Political Event at Leighton House

Dear Julie,
I just wanted to write to say a BIG THANK YOU for last night. Everything went perfectly – and your whole team was exceptionally friendly and efficient.
I also really appreciated your complete flexibility right up until the last minute – it made everything so much easier.
Thanks again, and best wishes,
Head of Events, Policy Exchange

Menu
* Ricotta cakes with slow roasted vine tomatoes and basil wafers
* Fresh pea tarts with minted crème fraiche and pea shoots
* Cucumber boxes filled with a feta, mint with purple shiso cress
* Mini bagels of smoked salmon and cream cheese
* Quails egg Royale – brioche, smoked salmon and hollandaise
* Baby new potatoes with smoked haddock soufflé
* Rare roast beef served on watermelon cubes with pickled ginger
* Bowls of hot Cumberland sausages with honey and mustard
* Wraps of spring chicken with fresh mango and spinach
* Waffles cones of lemon and raspberry mousse

Fabulous London Marquee Wedding Part 2: The Menu

Amuse Bouche: Bloody Mary shots

Start: Vodka cured salmon tian with avocado, mascarpone and micro shoots

Homemade herb, lemon and wholemeal bread 

Carved at the TableRoast Loin of Pork, stuffed with apricots and sage, rich cider jus, apple sauce, mustard and crackling 

Shared: Dauphinoise, Roasted beets, carrots, fennel, red onion and zucchini, Fine French beans, shallots and garlic

Desert for the Girls: Sicilian lemon Cheesecake, shots of passion fruit jelly

Passion fruit marshmallows and chocolate dipped strawberries

Desert for the Boys: Molten chocolate fondan, Harrow mess

Chocolate dipped strawberries

London Marquee Wedding Part 1: The Style

This wedding was an absolute delight to cater for. Essential to its success was an incredibly fun, relaxed couple, their lovely (seriously lovely) guests, a fabulous marquee in a London square and a very well behaved Jack Russell.

To get a sense of how wonderful it was, you really should watch this video: (by DreamCatchers) http://vimeo.com/25966691

Let me set the scene: the couple were owners of the most adorable Jack Russell and in his honour, each of the tables was named after a breed of dog (Labrador, Spaniel, Dalmatian) and decorated with a canine topiary master piece – I have never seen anything like it, it shouldn’t have worked but it really did.

The couple wanted a “interactive and fun but still formal” menu so we opted to create stuffed pork loins that could be carved at each table by a specially chosen guest. This was kept a surprise from the “chief carvers” until they found a personalised chefs hat, apron and a knife at their place setting. The couple also wanted an element of tongue-in-cheek (lots of vodka) and to finish with a separate desert for girls and boys: dark and masculine vs light and fruity.

Venue: a Marquee in St Peters Square, London

Photographer: Capture It http://www.captureit.co.uk/

Videographer: Dream Catchers http://www.thedreamcatchers.co.uk/

The Pantry - Nonsuch Mansion Cafe

Some photos of our latest venture, The Pantry, a little cafe besides Nonsuch Mansion. Fresh food, good company and delicious coffee.

Our famous Millionaires Shortbread.

July Big Picture

The recent wet weather had a dramatic and rather beautiful impact on the marquee of one of our favourite venues Fulham Palace. 

Your ideas made a huge difference...

The marquee at Fulham Palace full of people fundraising for the F.R.O.D.O. children's charity event.

Dear Julie,

Your team did the most wonderful job last night for our event.  Tony was terrific.  All the staff looked great and were so professional. The food was (as I already knew!) delicious. 

I cannot begin to thank you enough, however, for your creativity, wise advice and generosity.  All of your ideas made a huge difference - the room looked amazing with the bowls of fruit (scavenged  by guests as they left!) and the coloured napkins, the different flavoured champagne cocktails went down a treat, the games all worked really well and everything contributed to the guests having a hugely enjoyable.  

We shall be singing the praises of Bovingdons for a long time.  And I can't wait for another opportunity to work with you.

Thank you so much.

Vanessa Cummings

Chief Executive


(Photo by Lloyd Dobbie)

F.R.O.D.O. Spring Ball Menu

Start

Individual ravioli of new season asparagus with herb emulsion and micro shoots

Served with home made herb breads and butter

Main

 Slow cooked belly of pork with crisp crackling carved at the table

Served with green beans, baby leaf salad and Boulangere potatoes

with apple sauce and a rich cider jus

To Finish

Passion fruit jelly and chocolate mousse with home made passion fruit marshmallow

Carpaccio of fresh pineapple with mint

Coconut pannacotta with a coconut tuille

A thousand thank yous...

Rachele and I wanted to thank you so much for all you’ve done for our wedding.

We had the best day of our life thanks to you. Everything was absolutely perfect, the food, the service, the organization, etc.

We are so grateful, and we of course will recommend your services.

1000 thanks for your incredible work, working with you was such a pleasure.

According to all our families, they’ve never seen such a good service so many congratulations to all of you.

Mr and Mrs Poitevin

(Photo by Lloyd Dobbie)

Menu Inspiration: French Chic

Small is beautiful and this wedding celebration was certainly both. Rachel and Guillaume were looking for a venue that could host twenty close friends and family to celebrate their wedding, the actual ceremony of which was to be held at home in Marrakech the following weekend. They wanted a relaxed meal in a chic, private venue and The Orangery fit the brief perfectly. One long table down the middle provided the perfect intimate platform for their specially chosen menu. The was filled with plenty of speeches and laughter in between every course.

Start

Chermoula red mullet and braised baby fennel
Lemon yoghurt and herbed flat bread

Main

Lavender and garlic roasted lamb rump with potato croquette

with minted pea puree, cardamon carrots and parsnips

Sweet

Vanilla pannacotta with oven roasted peaches in amaretto syrup and almond praline

June Big Picture

The judges of the 2011 Art Fund Prize visit Leighton House to assess the museum.

Quite a nerve racking event to cater for as you can imagine. The Art Fund Prize is the most prestigious prize in the museum world and Leighton House are vying against 9 other museums for the £100,000 award. Photo by Lloyd Dobbie.

Menu Inspiration: Wedding Tapas

Brief: how do you turn tapas into an elegent wedding breakfast? This couple yearned for an informal, Mediterranean family feel to their wedding reception but with top service and fine tapas style foods. We made sure that the food flowed from the kitchen, a steady stream of treats straight to each table. Delicioso!

Starter

on tables ready for guests as they take their seats

Char-grilled flat breads

Marinated olives

Baba ganoush

Tomato and pepper salsa

Main

An extension of the starter the food kept coming out until it is all served

Grilled sea bass with green peppercorn sauce

Fabada white beans, chicken, chorizo and black pudding stew with a touch of saffron

Marinated artichoke salad, sweet peppers and olives, with green leaves throughout

Red onion, monchego and parsley tortilla

Arroz verde - green rice with loads of parsley, herbs, garlic and chilli

Steamed green beans with shaved almonds and sultanas

Sweet

Individual puddings to go in the centre of each table

Mini Pistachio flavoured cheesecake on small square plates

Chocolate and raspberry mousse, served in shot glasses

Little lemon posset – delicious!

Cheese

Fresh fig and Dolcelatté on walnut bread

Award Win!

I am thrilled to tell you that Nonsuch Mansion were winners at the Time and Leisure Food Awards.

Our Surrey venue beat some very (very!) stiff competition to win Best Private Dining.

The award was presented to our team by Michelin star chef Bruce Poole during a ceremony hosted by The One Show presenter Angelica Bell.

I am so delighted about this award, It is is a well deserved piece of recognition for the entire team, especially our chefs. It is a real acknowledgement of eighteen months of hard work and a steadfast dedication to providing clients with fresh, homemade food and great service.

Nonsuch Mansion is our first in-house venture. We became lease holders just eighteen months ago and relaunched the venue after refurbishing the event spaces.
Many, many thanks to everyone who voted!