• Artisan producers
Tuesday, 24 February 2015 20:52

Welsh Rarebit in Essex

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I was working in Essex last week and discovered my B&B was B and no B so I had to go hunting for my breakfast. I headed for Dedham where I had heard there was a very good tea room which opens at 9am and served breakfast. Essex Rose Tea House is owned by Wilkin and Sons, famous for the Tiptree preserves.I ordered the Welsh Rarebit made with Tiptree mustard. Perfect, as was the service and the pot of tea.

 

 

 

essex rose

Thursday, 12 February 2015 23:12

Colin's .... No, Caroline's Country Kitchen

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Nipping through Stowmarket today I saw this street food van and the homemade cakes and soup caught my eye. I bought a pot of Butternut Soup and a small Apple and Blackberry Crumble to take home. Then I started chatting to the chirpy owner, Caroline.She told me that she had made the soup and the crumbles the night before. She also had a heart shaped cake and tubs of homemade rice pudding. The sign for the stall said Colin's Catering Services so I asked Caroline where Colin was. "Oh! There isn't a Colin. That's the board that came with the trailer when I bought it!"

Saturday, 10 January 2015 17:00

Ben, bangers and a new restaurant in Bury St Edmunds.

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His name is Ben Hutton. His restaurant is called Ben's. He has just opened in Bury St Edmunds and here is the link to his story. The food is all locally sourced, with pork reared by Ben himself to create his own recipe Ben's Bangers. The bangers come served on pancetta mash with shredded cabbage, buttered carrots and onion gravy. They were very good indeed. You can't beat bangers and mash on a cold winters night. We also tried the Trio of Jacob lamb prime cuts, which were shoulder, a lamb cutlet and liver. I would argue that liver is not a prime cut and is in fact offal, but I like offal and was happy to order it. It was served with boulangere potatoes, rosemary jus, root veg and savoy cabbage. The lamb was sourced from the local Culford flock and was tender, with plenty of it. I would have liked more gravy. Yes, I call it gravy. Puddings we tried included a selection of the local Alder Carr ice creams ...heaven.. and a cheesecake of the day which was stem ginger and honey. Light, not cloying and very well flavoured. A homemade tuile biscuit perched on the top, some lovely citrussy honey sauce drizzled over and unnecessary squeezy chocolate sauce garnish on the plate. It is good to see a new independent restaurant open in a town which is over run with chains.

 

Wednesday, 03 December 2014 19:38

Canape Roulette

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We nipped into Bury St Edmunds last weekend to the Christmas Fair which was running throughout the town. Fancying a little street food, it turned out that we were too late at 7.30pm, with many outlets sold out. So the second plan was to nip to Bury's latest fine dining opening on Angel Hill called 1921(the one that used to be Graze)to try their bar canapes. Chef Patron is Zack Deakins, formerly from The Bildeston Crown and now heading up his own business.Canapes are £1 each but we went for the offer of all eight for £6.What a bargain!All were delicious and we played Canape Roulette. Spin the pen to see which canape to eat next. That kept us amused as did coming up with a cocktail. We tried for an Aperol Spritz, sorry no can't do that, Margarita? No, don't have the ingredients. So,we bought a bottle of Prosecco, a shot of Cognac and asked for a bowl of sugar lumps, all happily provided and made our own Prosecco Cocktails. A fun night out.

Sunday, 23 November 2014 18:57

The Milk Shed

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This is the most fun I have had buying produce from a farm shop in ages. Driving past the Flixton Aviation Museum into Bungay, I came across the Milk Shed at Fen Farm Dairy. Being a sucker for raw milk(you can't beat that creamy layer that appears on the top after a few hours in the fridge) I stopped and was amazed to find inside, the milk dispensing machine and the self serve fridge packed with eggs and the delicious farm made, Brie style Baron Bigod cheese. Put a pound coin in the machine (there is a change machine if you don't have the coins) place the container under the spout and out comes a litre of milk. Better than playing a fruit machine any day, you win everytime.

 

Friday, 14 November 2014 19:53

An Inspector Calls .. the figures

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For those of you that think that I have the dream job. Here are the figures. Last month I dined out 60 times, averaging 15 meals a week in either cafes, pubs, hotels or other dining establishments.  I ate belly of pork 6 times, 8 curries, 8 fish pies, a handmade burger on 9 occasions, 4 sausage rolls, 5 slices of cheesecake(assorted) 4 lemon possets and a selection of confit meats, fish and vegetables. I drove 1600 miles and consumed an average of 1,128 calories a meal, making that a total of 67,680 calories for the month. No wonder my trousers are tight! 

Monday, 13 October 2014 10:58

Plump Pumpkins at Alder Carr

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Haven't been to Alder Carr Farm for months and so set off for a sunny Saturday lunch with Mum. It was very busy - because it clearly has some of the best produce in the area and an interesting lunch menu that goes on until 3pm. We shared a paté dotted with pistachios, venison pie (with chips - sometimes I just have to have the gravy with chips...) and then a dessert pear, served with their own first rate coffee ice cream. It was all tasty and great value. The seasonal and locally sourced evidence is right there in the huge display of bright orange pumpkins and squash - to remind us that autumn is here.

Sunday, 21 September 2014 18:11

T2

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There is floor to ceiling tea here at T2; different varieties and combinations including White, Black, Oolong, Tissanes, Floral and more. Tea paraphernalia like those specialist tea strainers and infusers that you can't find anywhere else that are essential for herb leaf tea, and lots of tea making for tasting - which when I got there was the perfect late morning pick-me-up (I tried French Earl Grey and Irish Breakfast). There is a Tea Society, a High Tea Society and a Secret Tea Society and a weird teapot that pours it out of the bottom...and they're from Australia, and have just arrived in the UK. 

tea shop

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