• Fetes and Festivals
Ruth

Ruth

Thursday, 02 January 2020 17:46

Game on at Mrs Portly's Kitchen.

I'm pretending to be packing as I'm moving house, but lost interest after box number 8 of tat that I've hauled from charity shops and I'm now returning. So instead I'm telling you about Suffolk's latest cookery school, Mrs Portly's Kitchen. Mrs Portly is the alter ego of food writer and recipe developer Linda Duffin. Linda is an expert cook and has teamed up with some of Suffolk's finest producers who will be joining Linda in teaching the cookery classes. A fabulous Tudor house setting awaits you and the chance to explore the kitchen gardens and orchard to glean produce for the classes. If it's too far to travel in one day then you can stay the night! Be quick and sign up for the next class on January 17th - Game, where Linda is joined by field to fork expert Steve Tricker from Truly Traceable. Learn about game prep and butchery, cook dishes to take home and ... drum roll ... there's the legendary Truly Traceable game pies for lunch. 

Friday, 15 November 2019 17:27

Have yourself a very merry Gin-mas!

Looking for a perfect Christmas party venue and activity, or hunting for that extra special Christmas present? The Stillery in Bury St Edmunds is planning to help you have a very merry gin-mas. From private hire to after work drinks or cocktail classes, The Stillery has something to offer every festive celebration. The Stillery’s gin and cocktail classes are suitable for any size party and budget. Try a one-hour gin tasting or a festive “Make a Christmas classic” as a pre or post-dinner activity. Here at SuffolkFoodie we like the sound of “Rumbunctious” – a course dedicated to all things rum – but there's also “Ginspiration”, where you’ll craft your very own unique bottle of gin.   As well as a venue and cocktail bar, The Stillery produce their own premium gin, which can be purchased as a gift this Christmas. The Stillery London Dry Gin is distilled on site, in the bar itself, using the traditional “One Shot” method, producing a modern, yet classic, juniper-led gin with playful spice and citrus flavours. Bottles can be purchased online or from the cocktail bar, but also keep an eye out for The Stillery at local Christmas events – including Blackthorpe Barn’s craft fayre and the Bury St Edmunds Christmas fayre in November. Bookings for courses and purchases of vouchers and bottles can be made online at www.stillery.co.uk. For private hire, contact the team directly by calling 01284 700577 or emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  The Stillery is open Fridays and Saturdays, 6pm to midnight. The Stillery, 3 Short Brackland, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 1EL.

Tuesday, 08 October 2019 17:07

Tea and cake at Alder Carr Farm

Always good for a pit stop and the cakes are made in the Alder Carr farm kitchen. Coffee and orange proved to be a rather nice combination.

What a fun evening! Sculling and sailing through the creeks and marshes at Wells next the Sea, on a traditonal flat bottomed mussel boat, with our skipper Dom entertaining us with stories of the sea and a half time picnic of local cheeses, quiche, salads, bread and freshly brewed coffee. (We took our own wine). Henry from The Coastal Exploration Company has thought of everything when organising the trips and even for you landlubbers out there the three or four hour sail, on the tide, is just the most magical way to spend a summers evening.

Friday, 06 September 2019 16:41

The Crab Hut

Superb seafood and freshly filled baguettes here at Brancaster Staithe. Crabs and lobsters are from the owner's own boat Speedwell that fishes out of the harbour. You don't get much fresher than that!

Saturday, 17 August 2019 10:46

my legoman

My favourite, fun food website and social media fix at the moment. Check out Biscuit Week when mylegoman gets baking with Claire Clark.

Monday, 19 August 2019 17:32

The Secret Garden at Bildeston Crown

All was revealed last week when I was invited to a 'Secret Garden' barbecue at Bildeston Crown and discovered the beautiful walled garden, tucked away at the back of the inn. You can book it exclusively for yourself and up to sixteen people for an al fresco meal. It has access through a gate from the car park or via the new very cosy lounge and Champagne bar (more about that another time). It's cook your own on the inset grills which run down the centre of the table, allowing you to barbecue delicious meats and vegetables yourself without having to move. Chef and owner Chris Lee is on hand to make sure no one goes hungry or burns anything they shouldn't. Ice buckets fill the gaps where there's no grill ensuring that the wine is as perfectly chilled as the guests. With delightful service from Hayley and the young, professional team at Bildeston Crown we enjoyed glasses of refreshing chilled rose and were delivered superb side salads, hot side dishes, dips and sauces to accompany the Red Poll steaks, homemade beef burgers, chicken kebabs and marinated pork. We cooked our meat on the grills, slowly grazing away well into the afternoon. If you fancy your own al fresco feast speak to Chris or Hayley who will tailor a menu for you. Prices start at £30 a head and I'll put my money on the cute little courtyard working well in the winter months too. Braziers, patio heaters, hot grills, vin chaud, raclette, Pierre-chaude and fondue ...just an idea.

Thursday, 15 August 2019 18:43

Sshhh ... licking the plate at The Northgate

It was so tempting to have a lick of the plate and the juices left in the bottom of the bowl, once I had polished off the Isle of Wight tomato salad at The Northgate last week. The delicious hibiscus and sherry vinaigrette dressed tomatoes, topped with light, whipped cobnut cream and nasturtium pesto reminded me of a Spanish Gazpacho. And sitting outside on the lavender edged terrace, on what must be Bury's only central, outdoor, dining space added to the relaxed and laid back dining experience at this striking Victorian townhouse. I was invited to try the new menu and to tour the newly refurbed restaurant, cocktail bar and lounge ... all are quite stunning. There's a private dining room seating 14 (complete with giant framed cockatoos looking on). A brilliant and boldly decorated cocktail bar and a Chef's table where you can dine and watch the brigade at work. Head Chef Greig Young uses the best produce he can find, with the Taste of East Anglia menu (£45 a head) offering a selection of seasonal small plates, inspired by the local area and it's producers. And no I didn't only eat a salad, I ate bread made with Pakenham Mill flour, then a crisp and light Norfolk Dapple gougere, next came hand cut beef tartare with pickled mustard, broad beans and red endive, followed by a spiced East Anglian bhaji using local potatoes, and the finale of the savoury plates; fillet of plaice in a seaweed crust with a crisp lobster 'scampi' on a light hollandaise, lifted by slices of pickled cucumber.  Greig chose to serve a whipped dark Tosier chocolate, creme de cacao ice cream on a saucy kombucha, caramel espresso as a pre-dessert and then for the main dessert - like I really needed two, roast white chocolate with hibiscus (think Caramac, but better) with roasted red fruit, raspberries and milk ice cream. As well as the superb food at The Northgate staff are also delightful, providing a professional, discreet yet friendly service under the expert guidance of Manager Michael Box.

That's French for my birthday (part 2.) This time up North at Flint Vineyard in Earsham. Owner Ben Witchell took us on his two hour Winemaker's Tour which was bloomin' brilliant. If you want to learn how to make wine then this is as good as it gets on an English vineyard tour (and I've done a few.) Ben shared his story of giving up his day job in order to study Oenology and Viticulture at Plumpton College from where he travelled to Beaujolais to take up his first winemaking post. Hannah his wife has accompanied him on his journey and together they now run this cutting edge vineyard. The tour started at 10am with a welcome glass of Charmat Rose, the best time of the day for your tastebuds apparently. Ben walked and talked with us to the vineyard and then on to the winery, which was followed by a tutored tasting of their Silex Blanc, Bacchus and Pinot Noir. We stayed on for the 15 mile lunch (an additional £19.50) but worth every penny and included plates of Baron Bigod and St Jude cheeses, Marsh Pig charcuterie, Hempnall Village bakery bread and Eastgate Larder medlar jelly; all produced a corks pop away from the vineyard. Oh! ... and the lunch includes another glass of wine.

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