Italian Food at its Finest
Being Italian by birth I have grown accustomed to eating what is, in my biased opinion, the best food in the world. But I have struggled for many years to find a restaurant serving the type of food I can only describe as (in an involuntary Italian accent) ‘just like mama used to make’! I’ve been to many an Italian restaurant claiming to deliver ‘authentic’ Italian cuisine but instead offering Anglicised imitations of traditional dishes. All this changed however, when I discovered ‘Friends of Flavours’ – an unassuming restaurant nestled in the terraced roads of Penge, serving Italian food to compete with the heavyweight high street chains.
Small and intimate, the back of the restaurant opens out to a beautiful, rustic outside sitting area with vines creeping up the terracotta coloured walls. On a sunny day I’m sure it’s easy to forget that you’re near Bromley and instead imagine yourself dining al fresco in the back streets of Rome!
I started my meal with Caprino Fritto – discs of deep fried goat’s cheese with a silky, sweet and sour raspberry sauce, served on lightly toasted bread. I refrained from ordering another but unashamedly scraped my plate clean so as not to waste a bit. My main course was a beautifully presented dish of four freshly made Ravioli Asparagi served in a creamy butter, Parmesan and sage sauce, sprinkled with Parmegiano, drizzled with spots of balsamic vinegar and garnished with a fresh sprig of sage. Almost too beautiful to eat…almost. To finish, I ordered panacotta served with a raspberry coulis. Perfectly set and deliciously creamy, when it came to the table I regretted previously agreeing to share a dessert. I won’t make that mistake next time!
I mustn’t forget the lovely staff either – the service was exemplary, they’re passionate about what they do and they extend the customary Italian hospitality to all so you can expect to be treated like family. Humble yet soul-affirming, this meal epitomised all the wonderful qualities of Italian food. So, if you’re wondering what food ‘like mama used to make’actually tastes like, I recommend you visit this hidden gem delivering the heart and soul of Italian cooking.
To find out more about Friends of Flavours you can visit their website or follow them on Twitter @FriendsFlavours
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Well, after many years of Mexican being heralded as the next big thing in the UK foodservice market it would seem its time has finally come. Having been in foodservice marketing for fourteen years I can recall many a debate at the NRA show with my British counterparts on the issue of ‘will the UK follow the US when it comes to Mexican cuisine?’. The stock answer was very much a ‘probably not, just look at the demographic of the US population, of course Mexican food is popular, the UK is very different, I can’t seeing it taking off over here.’ Oh how they must be eating their words now, as in 2015 our appetite for Mexican eclipses all other cuisines it would seem. In fact Mexican food has overtaken Indian in the ready meal wars with spend up 12.8% to £264million in one year*. Mexican cuisine is now an established out of home flavour trend observed by the likes of Horizons, Technomic and Allegra, with restaurants including Wahaca, Chipotle, Tortilla and Las Iguanas dominating our high streets.
A pint of Guinness, a side of tobacco onions and non-existent portion control. That was my lunch for three days running. Well, maybe not the tobacco onions every day, but the stout and hefty portions, well they’re in fact understatements!
In a high stakes game of one-upmanship, someone will, inevitably, take things too far and end up with torn trousers and/or pants. Or no trousers and/or pants. Or in tears. Or in a ditch in tears with no trousers or pants. And so it is with foodservice trends.
There are few things that will motivate me to head into The City of London on a hot and sticky Wednesday evening, but luckily for Wirehive, gin ranks very highly amongst these few things. So I hot-footed it (quite literally) from the end of the tube line at glamorous Ealing Broadway via the lovely Central Line to The City of London Distillery, a hop, skip and a jump from Chancery Lane tube, to mix and mingle with digital gurus and geeks alike at the Wirehive gin tasting event. Wirehive is a digital hosting company and also well known for its Wirehive 100 Awards (which we eagerly await the shortlist for!). And I have to say I rather like the company’s approach to new business, which is far less ‘hard sell’ and far more ‘get ‘em tiddly on gin and have a chat’. Now it is safe to say that our Digital Director Andy was very much amongst his own, surrounded by other men in jeans and shirts talking UX and disaster recovery galore. I however may not be a fully-fledged digital geek, but with the help of our regular internal workshops from the digital team and a bit of extra-curricular reading I managed to keep up and throw in the odd salient point here and there.
(The following blog contains ‘west country’ slang for which the author apologises and translation has been dutifully offered….)
It was an exciting and busy week for jellybeanand clients last week as the annual LACA Main Event and conference came to the UK’s second city. Up bright and early, I jumped on the train and headed north to see our wonderful clients, Hobart UK, Tilda Foodservice, Dr Oetker, Pritchitts and Aviko UK who were all exhibiting.
The Cateys has always been the hot ticket when it comes to the hospitality world. So as the leading foodservice agency we were there in force to find out first-hand who would be walking away with one of the iconic and highly coveted Cateys ‘lady & shell’ statues. Now in its 32nd year, the Cateys celebrate the cream of the crop when it comes to the hospitality industry. With twenty one categories covering all facets of the industry the awards night itself is the culmination of months of judging and preparation.
As the leading foodservice agency we can always be found at Arena events and the Arena Summer Event last Friday was no exception. Held at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower the day offered not one but two attractions on the bill, with Technomic running us through their observations and predictions for the UK casual dining market, followed by words of wisdom from Andrew Guy, CEO of Ed’s Easy Diner (a good pairing). As ever with Arena events it’s not just about the speakers, it’s also very much about the networking and we were lucky enough to catch-up with old contacts and meet some interesting new ones.
Here at jellybeanwe love to push the boundaries when it comes to food photography, and it’s great when our clients feel the same. This joined up thinking between ourselves and McCormick allowed us to experience the pleasure of working with a fantastic photographer, 
Roles were reversed as the chefs downed tools and let the UK’s top food critics take over the kitchen at Action Against Hunger’s Too Many Critics.
As the leading foodservice agency we make a point of attending the ‘Marketing in Foodservice’ conference, which is now in its third year. M&C Allegra offered up a varied agenda for the day with speakers representing high street operator brands, traditional and social media channels and of course food brands, reflecting the diverse nature of the sector.