Restaurant Critic, Andrew Kay, and Food blogger, Graphic Foodie review Love Poppy

Please have a read of reviews from my Secret Supper night with Casillero del Diablo .

One published in The Latest Homes magazine by Brighton restaurant critic, Andrew Kaye - The Devil's Cellar and my second review from The Graphic Foodie - A Month of Revisits

Dates for your diary..

2 new dates for this month..

Sunday 4th September- Vintage afternoon tea..
Saturday 17th September - Secret supper..

Menus are not disclosed so come with a broad palate, alone or with friends. lovepoppyfood@gmail.com for booking and further information. Payment in advance.


I look forward to welcoming you..

Casillero del Diablo

Lovely evening hosting with Casillero del Diablo... will write in full soon

Honeycomb..

' Mum have you ever made honeycomb' ? Just made some, really easy but it didn't turn out quite
right, do you think it's because my Bicarbonate of soda is a year and a half out of date ' ?

' Obviously ' !

'O Whatever'

'I'll give it a go, recipe '?

'Oh it's really easy, golden syrup, sugar, bicarb'

' and just tip all that into a bucket and mix I suppose ' !

' SSSHHHH '

So went the conversation with my daughter. She loves food and cooking as I do but our styles couldn't
differ more. Hers is all a bit of this, some of that, oh yeh I forgot that bit, no I dont have right size tin, oh well
I'll just cut that bit off, just give me a plastic bag and I'll carry it on my bike !


Mine is aiming at perfection and failing, anal about presentation and while I am still working out the width at
which the cutlery should be seperated she has whisked up ( with a fork of course ) some sort of delight all with
a disarming charm and endless optimistic cheer. And does it turn out ok, damn right it does.. Infuriating.
This is a glass half girl and I gaze upon her with pride and bemusement - where did she come from !




Honeycomb pictures to follow..

Multi Generational Afternoon tea..

I am assured by Maryon that I am allowed to mention her age , all 98 years ,without fear of offending.

This was a true multi generational afternoon tea to celebrate not only the above but just the fact that
Great Grandmother, Grandmother, Daughter and children were able to celebrate together at one table.It was both moving and a little daunting to be hosting and baking in particular, for afamily so adept in
the kitchen themselves, with many more years experience than I.
But as is usual with the guests my fears were quickly dispelled by their gracious good humour and obvious
enthusiasm of what I offered.
Maryon, calm and wise, a true Great Grandmother. She has lived through a time we
no longer understand, wars, deprivation and all the losses inherant in that. With a real understanding of how
to provide for a family with little, the ingenious ways to make food tasty and nutitrious within the stricture ofthe ration book. It is interesting to note how healthy they were, in both body and mind compared with the
excesses of today. Everyone at this table cooked or baked or both. Old teaching the young from memory, taste
and touch alone and I was envious indeed of 10 year old Jacks pastry knowledge, of which I am sorely lacking.

They all seemed to enjoy -

Scones cream and strawberries..
Banana loaf ..

Earl grey fruit loaf ..

Chocolate pear tart..Orange sponge cake..

Chocolate and almond brownies..
Selection of sandwiches with traditional leaf teas /hot chocolate on a stick/ fresh lemonade

A huge well done to Jack and Lizzie who sat through lots of grown up talk without a single complaint . I hope you enjoyed your goody bags !

One very tearful Hen.. !

This afternoon tea was for the lovely Katy organised as a suprise by all her friends for her forthcoming wedding - the day before the Royal wedding - but no less important of course!

With the usual consultations under way we arranged to meet to confirm everything. It is a moment I always enjoy as you get an immediate idea of who you are working with and you can put a face to the voice or more common these days the voiceless/faceless email.

I instinctively knew I would like this group, emails were easy, prompt and reliable, always a good sign. Two very pretty girls indeed arrived to meet me and after a chat I took them across to view the beautiful private gardens attached to my flat. I often use these as they are a perfect backdrop to any occasion and had suggested they could use them a possible option, weather permitting.

The menu was decided - a combination of sweet and savoury treats: -

Prosecco & strawberries..

minature pastry canapes - sour cream/salmon/chives..

cucumber/ham & mustard sandwiches...

fresh fruit cup...

blueberry and lavender cake... chocolate and guinness cake...

orange and almond cake...

meringues...

old fashioned english sweets...

Tea/ flowering & english breakfast/coffee...

The girls had rented a house for their weekend in Brighton, one of the busiest of the year and as it turned out the day dawned with a flawless blue sky and glorious sunshine. The gardens were to be used as a champagne corner before coming on to me.

They collected borrowed rugs, sugar dusted strawberries, a cutsey umbrella and a 1960s Good Housekeeping magazine that I use sometimes as a bit of light literary entertainment ! With all preparations finally done through the haze of jet lag (from arriving back from Australia just 48 hours previously) , the table looking twinkly, elegant and decidedly girly, summoning my girls was due.

With their garden fun at an end the ' hen' was told to ring my bell stating her name only. Through the entry phone I could hear an excited but very uncertain little voice making her claim admist the giggles of anticipation of her friends.

I very naughtily kept silent while a very apprenhensive little face appeared in the door way, then after a quick glance at what lay before her she promptly burst into tears, closely followed by several others! Not my usual reaction it has to be said but very cute indeed. With a cuddle in

place and an explanation, the tears continued, a clear demonstration of simply being overwhelmed at the kindness and suprise of it all.

Food and drink were all happily consumed and I tried to be attentive yet discreet, within the limitations an open kitchen will allow. They wrote cheery messages to their friend and thanks to me on the bathroom mirrror, collected up their roses from each place setting and armed with doggy bags for later, trotted off happy and chatty into the April sunshine...

Lovely to meet you all... Congratulations Katy, I hope it was all you wished for !

I am promised photos and reviews....oooo scary !

More Sex and the City than Vintage tea..!

After a long cold winter, the long awaited spring was just waking up when I was unexpectedly summoned to my family in Australia this March. My usual stint has always been in the shimmering white heat of Summer, a blessed relief from the dreary gloom of the extended British winter.

Arriving in what is Autumn, it made me smile to see the optimistic Australians still able to don summer wear with the obligatory surfboard under arm, iconic Bondi beckoning as Sydney siders and tourists alike enjoy life in this most beautiful of cities.

As a way to show gratitude to my sisters friends she requested I do an afternoon tea before my return. Invitations went out -' you are invited to an eccentric English tea party '

Searching for the same ingrediants with which to bake proved not too difficult but what appears to be the same turns out quite different. The standard of food in Australia is high and the weather means everything ripens properly so fruit and vegetables are all bigger, brighter and without doubt superior in flavour that our dulled English palates have simply forgotton. The simple joy of eating a ripe mango or perfect peach is worth 24 hours in 'cattle' alone!

With the necessary adjustments made and a few failures in working with a different oven it was actually a delight. My sisters kitchen is designed as 2 in one so 2 sinks plus bench space on both sides. Space in abundance, a joy to work in, huge windows looking out over tropical gardens, pool, magnolia trees and as night falls the iconic music of the crickets. .. no, not a rock band.. insects!

The plan was for me to do everything but my sister is not only a talented cook, but a doer by nature and as about as anal as I am with regard to presentation and perfection!

With the table laid and looking suitably glamorous my sister dressed to match, with her friends arriving, champagne flowing and the compliments and cameras at the ready, I stood back and watched, feeling a flood of tenderness as she relaxed and laughed loudly, buoyed by the warmth and restorative power that good friends and family can offer...

Tic Toc..

Brighton has it's fair share of quirky places to eat and drink but I recommend Tic Toc in the old lanes not least for the charming, naughty front of house Stephane !

Finding a consistently good cup of coffee in England is not easy which is why for many of us, we return time and again to the same places. Tic Toc understands coffee, with a real pride and interest taken in food and presentation. It is quickly evident that his knowledge and ability is vast and this extends right across the board, from actual cooking to quickly and skillfully observing customers requirements.

Unlike in England, France has held on to it's culinary culture and there is pride taken in working in the food industry of all types. We all too often undervalue it and in this case it is a Frenchman who has shown us how it can be done.

P.S They also sell my Chocolate and Guinness cake, which is rather yummy even if I do say so myself!

Come dine with me !

Two new dates for his month..

Secret Supper - Saturday 13th November
Vintage Afternoon Tea - Sunday 21st November

I haven't disclosed the menus but am happy to do so and gluten free is
always available, just let me know a couple of days beforehand.

Tell your friends and family, further details are on http://www.supperclubfangroup.ning.com and tickets can either be bought from me directly or through http://www.wegottickets/ which will be posted shortly.

I look forward to welcoming you and yours..

Happy Birthday Ursula....

This supper was a birthday celebration for fifteen 24 year olds! The birthday girl being the braver of the bunch had chosen a supper night/bespoke dinner to celebrate with her friends...it soon transpired that she seemed to be the only one who really knew what she was coming to!

With the menu being left to me and after a brief chat I decided a shared dish rather than individual plating would be more convivial so chose a seafood curry as a main with a serving of pea and ham broth served in tea cups to start.

Chocolate cake with berries to finish and handmade chocolates with popping candy as final overload.

After all the work it made me smile to watch the reaction the popping candy got, applause and cheers. The simplest of things, perhaps a memory of childhood?

They arrived in groups, sort of 'pack' like, spilling into my tiny space excited but unsure. With pleasantries exchanged and a very feeble attempt on my part to ask names which I immediately forgot, one of the 2 men steered them to their seats, it came out later that he was slightly intimidated at the supposed formality and needed a 'job to do'.

With everyone seated they began to relax and the food was hoovered up.

The 'boyfriend' had come proudly bearing a cake he had baked, a fabulous assembly resembling to my eye, the 02 arena! It was this man that noticed I was knackered and put an end to a good night, but not before clearing the table. A first, and a grateful one at that... Bravo to the man with no name, your mother has done a good job !

I had to laugh at the poor man who throughout the meal seemed rather subdued. He admitted at the end that he had no idea where he was, had never heard of a supper club and thought he was coming to one of his friend's houses only to find himself standing in my living room and being told to put his coat on in the bedroom by a strange woman in a mad black hat!

They all wrote in the visitors book, a good memory and I woke the next morning completely forgetting that I had encouraged them to write on the bathroom mirror, giving it a slightly squat like air. Great comments, some of which I needed translating !