Last Wednesday, Claire’s Kitchen put up a pop-up restaurant in one of the Medieval barns at the Exmoor Owl & Hawk Centre in Bossington. 50 guests enjoyed an owl display before sitting down for a Mediterranean fest of suckling pig cooked on the spit and paella.
Here are some photos taken on the night by James Alexander:
The Exmoor Food Fest has been sponsored by Arthur David.
Fly with us, Ride with us, Stay with us …. or visit for the day
Exmoor Owl & Hawk Centre is a unique farmstead within Exmoor National Park, in a small 15th century historic farmyard setting, housing a really special collection of free-flown owls and other birds of prey, animals free roaming together, and some beautiful horses for all to enjoy.
We can fly our birds and owls to your gloved hand when you book into a variety of different activity sessions and experiences in the mornings to suit any budget; you come face to face with these amazingly graceful creatures who have learnt to fly to anyone using behavioural and trust-based training techniques. You can experience many different birds and their various methods of flying and catching prey just by watching them and taking photos of them during your activity experience.
During the main season, the Centre opens to the public at 12 noon, and many of our visitors enjoy a wander around the gardens and fields, followed by a delicious light lunch of sandwiches or baguettes with quality produce from our local suppliers before relaxing into the Afternoon with the Birds Display at 2pm when you will enjoy our special birds as they are flown around your tables and across the open field. Many visitors have described this close hand experience as “a privilege, really awesome and totally unique” – a must-do visit during your stay in North Devon and Exmoor.
To make your holiday really amazing you can ride one of our six horses over the hills, moors and through the woods of Exmoor, exploring places you may otherwise never visit. All our horses can be ridden with bitless bridles, treeless saddles, and all are barefoot with rock-crunching hooves across this challenging terrain. We believe that we can offer some of the best riding countryside in the world on some really special horses for individual riders, or a small group of up to five experienced adult and teenage riders. Our ride and stay short break holidays are now becoming increasingly popular and we have riders coming from all over the world to enjoy both our horses and our birds!
Young children can enjoy led pony rides on our smaller horses and on our Falabellas or miniature Shetland ponies, along the lane and through the delightful village of Bossington. Gaby our Falabella, loves the little ones, age 3-5yrs, and Rosie or Juta enjoy the challenge of teaching older children the basics of riding. Maya, our other Falabella is still a youngster, but will be taking a few rides during the coming season.
And if you wish to make our farmhouse your holiday base, then we offer bed and breakfast in our historic home, providing accommodation for one up to a family of six. Our rooms are comfortably furnished, with goose down duvets and super soft pillows, with tea and coffee making facilities in the room, ensuite or private bathroom and are spacious rooms offering spectacular views across the garden to the hills beyond. The farmhouse is surrounded by three ancient courtyards, dating back to the 15th Century, when the house was probably the Manor of Bossington, with its own Chapel of Ease in the yards for private worship in those times. You can wander around the Chapel today during your visit or stay here with us.
Please visit our website for full details of everything that we have to offer – www.exmoorfalconry.co.uk and www.exmoor-riding.co.uk
We have been busy…
The Exmoor Food Fest preparations are gathering pace. We have just signed off a campaign on The Breeze starting on 4 January 2016 to shout out about a month long celebration of the best our region has to offer.
Participating restaurants will be offering two courses for £10.00/ three courses for £15.00, and we are finalising exciting events which include gin tasting, oyster and champagne feasts, evenings with local authors, dining experiences in unusual locations and so much more.
The Dunster Food Festival, which is taking over the whole of Dunster at the end of February, is going to be foodie heaven.
Fingers crossed we will be able to give you all the details about the Gourmet Trains which will be run by West Somerset Railway in February – all we can say at the moment is that award winning chefs will be cooking on these trains.
The website www.exmoorfoodfest.com will be updated regularly – please keep checking it out for the latest information.
The Exmoor Food Fest (or Exmoor4all for that matter) does not receive any official funding. Without the generous help from Arthur David – Food with Service we would not be able to run this food festival.
Thank you all for your ongoing support!
PS You can subscribe to our newsletter here – that way you will not miss out on any updates.
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Here are some of our upcoming events:
£30.00 per person (incl. two course dinner)
The Beatles and The Stones – The two bands that have defined popular music were often pitted against one another during the Sixties.
Richard Havers, who has written extensively about both bands and worked for them on various projects, delves into their enduring appeal and unravels some of the mystery as to what makes them so timeless. With music and photographs.
Tickets are available from The Culbone: Call 01643 862259
Exmoor on a Plate: Oysters & Champage
More details coming soon…. It will be a great opportunity to taste Porlock Oysters. Make sure you don’t miss out and book your place now.
Call 01643 862259 (The Culbone)
“Barn Food” with Claire’s Kitchen
An amazing meal in very unusual surroundings, that’s Claire’s Kitchen’s pop-up restaurant in one of the medieval barns at the Exmoor Owl & Hawk Centre in Allerford on 10 February. Tickets are selling fast – don’t leave it too late. Click here to book your place.
Photo of the Week
Early November morning. Photo by Bob Cowlard.
Join us for an evening with a difference, a one-off experience, which involves a stunning, albeit unusual location, an owl display and, of course, fabulous Mediterranean food prepared by Claire’s Kitchen. It will be a night to remember!
Booking is absolutely essential.
Date: Wednesday, 10 February 2016
Time: 19:00
Venue: A barn at the Exmoor Owl and Hawk Centre, Allerford TA24 8HJ
Dress Code: Please wear sturdy shoes and warm clothes (layers are a good idea!)
The barn will be heated, but we strongly recommend that you bring a blanket, just in case. It is winter, after all!
Ticket*: £ 32.00 plus P&P
Menu:
Canapés
Roasted red peppers and anchovy salad on roasted garlic toasts
Chorizo tortilla with allioli
Sharing Starters
Pea soup with a crispy serrano ham crouton and basil oil
Gambas pil pil (sizzling gambas prawns)
Piquillo rellenos de queso de cabra (goats cheese stuffed piquillo peppers)
Sharing Mains
Suckling pig cooked whole on a spit with a mediterranean herb and garlic marinate
Red pepper and halloni paella on a rich Sofrito base
Chorizo with tomato butter beans, parsley and Claire’s Kitchen Lynch cider
Poor man’s potatoes cooked with the suckling pig with onions, rosemary and garlic
Dessert
Almond cake with Crema Catalina ice cream, custard caramel and a cherry compote
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Claire Lynch of Claire’s Kitchen will be assisted by hospitality students from West Somerset College’s hospitality department.
All dietary requirements can be catered for if advised prior to the event.
Please contact us if you need any advise about allergens.
Vegetarians catered for.
Cash bar.
* Tickets will be posted at the beginning of December 2015 in time for Christmas
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The Exmoor Food Fest takes place all over Exmoor during February 2016. Participating restaurants will offer 2 courses for £10.00/ 3 courses for £15.00 during that time. We are also organising and promoting a number of events which aim at highlighting the best Exmoor has to offer. For full details please go to www.exmoorfoodfest.com (we are constantly updating the website)
Exmoor Food Fest is sponsored by Arthur David and supported by Somerset Life and Devon Life magazines.
Exmoor 4 all 