Now he owns The Victoria with restaurateur Greg Bellamy, a pretty 19th-century building tucked deep into residential Richmond. It’s comforting that they’ve put the bar back into the room as a focal point, as it was in 1855, marking this out as a proper pub despite its culinary aspirations. Anyone still using the ‘gastropub’ moniker for their venture should be flayed alive, and the guys here are confident enough not to. Here we have a public house, dining room, hotel – job done.

We sit in the adjacent conservatory which is humming with early Friday lunch 66

diners who are at ease with the world – no going back to work for this crowd.

Loch Duart salmon (£8.50) with a beetrot gravadlax is suitably silky, with some good toasted potato bread on the side. We won’t pretend that the dill and vodka served alongside didn’t sway our decision to choose this dish, because it did – room temperature vodka wasn’t such a joy though.

A pulse-quickening dish soon cranks up the pace. Tempura fried Montenebro goat’s cheese (£8) with a wicked crispy carapace slathered with thyme blossom honey. Montenebro is made by just one producer, Rafael Baez, and this tangy, creamy, slightly peppery ‘log’ of cheese is given full respect with this simple treatment. A menu classic.

Grilled quail (£9) comes with honey, a sprinkling of the wonderful bitter, lemony Middle Eastern spice sumac, and a salad of crispy falafel, feta cheese and pomegranate. Falafel weren’t crispy as promised, and ended up being pushed around the plate a bit in favour of stripping every scrap of tender meat from the bird.

Confit duck could start a border dispute for the last morsels. Duck that has been wallowing indulgently in hot fat, until the meat is ready to sprint away from the bone at the merest breath, the skin crisped and charged with rich umami flavours – to leave the skin to one side is to miss the whole point. It’s a dish that has your neighbour poking around your plate, asking “are you done with that?” No joy for them here. Only a few palpitations felt after following the tempura battered cheese with more richness. Deep breaths.

A Sri Lankan curry (£13) didn’t put a comforting arm around us as we may have hoped, as if flavours had been

muted to accommodate more timid Richmond palates, despite some beautifully fresh vegetables that still had verve and crunch with every bite.

Camargue rice from southern France was a strong choice, an unmilled rice of nutty character and dense texture.

Homemade roti bread was the real deal.

Wines prove to hold enough entries to show that there’s real care taken with the list, a vision that co-owner Greg is driving. The Mahi wines from Marlborough, are consistently one of the more interesting New Zealand producers, and both Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay are offered here by the glass. Good to see a white from the Greek island of Santorini too, Thalassitis 2009 at £36, a bone-judderingly dry wine made with the Assyrtiko grape, volcanic soil lending it a clean and pure minerality. A fine producer of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Andre Brunel, and his single vineyard ‘Les Cailloux’ at £58, shows someone knows their onions at the top end too.

Desserts were a delight. Churros (£5.50) dusted with cinnamon sugar ticked a doughnut lover’s boxes, while warm chocolate pudding (£5.50) was a fondant by another name, and in his own words, passed the Paul Merrett “glory moment” test when a stab of the spoon revealed an oozing centre: the volcanic chocolate money shot.

If I were a weary knight I’d use this watering hole often and have a kip in one of the rooms upstairs. Quest, what quest?

The Victoria 10 West Temple Sheen, Richmond Greater London SW14 7RT 0208 876 4238 www.thevictoria.net

> flavour chef profile

chef profile Name: Matthew Tomkinson Age: 36 Where from: Manchester Where is home: Lymington Head chefs at: The Montagu Arms Hotel

I always knew that I wanted to be a chef but I made a deal with my parents that I would do my A-levels and if the results were good enough I’d go to university.

So in the end I did a four-year hospitality management degree and that included a one-year placement in the industry. I pressured the lecturers to allow me to find a placement as a chef rather than as a trainee manager. I think the plan was to get it out of my system in the 12 months, but instead I fell in love with the job. I was given a copy of My Gastronomy by Nico Ladenis to read by a chef I was working with and I realised that some people took professional cooking extremely seriously and I soon found I was one of those people.

Having spent six months in India I came home to no job and no money. Fortunately a friend was the manager of a local vegetarian restaurant and offered me a position. I stayed for 12 months, learning about taste and what ingredients were used for what. I spent the next few years in various places around the UK including the Michelin-starred Ockenden Manor in West Sussex and as head chef at The Goose at Britwell Salome, where we again achieved a Michelin star. I came to The Montagu in 2008 and after six months gained a star here too! We have maintained it now for four years.

The Montagu Arms Hotel Palace Lane Beaulieu New Forest Hampshire SO42 7ZL 01590 612324 www.montaguarmshotel.co.uk

The Montagu Arms is a mix of history, location and hospitality, and we remember every day that when people come here they have an expectation of a standard and we have to make sure we surpass that by buying the best produce we can and preparing it as simply as possible to reflect the season and our wonderful surroundings. People come to us looking to be wowed and they are

paying for the experience, so an eye for detail in everything we do is a must. We check and then check again.

Despite what people may think, being a chef is not about ego – it’s about what tastes great and what your diners want and the kitchen has to function as a team and pull in the same direction.

I look forward to what our suppliers and producers bring us each day, the best of what’s on offer, and I want to transform that into a fantastic dish for the customers. I am so passionate about the industry and as such absorb myself within it. There is so much information available in books, from Internet sites and Twitter, and of course dining out regularly in the UK and abroad helps to further my knowledge. It can be a little obsessive!

I think ‘cookbook food’ has peaked now. There was a time where people bought flash coffee table cookbooks and yet still lived off ready meals from the supermarket. I think this has changed and now people are cooking and baking more and I think high-quality mid-range cooking will be the next big thing. People are also seeking out good restaurants not just for dinner, but also for the experience and that’s what I aim to provide on each and every service.

And our specialty? Well I would always recommend the spiced diver-caught scallops with cauliflower purée, fennel and apple, but all the ingredients we use are at their peak, whether it be fish, game or local vegetables. The New Forest and Hampshire have an abundance of fresh and organic fayre, thus making this area the perfect accompaniment to any good chef!

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Murray’s Fresh Fish Murray’s Fresh Fish is a wholesale fish supplier to the restaurant and hotel trade in London, providing the finest quality fish and shellfish direct from the coast daily from their base in New Covent Garden Market. catch with a heavy focus on sustainable fish such as gurnard, pollack, lemon sole, coley, black bream etc. This has proved to be a great success.

T

he company has a healthy mix of customers, from those with two and three Michelin stars to foodiefocused gastro pubs, from five-star to smaller boutique hotels.

From September 2012, they are starting home deliveries of a weekly box of delicious, sustainable fish. There are a selection of boxes, one for two people, one for the family, a smoked fish and shellfish box and a dinner party special.

The days of chefs solely ordering prime fish such as turbot are over, as fish stocks and consumer demands change.

The company has grown through this progression, introducing, over two years ago, a service sending the chef information, via text message, on the daily

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Variety The fish is sourced from the markets of Looe and Newlyn in Cornwall, Brixham in Devon, and the Shetland Islands. Fish, crab and lobsters come direct from the fishing boats from The Isle of Wight and along the coast near Portsmouth.

Preparation Highly skilled fishmongers are able to prepare the fish as the chef requires. All fish can be gutted, filleted, skinned and portioned as required.

Information – the Catch Chefs receive a daily text message or email every evening listing the fish that has been caught and its price, allowing the chef to order the fish in his own time.

Murray’s also assist customers with their planning for future menus. Please call to discuss what’s going to be in season in the period you are planning for.

Murray’s Fresh Fish Arch 25 New Covent Garden Market Vauxhall London SW8 5PP Telephone: 0207 801 8798 Mobile: 07790 605914 www.murraysfreshfish.com

fish easy MITCH TONKS

Over 100 Simple 30-minute Seafood Recipes Food glorious food–or I probably should say–seafood glorious seafood. I really can never get enough of it. We are so very lucky to live on an Island surrounded by water and one of the last really wild foods available for us to enjoy. The South Coast fisheries remain well managed and plentiful of many species, most of which you will find on our counter and on our menu at RockFish. I love being in the kitchen and I love being in the dining room too.

I’m often asked what I do to relax and I’m happy to report that cooking for friends and family comes top of that list, fishing and being on a boat a pretty close second. So writing a new recipe book has been anything but a

hardship or challenge. This book is all about recipes inspired by my travels, but ones that we love to eat at home as a family and with friends. They are all nice and easy with ingredients that are regularly available – it’s designed to be a book that anyone can cook from.

The greatest pleasure when writing the book is going through my notebooks where I scribble down my ideas when I’m travelling and eating out. Where I can decipher my writing I can recreate in my own way some of my most wonderful eating experiences. And I can really truthfully say the best ones are the simplest. Buy your fish on the day you are going to eat it if you can, use fresh lemons not ones that have been sitting around,

© Mitch Tonks, RockFish Grill & Seafood Market www.mitchtonks.co.uk www.twitter.com/rockfishgrill

Pavilion, £19.99 Photography by Chris Terry

use freshly picked herbs if you can – these things make all the difference. I hope you enjoy trying out something new.

Happy cooking

> flavour mitch tonks

It doesn’t get much simpler than this, but the right choice of seafood can ensure that it will be heavenly. If you can, cook the seafood over a fire, but a grill plate will also give you great results. I dress the fish with a little olive oil seasoned with salt and mixed with parsley. My favourite selection of fish is below, but use the best of what you can buy at the fish counter.

mixed grill of seafood Serves 2 Ingredients 1 live lobster, about 600g/1lb 5oz 1 medium squid (calamari), cleaned and prepared 1 John Dory (or tilapia), about 350g / 12oz, scaled, gutted, fins and tail trimmed and deheaded A couple of slices of monkfish, cut across the tail through the bone, leaving the bone in A few raw prawns with the shell on Olive oil Sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Method Place the lobster on a chopping board. Insert a large, sharp, heavy knife into the cross on the back of the head and cut down towards the tail, cutting it in half. Remove the stomach and the black intestinal tract (if there is one) that may run through the middle of the tail and discard.

Slice the squid from top to bottom, then open it out and make diagonal cuts across it, first one way and then the other, making sure the depth of the cut is halfway through the thickness.

1–2 tbsp herb mixture for grilling A handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped to garnish Lemon wedges and your choice of dressing (see introduction) to serve

Preheat the barbecue, or the grill (broiler), to hot. (If barbecuing, ensure the flames have died down and the coals are glowing and covered with white ash before cooking.) Brush all the prepared fish and shellfish with olive oil, season and sprinkle with the grill mixture.

Gently grill the squid, cut side down over the hot coals, or cut side up under the grill (the squid will curl up on itself) until golden and evenly charred on the knobbly bits – about five minutes. Gently grill the lobster, flesh side down over the hot coals, or flesh side up under the grill, for five minutes, then turn it over and cook for a further 4–5 minutes – it should be nicely scorched and grilled.

Meanwhile, put the monkfish and John Dory on or under the grill and cook until nicely charred – about four minutes on each side. Grill the prawns for 4–5 minutes until pink.

Place all the fish on a big platter, sprinkle with parsley and sea salt and serve with a few lemon wedges and your choice of dressing. One of my favourite meals of all time!

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> flavour mitch tonks

baked spaghetti and clams Serves 1 Pasta cooked this way is delicious, as it really soaks up all the juices. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/gas mark 7.

Half-cook 75g/2½ oz spaghetti and toss with 20 clams (discard any whose shells are broken or open and fail to close when tapped sharply). 1 crumbled dried chilli (chile), 2 garlic cloves and 1 tbsp finely-chopped, fresh, flatleaf parsley. Place them on parchment and foil and seal securely. Place on a baking tray and cook for 8–10 minutes.

Open the parcels and discard any clams that remain closed.

Serve with a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkling of finelychopped fresh parsley. This also works well with a few skinned tomatoes and some whole roasted garlic cloves thrown in.

sardine fritters with caper mayonnaise Serves 4 Ingredients

Method

2 large eggs, separated

Make the batter 1 hour before cooking.

Beat the egg yolks and mix with the flour and salt to taste and enough water to make a thick batter (about the consistency of double/heavy cream).

Season well with black pepper.

200g/7oz/1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour Sea salt and freshlyground black pepper Vegetable oil for deep-frying 8 sardines, scaled, filleted and pinboned (tails left on) 75g/2½ oz/½ cup salted capers, drained and roughly chopped 200ml/7fl oz/scant 1 cup mayonnaise Lemon wedges to serve

Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then fold into the batter. Half fill a deep-fat fryer with vegetable oil and heat to 190ºC/375ºF, or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds.

Dry each sardine fillet well, then dip in the batter. Fry until puffed and crisp – 3–4 minutes. Add the capers to the mayonnaise and serve alongside the fritters, with lemon wedges.

> flavour mitch tonks

Dartmouth salad We have so much mackerel in the summer and I am always looking for new ways of using it. I really like the salads from Nice and, with the exception of the olives, we have all the same ingredients locally, so this is our Dartmouth salad!

Serves 4 Ingredients

Method

4 small mackerel, gutted, heads and tails removed

Place the mackerel in a pan with water to cover, the vinegar, a pinch of salt and the bay leaf. Bring to the boil then take off the heat and leave to cool. Remove the mackerel from the water and flake the fish off the bone into chunks, making sure there are no bones. Blanch the green beans.

Splash of white wine vinegar Sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper 1 bay leaf 100g/3½ oz green beans, trimmed (I like to use fine runner beans too, but I leave them raw if they are young) 1 lettuce heart, leaves separated 3 very ripe tomatoes, quartered 2 spring onions (scallions), finely sliced 2 small raw artichokes, outer leaves, stem and choke removed and flesh sliced 4 or 5 radishes, finely sliced 6 basil leaves 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered A handful of small black olives

For the dressing 3 tbsp good white wine vinegar 9 tbsp good olive oil 6 salted anchovy fillets, ground to a paste

To make the dressing, mix the vinegar with the oil and anchovies in a bowl and season well with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper.

Line a bowl with the crisp lettuce leaves, arrange the tomatoes around the edge, then fill the centre with the beans, onions, artichokes, radishes, mackerel and basil.

Scatter the eggs and olives over, then dress and toss the salad at the table when everyone is sitting down.

Flavour’s latest columnist Jack Stein brings us the best from the sea...

Jack Stein was born in Cornwall and is the middle son of three boys to celebrated chef Rick Stein. He began his career as a kitchen porter during school holidays in The Seafood Restaurant kitchen. At 16 he moved to front of house where he remained throughout his education. Jack completed a BSc in Psychology and an MA in Ancient History at Cardiff University.

In 2003, he returned to The Seafood Restaurant as commis chef then after two years, took up the position of sous chef at Rick Stein’s Café for another year.

Following this, Jack then went on to Paris to stage at La Régalade, which ignited a passion for travel and a period of stage work all over the world. During this time, Jack travelled to Australia for an extended stay at Tetsuya’s in Sydney, before exploring the Far East and Japan.

On his return to Padstow, he re-entered The Seafood Restaurant as sous chef before moving on to a tournant role across the whole company. He is currently the head of development for the company, leading the installation and introduction of a development kitchen for the business, where new recipes and ingredients will be tested.

Follow Jack on Twitter @JackStein 76

Image ©David Griffen

Recipe ©Jack Stein

> flavour out of the ocean

Seared queen scallops with asparagus and a horseradish sauce Serves two as a starter This month we really see springtime kicking in as nature starts to awaken, bringing us a bounty of ingredients to utilise.

I wanted a recipe inspired by the forthcoming Jubilee. I toyed with the idea of a fish royal but was unhappy with the result, and then I thought, how about using the queen scallop from the Isle of Man? They are a beautiful and very sustainable shellfish. The white muscle has high levels of glutamate which when seared give a sweet, savoury flavour. In this dish the queenies are

paired with the first of the season’s asparagus. We get ours from St Enodoc, just across the Camel Estuary and it’s the best I have ever tasted. Asparagus is a true representation of spring and a welcome addition to our larder!

is led out from its stable to welcome in the summer and every year I have worn a posy of flowers on my lapel including the cowslip, so it’s great to be able to use them in my dish (always consult a guidebook when picking wild food).

I have just returned from a stage in France at Maison Bras in Aubrac. The brigade there spends a lot of time looking for wild flowers and herbs to use in their cooking. In particular, I discovered their use of cowslips as an ingredient. Padstow is famous for its May Day festivities when the Obby Oss

For texture I have added some browned almonds and a sauce made simply from cream and horseradish.

Ingredients

Method

12 queen scallops (shell on) or 6 normal scallops

1 Remove the scallops from the shell and give them a quick wash to remove any dirt or grit, season with sea salt.

6 asparagus spears 3 tbsp olive oil Sea salt (to season) 30ml double cream 1 tsp horseradish cream 1 tbsp flaked almonds 8 yellow cowslip flowers

2 For the asparagus, warm 2 tbsp of olive oil in a pan then add the spears and salt, cover with a lid and allow to cook very slowly for 5 – 6 minutes, until just tender.

Remove from the pan and trim off the rough ends.

3 Meanwhile, in a frying pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil and add the almonds. Fry until lightly golden then carefully remove the flakes from the pan and pat dry with kitchen roll.

It is quite a simple and highly seasonal dish, celebrating great British produce and in particular the queenie!

4 Put the pan back on the heat until very hot and add the scallops for 40 seconds on the first side and 20 seconds on the reverse, they are small and can easily overcook so be careful to brown one side and barely cook the other to ensure they are not tough.

5 For the sauce, add the double cream to the horseradish with some sea salt and combine.

6 To assemble, use the asparagus spears as a bed and dot the plate with scallops, pour the sauce over and sprinkle the almonds and cowslip to finish.

> flavour heritage prime

fiddling while rome burns...

By Ian Bell

It seems to be an inescapable fact that, eventually, organised human society becomes its own worst enemy...

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> flavour heritage prime

heritage prime

A

s one generation passes along, a sort of complacency, possibly born of world-weariness, spiritual disdain or, perhaps, simple self-satisfaction, takes hold. ‘cultural’ change comes about as if by stealth: no desire for such change is expressed overtly yet, somehow, the levers are set, ignition engaged and, like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, change is quickly come upon us.

Culture decays in value.

Of course, it has to be said that change, innovation and movement can bring great benefits and even, sometimes, a sense of hope.

But we must accept also, that change can be malevolent, a deliberate and subversive sneak-thief.

Nowhere is this phenomenon better illustrated than in the curious rise of our supermarket culture and, (in case you ask) this has everything to do with flavour, for the distinctive taste of your food - the tang, its very spirit – and the nutritional benefits you expect it to convey, are directly linked to an essence of the land culture from which it springs.

This ‘culture of land’, hewn over long centuries of gathered wisdom, has been coldly misappropriated in the name of big retail businesses which, masquerading as some kind of ‘family friend’, have consciously swept away planning laws, designed expressly by those who have gone before, to protect our precious communities – villages, town centres and people from the Orwellian state of affairs that now surrounds us. A scene now prevails that is offensive only to those who can recall the shopping landscape (and the personalities who populated it!) before the retail behemoths began to take a stranglehold on shoppers and to fashion them into a kind of ‘club card robot’.

The British farmer, your most trusty ‘bellwether’, has been assaulted by this same false notion of change, going under the name of ‘progress’. Ultimately, malign commercial influences have exerted themselves relentlessly on our country’s farms, to the extent that small, family farms are rendered unviable, local wisdom is annihilated and formerly close-knit communities are dispersed.

Our erstwhile ‘big society’, far from being a politician’s brainchild, was fostered in the high street shops of our towns and villages. We were indeed a nation of shopkeepers – and a nation that was, at the same time, the most powerful in the world. Taking responsibility for the provenance of our food was an integral part of the shopkeeper’s craft, his shop a place where a deep trust was established with his customers who were, after all, his neighbours. He had no brand, no avaricious, anonymous shareholders to satisfy and no desire to ‘grow’ his business, but he knew his business.

But, hands up! It is we who have colluded in the rise of what must be seen as an abomination of grocer-ship, we who have been ‘taken in’. It is our lack of wisdom that threatens ‘those yet to follow’, be they butterflies, bees or babies.

Unless, with a will, we turn our backs on shopping in the marbled halls of the supermarket, entering them not even so much as for a newspaper, then we shall have no right to call ourselves intelligent, let alone wise.

In late 2011, a new branch of Waitrose will have been completed at Poundbury, near Dorchester. It is a novel building, constructed on what was once firstrate, species-rich, chalk farmland. It is a concrete irony that this is an edifice whose very grandeur resembles nothing so much as The Colosseum itself and whose imperious façade belies a poverty of ecological conscience and a scant regard for agricultural, spiritual, human necessities.

The benighted melodies that pour from the strings of our contemporary fiddles must be causing our Roman ancestors to spin in their graves, as they whisper, “Be warned, Every Little Hurts – a lot!” www.heritageprime.co.uk

In the context of all of the above, ‘progress’ is become a robber, the word a mere euphemism for the commercial sleight of hand which has in turn led to the consolidation of small farms into large ‘agricultural units’.

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Rosé tinted glasses As the first shards of sunlight break through the winter skies and springtime beckons, we plucky Brits cast aside our woolly jumpers and full-bodied red wines in favour of the crisp white and rosé wines that will occupy our glasses for the upcoming months of another rainy summer. Well, this certainly used to be the case – seasonal drinking that is – but in recent years there has been a marked increase in demand for lighter styles of wine so that nowadays rosé sales stay buoyant throughout the year.

W

hat hasn’t changed is the general perception that rosé is a simplistic style of wine that no connoisseur would ever be caught dead drinking. There are some winemakers that have set out to change this perception and in Provence they have succeeded, by producing wines that are a far cry from the Blossom Hill and Mateus rosés that many UK consumers have become accustomed to.

One of the most famous estates on the Côte d’Azur is Château Minuty, a fantastic property near St Tropez that has been famous since it was built back in the mid 1800s for making some of the region’s finest wines, but they have attracted attention in recent years for pioneering ‘pressurage direct’ in the production of their rosés. This technique involves taking the first free-run juice that is released by loading the press with the grapes, before the machine is even turned on! The weight of the fruit is enough to bring about a light pressing and this silky smooth premium juice is drained immediately to be fermented separately – giving a rosé wine with sumptuous texture and unrivalled elegance. The ‘M’ de Minuty Rosé (in its world-famous curved bottle) is made using 70 per cent pressurage direct juice,

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while the prestigious ‘Rosé et Or’ cuvée is made solely from this technique and can rightfully claim to be among the finest rosé wines in the world. The international jetset have well and truly embraced Minuty’s wines, with a bottle in every other ice bucket at the Cannes film festival.

Down the road at Château d’Esclans, they are also very proud of the wines they produce. So proud in fact that a few years ago they launched the most expensive rosé in the world – a cuvée called ‘Garrus’ (expect to pay £80 – £100 per bottle). The property is owned by Sacha Lichine, son of the Bordeaux legend Alexis Lichine, and he has always been hell bent on proving how complex rosé wine can be.

In order to do this he treats his wines in exactly the same way as the top Bordeaux estates and he even hired the winemaker of Mouton-Rothschild (one of the world’s most expensive wines) to make sure that things were done properly. This attitude is shared by Lichine’s cohorts at Minuty, but also at other top Provence estates like Domaine Ott, Tempier and Pibarnon. All of these producers are turning out delicious, refreshing and complex rosé wines that will thrill those fans of the style – and change the minds of those that aren’t! ■

> flavour mark andrew

2011 Rosé et Or; Château Minuty This blend of Grenache & Syrah has a sense of weight on the palate that is rarely found with rosé, while being refreshing and devilishly drinkable.

Silky and elegant with layers of wild strawberry fruit and gentle floral notes, this works superbly with a wide range of salads and light dishes.

Available at Roberson Wine (£22.95) or on the Kai (W1) & Bluebird (SW3)

2010 Whispering Angel; Caveau d’Esclans OK, so Garrus is probably going to be out of your rosé budget, but for those of you who are still interested in sampling the work of the Esclans team the Whispering Angel offers a more affordable alternative. The pale colour is indicative of how clean and fresh the wine is, but the bright red fruit and gentle savoury notes make it an excellent accompaniment with salmon and other seafood.

Available at Roberson Wine (£19.95) or on the list at Sketch (W1& The Savoy (WC2R)

Mark Andrew Mark Andrew is the Senior Wine Buyer at Kensington-based merchant Roberson Wine. In addition to their award-winning shop on London’s Kensington High Street, Roberson supply wine to many of the UK’s top restaurants.

When Mark is not travelling Europe, seeking out interesting new wines, he runs Roberson’s wine school and fine wine tastings, judges at numerous wine competitions (including the Decanter Magazine World Wine Awards) and is currently studying towards his Master of Wine qualification.

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Best in Show…

Says Who? Dishing out awards for restaurants is not as straightforward for Nick Harman as the judges may have us believe...

The recent 50 Best Restaurants Awards has once again provoked debate, tears and a few tantrums, a lot of it from people who weren’t invited to the ceremony and felt slighted. Many were called but few were chosen and the criteria for being on the guest list somewhat unfathomable.

Leaving that aside, do we need a 50 best list anyway? Isn’t it a pointless exercise? Well, people like lists; 10 best books, 10 best films of all time, 10 best dachsunds etc... Who’s to judge though? Can you compare a comedy film to a film about the holocaust for example? One is intended to make you smile and one to make you cry. Do we measure the amount of times the audience hysterically laughed their popcorn out in an arc or alternatively how many lachrymose litres they wept? And how can you say one is truly better anyway? You can only really say that one was perhaps best in its particular genre.

Nick Harman is editor of www.foodepedia.co.uk and was shortlisted last year for The Guild of Food Writer’s Restaurant Reviewer of the Year.

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Is a restaurant serving, simple, easily obtainable food better or worse than a restaurant where chef goes out camouflaged at dawn foraging for the most esoteric ingredients? You might as well argue that an apple is better than an orange. Or vice versa.

Then there’s the fact that restaurants, unlike books, films and dachsunds, which are all finished products, are mutable and so have good or bad days. You might well argue that they shouldn’t but that’s the way it is, at least until restaurants are run by machines.

The critics are not yet machines; they have good and bad days too. Who knows what state of elation or despair a critic may be in on review night? A wet miserable winter’s evening, he’d rather be at home watching The Voice, but the reservation has been made and a deadline for copy is inescapable. In the critic trudges, already unhappy and disinclined to be forgiving, indeed may be subconsciously looking for something to take his grump out on.

I’ve had brilliant food in the most unexpected places, perhaps the food wasn’t actually that good in retrospect but at the particular time it tasted great to me. It was a subjective reaction.

We shall always need objective appraisals of restaurants of course but, just as in the case of books, films and dachsunds, we must beware of being told what we should and shouldn’t like by people we don’t even know.

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