Food and Drink

Though all restaurant experiences revolve heavily around eating, so many restaurateurs fail to understand that there's more to a great restaurant than just good food. From service and general ambience down to the smallest, most pernickety details, the overall experience - from walking through the door to picking up the bill - is everything. Some of the best food I ate last year, for instance, was at a restaurant I actively despised. The culinary skill displayed was exceptional, though the...

Strength: 5.5% Brewed: Aberdeen, Scotland Since launching their first proper brewery last year, Scotland’s Fierce Beer Co. has become extremely prolific. Having produced over 50,000 litres of beer over the past year, the brewery offers a whopping core range of ten beers amongst some limited edition offerings and collaborative efforts of which are currently in the pipeline. Now operating from an industrial estate in Dyce, Aberdeen, Fierce was originally set up by joint owners Dave Grant (Managing Director) and David McHardy (Operations Director)...

The Red Lion is set to host the fifth annual Great Sausage Roll Off this evening, with finalists from across Britain entering sausage rolls with the hope of been crowned Britain's best. The Barnes pub has been giving this much overlooked buffet item the attention it deserves since 2013 with an event that has been described as the X Factor meets Masterchef. Tonight's live cooking event, which will feature around 20 professional chefs who take their turns bake their own take on the...

In celebration of Scottish poet and writer Robert Burns’s Birthday (25th January), Burns Night takes place this week. Falling on Wednesday, a great number of Burns Night events are taking place across the week to celebrate. From Scottish-inspired set menus to whisky tastings and the occasional deep-fried Mars bar, here’s our pick of the best food and drink events to celebrate Burns Night in London. Mac & Wild One of London’s best Scottish restaurants, Mac & Wild will host a whole...

With Burns Night fast approaching, this week’s recipe is quintessentially Scottish, yet it’s a million miles away from traditional haggis, neeps and tatties. Graced with such an astonishing natural larder, it’s sometimes easy to forget that Scotland has direct access to some of the globe’s finest sea food. So what better restaurant to provide a recipe than Edinburgh’s Ondine? These scallops from Chef Patron Roy Brett are relatively simple to prepare at home and make for an impressive starter or light...

It’s a tremendous shame that British food has gained such an internationally dreadful reputation, yet it’s hardly surprising. Alongside a bland curry originally made from gravy, yogurt and tinned soup, the Sunday Roast stands out as one of our most prominent national dishes. Generally served as a late lunch, with portion sizes vast enough to see us through to the following weekend, the roast dinner is essentially a collation of ingredients slung into the oven then left for at least...

Although the national population is comparatively small, Scotland remains the world’s most popular nation for whisky production. With over 100 active distilleries, the country is divided into five different whisky-making regions – Campbeltown, Islay, Speyside, Highland and Lowland. In the north of the country, it’s the Highlands that’s the nation’s largest region in terms of both area and production. Founded during the late 1700s, Balblair Distillery operates from a site in Edderton (close to the Glenmorangie and Dalmore distilleries) and...

A food wrap made using shellfish could end up in every kitchen in the world, save millions for the food sector and slash pollution, it has been claimed. The wrap is made using discarded langoustine shells taken from Scotland's huge seafood sector. Developers CuanTec say that the material will kill bugs, extend shelf life and eventually biodegrade without a trace. Scientists hope the new food wrapping will replace cling film commonly used in the food industry and at home. The...

Here's a story about cooking for an independently wealthy Young Gentleman and his gang of friends. To protect the innocent, the guilty and myself, nothing I tell you will be quite true. As your secret chef I have spent two decades being a private chef for High Net Worth (HNW) and Ultra High Net Worth (UHNW) clients all over Europe and on super yachts. What I have become experienced at is keeping secrets and cheffing. Here is what I remember...