A Decade of Change

A Decade of Change....

... Whilst reading a high street food publications November Issue, Celebrating their 10th Birthday I read an article about how the UK's food scene has changed over the last 10 years, to me this is something I find fascinating from the mundane like which spirit was most popular in 2003 compared to now(whiskey - now vodka), to the more complex human perception of high street culture.

Can you remember 10 years ago? Petrol prices averaged 76.9 pence per litre, a loaf of bread averaged 60 pence, families shopped regularly on a weekly spend of £40. The many changes in the past 10 years doesn't seem to have halted our spend for luxuries, in fact rather than spending little and often which used to be the case we now spend more but more sparsely, it comes as no shock to see how restaurant chains have maintained prices over these 10 years but now really compete over offers and deals. How much compromise will there be in the retail sector, supermarkets price increases make it now difficult to spend realistically in this idealistic world that is expected of us, "healthy eating, weight reducing" society driven by the government, a "healthy shop" is nearly 4 times as much as 10 years ago. Branded restaurant prices on average are only £1.30 dearer than 10 years ago. so how is it possible to eat in your Harvesters, Frankie's and Benny's, Nando's so regularly but struggle to fill your cupboards and fridges at home for the same money. Surely one has to give with the price of food rising how can wholesalers keep up with demand but keep prices low, the big dogs in supermarkets must have a close eye on wholesale prices so if restaurants do suddenly increase the prices and lose their bread and butter trade will supermarket prices stop their price hikes? Supermarkets thrive on the abundance of newer fresher ingredients available to us, the real foodies amongst us being able to re-create our favourite chefs recipes or re-creating our favourite dishes from our favourite restaurants, in the last 10 years surveys suggest the "home cook" has increased significantly 55% in fact, now cook from scratch as apposed to microwave or oven cooked dinners. This again brings into place the price war when the average Joe amongst us realises what can be achieved at home and how cheap with fresher ingredients; when will the tipping point of restaurants hit, I mean if you can openly create a stunning dish fresh at home for £10 less than you pay in restaurants there will be a time and point where you are only paying for the luxury of being out of your house. When will food become secondary to the "service".

10 years ago the average person eat out as a luxury to have good cooked food, the service included wasn't really a big deal. Branded Restaurants were always a family favourite or a sought out choice where now its about who provides a decent service, and a family meal with value. The social spenders happily go to branded outfits such as Nando's where to eat a set meal for 2 costs £20.00 and you only receive 1 medium chicken cut into 4 with 2 sides of chips, you have to queue and order your self, you have to get your own drink and get your own cutlery and condiments, this style of restaurant is beyond me as if you wanted you could buy a bottle of Pepsi max a bag of oven fries and a medium chicken for no more than £6.00 cook it your self which means the service was the same but your not paying in excess of £20.

With all the competition out there gastro pubs still do well, its no surprise really that the prices are always inflated where the quality never really matches up to the expectation however the atmosphere and social circle your in frees your mind to spend less cautiously.

With 55% more people cooking from scratch at home its a small surprise that supermarkets invest heavily in meal deals and more premium products, if your going to cook at home why cheat where is the reward? Your Marks and Spencer's and Waitroses are now closely followed in their original eat in for £10 by the big 3.

Whilst we have as a culture started to eat out less for luxury we are spending more in supermarkets, we are also spending much more in alternative food luxuries such as coffee shops, the branding, marketing and demand for coffee shops  such as Costa and Starbucks is trending through the roof, whilst supermarkets branch out to locals, expresses, service stations, branded restaurants hit retail parks and tourist areas, coffee shops where our average spend per head is nearly £4.00 are everywhere to be seen, high streets, supermarkets, aeroplanes, trains, service stations, pubs, retail centres, tourist hot spots, literally everywhere.

from feeding a family for £40.00 a week 10 years ago we now spend £40.00 a week on coffee, on eating out and on luxury items in supermarkets.

Will be interesting to see where we are as a culture in the next ten years.

Calzone - revisited.

A tasty Calzone which doesnt cost 11.95.

I wanted to create a dish which was simple filling and cheap to produce with a minimal skill set so everyone can enjoy a delicous feast.

I decided the first product i should do is the dish i was disappointed with just yesterday.

First thing to remember when copying, following or creating a recipe is simply change to your taste not everyone will like every product so make adjustments where needed BUT dont comprimise taste, try new items new flavours. Just the once chances are its something you will have again or have had frequently.

For the pastry I use a pre rolled chilled puff pastry. Its important to not overcomplicate food and if your an everyday person chances are you wont have the time or ability to make a banging pastry so the ready made ones are brilliant. I used one sheet cut directly in half and place on a pre greased baking tray (avoid parchment paper) 

Now for the filling take a non stick frying pan and a tea spoon /25ml drizzle of olive oil/frylight or what ever oil you use rapeseed etc medium heat add 3/4 of on clove of garlic chopped ss finely as possible. Add 1 medium onion chopped as fine as possible. Sautè off until tender with out changing colour add pancetta and 3 sliced mushrooms for this I used chestnut. Cook on a medium heat still until all cooked and starting to brown. Remove from the heat. Whilst the mix cools evenly spread your tomato & basil sauce over half of the pastry, top the sauce with the sautèed mix 

Sprinkle a little grated cheese. Season and gently fold the pasty (crimping) starting in one corner pinch with finger and thumb and fold into top half of pastry and repeat around until all crimped. Egg wash to seal and give a golden glaze i mixed some dry oregano in my egg wash just gives a nicer flavour to the pastry. Bake in a pre heated oven for 25mins at 200°c. (Fan assisted electric oven)

Whilst the Calzone is cooking the remaining garlic with a small drizzle of oil on a low heat add remaining sauce season well and add a sprinkle of dried basil stir together and pour into a dipping pot. 

• 1 pack pre rolled chilled puff pastry

• small jar of tomato & basil sauce

•1 garlic clove

• 1 medium onion (white) 

• 1 half pack pancetta cubes. 

• 3 slices pepperoni

• 3 slices chorizo

• 3 chustnut mushrooms

• sprinkling of mature cheese

• 1egg 

• 1 tables spoon of cooking oil.

• sprinkle of dried herbs

All of these products to buy first time fresh in tesco costs £16.57 total price for 1 portion costs just £4.67 (this size could easily be split in 2 with a side!)also means you have a mix of 

Freezable, refridgerated and dried goods for further consumption. 

Blog 2 the follow up

To be fair, professional food critics go to a certain style of establishment a place where their readers are likely to indulge. These guys normally read the Independant and drive 70 grand Range Rover's. I dont have £80 to spend on a bottle of vintage 1990 rioja, therfore as a consequence the places I choose to "review" in the loosest term will be places the "everyday" man or lady will go.
So today October 18th is my 29th birthday so to celebrate we go for a short drive into Kettering and go to Frankie & Benny's. I havent been to a F&B for a while but that said I cant recall a bad meal just there are better places around. Friday lunch was quite busy we waited patiently and we were eventually sat as a table of 2 despite clearly having a baby. is a baby something to be overlooked? Would it have hurt to just say 2 and a small one, 2 and a high chair or even just a table for 3? Any acknowledgement would have been nice rather than Grayson being dismissed completely like its a burden having chosen to eat in their establishment. The manageress who sat us offered us a couple of drinks we promptly recieved our diet Coke's. Drinks were good as expected wet and cold. The range of products available is quite extensive and something that at Harvester, as a brand we are challenged to explain the menu. Its something you maybe dismiss on occasions but in actual fact it wouldnt have hurt her to have said look this is drinks this is main menu and this is the lunch time menu which has different courses on different offers. All meals shown are discounted and are the same size portions. However this wasnt the case. We directed ourselves around the menu and ordered starters and 2 mains of which my choice the New Yorker Calzone was on the lunch time meal deal which I didnt realise, the waitress kind of made me feel like I should have known and there was a moment of feeling uncomfortable. That said she disapeared off and our starters arrived a sharing plate of dough balls and dough sticks With a lovely seasoned cheese sauce. The mains arrived after our starters were finished within good time. A chicken  breast sandwich in a ciabatta with fries and coleslaw. I had the previously stated pizza. Which came with a rich tomato sauce over the top. The calzone was a weird thick pancake like pastry not conventional and certainly not "good different" I had a side of fries. The meals were if at all to be picky very salty nothing extraordinary quitw average. Maybe this is the reason its been so long in between visits sadly quite forgettable. A further ice cream and coffee later we recieved our bill after what felt like an age. Because of the lunch time offer (unexplained) 3 courses and 2 drinks came to a respectable £39. For a lunchtime meal the food was just about filling if it was a evening meal I wouldnt want to pay the actual price plus an evening drink. The best part of Frankies & Bennies is 100% the atmosphere good music, dimmed lights and relativly friendly albeit uninterested staff. 

For me FB's is a 5/10

Blog #1

so........
.........blogging, I have wanted to do this for a while I wrote a blog/diary whilst I was on holiday, one day I might publish some of its content. I have also always wanted to be a form of food writer, having been in the food biz for all my working life its an area so close to me and easy to write about. Along this blogging journey I endeavour to release some pictures and recipes from my collection, and also try to sample the workings of a food critic. not to criticise as such more food writing. a very poor mans cross between Adam Richman and Tom Parker Bowles.

My life nearly always evolves around food, and I wonder why my weight is a issue and constant subject for work place bullying (I mean banter) I find food to be my passion, I love live and breath food. I find food therefore easy to appreciate and be a critic of, being a restaurant manager I also find it hard to take constructive criticism, quite frankly the market in which we operate every one has a opinion which is normally 90% bullshit, but in a guest focused environment you have to keep your food knowledge and background silent and listen to know it all know fuck all dimwits talk shit in order to get a discount or a voucher to come back.

Cooking at home is a complex art people tend to get horribly confused about, its expensive, confusing, hard, impractical, its all myths that we adopt because of lifestyle. in actual fact we need food to survive, why not cook and enjoy the food you need in life rather than throwing together tasteless junk because its cooked in 10 minutes. At home food, a necessity of life becomes comfort and a thing of boredom, no one really explores food, flavours, diversity, change. it becomes like a bad tasteless wallpaper, the same products cooked the same way, why?? in a restaurant which at some point in a year most people will go at least once you eat from their menu, you have no control over ingredients or manufacture. so why as a society do we allow this to happen at home.

For me I love to explore I love to experiment I also love to learn. I will happily challenge my self to perfect and present dishes and recipes of common foods we indulge but from take out, Indian - I am learning to love spicier foods, however my favourite dish is from Bollywood in Caterham a chicken Murgh Sagrana. Joyful heavenly Indian cuisine. buggered to know how its made, but along the way of finding out you stumble across new flavours and dishes that go well.

Sitting at home on my day off today whilst my 11 month old son crawls stands and falls a lot. (supervised) I have on in the background a ground breaking American show featuring Adam Richman, Man Vs Food, the food nation series is brilliant, for those who love to over indulge its perfect way to look explore and experiment, note down the ideas and ridiculous but tasty things he eats. Sadly with television this isn't always the case those challenges he does are more a food based fantasy like the dream we all have about sleeping with someone we shouldn't. other Programs on TV based around food never quite live up to the everyday man/women expectation, sure we would all love to cook a 30 minute meal good enough to acclaim a Michelin star but the reality is the food is never substantial to feed an average family of four within a budget of £3 per person. Jamie Oliver is quality, entertaining but his books and shows still offer recipes for "everyday person" which a little out there and still expensive.

I personally want to create a show a book a way of being able to show recipes of food we could all relate too and feed our families with, a couple with a glass of wine, a solo person, a first date, a family on a budget. show that food can be different exciting and tasty but still affordable. In the words of martin Luther king "I have a dream" sadly though I wake up half way through mine.