Kitchen Rat

Great British Menu 2012: full line up of Olympic hopefuls

2012-02-19T19:49:10Z

In case you hadn't noticed, 2012 is the year that the world's greatest sports folk are welcomed to the UK for to see who's the best at doing some stuff.

To celebrate it (or cash in, if you're feeling somewhat cynical) almost everything you come across until September will have a bit of 2012 flavour and the new series of Great British Menu is no exception - back with bang on BBC2 from 9 April.

A full complement of top chefs are this year tasked with creating a spectacular menu of dishes fit for sporting heroes at a dinner to be hosted by Olympic legend Sir Steve Redgrave at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich.

]]> Once again there'll be eight regional heats to determine which of the 24 chefs vying for a chance to cook an Olympic Feast for the likes of (aqua-dynamic gold-medal-winning swimmer) Duncan Goodhew and Dai Greene ((Commonwealth and World Champion hurdler).

On the judging panel, oce again we have Oliver Peyton doing his best Simon Cowell, without the infuriating smugness and high-waisted kecks; the wonderful and warm legend that is Prue Leith; and of course little Matthew Fort on the end there.

Is he little? Not sure - but I always imagine he's propped up on a comfy cushion for some reason.

Great British Menu veterans Tom Kerridge, Nigel Haworth, Jeremy Lee, Marcus Wareing, Glynn Purnell, Richard Corrigan, Angela Harnett and Jason Atherton also return as the regional judges that stand between the chefs and judges Peyton, Leith and Fort.

But who's going for gold in the kitchen? The full confirmed final line-up of regional heats and judges is:

South West

Judged by Tom Kerridge (Hand & Flowers, Marlow)

Paul Ainsworth (Paul Ainsworth at Number Six, Padstow)

Nathan Outlaw (St Enodoc Hotel, Cornwall)

Simon Hulstone (The Elephant, Torquay)

North East

Judged by Nigel Haworth (Northcote, Langho)

Stephanie Moon (Rudding Park, Harrogate)

Colin McGurran (Winteringham Fields, Scunthorpe)

Charlie Larkin (The Marquis, Kent)

Scotland

Judged by Jeremy Lee (Quo Vadis, London)

Alan Murchison (L'Ortolan, Shinfield)

Mark Greenaway (No 12 Picardy Place, Edinburgh)

Colin Buchan (York and Albany, London)

North West

Judged by Marcus Wareing (The Berkeley, London)

Johnnie Mountain (The Atrium, Westminster)

Aiden Byrne (The Church Green, Cheshire)

Simon Rogan (L'Enclume, Cumbria)

Central

Judged by Glynn Purnell (Purnell's, Birmingham)

Aktar Islam (Lasan, Birmingham)

Daniel Clifford (Midsummer House, Cambridge)

Paul Foster (Tuddenham Mill, Suffolk)

Northern Ireland

Judged by Richard Corrigan (Corrigans's, Mayfair)

Chris Bell (Galgorm resort, Ballymena)

Chris Fearon (Deanes at Queens, Belfast)

Niall McKenna (James Street South, Belfast)

Wales

Judged by Angela Hartnett (Murano, London)

Richard Davies (The Manor House, Castle Combe)

James Sommerin (The Crown at Whitebrook,Monmouth)

Stephen Terry (The Hardwick, Abergavenny)

London / South-East

Judged by Jason Atherton (Pollen Street Social, London)

Graham Garrett (The West House, Kent)

Marcus McGuiness (Hibiscus, London)

Phil Howard (The Square, London)

This series promises some seriously good cooking, not to mention a good measure of drama too. I've already rumblings of a few fireworks in one particular region.

Oh and in case you're also wondering which sporting champs are that will be at the dinner, they include:

four-times gold medal-winning rower Sir Matthew Pinsent
gold medal-winning cyclist Geraint Thomas
triathlon hopefuls Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee
world-record holding Paralympic discus thrower Daniel Greaves
silver medallist boxer Amir Khan
diver Nick Robinson-Baker
former world-record holding javelin thrower Steve Backley
Locog chairman Lord Seb Coe.

Judging by this list, are we to understand that we have no female sport heroes? It's reading a bit like a list of Well of course we do (Dame Kelly Holmes, Fatima Whitbread, Tessa Sanderson, Sally Gunnell, to name a handful).

It would appear that it's not just the Sports Personality of the Year that snubs female athletes. Let's just hope it's not the complete list.

(* This post was originally published on Satellite Dishes)

What lives in a jar like this? Loyd Grossman botulism warning

2011-11-14T14:00:12Z

Loyd Grossman is 'upset' and 'distressed' as two people are taken to hospital with botulism after eating his curry sauce.

Consumers are advised not to eat certain jars of the former Masterchef presenter's korma sauce after two people in Scotland were poisoned.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said it was a manufacturer's decision and stressed that no other batches of Loyd Grossman products were thought to be affected.

]]> "Only one jar from the batch is known to have been contaminated with the bacteria clostridium botulinum, which causes botulism," said the FSA.

The batch is 350g jars with a best before date of February 2013, and a batch code of 1218R 07:21.

The FSA said two members of the same family had contracted botulism after eating a meal made with the sauce and had been taken to hospital. Their condition now is not known.

Anyone who is concerned they may have contracted botulism after eating sauce from the batch should seek urgent medical advice by visiting a hospital or contacting NHS Direct on 0845 4647.

Botulism is caused by a bacterium, which attacks the nervous system. Symptoms include blurred vision, difficulty swallowing and may progress to general muscle weakness.It is not contagious.

Botulism poisoning presents symptoms between 12 and 36 hours after eating the contaminated food. It is easily treated if a doctor or hospital is notified early.

Tourism chief sacked for Twitter joke

2011-11-14T10:36:52Z

A London tourism boss has been given the old heave-ho after apparently failing to understand the purpose of his job.

Neil McCollum lost his £60,000 a year job as head of tourism for Greenwich after a Twitter post about street crime that mocked part of the borough he was paid to promote, according to the Evening Standard.

In August, he wrote: "Guest appearance in Woolwich today. Wonder if it has changed. Mental note, make sure wallet is not visible."

McCollum, who was also in charge of Greenwich's Olympic welcome strategy, lost his job after a three month probe into the tweet, which one local described as "honesty and common sense" on an online message board.

"This shows how we allow political correctness to take priority," they wrote.

But another said: "He's an idiot for posting every thought that pops into his head on Twitter but what he said is correct."

The council released a statement: "Greenwich Council can confirm that one of its employees who worked as a tourism officer has been dismissed.

"The reason for this dismissal is that the individual brought the council into disrepute and breached the council's rules of conduct.

"The individual has the right to appeal against this decision."

Great British Menu 2012 - the line up so far...

2011-10-18T17:02:56Z

It's that time of year again and here at Satellite Dishes we have been hearing lots of rumblings as to who will be the chefs competing in the next series.

This will be the seventh series of the BBC 2 show which has seen top chefs win to cook for the Queen on her 80th birthday, a banquet to be held at the Gerkin in London, hosted by Heston Blumenthal, a celebratory dinner for British troops returning from Afghanistan and last year a feast for sharing with the community.

This year, we believe the theme to encompass being the best that you can be and throw in an Olympics element to coincide with London 2012 games.

The chefs taking part so far...

Northern Ireland
Chris Bell - River Room restaurant, Galgorm Resort and Spa
Chris Fearon - Deanes at Queens Head, Belfast
Niall McKenna, James Street South, Belfast

South West
Simon Hulstone - The Elephant, Torquay
Nathan Outlaw - Restaurant Nathan Outlaw, Rock, Cornwall
Paul Ainsworth - Paul Ainsworth at Number 6, Padstow

Judge: Tom Kerridge, Hand & Flowers, Marlow

Central
Daniel Clifford - Midsummer House, Cambridge
Paul Foster - Tuddenham Mill, Suffolk
Aktar Islam - Lasan, Birmingham

Judge: Glynn Purnell, Purnell's, Birmingham

London & South East
Tom Aikens - Restaurant Tom Aikens, London
Phil Howard - The Square, London
Marcus McGuinness - Hibiscus, London

Judge: Jason Atherton, Pollen Street Social, London

North West
Aiden Byrne - The Church Green, Lymm
Johnny Mountain - the English Pig, London
Simon Rogan - L'Enclume, Cartmel

Scotland
Alan Murchison - L'Ortolan, Reading
Mark Greenaway, Hawke & Hunter, Edinburgh
Colin Buchan - York & Albany, London

Wales
Stephen Terry - Hardwick, Abergavenny
James Sommerin - the Crown at Whitebrook, Monmouth

North East
Stephanie Moon - consultant chef

Hilton Park Lane evacuated after hotel fire: UPDATED

2011-07-01T20:07:34Z

Firefighters are tackling a blaze at the Hilton Hotel Park Lane, London, forcing the evacuation of guests and staff, including Black Eyed Peas singer Will.I.Am.

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) was called to the five-star Mayfair hotel just after 1845 BST, according to the BBC.

Sports journalist Sam Cunningham (@samcunningham), who was among those forced to flee the building, has been live tweeting as events unfolded.

He said at around 2030 BST: "I'm hearing it was caused by a generator on this lower roof. Contained. Could be hours before people let back in."

Around 1,500 people were evacuated from the building while at least four pumps and 20 firefighters tackled the blaze.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this stage and there have been no reported casualties.

A number of Twitter users have posted photos, including Cunningham (above left) and Lucy O'Dwyer (@LucyODwyer - photo below, taken from a Windows 7 phone):

UPDATE: 2230 BST: Fred Sirieix (@fredsirieix1), general manager of Galvin at Windows - the Michelin-starred restaurant and bar on the 28th floor of the London hotel, said on Twitter: "All ok here on Park Lane. Thank you."

A few minutes later, the London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire), announced on Twitter: "We believe the fire at the Park Lane Hilton is now out but are still checking the hotel's ducting just to make sure."

Charlie Sheen takes to the kitchen with his winning recipes

2011-03-10T16:16:50Z

You have to have been living on a different planet not to have watched or read about Charlie Sheen's antics in recent weeks and his new catchphrase "winning".

It's been a busy few weeks for the US actor. He's reported to have been on drink and drug binges, been sacked from his sitcom Two and a Half Men, set a record of gaining more than a million followers on Twitter in 24 hours, shared is love of Tiger Blood, and even had a drug test live on TV.

Sheen has now opened his home to a film crew to film his own cookery programme. Playing up to his new "winning" catchphrase, the actor wears a tiger-patterned chef's hat as he presents 'Charlie Sheen's Winning Recipes'.

Sheen, cigarette in mouth, claims he doesn't cook food - but wills it, while the final dish is "garnished with the secret ingredient: Charlie Sheen."

I can't even describe the video - it's weird and he rants - but then this is a video with Charlie Sheen, no one would expect it to make sense. But we're all winning... apparently.

Charlie Sheen's Winning Recipes from Charlie Sheen

Man arrested for "mouse sabotage" attempt

2011-03-01T11:17:21Z

A Pennsylvanian pizzeria owner has been arrested in what the police have dubbed "food terrorism with mice" as the owner sought to sabotage competing shops by infesting them with mice, police say.

Nikolas Galliatsatos, who owns Nina's Bella Pizzeria, in Philadelphia, is alledged to have walked into Verona Pizza and asked to use the bathroom.

The owner then saw footprints on the toilet seat and noticed that a ceiling panel had been moved.

Above the panel the owner found a bag - and fearing it was drugs - handed over the bag to two police officers who were dining in the restaurant at the time.

According to the Mail Online, the policed opened the bag to find three white mice.

Police watched the same man walk across the street to Uncle Nick's Pizza, dropping a bag into the rubbish there. In the bag, police found five live mice and one dead one.

"We have never had anything like this where mice have been used as an instrument of crime," police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said.

"This is food terrorism by mice."

The police believe that he was trying to put his competitors out of business after Galiatsatos said he was having mice problems himself.

Galiatsatos now faces charges of disorderly conduct, harassment and animal cruelty, police said.

The mice, apparently purchased that day at a nearby pet store, have been turned over to animal control officers.

Galiatsatos remains in custody.

Ronald McDonald kidnapped by fast food extremists

2011-02-09T10:23:10Z

Ronald McDonald has been "kidnapped" by a fringe group demanding transparency over the fast food chain's manufacturing processes.

An organisation calling itself the Food Liberation Army claims to be holding the McDonald's figurehead hostage and has threatened to "execute" the clown character if its demands are not met, according to Orange News.

A video featuring scenes uncomfortably similar to those depicted in Al-Quaeda videos was sent and a spokesman for the Finland-based group called on the McDonald's organisation to answer ethical questions or Ronald will be executed.

"Two days ago we kidnapped Ronald McDonald from a McDonald's Restaurant," he said.

"We love burgers, fries and McDonald's, but we can no longer watch silent when the food we love is being destroyed and brought to shame because of greed and indifference. Because of your short-sightedness your burgers have become nearly inedible."

He then gave the fast food chain until 6.30pm on Friday 11 February to comply and listed eight questions including: "Why are you not open about the manufacturing processes, raw materials and additives used in your products? What are you afraid of?" and "Why is cheap production cost your main value?"

A McDonalds spokeswoman rebuked the stunt as being in "very poor taste".

"McDonald's is always available to engage in constructive conversations with our customers, stakeholders and the media. This stunt is in very poor taste and not a responsible approach to meaningful dialogue," she said.

Great British Menu 2011 - the line up

2011-01-12T17:54:57Z

The Great British Menu 2011 hits our TV screens again in a few months and as ever we are keen to find out which chefs are taking part.

** Confirmed: new series of Great British Menu starts Monday 4 April, 6:30pm, BBC2 http://bit.ly/hgau2q **

This is the sixth series of the show, and rumours flying around over the past few weeks on Twitter and forums as to the format this year and with the help of Caterer's forum, Table Talk we can start to reveal the line-up and the format for the show.

The format this year is to focus on communities and sharing - think street party - but chefs will still have to cook four courses.

This series of The Great British Menu is working with The Big Lunch, a community street party initiative which encourages communities to get together one day in the summer. Street parties will be held all over the country on Sunday 5 June 2011. If you want more information go to The Big Lunch website.

The final dinner will take place down the cobbled streets of Leadenhall Market in London.

Chefs taking part this year are:

North West

Lisa Allen - Northcote, Lancashire

Jason Birkbeck - The Samling Hotel, Windermere

Johnnie Mountain - The English Pig, London

Judge: Marcus Wareing, Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley, London

WINNER: LISA ALLEN

South East

Tom Kerridge - Hand & Flowers, Marlow

Tom Aikens - Restaurant Tom Aikens, London

Phil Thompson - Auberge du Lac, Hertfordshire

Judge: Jason Atherton, Pollen Street Social, London

North East

Tim Bilton - The Butcher's Arms, Hepworth

Andrew Pern - The Star Inn, Harome

Stephanie Moon - consultant chef

Judge: Nigel Haworth, Northcote, Lancashire

WINNER: ANDREW PERN

Ireland

Chris Bell - The Longridge Restaurant, Preston

Brian McCann - Shu, Belfast

Chris Fearon - Deanes at Queens Head, Belfast

Judge: Richard Corrigan, Corrigan's Mayfair, London

WINNER: CHRIS FEARON

South West

Andre Garrett - Galvin at Windows, London

Paul Ainsworth - Number 6 Restaurant, Padstow

John Hooker - Browns Hotel, Tavistock

Judge: Michael Caines, Gidleigh Park, Devon

Scotland

Tony Singh, Oloroso, Edinburgh

Michael Smith, The Three Chimneys, Isle of Skye

Philip Carnegie, Inverlochy Castle, Fort William

Judge: Alan Murchison, 10in8 Fine Dining Group

Midlands

Richard Bainbridge - Morston Hall, Norfolk

Aktar Islam, Lasan, Birmingham

Sue Ellis, Belle House, Pershore, Worcestershire

Judge: Glynn Purnell, Purnell's, Birmingham

Wales

Hywel Jones - Lucknam Park, Nr Bath

Gareth Jones - Bodesgallen Hall, North Wales

Aled Williams, Plas Bodegroes, Gwynedd

Judge: Angela Hartnett, Murano, London

Man sues restaurant after eating a whole artichoke

2010-11-23T16:05:29Z

Restaurateurs beware. It is no longer enough to provide great service and fab food to give diners a great experience. Apparently some guests require instructions on how to eat it.

A Miami doctor is sueing a restaurant for not teaching him to eat a vegetable: an artichoke to be precise.

Arturo Carvajal says he was hospitalised after eating an entire grilled artichoke at a branch of Houston's in north Miami and is now seeking $15,000 (£9.450) for pain and medical expenses.

Apparently it was Arturo's first time eating the vegetable and he didn't know he was only supposed to eat the fleshy meat on the leaves.

Glenn Viers, vice president of the chain, told businessinsurance.com that while it is difficult to make light of a situation where a guest ends up in hospital, "it's just kind of a silly notion" that the company has a duty to post warnings against someone eating an entire artichoke.

"What's next? Are we going to have to post warnings on our menu they shouldn't eat the bones in our barbeque ribs?" he added.

Eat for free at the Heart Attack Grill (if you're over 25 stone)

2010-11-16T11:12:20Z

We all know the last couple of years have been tough for trade.

But while most casual dining restaurants have gone down the discount voucher route to drum up footfall there's one Arizona eatery that is literally giving its grub away - but only if you weigh more than 25 stone.

The Heart Attack Grill, home of flatliner fries and the quadruple bypass burger (pictured), is doing its bit to encourage the morbidly obese one-step closer to giving the bucket an almighty boot.

If you don't qualify for the free food yet, a few trips to the diner will no doubt get you there in no time.

Diet drinks are strictly unavailable.

Customers are given surgical gowns to wear as they tuck in to the calorie-laden grub delivered by wairtresses dressed as nurses.

Blair Rivers, who at 46 stone almost qualifies twice for the free food, has been signed up to star in an advert for the unusual offer.

The restaurant, which boasts the tagline "taste worth dying for" is run by former nutrionist Jon Basso who used to head up a Jenny Craig weight loss diet centre. Clearly when some people fall off the wagon, they fall very, very hard.

Noah's Ark Hotel in China goes up in just six days [VIDEO]

2010-11-15T16:07:56Z

Time is money, so they say. Or in the case of the Noah's Ark Hotel, in Changsha, China money buys you time - to spare.

The 15-storey soundproofed, thermal-insulated property was constructed in just six days using prefabricated columns and modules and "modern" construction techniques (the foundations were already laid) and it was reportedly built to withstand a magnitude 9 earthquake.

The construction workers, of which there appears to have been a great many, took just 46 hours to finish the main structure and another 90 hours - were they slacking? - to finish the building enclosure.

Remarkably, despite the speedy build no workers were injured in the process.

Impressive stuff.

Sanctum Soho hotel voted best in London at London Lifestyle Awards

2010-10-11T16:26:43Z

The London Lifestyle Awards took place Riverbank Park Plaza on 7 October and saw 16 London businesses honored and celebrated for their contribution to London and it's lifestyle.

Over 3,000 nominations for businesses across the capital were received which was whittled down to a shortlist of 100 finalists in 16 categories by a judging committee. Over 100,000 votes were logged at their website which determined those who came out on top.

For hospitality, Mark Fuller's Sanctum Soho Hotel was voted London Hotel of the Year, while Crazy Bear scooped London Restaurant of the Year beating Theo Randall, Aqua Neuva, The Square and Trinity. Crazy Bear also won London Club of the Year.

Aqua Spirit just off Regent Street won London Bar of the Year.

Bar Italia, Soho took home the award for Best Coffee Shop and the London Food Market of the Year went to Borough Market.

Awards in full:

London Men's Fashion Retailer of the Year - Jeffery West
London Beauty Salon/Spa of the Year - MACS Salon
London Coffee Shop of the Year - Bar Italia
London Hotel of the Year - Sanctum Soho Hotel
London Food Market of the Year - Borough Market
London Cultural Attraction of the Year - Elephant Family
London Sports Attraction of the Year - Polo in the Park
London Health and Fitness Facility of the Year - The Third Space
London Live Music Venue of the Year - The O2
London Theatre Show of the Year - Les Misérables
Best Green Contribution to London - Recycle for London
London Restaurant of the Year - Crazy Bear
London Women's Fashion Retailer of the Year - Sefton
London Bar of the Year - Aqua Spirit
London Club of the Year - Crazy Bear
Outstanding Contribution to London lifestyle - 95.8 Capital FM's Help a London Child

For more photos go to Table Talk >>

Skinny burgers set to impress at London Fashion Week

2010-09-21T15:06:33Z

One too many visits to some of the capital's culinary hot spots has recently added several unwelcome inches to this sylph-like rodent's girth. So imagine my delight on hearing that the InterContinental London Park Lane has introduced a "skinny" burger to its menu during London Fashion Week.

With a total of just 143 calories and 2.4g of fat - compared to 9.2g in a normal burger - this is the ideal dish to sup on after a hard day deciding what to buy at some of my favourite designers' catwalk shows. It even has fewer calories than the average sushi lunch.

The "skinny" burger is the creation of InterContinental London Park Lane's executive chef Paul Bates and is made from finely hand-minced buffalo steak, mixed with onions, spices and herbs.

Dry grilled and topped with a baby gem lettuce leaf, ribbons of cucumber and cherry tomatoes, it is accompanied by sugar free salsa, raw baby shallots and coriander cress, and served on a most stylish glass plate. Together with a glass of wild berry iced tea, it costs £20.

"This is no oxymoron," said Bates. "I took time to develop something that really works; the skinny burger is perfect for fashionistas, who want a tasty treat without the calorie guilt."

Well, that's me darlings, I'm off to the InterContinental now. But if anyone is going to join me, they need to hurry as the "skinny" burger is only available until tomorrow - 22 September - the final day of Fashion Week tomorrow.

Looking after the pennies...

2010-09-10T08:57:07Z

With the UK living through a newly enforced age of austerity, where the foreign secretary has to share his hotel room with a junior aide and the tax man has taken to writing to the public begging them to repay the cash he has absent-mindedly forgotten to deduct, its perhaps no surprise that those in the contract catering sector are following suit.

Kitchen Rat hears that while researching an article one Caterer journalist was surprised to be called back on their home phone rather than the mobile number they were in the main using to speak with people.

But it pays to watch the pennies in these dicey times after all and as the managing director of the £20m turnover caterer in question rightly pointed out "it's a bit cheaper than the mobile". Well quite.

So yet again a case of the private sector leading where the public sector can but follow, and perhaps another meaning to the label cost-sector catering.