The Good Food Show, Glasgow SECC.

The Good Food Show, Glasgow SECC.

Friday October 17th 2014.

What a fabulous day. I go to this event every year. Today is the first day I will blog about my experiences there.

There were so many delicious food and drink companies there, all offering great samples and products to buy. Lots of the companies had special deals if you bought on the day, so it was the perfect time to stock up on my Christmas gifts. Of course I had to get a few treats for myself too.   

It was very busy, lots of enthusiastic foodies there. I was definitely one of them, I love free samples, I love trying new foodie things and I love a bargain. This show has all of those things.

There were lots of cheese companies, oils, dips, curries, chocolate, cooking utensils and many more. Fantastic.

There were quite a few Scottish companies there too promoting their wares. One of my favourites was Piper’s. They had Scottish fudge, Scottish pakora’s and of course the Scottish Empire biscuit. Their people were very friendly handing out their samples dressed in their kilts.

I am happy to say that there were lots of free from companies there too. One that I quite liked was http://www.punjaban.co.uk. They were selling curry sauces that seemed to be free from everything, so much that you would think it would be tasteless, but they were delicious.

I spoke to a lady who said that today is their very first day selling their products!! Their products were fantastic.  http://www.vomfassuk.com  The product that I liked the best was a vodka that was in a bottle in the shape of a shoe, and it had real gold flakes inside! If you shake the bottle up, it goes all sparkly and fabulous. You could also have the bottles personalised for gifts.

Of course, you couldn’t expect me to go to a food show without mentioning chocolate!!

http://www.seedandbean.co.uk are AMAZING! Totally fairtrade and organic, they had the most delicious and unique flavours.

chilli and lime / lavender / mandarin and ginger / sea salt and lime / lemon and poppy seed.

Another big reason to go to The Good Food Show is Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood! I had a super theatre ticket to see the two of them cooking and chatting on stage. Paul made a lamb pie, then Mary made a lemon posset and Paul made some pistachio shortbread biscuits to go with the posset. They had a great chemistry with each other on stage, and it really was fabulous to watch them.

There was an interview stage with a fab line up. So in between all your sampling and shopping, you could sit and relax and listen to these lovely people be interviewed and ask take audience questions.

Paul Hollywood was very kindly doing a book signing after his interview.

I had a fantastic day, bought myself some lovely treats as and also got a few Christmas gifts. I wish it came to Scotland more than once a year. I will most certainly be back again next year.

If you love food and drink, trying new things and meeting chefs, I highly recommend you visit The Good Food Show. They also come to London and Birmingham.

Did you go to the show? What did you think and who was your favourite?

 

Dining Review – Khublai Khan, Glasgow.

My dining experience at Khublai Khan Mongolian Restaurant. This restaurant is in Merchant City, Glasgow. My Husband and I walked in here off the street during Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. We just wanted a small snack, actually it was to escape a rain shower! I have to say, it was a great move!!! This restaurant is fantastic!!!!!

We were welcomed in by the waitress and she asked if we had been here before. When we said no, she explained that it was a slightly different dining experience. I had never eaten Mongolian food before. The choices include:

Full Feast – starter, many visits to BBQ grill and desert – £22.95

Mini Feast – starter, 2 visits to BBQ grill and Desert – £18.95.

Pre – Theatre – starter, 1 visit to BBQ grill and desert – £14.95.

This is the menu.

The waitress explained that the grill was around the back. We were to take a bowl, fill it with first rice or noodles, then any vegetables, then with meat. Any selection we want. When we looked at the meat selection, we were very surprised!!!! The labels next to each bowl of meat included:

Zebra!

Wild boar!

Crocodile!

Rabbit!

Octopus!

Horse!

They also had the usuals like chicken, beef, prawns. After we had put the rice, noodles, veg and meat selection in our bowls ( I chose crocodile, rabbit and prawns. Hubby chose boar, horse and crocodile). The next step was to make our sauce! Design your own taste.

This is all about the dining experience. There were suggestions on the wall, or you could make up your own. The choices included coconut milk, soya sauce, olive oil, mango sauce, lemon, rosemary, brown sugar, 5 spice, salt, garlic, ginger, cumin, pepper, fish oil…… There was loads. I made up a nice fruity, gingery, coconut type mixture.

The next step was to give your bowl to the chef. He then cooks it up in front of you. (You could go back to your seat and have it brought to you if you wish). I wanted to see what he did. The chef tipped the bowl out and stir fried it all up. But it wasn’t in a pan, it was like a huge hot plate. The chef was very chatty and told us how some of the commonwealth atheletes had been in to eat.

When the meal was cooked, we took it back to our seats, ready to try our concoctions. I was confident my sauce would be good, but crocodile and rabbit!!!!!! Well, the result…….. DELICIOUS!!!! Taste sensation and even better because I had made up all the ingredients and knew exactly what was in my meal.

As we were only in for a light snack ( errrrr 😉   ), we didn`t have a starter or desert. However, if I go back the salted caramel and chocolate cheesecake sounds amazing. I have to say this was a real dining experience, it was deliciously different. The price was good and the staff friendly. I most definitely recommend Khubla Khan Restaurant if you are in Glasgow. Here a few more photos that I took. Yum, yum. Who’d have thought I’d be eating crocodile!!!!!

The BBQ Grill.

Yes, it really does say Horse! Zebra! Crocodile!  Weird, but actually very tasty!!! That’s our selection bowls ready to be cooked. 2 with the meat and veg, and 2 with the made up sauces! Smelling my delicious concoction of a sauce. I think I will call my sauce ” Coco – Ruity Sauce. It included coconut, mango, lemon, ginger, garlic, brown sugar and some Thai spices. Perfect! And there’s the chef cooking it all up. I think between me choosing the ingredients and Chef cooking it up, we made a fab meal! Even if I do say so myself. Thanks Khublai Khan for introducing us to Mongolian food, I think we will be back.