Four-four time
The success of a charity dinner in February, cooked by four local celebrity chefs, was the impetus behind the Night of Good Food at Bournemouth's Royal Bath hotel on 14 September.
"People kept asking when we were going to do the next one," says David Ryan, chef and joint proprietor of the town's Bistro on the Beach, who organised the first event. This time he handed over the reins of organisation to the Royal Bath's executive head chef Peter Leyland-Jones, who, along with Ryan, Pierre Chevillard, head chef at Chewton Glen, and Bournemouth and Poole College's school of catering senior lecturer David Boland, devised and cooked a course each on the evening's four-course menu.
The menu planning and tasting process started 12 weeks ago, and early on it was decided, as far as possible, to showcase locally produced ingredients, all of which were donated by the four chefs' regular suppliers. "We tried to keep the food relatively light throughout," says Leyland-Jones.
First course, cooked by Ryan, was a game and wild mushroom terrine: pheasant, quail, pigeon and venison were set in a game consommé and the robust flavours - chosen to provide a strong start to the menu - were complemented by a Riesling, selected - as was all the wine - by the hotel's deputy general manager, James Harding. "Its crisp finish isn't overpowered by the game, and it also goes well with the second course of fish," he explains.
The fish - feuilleté of salmon and scallops served with a leek fondue and saffron sauce mariniäre - was cooked by Boland. "Scallops and leek are a classical combination and the crispness of the leek also complements the salmon, which is roasted in the oven," he says.
Chevillard took charge of a classically simple main course, loin of veal with a Parmesan crust served with a white wine sauce, the aim of which was to provide guests with a second menu highlight after the defined but delicate flavours of the fish course. It was accompanied by a peppery Shiraz.
The meal was rounded off with a dessert of marbled chocolate millefeuille served with a thyme ice-cream and red fruit coulis made by Leyland-Jones. "The coulis, which is made from strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants and blackberries, is there for colour and the thyme adds a lightly perfumed, delicate flavour which contrasts with the bitterness of the chocolate."
A blossomy, honeyed botrytis Sémillion accompanied this because of its ability, according to Harding, "to shine through the chocolate".
The four chefs were helped by a 20-strong brigade, while the hotel's maitre d', Nagui Hessiha, headed a front of house team of 35. Feedback from the 210 diners, who paid £50 per head for the evening, was good, with the fish course going down particularly well.
The evening raised £14,200, more than enough to buy a sunshine coach for the Variety Club of Great Britain, the charity for which it was held. Another two Good Food Nights are planned for 1999 - one each to be organised by Chevillard and Boland for their nominated charities. n
