'the feast fest to end even the worst hangover..'

So there I was, at work, when a lovely lady wanted to buy some chickens. This is not an unusual occurrence. However we got chatting and it turns out these chickens were for her supper club. Not just any supper club. So I had to try it. The story behind it is this, one Sunday some friends decided they were so hungover the only thing that could cure such discomfort would be a top notch Sunday lunch. With all the works. But sadly, they couldn't find exactly what they were looking for, no pub (gastro or otherwise), brasserie, cafe or eatery could satisfy their need. So Emily started this feast fest and it evolved and became what it is today. The Secret Sunday Lunch Club I don't want to give much of the experience away. But it's in Notting Hill and it is amazing. You won't need to eat again for a week, so for thirty-five quid you can't complain. Emily always serves amazing and quirky side dishes and the dessert. Oh my God. Amazing. She also ensures her meat is of the finest quality and usually uses different cuts of meat, or instance using pork belly over loin. She cooks them to perfection too. I had a fantastic afternoon, very sociable and stuffing! If you fancy a supper club I absolutely recommend this one.

gb

'wives can make exceptional husbands..'

Honesty time. I love promoting specific breeds of animal. I think it is essential if we are to continue the traditional standards and reputation of British meat, particularly beef. Angus, I can take or leave. This is not because it is Scottish - I love Scottish meat too. However it has become a commodity. Everyone has gone mental over it. And why? And this is a shocking thing to admit but good meat has nothing to do with good breeding. Quality is not breed specific. I've said it - it's out there I know. I have worked with Long Horn, Dexter, Belted Galloway, Angus..to name but a few. But I have to say, what it boils down to is love and affection. This is from the farmer; no one loves animals as much as a good farmer. I know I've banged on about this before, but it is a message worth reiterating. Farmers devote their lives and cherish their livestock. The ancient habits of husbandry is essential to good farming. Husbandry is the care, attention and nurturing of domestic animals. On amazing farmer who I know of is Judith Freane from Brown Cow Organics. I've had the privilege of working closely with this beef and it is stunning. The flesh is a deep red, it ages to perfection, it is consistent and the flavour is beefy yet malleable. And the fat on it is a wonderful creamy shade. Although this beef has Angus in it, it is not a pure-bred. However, due to the Freane philosophy, this beef is beautiful. This is living proof that good husbandry from a decent farmer can produce fantastic meat on a non pure-bred basis. We all need to get off our high horses, there's no need to be snobbish about breeds. Good meat is not breed specific, yes it can help, but there's more to it than that. Surely if it is grass-fed, British and cared for. Because, I'll tell you this, if it fits these criteria it will be tasty as hell..

gb

'promoting junk food..'

So how can I possibly avoid the Olympics? Answer, I can't.
So a word on sponsorship. So the only 2 official partners/sponsors of the 2012 Games with regard to food are Cadbury and McDonald's. any people have criticized this as 'promoting' junk food. Now, okay, I do see their arguments however surely we can look beyond these standard stereotypes. I can't really comment on Cadbury although I hope that their dairy sourcing is as ethical as it can be, but that's a different blog for a different day.

However out of all of the fast food chains out there, McDonald's are probably the best of a bad bunch. They were one of the first places to get their food ingredients and nutrition information out to the public.They are the first to admit when something isn't going right and also they try and change to appease their diners. Whether this is switching to Fair Trade coffee, opening 24 hours a day, or treating their staff very well indeed. Their website is good and easy to understand and it also has facts about the importance of a balanced diet. They even have a 'nutrition' calculator on their website?! Yes okay they do whack a hell of a lot of sugar into their products, but they are honest about it. We have to respect that. Oh and their an enormous international giant - so they must be doing something right.
Honesty is the best policy - as always.

(team) gb

'think outside the box..' campaign post #1

More and more meat purveyors are relying on boxed meat. Now why is this? It's because every carcass only has a certain amount of rib eye, a certain amount of fillet and sirloin? So for instance if you want a 3 bone rib of beef you can't use the same piece for rib eye steaks. So most butchers top up their carcass meat with boxed beef (shock horror - some don't even get beef in). Boxed beef is cut by giant meat plants that then distribute the loin and rib, or packed fillets, or whole rumps...like a butcher's butcher. 

Okay, so why not get in extra carcasses? Because the amount of trim/excess fat/gristle/bone would be enormous. The bain of the butcher - waste. However I want to suggest that it is do-able. It has to be. So how do we get around this problem? Right, as the consumer we have to start eating other parts of the beef, is has to be cost effective. And if you know how to cook it - I can assure you - you won't want  fillet ever again.

gb

'a terrible scenario..'

So I returned home from work after my half day. Just in time to catch the tail end of 'Loose Women'. And no, this is not the terrible scenario I am referring to, (I happen to love the Loose ladies). But they said that a third of 16-23 year olds don't know that bacon comes from pigs. Obviously this is a huge number. I'm not sure where they acquired the stat and I don't know how they gathered the group for the research. Either way it represents something tragic.

Everyone I have spoke to said they weren't surprised & 'so whose to blame? Parents? The Government? Schools?'. I partially blame butchers. Why aren't we working harder to promote or evangelise about meat sourcing and what our products are? Why do customers & the general public feel they can't ask their butchers questions without it being a deep inconvenience? Well I'm telling you now - I want questions. Hassle the hell out of me - it's no trouble, I'm asking you to! And please don't feel ignorant - I'm a to-the-point Northerner and would never accuse you of stupidity. Shy bairns get nowt.

The main thing that concerned me was that these young people (even though I'm a shocking 1 year older..) did not think to question what they were eating and where it came from. I don't think we should consume without questioning. Otherwise we're going down a slippery slope of E numbers, additives & stabilisers.

It's not about knowing it's about asking.

gb

'young british foodie..'

Last night was the Awards evening for the Young British Foodie Award. Aspiring chefs, food experimentalists, baristas, mixologists, charcutiers and people with a passion for food generally took part in this new and exciting competition. I thought I would take a punt in the meat category.

I have been experimenting with a black pudding recipe since my journey into butchery began really and I thought this might be a fun way of show casing my idea, and also to receive some harsh and realistic criticism. Rather than giving it to mates who would tell me it tasted awesome even if it was rubbish. (I refer back to the Black Pudding prototype of the early days...). However after several nightmare attempts I sorted the recipe for Girl Butcher's Pepper Pudding. And it went down well. Thank God.

The judging took place in the quirky venue of Meat Liquor I was the second of three finalists. I got to meet the lovely Mark who runs Monty's Deli and he did this incredible pastrami, which he does with brisket - superb. The other was Matt who is a very fine charcutier - this man knows his stuff. After we had been judged we all stayed around for a beer (..or two) and we chatted for a long time about the meat industry and various cooking methods. It felt fantastic to be a meat geek and be surrounded by people with equal geek-i-ness.

This was then well and truly re-endorsed last night, so many people just so passionate about food. It was incredible. It was also a pleasure to meet many people from Twitter, who have supported and helped me so far too. I feel like a very lucky girl indeed.

Buzzing, still.

gb

'a pig's head can cause a spectacle..'

Should meat look like a dead animal or should it be lined up neatly fully trimmed? Yesterday I was standing on Holland Park Avenue wearing a straw boater and a boat tie - had I not been wearing chain mail too I think people would have thought I was about to crack out a tap dance - I was also holding a large cleaver and a Gloucester Old Spot's head. Yes. A pig's head. This was not, I might add, for general amusement this was actually for an article for a newspaper. However I found myself to appear a bit of a spectacle. People stopped to make comments and ask questions, tourists were even taking photos! I also tried to hide said head whenever children went by, mainly because it can make for unpleasant question asking to parents. 'Mummy who killed Peppa?' etc. etc. But do we try and conceal the fact that meat is dead animals? They were once a cute spring time lamb, majestic cattle, or curious snuffling piglet. I think, even for me, when I see it on the block at work I still see meat, substantially bigger of course - I don't see it as a dead animal. Due to health and hygiene we only get it in after it has been skinned and beheaded (apart from the pigs clearly). I think we probably should face facts. We are eating dead animals, we have to be honest with ourselves. But we also have to remember that no one loves animals more than farmers - because it is their livelihood. And these animals would most likely be extinct if we did not eat them, because that is what they are bred for. 

Maybe if we'd eaten it, the dodo might have stood a chance..

gb