Catering and events specialists, Sodexo Prestige Venues & Events treated a select group of venue and corporate guests to a mystery fine-dining experience at the Edinburgh New Town Cookery School.
Led by Divisional Executive Chef, Stephen Frost, the event featured an eight-course tasting menu specifically designed by Sodexo’s craft & innovation team to showcase familiar flavour combinations in an alternative way. Keen to ensure some of the more unusual ingredients did not influence individuals, the dishes were kept secret until after each course had been sampled by guests.
Key themes that shaped the menu included a focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients, which were combined with the aim of keeping the dishes elegantly simple, not over complicating and involving too many different elements.
Some of the highlights experienced and enjoyed during the evening included:
ELT sandwich – rather than this classic featuring bacon, eel was introduced alongside lettuce, tomato and mustard, which was then encased in a brioche bun
Tuna & corn – the tuna was seared and served with a very unusual sweetcorn sorbet and tuille
Rack of lamb – roasted and then served with wild garlic pesto and white asparagus – the perfect spring dish
Truffled Clava – the wheel of Scottish brie style cheese was sliced in half, stuffed with truffles and roasted; it was then served alongside grapes sautéed in sherry
Guests were also invited to take part in a canape masterclass with each member of the group provided with ingredients and encouraged to develop their own style and flavour of canape, which were then judged by the chefs.
Commenting on the evening, Stephen Frost, Executive Divisional Chef said, “We wanted to create a memorable evening for diners that turned some well-known flavour combinations on their head, while at the same time allowing us to introduce alternative seasonal ingredients and present them in a different way.
“Simple, standout dishes don’t need to be complicated and using a small amount of core ingredients, cooked well, can create an extraordinary fine-dining experience.”