In our constant bid to bring you all that's best about restaurants and eating in Britain, we are joining forces with Taste Festivals 2007, described as 'The Chelsea Flower Show for food'.
Described by the organisers as 'sumptuous food festivals', these events will be taking place throughout the UK and give visitors a chance to revel in foodiedom. There will be a whole range of gastro features including live demonstrations by celebrity chefs such as Gordon Ramsay, and a delicious magazine Producers' market with the opportunity to shop for top quality fresh produce.
Dates
Taste of Edinburgh The Meadows (7-10 June 2007)
Taste of Dublin Iveagh Gardens (14 -17 June 2007)
Taste of London Regent's Park (21-24 June 2007)
Taste of Bath Royal Victoria Park (28 -1 July 2007)
Taste of Birmingham Cannon Hill Park (5 -8 July 2007)
For more information or to book tickets,
MyVillage 03rd April "As we excitedly approached the gates of Regents Park for the Taste of London Festival we couldnt help guffawing at the poor sods queuing in the rain for tickets.
Ha, thank God we had the brains to book in advance thus avoiding long and unnecessary queuesbut no, we, the not-always-but-this-time-prepared, queued while pay-on-the-door customers sauntered past the weaving crowds and had possession of their goody bag in minutes. We wondered if this was an indication of what was to come.
After finally entering the enclosure we were handed a menu card with a list of all the exhibitors and the culinary delights they had on offer. The ticket price included 20 worth of crowns - the events currency - which could be exchanged for tasty morsels from some of Londons, and Britains, best chefs.
Deftly avoiding puddles the size of small swimming pools and pointy umbrella spikes we weaved past banners exclaiming Summer is here! to Awana, a leading Malaysian restaurant in Chelsea, and stood boldly in the rain enjoying Roti Canai and Beef Rendangsublime. Our next conquest was the Michelin starred Le Gavroche to savour their Daube de Beouf only to find them sold out of everything and taking down their stand. Confused we went to our next choice where staff sat on their serving tables enjoying the dangers of nicotine with no food in sight. What exactly had we paid 35 for? Yes, it was the last session of the weekend but it was only the beginning of it.
After some grumbling and threatening to make official complaints we happened upon the wine stalls where the sun seemed to be shining, or was that wishful thinking? Samples were free, tiny samples, and a very small glass was between five and six crowns (or 2.50-3.00) but the variety of wines available was excellent, if a bit lacking on local produce.
Queues at many of the high-end restaurant stalls were verging on the ridiculous so we headed to the home grown products to see what delights they had on offer. Chilli cheese from the Isle of Arran (www.islandcheese.co.uk) was creamy, crumbly and an explosion of spice; Fentimans botanically-brewed Curiosity Cola curiously turned us against leading brands and the non-alcoholic white wine, which honestly tasted like wine, from www.bottlegreen.co.uk was impressive, although didnt quite convert us from our favourite tipple.
Other local produce included handmade pate from Patchwork Traditional Foods (www.patchwork-pate.co.uk), chutneys and pickles by The Tracklement Company (www.tracklements.co.uk) and many more.
So, you see, sometimes the best surprises are right on your doorstep. " Linda McCormick, MyVillage: 02nd July
