Rising stars and new faces in spotlight for Taste of Birmingham
Food Critic Richard McComb looks forward to Taste of Birmingham 2010
Innovative chefs at some of the city’s newest restaurants will showcase their talents at this year’s Taste of Birmingham food festival.
Loves restaurant, awarded three AA rosettes in its first year, is among the newcomers together with the experimental cuisine of Matthew’s of Birmingham. There will also be tapas flavours from Café Ikon and brasserie-style cooking from City Café.
This year’s line-up of 16 restaurants was unveiled at the launch of Taste of Birmingham 2010 at the Hyatt Hotel. The Hyatt’s own Aria restaurant will be among the eateries at the three-day festival, joined by local produce champion Opus, which is returning to Taste.
International cuisine, local talent and quality fresh produce are the themes of the show.
One of the undoubted crowd-pullers will be Lasan, winner of the F Word’s best local restaurant.
Head chef Aktar Islam said: “The diversity of the region’s cuisine has always been influential to my cooking and I really enjoy the opportunity this event gives me to meet visitors and share my passion for innovative Asian cuisine.”
The event takes place in Cannon Hill Park from Friday, July 16, to July 18. It will feature a series of master classes and guest appearances, including demonstrations by three of the region’s Michelin star chefs – Simpsons’ Luke Tipping, Richard Turner of Turners, and Will Holland, of La Becasse, Ludlow.
The full restaurant line-up is: Simpsons, Opus, Lasan, Loves, Matthews, Asha’s, Filini, Aria, Cielo, Kinaree, Thai Edge, The Oriental, Cafe Ikon, City Cafe, the Great British Eatery and Fusion of Malvern.
Tipping said the festival gave young chefs a terrific arena to showcase their talents.
He said: “Birmingham is a great culinary city where world-class chefs stand shoulder to shoulder with the next generation of stars. It is crucial for the future of this city as a gastronomic centre for us to nurture young talent and encourage home-grown chefs to reach their full potential.
“Taste is an excellent opportunity for some of our younger team members at Simpsons to experience something new.”
Opus chef director David Colcombe said he was looking forward to bringing the produce and flavours of the region to a mass audience.
