Archive for March, 2010

Say Cheese!

Monday, March 29th, 2010

Alsop & Walker's Maturing Cheese Room...

Our cheese supplier, Arthur Alsop, is not only an expert and authority on all things cheese-related, he’s also a thoroughly decent chap.

Arthur didn’t know an awful lot about cheese before he started his company, but that hasn’t stopped him. After no little amount of effort and endeavour, Arthur has become, well, a bit of big cheese in the industry supplying loads of top London restaurants (and a top Bodiam one).

In fact, he has just returned from Borough Market where he had a stall demonstrating how to make cheese soufflé – a recipe and technique he learnt at The Curlew kitchen at the hands of our Head Chef, Neil McCue.

Arthur’s company ‘Alsop and Walker’ ‘specialise in Artisan Cheese making at their Factory in East Sussex, aiming to produce a complete cheese board of hand made cheese that will do everything from introducing the youngest in our family to satisfying the adults. You will always find that our cheeses have their own special flavour texture and character.’

If you’re looking for some wonderful cheese for home, drop into Coles Hall Barns – they love you to taste.

Sussex and Kent are packed full of these suppliers. We realise how lucky we are to be able to source so much of our menu from people passionate about what they do right on our doorstep. Shouldn’t that what local restaurants be all about? Wonderful local produce served with passion? We think so.

Shooting & Foraging at Silcock’s Organic Farm, Tenterden.

Monday, March 1st, 2010


Silcock’s Organic Farmer Ian Jones with The Curlew owner Mark Colley and head chef Neil McCue enjoying a day on the farm hunting and foraging recently. Neil commented “there are no ends we won’t go to get the best produce around!”. However, with most of the game managing to evade them we look forward to seeing what our talented chef can do with some of the oak tree leaves they managed to disturb!

Silcock’s trusty gun-dog Coco was on hand to keep an eye on proceedings.