Food

The Fizz Festival, the only UK consumer wine fair dedicated to Champagne and sparkling wine, will take place at The Edinburgh Academy on Henderson Row on Saturday 29 October 2016. This one day event will incorporate a host of wine merchants, specialist masterclasses and local Scottish food producers with visitors being given a fantastic opportunity to taste, learn about and buy fizz from around the world. Visitors will also be able to purchase their favourite fizz on the day – a great opportunity before the festive season.

Tarana Restaurant in Kent, which opened earlier this year has been nominated for two major restaurant awards – one local, one national.  The busy Rainham restaurant has also just announced a special festive menu designed for large family gatherings and staff parties and will open on Christmas Day. Tarana has been nominated for 'Best Newcomer' in this year's Asian Curry Awards.  The winners will be announced at glittering awards ceremony, at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Mayfair on 23rd October.

A woman who makes Christmas puddings to her great-grandmother’s recipe is hoping to get a taste for international success after winning export orders in Ireland. Worcester-based Ellen Halpin-Barnett, who launched her fourth generation Grandma Lily’s Christmas puddings in July at the Windsor Food Festival, is heading to Chicago later this month on the inaugural Midlands Engine trade mission to the USA and Canada to tempt US buyers after Irish stores snapped up her tasty festive treat.

From the crisp country air and the crunch of frost underfoot, to the irresistible warmth of the roaring log fire, The Queens Arms in Corton Denham is the perfect destination for those wishing to embrace the tranquil allure of the Somerset countryside this Christmas. Rosy cheeks and winter woollies can while away the day traversing some of the finest countryside that the south west has to offer, returning to the cosy charms of this award-winning pub, including chestnuts around the fire, mulled wine and a truckle of Montgomery cheddar on the bar.

Pioneering raw chocolate producer, Adam's Fresh Chocolate, has been crowned The Seed Fund's 2016 Winner and will now begin a journey of business development as it benefits from a year-long programme of mentoring, branding and business support from The Seed Fund, a prize estimated to be worth over £100,000.

On the Saturday 8th October 2016 Londoners will have the chance to take part in a record breaking feast! Over the course of 1,000 minutes (yep, that's 16 hours and 40 minutes) 100 individual dishes will be served to over 100 lucky guests! Tickets go on sale to the public on Friday 16th September at 10am. A crack team of experienced private chefs are taking on this challenge, they'll be sautéing, frying, blanching, boiling, sous viding, blending, piping, plating and serving continuously for 1,000 minutes!

With the tax on sugary soft drinks due to come into effect in April 2018, the majority of UK sports and energy drink users say they expect their purchasing of these products to be affected as a result of any price increases. Indeed, new Mintel research reveals that one in three Brits who drink sports and energy drinks would cut back on the amount of sugary varieties they consume if the price were to increase, while one in five say they would stop drinking sugary varieties altogether.

Milkshakes are so delicious, the world has dedicated a day to them. Not one to miss out on a celebration, TGI Fridays is bringing the party with its awesome range of milkshakes, offering people the chance to get their hands on one of these delicious drinks for free on the 12^th September. All that milkshake lovers needed to do to grab a free shake was sign up to the TGI Fridays newsletter, or download the TGI Fridays app by 8th September 2016.

The rapidly expanding Koh Group has revealed plans to launch in Lymington, which will become its 12th site - its 5th in Hampshire - before the end of the year. The announcement follows successful openings in Winchester and Romsey this summer, as well as the launch of Salisbury earlier in the year.  The company is on target to achieve its ambitious five-year plan of creating a 40-restaurant estate. The first opened in Boscombe in Dorset in 2009.

James Houlston of Our Plaice in Kidderminster, West Midlands, has been named as one of the UK’s top five fish friers after he was shortlisted for the Drywite Young Fish Frier of the Year Award as part of the 2017 National Fish & Chip Awards, organised by Seafish. James will now have to compete at the highest level as he goes up against the four other contenders ‘fishing’ for the top prize, including: Elise Boothroyd of Fochabers Fish Bar in Fochabers, Moray; Andrew Hillier of Harbourside Fish & Chips in Plymouth, Devon; George Papadamou of Papa’s Fish & Chips in Hull, East Yorkshire and Luke Pope of Bankers Fish Restaurant in Brighton, East Sussex.

Celebrating the very best in food and drink, Great Taste, the world's most coveted blind-tasted food awards, has reached its grand finale for 2016. The Great Taste Golden Fork for the best food or drink in the North of England was presented to Huddersfield-based Dark Woods Coffee for its hand-roasted and post blended single-estate espresso, Under Milkwood. The espresso's “beckoning nose” enticed judges, who relished the “sharp, fruity and dark chocolate notes” in the mouth and were left wanting more of this brilliant coffee with no bitter aftertaste.

The New Forest is to hold its first ever Food & Drink Festival this autumn from October 31 to November 6 2016.  The New Forest Food & Drink Festival will be a week-long celebration with culinary events, produce-tasting, featured dishes and activities for every foodie - even the littlest ones.  Menus will feature traditional forest foods and more contemporary additions such as award-winning charcuterie, not to mention stunning fish and seafood from the forest's 40 miles of coastline.

Gran Hotel Atlantis Bahia Real wins 'best in Canary Islands' at prestigious cocktail awards 'World Class Competition 2016'. The Mirador Bar located at the Gran Hotel Atlantis Bahía Real 5 * G.L in Fuerteventura has been selected as the best mixology bar in the Canary Islands, in the most prestigious bartending competition worldwide - the WORLD CLASS.

As The Great British Bake Off returns to our screens spare a thought for people who love to bake or eat the results (or both!) but are concerned about the impact on their health because the results  are often calorie laden and high in saturated fat and sugar. Luckily Diabetes UK has developed some new tasty recipes aimed at helping those with a sweet tooth indulge without the guilt.

Bloggers have sparked the rise of foodie parents – but the love for the humble lunchbox has been left behind. According to research by Hartley’s Jelly, over a quarter of parents in the West Midlands describe themselves as ‘foodies,’ yet 78% of parents don’t enjoy making up lunchboxes. Inspiration is now all around at a click of a button – with over a quarter of parents in the West Midlands following food trends and 1 in 5 have an interest in food.

The clock is ticking - and there is now less than two weeks to go before the doors open at Speciality & Fine Food Fair 2016 - the UK's leading fine food and drink trade showcase. This year's 'feast-ival' will see more than 850 producers and 12,000 buyers, chefs and business owners celebrate the passion and the trend for great, authentic artisan food and drink. And there's much to savour.....