The Kitchen Cabinet is a Radio 4 panel show about food
presented by Jay Rayner. Each week, the programme travels round the country. Last
night it was being recorded in Cardiff, at The Gate Arts & Community Centre.
I went along to find out more about this popular radio show, which completes
its fifth season with the Cardiff episode.
The four panel members for this programme were local
representative Angela Gray, from the Cookery School at Llanerch vineyard in the
Vale of Glamorgan; the Cambridge-based food writer Tim Hayward; the chef and
cookery teacher Angela Malik; and Peter Barham, a food scientist from the
University of Bristol.
The panel lined up on a stage set up for The Gate’s annual
Christmas production of Aladdin, and this was very much the programme’s
Christmas episode. Therefore, it was a bit of a missed opportunity to focus on
Welsh food, although bara brith and the Welsh-Italian connection featured as
key parts of the discussion.
On arriving, all audience members were asked to answer
questions (e.g.,'What is your culinary Christmas wish?’) and write down a
question for the panel. Recently, we ate Haggis Pizza at a St Andrew’s Night
event at the Murchfield Community Hall in Dinas Powys. This inspired my
question to the panel: ‘Is there a limit to what can be put on a pizza base?’
Among the other audience members who put questions to the panel was Cardiff’s
Ed Gilbert (aka @gourmetgorro). Alternative Christmas meals, cocktails, and
cooking with coca cola were among the topics raised.
The recording was efficient and audience involvement was
central to the show. The contribution by Angela Gray and an Italian restaurant owner
on Italian food in Wales was particularly interesting; Angela Malik proposed
some intriguing Asian twists to traditional Christmas classics; Tim Hayward’s had
useful tips on baking and the use of rhubarb in drinks; and Peter Barham
provided scientific context and had to field the trickiest questions like ‘is
there a cooking gene?’. No, is the resounding answer to that question, by the
way.
To find out more, I recommend you tune in next Tuesday 17
December (3pm) or over the following week on the BBC website:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03lph1b
Jay Rayner is a genial host, who gets the panel to explain
culinary terms so no audience member is left behind. It’s the inverse of the recent
food panel show with experts displaying their erudite knowledge of obscure food
items. I believe that ran for one series, whereas The Kitchen Panel could
potentially have the longevity of a show it liberally borrows from – Gardeners’
Question Time.
I thank Dan Allsobrook (aka @eggynewydd) for taking this photo of
me and Jay Rayner:
Morgan Arcade was opened in 1896. It was originally known as
the New Central Arcade. Today, it is owned by Helical Bar, who also own the
Royal Arcade. This is one of Cardiff’s beautiful series of Victorian arcades,
which are home to many independent local businesses.
Walking up The Hayes, from our previous walking tour destination
the Royal Arcade, enter the first entrance to Morgan Arcade, between Moss
Brothers and Moulton & Brown. On the left is a plaque with some history
about David Morgan, after whom the arcade is named:
Further along on the left is Tabernacle Lane, which links
the Royal and Morgan Arcades (collectively, the Morgan Quarter). By Capital
second-hand bookstore, the three sections of Morgan Arcade join, with one
pushing through to St Mary Street. At this junction:
The Plan
28-29 Morgan Arcade, Cardiff CF10 1AF (2039 8764)
The Plan Café Bar has been running in this prime Morgan
Arcade location since 2002. The owner is David Nottingham (no relation). There
are tables downstairs and upstairs and they serve breakfast and lunch, locally-made
cakes, and the café is fully licensed. The Plan is particularly noted for its
specialist coffees and, to a slightly lesser extent, teas. It has been listed
among the ‘Top 50 Coffee shops in the UK’ in The Independent and in a similar
Top 50 list in The Guardian. Head Barista Trevor Hyam, who started working at
The Plan in 2007, writes a specialist blog on coffee called ‘The Bean Vagrant’;
he came fourth in the 2010 UK Barista Championships; he experiments with brew
methods using his Mahlkonig Tanzania grinder; and he sources craft-roasted
traceable coffee beans. In other words, he knows his stuff. You can explore a
range of single estate coffees on the specialist menu, with recent coffees on
the menu coming from estates in Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Bolivia,
Columbia and Costa Rica.
The stretch of the arcade along to St Mary Street has no
food outlets, but there are many interesting shops, including Bang &
Olufsen, (quality Danish sound systems – no MP3 players), Fountain Fine Arts (where
you can buy affordable art by Welsh artists), an Oxfam clothes shop, the Camera
Centre, and Neal’s Yard Remedies.
Entering the second arm of the Morgan Arcade that connects
back to The Hayes, on the other side of The Plan, is Spillers Records (31 Morgan
Arcade). Spillers Records was established in 1894 by Henry Spiller. The shop
moved to its current location in 2010, from its previous location by the The
Hayes entrance to Morgan Arcade.
Jam, Marmalade, Bread, Hot Chocolate, Cream, The Sweet,
Meatloaf, Tangerine Dream. Now those were the days - when bands named themselves
after food!
Next to Spillers:
Crumbs
33 Morgan Arcade CF10 1AF (2039 5007)
Crumbs is Cardiff’s oldest vegetarian restaurant. It was
opened on 3 Dec 1970 by Judi Ashley, at a time when most people had not heard
of brown rice. Crumbs came under new
ownership earlier this year. I believe the new owner is called Paul. It has
been spruced up, with new tables and décor, and rebranded as Crumbs Vegetarian
Kitchen and Coffee Shop, but the original ethos has been preserved. Large bowls
of salad are still a main feature and servings are still generous, though
possibly not as huge as in the olden days and prices have gone up. I had the
large mixed standard salad bowl last week, which as before, comprised layers of
different salads (six on this occasion) in a wooden bowl, with grated carrot,
shredding cabbage, apple and brown rice. There was plenty of cheese on top,
though the amount of brown rice was less than I remember. Crumbs also do
breakfast, soups, jacket potatoes and other lunches, and have good bread. It is
essentially the same healthy food as served since 1970: it was reassuring to
know that Crumbs is still Crumbs. They do take-away. There are two small rooms
upstairs, so Crumbs is bigger than it looks from the outside.
Royal Arcade opened in 1858 and is the oldest surviving
arcade in Cardiff. It was designed and built by James & Price, for the
Cardiff Arcade Company, and connects The Hayes to St Mary Street.
W
e enter the Royal Arcade from The Hayes, with Dr
Martens (boots) and Scribbler (greeting cards of dubious taste) on your left-hand
side and Rossiters (Bath-based designer department store) to your right. Second
on the left, though you’ll have to walk a few units to find the door:
Wally's Delicatessen and Wally's Kaffeehaus
38-46 Royal Arcade CF10 1AE (2022 9265)
This family-run delicatessen, currently owned by Steven
Salamon, has been a feature of the Royal Arcade since 1981. The deli has
expanded considerably since it first opened and stocks around 1,600 products
from around the world. It’s great for those unusual ingredients and foods
imported from continental Europe. In
2011, Wally’s Kaffeehaus opened upstairs. This Viennese-style coffee house
specializes in Open Sandwiches, such as the Tyrol (roast chicken breast,
chorizo, shaved manchego cheese, Piquillo peppers, garlic mayonnaise, rocket,
black olives and toasted sourdough) and the Baden (German smoked black ham,
Hereford Hop cheese, chutney, balsamic onions and sliced pear, on wholegrain
seeded bread). Vegetarian options include the Rohrbach (Grilled aubergine and
Caerphilly cheese). The Aufschnitt comprise sharing platters of cold meats or
cheeses. The menu draws on the deli produce downstairs, so if you particularly
like something chances are you can buy it on the way out.
Fresh
32 Royal Arcade CF10 1AE (2022 3158)
Fresh Baguette opened in 2000 and has established itself as
one of the most popular independent sandwich shops in Cardiff. Gareth Lawton
and his partner Samantha make good use of Twitter to promote the business, with
daily specials often posted in the morning (@freshbaguette1). Yesterday’s was Falafel
and Humous Baguette with salad and toasted cumin seeds. My most recent involved
chicken, bacon, mayo, rocket, red onion and salami cracking. Easily the most
creative sandwich-makers in the city; they are not afraid to be experimental, with
novel ingredient combinations and spicy sauces. Regulars can also work through
the 100-plus regular fillings for baguette and paninis on the menu. Service is
friendly and efficient. Expect to see a queue outside at lunchtimes.
The alley across the way, Tabernacle Lane, links Royal
Arcade with Morgan Arcade.
Vom Fass
28-30 Royal Arcade CF10 1AE (2022 9497)
Vom Fass Cardiff sells oils, vinegars and spirits from barrels.
The cupcake shop Velvet Ice (formerly 20 Royal Arcade),
which opened in 2011, has closed. Has the inexplicable (to me) fashion for
cupcakes peaked?
Further along this southern side of the arcade, there is a Health
with Herbs (24 Royal Arcade).
I intended to take lunch in Harleys Coffee Shop (8 Royal Arcade)
when my walking tour made it to the Royal Arcade. But, alas, this
long-established coffee shop closed earlier this year after 13 years of trading in the arcade.
This side of the arcade also has a new Oxfam book shop, with
vinyl records upstairs. At the entrance from St Mary Street, there’s a sign of
the times: an electronic cigarette shop.
Cross to the other side of the arcade, which currently
starts with a seasonal Christmas shop.
Royal Sweet Shop
7 Royal Arcade CF10 1AE (2038 7438)
Traditional newsagent with rows of those tall jars of old-fashioned
sweets.
There are no further food-related units in Royal Arcade.
However, of note along this side of the arcade is the very wonderful stationary
and art supply shop Pen and Paper (where our eldest daughter has a Saturday job).
Further along, by the entrance to Tabernacle Lane, is the Ian
Allen bookstore and model shop (31 Royal Arcade), specializing in books on
transport.
The display featuring muddy carrots is not
something you usually see in a hotel restaurant. Another clue as to what’s
occurring are the shelves of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall books. We are in Zest, the
restaurant at Cardiff Marriott, to sample the new menu created in partnership
with River Cottage.
People increasingly like to know where their food comes from
and how it is produced. In responding to diners’ interest in the provenance of
their food, Zest has teamed up with Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage: an
organization built around locally-sourced, ethically and
sustainably produced, seasonal food.
Cardiff is one of
only two Marriott Hotels to trial the partnership. If successful, it will be
rolled out to more of Marriott’s other 50 UK hotels. The goals the partnership has set are ambitious ones.
For the menu, Marriott is committing to increase the use of local food, produced within a 60 mile
radius of the hotel, to 80%. In Cardiff, Marriott is lucky. There is a wealth of Welsh food producers to
choose from. The produce sourced for the menu so far includes meat from Graig
Farm and Slade Farm, fish and shellfish from Gower Coast Seafood and E. Ashton,
eggs from Farmhouse Freedom Eggs, cheese and dairy products from Calon Wen and
Abergavenny Fine Foods, and vegetables from the Welsh Box Scheme and Ty Mawr Organic.
Because the menu is seasonal,
the menu will change frequently. Daily changes are expected, so even regulars
will find something different to order.
The amount of food
wastage in the catering industry generally can be pretty shocking. Marriott’s
are here committing to further reducing food wastage from their current low
level of 5%.
By improving sustainability
practices, Marriott’s hopes to improve its Sustainable Restaurant Association
(SRA) rating in the two hotels trialling the partnership with River Cottage.
All the meat and vegetables on the menu will be organic, with the chicken also being free-range, and the fish and shellfish sustainably-sourced.
The partnership has involved staff from Marriott Cardiff
taking part in training courses at River Cottage’s recently launched Chefs’ School, to
acquire new skills relating to sustainable food procurement and other areas
that complement their catering industry expertise.
On the table, the rosemary bread was very fresh, and there was a sprig of
rosemary on the table (impossible not to pinch and smell). We started with ‘Parsley
Salad’ and ‘Squash & Goat Cheese Salad’. Parsley was a feature of my salad,
but the main interest was the crab meat, accompanying soft-boiled egg, and the
intense anchovies hidden underneath. Crisp thin-sliced beetroot was the
unannounced star of the other colourful salad.
For Mains, I opted for ‘Slow Cooked Organic Graig Farm
Brisket’, served with anchovy and rosemary potato gratin and red wine sauce; the
meat melted in the mouth.
My partner had the ‘Slade Farm Lamb’, with mashed celeriac, chilli and thyme.
The lamb had a subtle barbeque flavour.
The other vegetables, ordered as sides,
were ‘Honey Glazed Carrots’ and ‘Kale, Chilli and Fennel Seeds’. The carrots
had a wonderful intense flavour and looked great – orange, white and purple.
The fennel on the kale produced a sensational effect, though the chilli was a
little heavy for our taste in this context.
With sides this was not ‘small plate’, but rather ‘three
good things on a plate’ (the title of one of Hugh’s books).
I’m afraid that for the ample puddings we opted for exotic
options, with some ingredients what were probably not grown around Cardiff. My ‘Sticky
Date Pudding’ came with homemade vanilla ice cream, and my partner’s ‘Almond
and Orange Pudding’ came with a slice of pear cooked in red wine as well as the
ice cream. However, a warm beetroot brownie, and apple and cherry crumble with
custard, were also on the menu.
Local wine and beers are available, although they were not
listed on the main wine and drinks menu. We had a bottle of Glyndwr 2012, a
medium dry white wine produced on a vineyard established in 1982 by the Norris
family in Llanbleddian, near Cowbridge, in the heart of the Vale of Glamorgan.
Generally, the local and seasonal approach can help produce
a coherent menu, where fresh food items are used in different ways throughout
to create a satisfying dining experience that also celebrates and supports
local growers and artisan producers.
Zest actively encourages locals to join hotel guests in
their dining room.
Marriott Cardiff:
http://www.marriott.co.uk
River Cottage:
http://www.rivercottage.net
All food and drink consumed was kindly provided by Marriott Cardiff.
I was on a journalism assignment recently in Hungary,
writing about an EU LIFE-funded soil monitoring project. As part of the trip, I
went to the Tokaji wine-growing area in the north-east of the country, which
has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2002. As well as looking at the
soil monitoring system in operation, I was also fortunate enough to have a private
tour and tasting in the historic Konyves cellar.
The tour takes you through the labyrinth of cellar tunnels
cut into the soft volcanic rock of the hillside. There are over 700 m of cellar
at Konyves, filled with around 800 oak barrels. The walls are covered with a
mould (Cladosporium cellare), which
is white when young but grows into a thick black layer. The mould feeds off the
alcohol vapours from the barrels. It is important, because it regulates the
humidity (88-95%) and temperature (a constant 12°C) in the cellar.
Three wines of increasing sweetness are usually tasted on
these tours. The first is Furmint, a very dry and unremarkable white wine made
from the Furmint grape variety. The second is a Muscadet, from the French grape
of that name (the only one of the half-dozen Tokaji grape varieties that does
not originate in Hungary), which is here really to give a taste of a standard sweet
wine. The star is saved to last – the distinctive Azsú (bottle pictured). This
is the sweetest naturally-made wine, with 70% sugar. The sweetness is complex,
however, with honey, tropical fruit (citrus/apricot) and nutty flavour notes. It’s
nectar.
The grapes that give Azsú its character come from the
Furmint vines, but they are infected with the fungal mould Botrytis cinerea. This concentrates the grape’s sugar content and
flavour. I was in the vineyard in early October and the grapes (photograph) are
still growing – the shrivelled brown Azsú grapes are hand-picked in early
November from the Furmint bunches. It’s like making wine with juicy raisins.
The bottle is labelled ‘5 puttonyes’, which traditionally referred to the
number of buckets of Azsú grapes added to 130 litres of must in a barrel (the
range is from 3 up to a very sweet 6); now it refers to the sugar level. The wine is
aged for 3-6 years in the barrel.
Out in the vineyard, we saw some curious
pipes in the ground. The nearest one in this picture is 12 metres above the
wine tasting area in the corner of the cellar, which is carved out of the hillside
below the vineyard.
The conditions are not right to make the Azsú every year, just one in every two or three years; in
those years they make a lot of Furmint. They have kept samples from all the
Azsú years back to 1895 in the Konyves cellar. It’s a stroll back in time.
I would like to thank Miklós Dombos, of the Institute for
Soil Sciences and Agricultural Chemistry in Budapest, and György Zsigrai, of
the Research Institute for Viticulture and Oenology in Tokaj, for arranging the
visit to the cellar.
LIFE website - funding environmental and nature conservation projects
in the European Union:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/
In a series of posts I
have outlined the process by which Nightingale Community Garden in Dinas Powys was
created (links below). In June, I described how the garden was flourishing
during its first summer. Among the verdant greenery, it was hard to believe
that gardening had only started a couple of months previously. Some of the crops were entered in
this year’s Dinas Powys Village Show (31 August); Giles Metcalf’s beetroot, for
instance, won First Prize.
On Saturday 14
September, the official opening of the Nightingale Community Garden was held. Cllr.
Keith Hatton and Elizabeth Millard, of the Dinas Powys Residents’ Group, welcomed
everyone, outlined the history of the garden, introduced the special guests,
and thanked those who had made important contributions along the way.
Keith had the original
idea of doing something with the derelict piece of land, on the footpath that
connects Sir Ivor Place and Nightingale Place, which was becoming a focus for
anti-social behaviour in the area. With Elizabeth, they put together the first
plan for turning it into a Community Garden. At an early stage they gained the
support of Mike Ingram, one of the special guests at the event, who is the
Operational Manager of Public
Housing Services at the Vale of Glamorgan Council. Mike facilitated the smooth
transition of the site, from unwanted public housing land to Community Garden.
The Finance Minister
of the Welsh Assembly Government Jane Hutt AM placed the garden within the
larger context of The Rural Development Plan, which is a joint Welsh Government
and European Union strategy. In her short speech, she stressed the importance
of finance from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, which
along with Welsh Government funding enables projects such as this to happen.
Jane also stressed the importance of supporting community-led initiatives.
The Welsh Government
funds community projects through Councils. Cllr. Liz Burnett, another of the
special guests at the event, is Vale of Glamorgan Cabinet Member for
Regeneration, Innovation, Planning and Transportation. The money that comes to
the Council for rural regeneration is in her portfolio. The Vale of Glamorgan Council
funds its own rural development initiative: Creative Rural Communities.
Rob McGhee of the
Community Foodie section of Creative Rural Communities, established to help
communities grow their own food, has been involved with the Nightingale
Community Garden project from a very early stage. He has been key in obtaining funding
and helping to manage the project, including overseeing the
contractors who have worked to transform the site. He praised the enthusiasm of
the local communities he works with, both in Dinas Powys and in other places
were similar projects have been successful such as Treoes. Rob is the one talking in the picture above, with Mike Ingram next to him.
BBC Wales’ weatherman Derek
Brockway (above, with Keith) certainly bought the sun with him, which shone throughout proceedings.
With a cheery “hello and shw’mae” he gave us an up-to-date weather forecast.
Unfortunately, this involved windy autumn weather just around the corner. He noted
how the warmest and driest summer for seven years had helped the garden be so
productive in its first year. Below is a picture of Derek cutting the ribbon,
with Keith looking on. Derek took time out from filming his current series of
'Weatherman Walking' for BBC Wales to open the Community Garden. You can find
details on the BBC website, where you can also print out Weatherman Walking maps that enable you to follow in Derek's footsteps. He
was right about the weather today (Sunday); though I am in the warm writing
this, and he is walking and filmed up in the bleak Brecon Beacons!
Here’s a photo of
Cllr. Keith Hatton, Derek Brockway, Elizabeth Millard and Jane Hutt AM.
During the speeches
Keith and Elizabeth thanked several people whose energy and enthusiasm have
contributed enormously to the garden’s success. We owe a big debt of gratitude
to Stuart Hockley for, among other things, orchestrating the laying out of the
plots and for erecting two large greenhouses and a shed in the garden. Merry
Metcalf was thanked for organizing all the paperwork during the crucial stage when
the plots were being allocated, and Lynne Squires was thanking for carrying on
in this role.
Angela Peterken is the
lead gardener of a Family Growing Group within the garden. This arose from her
work as a Learning Support Assistant at Dinas Powys Infants School, following
enquiries by parents keen to start growing vegetables with their children. Five
families have been working alongside each other on the largest plot in the
garden, including families with no previous experience of growing their own
food. 24 different types of vegetables have been grown on their plot, including these
pumpkins (a credible Third Prize in the Village Show), which are being lined up
for Halloween.
An impressive array of
food was on offer, all contributed by plot-holders, including a cake made by
Angela. David Southall, who was thanked by Keith during the speeches for
donating the large greenhouse to the garden, is seen here cutting the cake,
with Mike Ingram and Elizabeth Millard looking on.
Below is a picture of Robin
Harrison at the plant stall, selling seeds and seedlings. Robin is a fount of gardening knowledge and he teaches an Organic
Gardening course at Murchfield Community Centre on Wednesday mornings (10am-12
noon) during term-time; part of Penarth Community Learning Centre’s adult
education programme.
Below are some photos
taken during July and August, since my last dispatch on the Community Garden,
including one of the small wooden seats Giles made from felled timber and one
of my own plot. Like many plot-holders, I had good crops of runner beans,
potatoes and courgettes; along with rhubarb, peas and chard. As Elizabeth said, at
the conclusion of the speeches, this is the fulfilment of a dream to turn an ugly
derelict area into an attractive productive garden, which has really bought
together the community in this part of Dinas Powys.
Previous posts on
creating a Community Garden in Dinas Powys:
June 2013
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/creating-community-garden-9.html
April 2013
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/creating-community-garden-8.html
March 2013
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/creating-community-garden-7.html
Feb 2013
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/creating-community-garden-6.html
Jan 2013
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/creating-community-garden-5.html
Oct 2012
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/creating-community-garden-4.html
Aug 2012
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/creating-community-garden-3.html
Feb 2012
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/creating-community-garden-2.html
Jan 2012
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.com/2012/01/creating-community-garden.html
Amidst all the chain restaurants in Mermaid Quay, down in
Cardiff Bay, it is good to see a local independent starting up. Last month, in
a unit underneath The Glee Club, Yakatori#1 started serving modern Japanese
cuisine - with the focus on sushi, grills and noodles. This is Japanese food that reflects the owners’ travels around the world seeing how it has
evolved in contact with other cultures, such as California.
We were fortunate enough this week to be invited along to Yakatori#1,
as guests of owners Meng and Cheryl Yap. Meng founded Ethnic Cuisine in Swansea
in 1994; the company grew to employ around 400 people and supplied ready-meals
for J. Sainbury’s. He sold that business five years ago, and is now embarking
on this restaurant venture.
The Malaysian-born couple have assembled a highly-skilled
team of chefs, who can be seen in the open kitchen preparing beautiful-looking
food. Meng explains that, just as he told his former workers to always imagine
Sainsbury’s looking over their shoulders, he likes his chefs to be aware of the
customers whose food they are preparing.
The range of sushi - maki rolls, hosomaki and nigri sushi –
look great and, as Meng says, are designed to produce taste sensations.
Therefore, the amount of rice is kept relatively small, to allow the other
ingredients to shine. Bowls of avocados
are prominently displayed in the kitchen, and thin slivers of avocado
contribute a distinctive cool and creamy dimension to Yakitori#1’s maki rolls.
Salmon, prawns, crab, tuna, and chicken are among the other favoured
ingredients. Rainbow maki is a colourful flavour sensation, while avocado and
mango maki provided an unexpectedly sweet and delicious taste experience.
‘Yakitori’ means ‘grilled chicken on a skewer’. Yakatori, a
term that can be also used to describe skewered and grilled food generally, is served
in small informal restaurants and from food stalls in Japan. The chicken yakitori here is therefore
something of a signature dish, and consists of succulent flattened chicken
breast pieces, coated with teriyaki sauce, and spring onion on small wooden
skewers. Lightly battered king prawns and gyozu (a type of dumpling) with a sweet chilli sauce were
other highlights.
The freshness of the ingredients is very important to Meng and Cheryl (and there’s certainly no MSG). The fish is sourced from Brixham-based Channel Fisheries, while vegetable ingredients are obtained locally. The
nori (seaweed) is imported from Japan (where it is farmed, toasted and packaged
as rolled sheets on a large scale) and there’s a choice of Japanese beers.
Yakatori#1 is family-friendly, not something you usually
associate with Japanese restaurants in the UK. The children’s menu has ‘mini
mains’ of ramen, wok-fried noodle and rice dishes, and a mild curry (and ice
cream, of course). The menu also offers lunch and dinner specials, bento
lunches and take-away options.
The name suggests that there could be at least a Yakatori#2
to come. On the evidence of the food we tasted, that would not be too surprising.
Yakatori#1, Unit 10 Mermaid Quay, Cardiff Bay, Cardiff CF10 5BZ (Tel: 2049 5050)http://www.yakitori1.co.uk
All food kindly provided free by Yakatori#1
Photos in this post courtesy of the restaurant.
This year was one of the best-ever Green Man Festivals. Held
in a beautiful location every August near Crickhowell in the Brecon Beacons,
it’s about far more than just the music (though the music is great), with the
good food being one of the attractions.
This year, four new stalls joined the regulars. One of the newcomers was London-based Anna
Mae’s Southern Street Food. Founded in 2011, they offered their signature mac n cheese.
A new discovery for us was French and Grace, who are based
in Brixton Village Market. I really enjoyed my F&G chargrilled
halloumi Lebanese flatbread wrap, which included fresh mint leaves, a pickled
chilli, ‘slaw and tahini dressing. The company is run by Rosie French and Ellie
Grace, and their first cookbook ‘Kitchen and Co’ was published last year. I had
a flip-through at the stall and it looked good.
We were camped near another newcomer, The Hurley Burley.
This campsite Theatre Café proved very useful for morning teas and coffees. Alongside a range of breakfasts and appealing vegetarian food options they had
live music, with the staff taking time out to do a few song-and-dance and circus
routines. It’s one to watch out for in future years. Other breakfast (and late night hot drinks) needs were met by
Cwmdu Community Stall, as they are every year.
The first essential artist at Green Man 2013 was Patti Smith
on Thursday night. She ate at the Rotisserie Chicken (Walled Garden) before
her set and pronounced it very good from the stage. What higher recommendation
could this Green Man regular want?
During their set, before singing their song ‘Kingfisher
Pies’, the singer of Midlake said he was making for the Pieminister van
afterwards. I don’t have the info on what was ordered. However, this year, my festival
Pieminister pie was the Matador (beef, chorizo, olives).
I enjoyed a coconut chicken curry from Roots Caribbean catering,
while listening to some soul in Chai Wallahs (the stage with global, jazz and urban music). The curry
was very good (dark rum, spring onions etc). Other options included jerk
chicken, braised mutton and Shropshire beef, served with sides of rice,
plantain, dumplings or coleslaw.
A vegetarian falafel hit the spot one lunchtime - falafels deep-fried in filo pastry served with lemon, hummus and salad - from the Café Moor, who specialize in North African and Arabic Souk Food. We didn't get around to the Goan Fish Curry outlet this year, so that will be high on the list next time!
On the last night, having set up the youngest (a vegetarian)
with a vegetable chow mein from the Oriental food stall, I found room for a
vension burger (with onions) from the Welsh Venison Centre. I also helped the
kids finish a fine vegetarian pizza from Green Pepper Red Tomato in the
Mountain’s Foot area; some tasty Mexican food from Bristol-based Poco Loco; and
some tomato and basil pasta from the Pizza and Pasta outlet in Chai Wallahs.
The family vote for best chips at the festival went to The Hippy
Chippy in the Walled Garden ('Frozen Chips? No Thanks').
The ice cream of choice was Shepherds, who are based in
Hay-on-Wye (est. 1978). The youngest always goes for Chocolate,
but I decided to explore the more adventurous end of the menu with a Mango
Chilli ice cream. This was an enjoyable, albeit one-off, experience: creamy
mango with a delayed chilli kick. The two Coffee and Cake stalls (Walled Garden
and Courtyard) kept us in coffee and doughnuts.
I mainly drank the excellent Growler, the Wye Valley Brewery ale brewed
especially for the Green Man Festival. There were 100 artisan ciders and beers,
largely from Welsh breweries in the festivals beer festival tent. The queues at
this bar were the largest, with so many barrels for the staff to negotiate and people asking for samples before buying the unusual perrys; so although I would have liked to work through the list, I tended to seek out the Growler in the quieter bars.
The best meal I had at Green Man 2013 was [drumroll] a Seafood
Paella from Jamon Jamon. This Green Man regular on the hill looking down on the
Mountain Stage consistently delivers.
Not surprisingly, I managed to put on weight during
Green Man 2013!
My favourite music acts included Stornoway, Patti Smith, Lau, Midlake,
Band of Horses, Rozi Plain, Johnny Flynn, Kings of Convenience, Jon Hopkins and British Sea Power.
Previously:
Green Man 2012
http://sfnottingham.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/festival-food-green-man-2012.html
Green Man 2011
