Summer 2007 ~ OSWESTRY & BORDERS FOOD FESTIVAL EDITION
MUST BE SOMETHING IN THE WATER...
2007 is the year for shows and also for a spate of furtive and not so furtive matrimonial trysts. The most furtive of all, although radio silence was breached on a number of occasions, ended with Kate and I sauntering off on holiday and, after a prolonged courtship ~ a little over 20 years ~ we tied some form of knot.
I say some form of knot as the driving force behind our wish for the most low key wedding in history was a combination of my overexposure to weddings of all sorts and Kate’s fear of crowds and our joint wish to make the whole process as simple as possible. If we offended anybody in the process oops!
Also, so far this year Richie our pastry chef married Vanessa who used to work for us, Alison who used to run front-of-house got married and Rachael who took over from her gets married in Greece in September- that’s quite enough for one year. Hearty congratulations to all. And remember we do a nice line in Christenings!
WEDDING FAIR
Apart from planning her own wedding Rachel has been hard at work putting together a wedding fair on the 16th of October.
Rather than a complete scrum featuring a range of competing suppliers we have chosen for this one providers of wedding services who have been prominent in the last two years for weddings at the Walls. Their inclusion is not an endorsement but they have undoubtedly done a great job for the clients who chose them. We will feature other suppliers in future events. I think we can justifiably claim to have the best record of satisfaction for hundreds of miles around.
Whilst we are doing a little bit of mild trumpet blowing we have a much improved wedding brochure both hard copy and on our website.
SHOWS AND FESTIVALS
Flushed with success from or prize winning stand at the Shropshire and West Mid show we the took a stand to the innagural Oswestry and Borders Food festival.
The weekend (Friday & Saturday) was a spectacular success, bringing lots of new people and business to the town. The Walls would like to thank the organising committee and all the sponsors and others who helped make this a sensational first festival.
We are already planning the second one and we’re sure it will be bigger and better than this year's.
So here we are at Oswestry Show again – hoping to meet lots of old friends and make a fair few new ones
AFTERNOON TEAS
Finally, as autumn approaches, it looks like we might get a brief window of summer weather. To celebrate this brief respite from the phenomenon that should be called “Global Moistening”, we are launching our Summer Tea menu in earnest. Watch this space...
CHRISTMAS, NEW YEAR'S EVE AND JANUARY
Enquiries get earlier and earlier for this busy time of year. So this year even before the start of August we have menus, prices, booking forms and wine list all ready and some space left for all but the most popular weekends.
We are closed 26th, 27th and 28th of December and 1st, 2nd and 3rd of January 2008.
As last year those able or willing to delay their company festivities until January will be able to avail themselves of a very special priced deal – i.e. The December Monday-Wednesday prices at the weekend - disco included for parties of 30 and above.
CHRISTMAS DAY
We have decided to reduce the numbers on this day, giving everybody a bit more space. We hope that it will be even more relaxed than last year. Usual turkey rates apply i.e. Parties of 6 and over will have their own bird to carve.
NEW YEAR'S EVE
We have been extremely fortunate in beating off all the competition (don’t even think about it) in securing the services of the most excellent ‘Gate Crashers’ as the cornerstones of this years NYE extravaganza. Guy and the girls have continued to bring the house down every time they’ve appeared and I’m certain they are the right choice to get you rocking off this year’s last supper.
Starters
~ Our own tomato soup with lentils orange and drambuie
~ Smoked fish terrine – smoked salmon, mackerel and halibut with prawns
~ Melon, parmesan and figs
~ Asparagus and wild mushroom risotto cakes with sweet pepper coulis
Main Courses:
~ Sirloin of Beef Wellington with Madeira sauce
~ Crispy roast duck leg with pink breast, orange sauce
~ Cracked black pepper salmon with Vermouth and crayfish sauce
~ Double-baked cheese soufflé with tomato and rocket salad
Puddings:
~ Green and Blacks double chocolate truffle mousse cake
~ The simplest lemon cheesecake
~ Passion fruit posset
~ Cheese and biscuits
Coffee and Truffles
Ticket price includes a glass of Bucks Fizz on arrival!
CHRISTMAS, NEW YEAR'S EVE AND JANUARY
MUSICAL EVENTS
It’s a funny old town Oswestry - this is meant with equal measures of affection and exasperation.
Since we first started the Walls we have been convinced of its suitability as a venue for high quality live entertainments of nearly all genres. Increasingly however it has become apparent that try as we have it is almost impossible to drum up interest in all but the most high profile of events.
Usually we end up having to bully, bribe and cajole our best and most long suffering friends to come and make up numbers. We are not bleating, however much it sounds like it - but we know from the reaction of brave souls who make the effort and financial sacrifice to attend that they are fantastic nights, full of value. And it just leaves us a bit at a loss to know why it is such a struggle.
A consequence of this is that we get enquiries for tables who make sure we haven’t got any events on before booking! So restaurant it is then and no more shows (how many times did Frank Sinatra retire?).
ART EXHIBITIONS
A big thank you to the recently-married Vanessa Fairfax-Woods for her recent exhibition of photographs featuring apparently metrosexual fat old geezers messing about in the false privacy of their own kitchens with live fowl... and other more tasteful studies.
Vanessa’s food-related photography has been superceded by her brand new husband’s own exhibition of landscapes and still life studies - oh and a few of their deranged spaniel.
So cakes and fiddly bits of spun sugar are not his only talents - you have to watch these arty types. Richie’s pictures are on display for the month of August.
