food
The Clock House, Ripley
NEW MANAGER FOR THE CLOCK HOUSE, RIPLEY
Serina Drake, owner of The Clock House in Ripley, Surrey, has announced the appointment of Iain McArthur as the Michelin-starred restaurant's new Restaurant Manager. McArthur, whose career includes stints in South Africa at a luxury country lodge hotel, and South Lodge Hotel, is widely experienced in the hospitality business and his appointment follows the departure of Joseph Pocceschi. After four years heading up The Clock House front of house team, Joseph has returned to France to run his family-owned hotel and restaurant.Commenting on the appointment, Serina Drake said: "I am delighted that Iain is joining our team. Having previously worked together a few years ago re-launching The Anchor, I know that the restaurant is in safe hands. Iain is a consummate foodie and has great breadth of knowledge. Also, being a trained chef gives him a real understanding of the overall guest experience. He is a great asset to our team and already has some very exciting plans for the future."
"I feel privileged to work in such a renowned establishment," says McArthur, "The Clock House building has held a Michelin star, in one form or another, under Serina's proprietorship for over 12 years, and together with other recent awards, is widely recognised to be one of the best dining experiences in the area. I am very much looking forward to working with head chef Fred Clapperton, and the rest of the brigade."
To book please visit >>> www.theclockhouserestaurant.co.uk
Next Generation Noodles
09/03/18 14:22 Filed in: Food
Now available in Tesco and Sainsbury’s stores, oomi noodles offer a functional convenience food like no other and provide a product that is both healthy and tasty.
Whilst low carbohydrate noodles have been on the market for a few years oomi take things to a new level. Not only do they provide a low carbohydrate noodle that has the same bite and taste as a high quality fresh noodle, but one that is also gluten free and bursting with lean protein.With nearly 13g of high quality protein per serving, oomi provide a low carbohydrate, gluten free noodle with a difference, which will appeal to anyone living an active and healthy lifestyle. Whilst the carbohydrate levels are 75% fewer than your average chilled egg noodle, their superior protein source, sustainably sourced white fish, provides important nutrition to support exercise. oomi don’t just differ from other noodles on the nutrition front. Current low carbohydrate and gluten free noodles often rely on a watery pack environment, which oomi’s patented production method avoids, presenting a finished product indistinguishable in taste and texture to a classic fresh noodle. As with fresh noodles, oomi also offer a high level of convenience. Available in ‘snap- pack packaging’, providing two individual portions, they can be thrown in a wok, heated in a microwave and even eaten cold from the pack in vibrant salads. Basically, everywhere you use a noodle, use an oomi noodle!
Most importantly oomi noodles taste great and their combination of quality protein and noodle convenience creates a delicious food with purpose.
To find out more please visit >>> www.oominoodles.com
Refectorio restaurant at Abadía Retuerta LeDomaine
27/11/17 16:41 Filed in: Food
The exclusive hotel located in a restored 12th-century abbey surrounded by vineyards in Spain’s Duero wine-growing region – and Chef Marc Segarra have been recognised for their culinary excellence with one Michelin Star.
Refectorio received its first Michelin Star in 2014, achieved just two years after the hotel opened. Thanks to the extraordinary vision of Chef Segarra and his skilled culinary team, the restaurant maintained its one Michelin Star rating in 2015, 2016 and now again in 2017.Refectorio restaurant at Abadía Retuerta LeDomaine – the exclusive hotel located in a restored 12th-century abbey surrounded by vineyards in Spain’s Duero wine-growing region – and Chef Marc Segarra have been recognised for their culinary excellence with one Michelin Star.
Refectorio received its first Michelin Star in 2014, achieved just two years after the hotel opened. Thanks to the extraordinary vision of Chef Segarra and his skilled culinary team, the restaurant maintained its one Michelin Star rating in 2015, 2016 and now again in 2017.
"We are extremely proud to be consistently recognised by Michelin as being among the best restaurants in Spain and the world,” said Enrique Valero, Managing Director of Abadía Retuerta LeDomaine. “It is the passion, effort and enthusiasm of the Abadía Retuerta LeDomaine team that brought us the prestigious One Michelin Star ranking. Day after day, we strive to exceed the expectations of our guests and make their stay unforgettable."
The gastronomic focus of Refectorio has been based, from the beginning, on innovative contemporary cuisine prepared with the highest-quality, locally sourced ingredients – ensuring that the hotel contributes to the development of the sustainable local economy. The region boasts a great culinary richness with a wide array of fine food products. Refectoria offers two tasting menus for dinner, which vary throughout the year based on the available seasonal products.
"From the first day, I was challenged to do something extraordinary in the kitchen in keeping with the 900-year-old heritage of our world-class hotel,” said Chef Segarra. “Through maximum commitment and a focus on creativity and detail, our goal was to surprise guests with each bite of each dish, which would be paired with the exquisite wines of our own winery. It was the perfect recipe to bring our guests an unprecedented culinary experience.”
For more information visit >>> www.ledomaine.es
Sweet Tooth Tours
London Tours
Trained pastry chef Lynne Staartjes introduces her company, Sweet Tooth Tours Limited. The company launched in July 2017Tourists and Londoners alike are able to discover London’s best independent bakeries, gelaterias, cheesemongers, chocolate shops and more on the tours. Each tour has up to 6 guests, lasts approximately 2 ½ hours and includes tasting portions at several stops. Guests are accompanied around Belgravia on foot to discover its edible hidden gems. In addition to learning about the desserts tasted, the shops and their owners, the tour also incorporates the history and stories of the local area. There are exclusive opportunities to peek into the onsite kitchens and chat with many of the shop owners.
Guests can choose the signature Belgravia tour, a gluten-free version or the “Sugar and Spice” tour which also incorporates savory stops. A Soho version of the tour will be launching soon. For the ultimate tour of London’s sweet spots, Sweet Tooth Tours has partnered with Rolls-Royce to offer an exclusive version of the tour by chauffer driven Rolls-Royce. The tours are perfect gifts and can also be arranged for children’s birthday parties, baby showers, or hen dos. Additionally, courses such as bread or scone making and cake decorating can be added to enhance the experience. Bespoke tours can be tailored to visit sweet spots around London or as far afield as Amsterdam, Paris or New York. Sweet Tooth Tours has been featured in Town & Country, The Observer and British Airways High Life amongst other publications.
Prices start at £48 per person please visit www.sweettoothtours.com for more information.
Ancient woodcraft lies behind Silent Pool distillers new Wry Vodka
Silent Pool Distillery has launched a new spirit embodying the key characteristic of the Surrey Hills – its woodland. Prepare for a cocktail with bite!
Wry Vodka is distilled a second time over rye malted specially for the Albury based distillery in one of the last surviving traditional floor maltings in the UK at Warminster. It is then filtered over charcoal cooked in a traditional kiln by local craftsman John Sinclair, creating a unique fusion of ancient skills.“Charcoal has been made in the Surrey Hills for at least 2000 years,” said John, “But this is the first time it has been commissioned by a distillery for vodka production. It’s very exciting.”
Distiller Tom Hutchings visited John at his woodland base in the Sheepleas on the North Downs above Horsley. After a lot of research they chose hornbeam, one of the oldest and most sought after English tree species growing in the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
“Hornbeam is the hardest of our native British hardwoods,” said John. “I selected specific trees and set up the kiln for a long slow 18 hour burn. It rested for a further 24 hours until it was cool enough to be bagged up and then we took it down to the distillery.”
Tom said he wanted the vodka to have a style of rye, but with the twist of being filtered over hornbeam: “It’s aimed at cocktails, to give a bit more character,” he said. “It has a tiny bit of bite which makes it more versatile and interesting to use in drinks. And our Wry vodka has a bit more punch than the others.”
So experiment with cocktails using Silent Pool Distillers Wry Vodka for a sophisticated urban take, ironically made using very ancient country crafts.
John Sinclair is a local legend keeping alive the ancient forest crafts in the Surrey Hills AONB – the most wooded area in England. He is part of the Sussex and Surrey Coppice Group sustaining traditional coppice woodland. A fund of information about all things woody, he can be contacted on jdsinclair2013@gmail.com.
Wry Vodka is available from Silent Pool Distillery at www.silentpooldistillers.com.
Polesden Lacey Food Festival
Sujet Saenkham is Australia’s hottest Thai chef
He learnt to cook on the family farm in a remote Thai village before moving to Australia, and he now has a critically acclaimed restaurant empire in Sydney. He’s coming to the UK to publish his cookbook Spice I Am and bring real Thai food to Britain’s dinner tables.
London events with pop-up kings Chateau Marmot sold out in hours but lucky folk in Surrey will be able to see him cook and buy a signed copy of his book Spice I Am (and more importantly taste his amazing food!) at 12noon on Saturday 3rd October in the demo tent at the Polesden Lacey Food Festival, nr Dorking.
The festival is run by Fantastic British Food Festivals, who are based in Leatherhead, and will also showcase local producers and food businesses from 2nd to 4th October. For more info visit their website here >>> LINK
Best of British at Drake's in conjunction with Nyetimber
An exceptional dinner that will include some wines from Nyetimber's rare library stock
This will be held in November at Drake's Restaurant in Ripley, Surrey. Chef Steve Drake is passionate about using locally sourced ingredients wherever possible and his love of local produce extends to the wine list at the Michelin-starred restaurant in Ripley, Surrey, which he and Serina Drake opened in 2004. Since then their business has consistently won accolades for the innovative, creative and skilfully prepared food and superb service. Now, following a visit to the company's Sussex vineyard by Steve and sommelier Michael Fiducia, a special ‘Best of British' dinner will take place on November 12 in conjunction with Nyetimber English Wines."We have been serving Nyetimber at Drake's for some years now," said Steve, "but after the chance to taste the different vintages and variants while enjoying Nyetimber's lyrical, bucolic setting, which dates back to the Domesday Book in 1086, I jumped at the chance to host a dinner with these amazing English sparkling wines. We have really enjoyed creating this special menu and selecting appropriate Nyetimber wines to pair with the different courses."
Steve and Michael have put together a menu that showcases some of the very best autumn ingredients to complement the wines. The five-course menu, plus ‘snacks' on arrival, water, coffee and petit fours, accompanied by matching wines (including some from Nyetimber's rare library stock), includes dishes with pumpkin, Devon crab, monkfish and roast guinea fowl.
The full menu and further details on how to book can be found on the Drake's website - drakesrestaurant.co.uk. On the night, representatives from Nyetimber - including its winemaker - will be on hand to introduce the wines and answer questions.