Tag Archives: Reigate

Tea

Blog, Cafes, Reviews, Tea Shop, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

56 High Road, Reigate, RH2 9ATcarolynne migh tea

The upside: One of the most interesting loose-leaf tea menus in Surrey!

The downside: Closed on Sundays

The flipside: A lovely independent selling a menu that embraces single blend teas with locally produced food

This café is as its name suggests is all about tea. Carolynne Farrer (a former HR specialist) always dreamed of owning her own tea business. Made redundant a few years ago she chatted with her sister about her idea. Convinced she was all talk her sister remarked that she would never actually do it. This was the challenge that Carolynne needed and TEA is now 1 year old.

Located in historical Reigate, on the High Road the interior has been playfully created to give a vintage retro feel. The counter is painted red and decorated with old knitting patterns. These are so evocative to me of childhood especially if you had a knitting crazy granny like me.

Tea Reigate kintting patterns

Here you will find that all aspects of the small but delightful menu have been carefully devised. The kitchen is very small so the menu reflects this. Tea (some organic) Organic coffee (from Beanberry) and proper hot chocolate dominate the drinks menu. On the food side its doorstop sandwiches featuring local cheeses. High Weald for Sister Sarah goats cheese and Sussex Charmer from Bookhams are just 2 examples.

Tea is the specialty here so I chose a pot of Chinese Jasmine Silver Needle. All teas are loose-leaf and placed intotea at migh tea an unbleached filter to brew. Each variety needs different times to infuse so are served with a timer and brew time advice. You can find a full description of all the teas on the website but staff here are keen to share their knowledge and discuss options. Tea comes from an independent tea merchant in Winchester who share their knowledge and passion for this unique drink with Carolynne. The tea menu is divided into normal (£2), special (£2.50) and superior (£3.75) for a generous pot. My tea was deliciously aromatic and soothingly smooth to drink.

To eat I selected a Welsh Rarebit made with one of my favourite cheeses Sussex Charmer (£3.75). The cheese here is combined with herb mustard and Worcester sauce and was deliciously satisfying. Bread is from the Chalet Bakery an independent business in Tadworth. My companion Sarah from ‘Little Spice’ had a doorstep sandwich with Sister Sarah goats cheese. This was served with a salad garnish and vegetable crisps (£5.25). The sandwich menu changes weekly featuring local produced ingredients. Other menu items include home-made soup (changing daily) with bread (£4.75) or a Ploughmans served with pickles, local fruit chutney and oatcakes (£6.75). Generous portions make this a value for money destination too!

food trio sandwiches

tea timer_migh tea

To finish Sarah chose a pot of Organic coffee and a rich chocolate brownie. So although this is a tea room coffee drinkers won’t be disappointed served in a cafetiere (my favourite style) as Carolynne didn’t want the aroma of coffee to dominate the venue. With coffee you get to choose your roast too! I had a slice of gluten free orange and polenta cake. It was rich, moist and intensely orangey. Made by a local baker the cakes change during the week and are displayed tantalisingly under glass cake stands (£2-£3.50) .

cake trio

If you like me get mightily fed up with predictable high street chains, Tea in Reigate will give you a refreshingly different experience.board outside shopFresh locally produced food, fabulous tea menu and lovely people, it is well worth a visit.

www.migh-tea.com

For high tea reservations call 01737246251

Thanks to Sarah from ‘Little Spice’ for introducing me to this great tea-house!

Little Spice

Blog, Local producer, , , , , , ,

A new food start up based in Surrey selling a range of beautifully balanced spice mixes.

I met Sarah Lazell on twitter! It’s been a brilliant place to meet and connect with other Surrey based food lovers. Sarah sent me some samplessarah lazell little spice 6x9
to try and then a few weeks later we decided to meet in a lovely independent teashop, in Reigate. Meeting people behind the brands is a really important element of my reviews, plus of course there is always food and cooking as a shared interest.

After taking a degree in Advertising Sarah enjoyed a busy working life before her son was born. In time that daily commute into London suddenly lost its appeal and Sarah decided to realise her dream of starting her own business. Combining spices had always been a hobby so it soon became the focus of her new adventure and she had plenty of encouragement from her friends who already loved her mixes. Sarah grew up in a family who were creative with food and it seemed natural to carry this in to her own home. Loving the ability spices have to enhance natural flavours in food she started to create her own signature combinations. Spices we agreed can totally lift a meal without compromising the healthfulness of a dish in a way that other ingredients can’t match.

Happy to start small with a young family she spent time researching and blending her mixes until she was 100% happy with them. Friends and family became testers and their valuable feedback used to tweak the recipes. For example combining three different types of pepper in her awesome pepper mix demonstrates admirably that pepper is not just pepper and each different variety adds new flavour compounds. This has a direct impact of the way this blend can work with different foods.

spice range little spice9x7

 

Launching last June as ‘Little Spice’ Sarah has six spice mixes in her range and will add seasonal products too! I have been trying out these mixes for the last couple of weeks and love the results.

I have added ‘just one more thing’ a chili mix to stuffing for roast chicken and sprinkled it on cottage cheese and labneh (strained yogurt). The addition of smoked paprika, chipotle and cinnamon has just the right attitude and punch. Just as Sarah intended it adds a flavour boost and kick to get your taste buds twitching (in a good way). I used English Country Garden mixed with polenta to coat some chicken fillets, pan fried and cut into strips they topped a coleslaw seasoned with Glitterati (a mix of pink salt, white pepper and pink peppercorns) and some toasted pumpkin seeds: huge success.

little spice trio

Spirit of Herbs went on a joint of pork and its fennel and lemon peel notes mixed with rosemary, thyme and garlic balanced the fattiness of the meat and I have never seen crackling disappear so fast. Awesome pepper is a combination of pink, long and black pepper ground to a slightly crunchy finish, which adds texture too and gives a much more complex taste sensation on the palate, this I teamed with fresh vine ripened tomatoes

I have to say when I first looked at these products on the Little Spice website I was skeptical. However I know never to dismiss any food product until you have sampled. That was a good call as I have been surprised at how good these blends are. Well priced too, at just £3 as if you had to go and buy all the spices individually it would be inhibitive. A perfect size for stocking fillers, hampers, inspiring lazy cooks or just for adding an extra pizzazz to family favourites. You can buy these online, or at events (see website for details).

http://www.little-spice.co.uk

Surrey Food and Drink Network

Sarah runs a closed Facebook page for small food producers or those who are thinking of starting up to support each other and share information. If you would like to join please contact Sarah via her website.

Find my recipe for Spiced Chicken Traybake using Sarah’s spices here

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Steak Stones Sizzle Club

Blog, event caterer, functions, Pop up Supper Club, Products, , , , , , ,

Main Event: A red-hot lava stone eating experience

Is it worth the calories? With rising obesity rates dominating the press an opportunity to eat healthily scores high here.

We love dinner! So when Nick Metcalf and guest chef Jaqueline Wise invited us to their unique supper club we eagerly obliged. Being included in a party of food professionals we happily caught up with some old friends and made some new ones too.

Sizzle Club Menu

Steak stones are natural lava rock, cut and sanded smooth for cooking. Used in top restaurants globally they sounded like a bit of a gimmick. But what makes them unique is their ability to hold their temperature for prolonged period. Chilled stones are  glazed and useful for keeping desserts, cold cuts or even sushi cool while heated stones are perfect for tabletop and outdoor cooking.

To promote his lava stones Nick has a private dining room in Reigate where he hosts regular supper clubs. This allows him to showcase his products, get valuable feedback and spread the word. On arrival at the event bubbly and a range of tapas from local independent delicatessen, Cullenders, were served. Dinner followed in a dedicated dining room and here the fun started. We were all served thick-cut fillet steaks with chunky chips, asparagus and cherry tomatoes. A health warning, not to touch the stones with inquisitive fingers, was strategically flagged and good job too, these stones heated to 350c demand respect. The thick fillet steaks were from butchers, Aubrey Allen, who source grass-fed dry-aged beef. The steaks were big but you don’t get the benefit of this cooking platform with anything smaller.

steakstonestrio

It turns out that eating from a sizzling lava stone is an exothermic experience particularly suited to a wintery night. Having wondered what benefit this heat retaining rock might bring to the table can now be shared. You get a hunk of tasty meat that changes character during the meal plus its gets hotter as you eat. This works because the meat is only turned once and doesn’t move during the process. You can cut a slice off and press it into the stone to achieve your preferred level of ‘doneness’. You are in complete control throughout. The accompanying vegetables can also get the same treatment. Mulling back to previous steak dinners that have congealed on the plate, or worse, a chopping board (who ever thought that was a good idea?) gives this format extra points.

fillet_steak_on_stone

Steaks finished we waxed lyrical about our meal and agreed that it was the perfect  cooking platform for top quality meat. We could see that using this for salmon, scallops and other solid protein sources would be just as effective.

steak_stones_dessert_6x9Steak stones cleared away we finished with coffee a dessert of lemon and elderflower sponge with a hot caramel sauce.

Lava stones are available on line from Nicks shop and he has a range of packages for restaurant. It’s the larger commercial market that this company is primarily interested in but they are also keen to sell online to individuals in single units. This is a great gift for meat lovers and given that there is some fabulous local beef on offer in Surrey it’s a perfect match.

0800 1777 577

www.steakstones.com

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee
Croissants chalk hills

Chalk Hills Bakery Shop and Cafe

Blog, Cafes, Coffee Shop, Food producers, Gourmet food shop, local food shop, Local products, Our blog, Products, Reviews, Take Away, Tea Shop, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 75 Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7ANChris & Rosie owners of Chalk Hills Bakery

A bakery and café delivering artisan bread and pastry magic to the lucky folk of Reigate.

Go there for: Handmade artisan bread, gorgeous pastries, tarts, and a bacon sandwich to shout about.

Avoid: Trying to resist anything in this café; it’s futile.

Is it worth the calories?: I should say so: this is the ultimate good food experience!

Tips: The sandwiches on the menu are fantastic but if you want a bespoke combination just ask.

Walking into Chalk Hill Bakery on a rainy autumn day to the smell of toasting bread and aromatic coffee is a truly uplifting experience.Chalk Hills Bakery shop front

Chris and Rosie Robinson sold their gastro pub, The Stephen Langton in Abinger Hammer, to start a proper artisan bakery. Coincidentally, Priory Farm had a kitchen to rent in the old tractor shed and in November 2010 the first loaves were sold in the Priory Farm shop.

Chris and his team make sour-dough bread by hand the old-fashioned way and let it rise naturally over a 2-day period to develop flavour and texture ­- don’t think of muttering Chorley Wood, dough improvers or high-speed mixing here. Sourcing fine ingredients such as Shipton Mill organic flour gives added provenance to their products. The long fermentation process means the bread stays fresh for longer and is easier to digest.

Chalk Hills Bakery produce 17 different loaves, including fig and walnut sour dough (£3.65), large rye (£2.75), and other classics such as ciabatta (£2.50) and focaccia with a selection of toppings (£3.95). They also make a Surrey bloomer (£1.75) and Italian sticks (£2.10). Even the yeasted breads have a flavour boost of sour dough starter and are slowly proved in a refrigerator. The full range of products is on sale at Priory Farm and at Chalk Hills Bakery every day. They sell wholesale to a handful of local businesses.

Artisan bread selection at Chalk HIlls

Chalk Hills Bakery has definitely got the X factor (but with classier music). It’s modern yet rustic, charming and friendly, and has a simple but innovative menu. They cleverly match their bread to the sandwich fillings so you get the best texture and flavour combination. In addition they make croissants, scones, sausage rolls (with free-range sausage meat from Bowles farm in Ewhurst). Ham and beef for their sandwiches are cooked in the bakery; meat comes from Robert and Edwards of Reigate. In fact everything on the menu is made at the bakery, even the soup.

The bread menu, sweet tarts and bacon sandwich on white bloomer

I tucked into their classic bacon sandwich made from Gloucester Old Spot free-range bacon on toasted Surrey Bloomer (£3.95). What a triumph! Crisp, salty bacon, sweet herb jelly and perfectly toasted bread. The Sage Jelly from local producer PickleCake Parma ham and mozzarella with sage jelly (produced locally by Picklecake) also caught my eye – next time! I rounded this off with a pot of Barry’s Irish tea. I’ve never heard of it but apparently if you are from Southern Ireland it’s the only tea to drink and Chris (who’s from Dublin) won’t sell anything else. Coffee comes from Union, a craft roaster in East London, and soft drinks from Luscombe organics in Devon.

Business has been booming ever since the bakery opened and they plan to open another shop. Just make a wish that it’s on your doorstep: I have.

www.chalkhillsbakery.com

01737669116