FOOD AT VINTAGE
I am honoured to be the Curator for Food and Drink at this the very first Vintage at Goodwood, where we will be transporting visitors via their taste buds to the tastes and eating habits of 5 decades of British Cool.
Hours, (nay months!) of research, planning and combining creative thinking with the practicalities of feeding thousands of people in on The South Downs means that this has been something of a challenge, and the process is still ongoing, but I am now confident that as while enjoying the amazing music line-up, the fashion,film art, and design elements of Vintage at Goodwood, you will also now be able to sample the flavours of the period as authentically as possible, whatever your preference!
Take for example the excitement of the Tanqueray Torch Club, where against the backdrop of dance classes and a mind-boggling list of performers we shall be serving luncheon and dinner for 200 people, with a menu that is pure 1940’s.
We have a fine dining menu that really will carry you back to the best of the 1940’s as you take a rest from a Tap lesson, or just sit back and enjoy the music! Classic delights such as Boiled Ham Terrine served with Melba Toast, Devilled Eggs, Pot Roasted Stuffed Chicken, Grilled Trout and my own version of the ubiquitous Woolton Pie, not to mention Treacle Tart and Custard, Trifle and Rhubarb Fool all await you, served by smart waiters and waitresses on Vintage style china. Click here for the menu.|
And of course, there is a wonderful bar, serving up the cocktails of the period.
In the 1950’s area, you’ll find food that also fits the music and the fashion, served from specially chosen vintage vehicles. Enjoy some of those absolute classics that we’ve never stopped loving, such as Pie and Mash and Fish and Chips, not to mention some wicked cocktails from the bar.
As far as the 1960’s is concerned, I’ve chosen some more vintage vehicles serving classic British food, and there is also the De-Longhi Art Café in the High Street, where delicious coffee is available for you to enjoy as you peruse the exhibits.
The 1970’s is represented by a good old fashioned, flock-wallpapered Curry House, serving hot or mild curries in either vegetable or meat versions, with a good helping of rice, to either eat-in or take away to enjoy.
The 1980’s is all about the Warehouse & Roller Disco -
“A Disco to Disco experience, linking the past with the present. Here you can expect wall-to-wall dance music covering everything from 70s Funk and Disco, through early 80s Electro, Boogie, Rare Groove and early Rave and Acid House.” None of this, let us be honest for a moment, immediately conjures up the idea of any particular kind of food…..unless you count the greasy kebab on the way home, or the inevitable wee-hours-of-the-morning toastie! So of course, I chose the toastie, especially after watching Heston Blumenthal on Channel 4, where, in a neon-heavy dining room Heston served up the ultimate toastie. According to Heston: “This was an extra special time for me, inspired by the gadgetry of the 80s, I started my unique approach to cooking”. Incidentally, this episode was entitled ‘Teenage Kicks”. So outside the venue, you’ll find toasties made and served to order, some of them using some of the bizarre flavour combinations of the period, others with more “normal” combinations such as cheese and ham! Incidentally, Heston included Curried Banana and Sweet and Sour Pork!
Over and above all these historically linked eating opportunities, you’ll also be able to enjoy those delicious Pieminister pies in our High Street Pub. Get the kids a specially prepared packed lunch/supper for them to enjoy within the Butlin’s 1950’s kid’s area. You’ll also find my friend Ollie Rowe from Konstam Restaurant over near the Main Stage, serving his uniquely delicious food with all ingredients sourced locally. We are also delighted to be joined by Sourced Market, who are bringing together several different food outlets under one roof so to speak, serving delicious salads and other fabulous fresh food items
We are also planning a Cookery Theatre, sponsored by those lovely people at Kenwood where we will re-create the cookery heroes of the past with a line-up of the zaniest of cookery demonstrations – watch this space for more news!
Overall, I have tried to make sure that all the food we will be serving at Vintage is as British as possible, and I have kept the junk food element to a minimum – even though I know some of you love it! Our food, and how we cook and serve it, is as much a part of our culture and history as the art, fashion and music, and I really hope that when you eat and drink at Vintage, you’ll feel in some way engaged in the feeling and the (there is no other word for it) flavour, of the period.
Enjoy!
Valentina
Cafédirect Container House at Vintage!
Designed by Wayne & Tilly Hemingway, Cafédirect’s Container House| is an upcycled haven for coffee lovers, featuring coffee sack tables & deckchairs, and vintage 1960s crockery in the Container’s kitchen.
Taste Cafédirect’s Machu Picchu and Kilimanjaro and choose which one is your favourite for a chance to win a year’s supply!
Watch a video here|