Food

It is no secret that beer is the drink of choice for any curry fan and has been associated with Indian cuisine in the UK since first being served at Veeraswamy in Piccadilly in 1927. However, most of the so-called 'Indian' beer sold in the UK is actually being brewed in Europe, so to have a new beer, direct from India, is more than welcome.

Graffiti Spirits, widely regarded in Liverpool as prime innovators behind Liverpool's progressive new cocktail and independent eating out scene, has revealed that Santa Maluco will open at the end of this month. Director Matthew Farrell, one of the partners behind the fiercely independent group who already operate city centre bars Santa Chupitos, El Bandito, Salt Dog Slims, 81 Ltd and their 'smokehouse and cocktails' venue Slim's Pork Chop Express said guests can expect the team to bring a touch of Brazilian Rodizio to their Neapolitan pizza joint. 

It's been the seaside's best kept secret for decades, even centuries, but now demand for the salty coastal sea plant samphire, which goes particularly well with fish, is soaring. In the last year demand for samphire has soared by 80 per cent at Tesco, thanks to its popularity on TV cookery shows like BBC TV's Saturday Morning Kitchen and Channel Four's Sunday Brunch.

Award winning fine dining Indian restaurant, PRAZA Edgbaston, is serving Birmingham’s first Indian Afternoon Tea this Bank Holiday Weekend (Sunday 29^th May and Monday 30^th May) and every last Sunday of the month following this. It’s the classic British favourite of Afternoon tea…with a twist! Guests can expect to enjoy a selection of exquisite Indian teas accompanied by some big flavours in Praza’s homemade sweet and savoury treats.

Nyetimber, producer of England's finest sparkling wine, is today announced as the naming partner of the Sky Bar on British Airways i360. The Nyetimber Sky Bar is set to become the most unique bar in the UK, located inside British Airways i360's aerodynamically designed glass pod. Customers will glide slowly up to 138m for 360-degree views of Sussex while enjoying a glass of Nyetimber's Classic Cuvee sparkling wine and other drinks from the South Downs region.

Chips are West Midlands’ favourite junk food with chocolate coming in second place, a new survey conducted by World Cancer Research Fund has found. The survey comes as the cancer prevention charity launches its new “Dump the Junk” campaign for Cancer Prevention Week. The survey also revealed that in the UK more than a quarter of Brits (27%) have named chocolate as their favourite junk food, with a third (33%) of women picking the sugary snack as their ultimate guilty pleasure.

From better sleep to losing weight – a new range of holidays to improve health and wellbeing goes on sale at Kuoni. The worldwide wellbeing collection includes stress management in the foothills of the Himalayas, discover and unwind by the lakeside in Italy, weight-loss and detox at a luxurious retreat in Thailand and introductory wellbeing boosters by the ocean in Cyprus.

Yorkshire based Feel Free For Gluten Free is developing a gluten free jam donut, having listened to feedback from its customers. A recent online survey and Twitter poll conducted by the free from food brand revealed that the type of donuts missed most by people on a gluten free diet are jam donuts. Feel Free asked consumers to choose between jam donuts, custard donuts, glazed donuts and churros to help direct product development for their gluten free donut range.

A joyful shot of a baker having fun with flour while making bread by British photographer Mark Benham has seized this year's crown at Pink Lady® Food Photographer of the Year 2016, the world's leading celebration of the art of food photography and film. Bath-based Benham was presented with the £5000 prize by Andy Macdonald, who heads up Pink Lady® in the UK, headline sponsor of the Awards.

It will be a battle of the sexes to determine Caribbean Week New York’s Mixologist of the Year at one of the most anticipated events on the tourism calendar in the “Big Apple”. One male and one female mixologist will challenge each other in the Battle of the Mixologists at Rum & Rhythm at the Capitale in New York on Friday 3 June.

Tesco has today announced a number of measures which will see it source even more of the seafood it sells in a sustainable way, in partnership with the Marine Stewardship Council.  This month, Tesco introduced the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) ecolabel across 28 different types of chilled prepacked fish – including cod fillets, smoked kippers, haddock fishcakes and fish fingers. 

Keen bakers will have a rare opportunity for their cakes, bakes and biscuits to be judged by a celebrity chef on Tuesday 24 May, when Lesley Waters, TV chef and owner of Lesley Waters Cookery School in Halstock, takes on the role of head judge at Brimsmore Gardens' Cake Off in Yeovil. Judging will start at 3pm in The Apple Tree Restaurant, as part of a special Summer Tea Party, which is open to the public to attend.

Following his popular appearance in 2015, the award winning Chef and restaurateur Jean-Christophe Novelli will return to the Channel Island of Guernsey for the second Guernsey International Food Festival, taking place from 23 September to 2 October 2016. Events are taking place daily throughout the festival but Jean-Christophe will be on the island on Friday 23 September and Saturday 24 September to kick off the ten day festival with a gala dinner and live demonstration.

Great British Beef Week (GBBW) is an annual event which takes place around St George's Day (23 April) each year, to raise awareness of the quality and versatility of assured British beef and give the British Beef industry a much-needed boost. Organised by Ladies in Beef, Great British Beef Week puts the spotlight firmly on the fantastic food that British beef farmers, like The Black Farmer, produce. 

A celebration of Italian cuisine in Britain marked the end of a fantastic International Dining Week, which has highlighted the amazing diversity of cuisine styles available here in the UK. This first International Dining Week grew out of the continuing success of National Curry Week, now in its 19th year and organised by the same team. “We are absolutely thrilled with the response to the new event, which suggests an annual repeat for some years to come,” said press spokesperson, Colleen Grove.

Ludlow Food Centre has celebrated its ninth birthday in style after being crowned as Food Hall of the Year at this year's Farm Shop and Deli Awards. The awards, held at Birmingham's National Exhibition Centre (NEC), recognise the best in class in the specialist independent retail market, celebrating the very highest standards, levels of service, product innovation and community involvement.