Chef Wise

Beautiful British asparagus is only around for a few precious weeks.  So to make the most of this super home-grown veg, the chefs who cook in the lovely little pubs run in Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and further afield by Peach have not only found a fantastic crop 'grown with love' near the Sussex coast, but also come up with a novel way of serving it. They have launched 'Dip Your Own' asparagus where you can dip the best of British asparagus into a pot of delicious home-made Hollandaise sauce, grated egg and Parmesan. Soft, free-range egg combined with the slightly sharp, nutty taste of Parmesan and a classic Hollandaise make for a fantastic flavour combination given a new twist – and everything comes on your own individual board so all you have to do is dip, and enjoy. The asparagus they are serving comes from the small farm owned by John Barfoot and his family in Botley, Sussex, on the South Coast where the micro climate is as warm as anywhere in Br...

Food and drink gifts are the perfect solution to Father's Day gift dilemmas and a foodie gift experience or workshop provides an extra wow factor. Join him for quality father & child bonding time, or give him a uniquely delicious gift that will create memories, skills and knowledge to last a lifetime.  Here are ten of our favourite Father's Day Food Experiences. Salmon Fishing Tuition - Scottish Borders If your Dad has ever fancied learning to fish there's no better introduction to fishing than being taught by Europe's top female salmon fishing expert in the beautiful Scottish Borders, home to some of the most famous salmon runs in the world! This salmon fishing experience is perfect for complete beginners, groups of friends and family of mixed ability and for experienced anglers who want to refine and improve their skills. A sensational Father's Day gift experience. http://www.dosomethingdelicious.com/experiences/salmon-fishing-casting-instr...

Calling all new food and drink artisans - the train to success is now waiting at Old Street Station! Kitchen Table Projects are launching a unique platform for emerging businesses who are looking to take their product to the next destination. Be one of fifteen very special artisans to take part in the first ever School of Food - and secure a ticket to showcase your product to thousands of shoppers and commuters at Old Street Station, right in the heart of London's start up scene. Or be a visitor and experience the top fifteen new products this summer from June 22nd until September 13th. From the Kitchen Table Kitchen Table Projects is a foodie business based in London - passionate about helping artisan food producers springboard their products to the wider market. Founded by entrepreneur and former pastry chef Tara Sundramoorthi, Kitchen Table Projects aims to champion all those hidden artisan gems. Tara launched Kitchen Table Projects to help other people along the p...

As part of the celebrations to mark English Wine Week (23rd May - Sunday 31st May 2015) Saltwood on the Green restaurant, near Hythe on the south Kent coast, is to host a special gourmet  Wild food & Kentish wine   evening  on Tuesday 26th May, with Biddenden Vineyard. English Wine Week is a national campaign, designed to raise awareness of English wine across the country through retail outlets, including supermarkets, independent wine merchants, delicatessens, hotels, pubs, bars and restaurants. Vineyards across the country will also be opening their doors to welcome visitors, offering tours, tastings and special offers.   The special gourmet evening begins with a welcome Saltwood Spritz aperitif – with dandelion and burdock. The first course will be a Bittercress pannacotta, slow-cooked egg, cured meats, wild-leaf salad and will be accompanied by Bidenden's Bacchus, 2013. A plate of razor clams follow served with sea purslane, gourge pickl...

Gut horror; 3 in 10 Brits believe gluten is a carbohydrate found in potatoes, pasta and pizza   More than one in ten Brits have switched to a gluten-free diet   91% say they know what coeliac is, yet two thirds of those don’t know the symptoms   9%, of young adults, think Coeliac is a famous Italian restaurant   1 in 20 think IBS is a Silicone Valley computer company LONDON, 11 MAY 2015: New research out today, and in time for Coeliac Awareness Week, has revealed we’re still a nation that’s ignorant about intolerances despite over 1 in 5 of the UK thought to have a food allergy or intolerance. The research, by Udi’s Gluten Free, has revealed that more than one in ten (11%) have now switched to a gluten-free diet. Indeed 29% of those aged 18-24 have cut gluten out of their diet. Despite this, ignorance of coeliac disease is still widespread. Just 14% of young adults recognise the symptoms of gluten intolerance; with 9% thinking ‘coeliac’ is a...

Divine Chocolate is delighted and proud to have won the Guardian Sustainable Business Award for Social Impact Innovation. The ceremony was held in Siemen's The Crystal at Royal Victoria Docks on April 29th. The awards were presented by The Guardian's Jo Confino, and other winners included IKEA (twice), Marks & Spencer, as well as Arthur Kay of Bio-Bean, and the Interface carpet company. The award was a recognition for the many and significant impacts owning Divine Chocolate has had on the lives of Kuapa Kokoo cocoa farmers - from community, farm, and education improvements to progressive programmes on women's empowerment, adult literacy, and model farm development. As well as empowering farmers and giving them a voice in the chocolate supply chain, Divine has also empowered chocolate lovers here in UK and increasingly around the world - giving them the opportunity to make change happen. Communications Director Charlotte Borger and National Accounts Manag...

Brighton's award-winning Indian Summer restaurant is closing at 10.30pm on Sunday 24th May ... then relocating to larger premises at 70 East Street, Brighton BN1 1HQ and reopening on Thursday 28th May at 6pm. Following a £90,000 reinvestment and the creation of at least seven new jobs for kitchen, bar and front of house staff, the new, larger venue will seat c90 diners, half as many again as its current site. The existing restaurant is so popular, that in the summer months it has to turn away 100 people every weekend. On Valentine's night alone this year, 180 "walk ins" had to be denied a table. The number of people unable to book online must be considerably more. "Whilst it's nice to be full, turning away so many potential customers, isn't brilliant business," said restaurant co owner Minesh Agnihotri, adding, “By moving next door to our existing premises, means the restaurant will be closer to the sea.” Indian Summer is ...

Until 10th May Nicholson’s pubs across the nation will play host to a beer festival, showcasing the very best in cask ales and speciality beers. With an unrivalled selection of 14 Golden Ales to match the increasingly golden days of summer, the Nicholson’s Beer Festival will offer something for everyone – whether you’re an IPA expert or appreciating an adventurous Blonde for the first time. By downloading the Nicholson’s Hop Circle app, the first pint is a welcome £1. Throughout the festival, there will be a unique opportunity to sample ales from Nicholson’s Grain to Glass competition, where a trio of British brewers were tasked with improvising ales from a ‘blind’ selection of ingredients. Varieties of ‘Style’, ‘ABV Range’ and ‘Hop Region’ were all selected at random, with the brewers relying on their creativity, experience and brewing know-how to create three innovative beers that will delight any inquisitive festival guest. Alongside the Grain to Glass beer, cask ale...

Make a date with Yorkshire’s own Big Apple, and get intimate with its delicious morsels, with a preview of a city-licking new one-day food trail from gourmet trail experts  Yorkshire Food Finder Hubbed around The Star Inn the City restaurant, the latest venture from award-winning Star at Harome chef Andrew Pern, the unique ‘Treks in the City’ trail invites you to delve into the gourmet nooks and crannies of the ancient city like never before, with a peak at its best artisan food producers, and a chance to get your hands dirty making chocolate, baking bread and blending coffee. Organised in conjunction with Visit York, Yorkshire Food Finder’s metropolitan trail will allow you to eat behind the scenes of the city, with exclusive access to producers such as Guppy’s Chocolates and Puckett’s Pickles and hands on sessions at Haxby Bakehouse and York Coffee Emporium. The trip will culminate in a fabulous feast at the Star Inn the City, using the produce seen in the day. Can ...

Giggling Squid, the popular high growth family of Thai restaurants, has completed work on a new site in Billericay, Essex.  Giggling Squid expects to open its 120-seater restaurant on the High Street in Billericay in July or August, following a £50,000 refurbishment. Occupying the former Cleaver chicken, ribs and burger restaurant, next door to Waitrose, Giggling Squid will create 20 new jobs. “Opening in Essex has been a crucial stage in our growth plans for quite some time - with its high proportion of City-bound commuters, Billericay is a great location from which to take the brand forward,” said Giggling Squid MD, adding, “Billericay people are a demanding bunch, they know what they want, they enjoy the finer things in life and go out and get them.” Co owned by husband and wife team Andrew and Pranee Laurillard (the brand is derived from the nickname of one of their three children), Giggling Squid's formula of serving “rustic” Thai cuisine, with the emphasis o...

For one night only, renowned cookbook writer and former head chef at Riverford Field Kitchen, Jane Baxter will be tantalising taste buds with a pop-up supper to celebrate the launch of this year's The Shops at Dartington Food Fair (24th – 25th May 2015). Set in The Shops at Dartington's enchanting courtyard, Jane will be wowing all with her culinary skills and preparing a delicious feast using locally sourced, seasonal produce. Marking the fifth birthday of the Food Fair, this delightful pop-up restaurant, a first for The Shops at Dartington will take place on Saturday 23rd May at 7pm. Guests will be tempted with divine sharing-platter starters of mixed antipasti including mussel, leek and bacon bruschetta, arancini, cured salmon and charcuterie.  Jane, well-known for her innovative Baxters Movable Feasts, will continue to amaze diners throughout the main and dessert courses using local food and drink, most of which will be sourced from suppliers in 'The Food Sh...

A classic combination, Tideford Organics' heavenly NEW Chicken Soup with Spring Vegetables is packed full of goodness. Using the best organic chicken, Tideford Organics has expertly combined flavoursome, fresh vegetables from the British kitchen garden including peas, leeks, courgettes, potatoes and spring onions to create an immensely tasty and nutritious, light soup. To finish, it's seasoned to perfection using garlic, crushed black pepper and spring herbs including mint and parsley. Lovingly produced in Devon, this Chicken Soup with Spring Vegetables is a British classic which tastes exactly like you'd make at home.  It's a real crowd pleaser which is perfect for lunch, or a light evening meal. Tideford Organics is proud to only use organic vegetables, herbs and spices, which are all slowly cooked - resulting in truly heavenly flavours. Gluten, wheat and dairy free, it's suitable for coeliacs, is low in salt, low in fat and contains no added sugar...

Foods You Can, a resource website for multiple food intolerance, allergies, lifestyle & health, is excited to announce that they now have Slimming World recipes on their website. The Foods You Can website has a variety of informative sections where you can compare foods, find places to eat, search for recipes and much more. “We're very excited to now be listing Slimming World recipes! It can be confusing trying to follow a plan when you're unable to eat certain foods,” said Bunmi Scott, the founder of Foods You Can. “By having recipes available, we're working with Slimming World to help make life much simpler for those who follow the Slimming World healthy eating plan and have a food intolerance, allergies, or live free-from out of choice.” The Foods You Can website now features a 'Slimming World Friendly' option on the recipe search tool. “You can use our bespoke search tool to select what you are free-from, and if you want meals to be Slimmin...

“If Carlsberg were to do” museums, well, this is pretty much what they would be like. Super-spacious rooms glittering with super-awesome pieces of Hollywood memorabilia from nearly a century of the world's biggest movies. Excitement from the Hollywood eye-candy is intensified by super-friendly servers bringing super-delicious refreshments to superbly-placed tables. Planet Hollywood  is what dads really want for Father's Day! Top eye-candy for dad's inner/outer geek includes: A real Stormtrooper's helmet from Star Wars Life size cybernetic, reprogrammed T-800 Arnie model from Terminator 2: Judgement Day Halle Berry's famous 'Jinx' orange bikini from Die Another Day The Walther PPK pistol used by 007's Sean Connery and Roger Moore The Han Solo in Carbonite as used in Star Wars – The Empire Strikes Back Eric Lidell's shorts and shirt worn in the film Chariots of Fire John McClane's firefighter...