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TeaJay Online Tea Shop - define your style with the tea you drink

A firm based in Yorkshireare aiming to really stir up the tea market  with the launch of their new and innovative range of green, black, fruit and herbal blends that will surely appeal to those tea drinkers who are seeking fresh and fun taste sensations.

Mrs Selen Mostyn is the tea lover and award winning entrepreneur from East Yorkshire who is responsible for TeaJay . She has now given her imagination free reign and sourced  the finest ingredients from across the globe so she can create her unique range of loose leaf teas that will satisfy those who get bored with the traditional tea taste.

Selen Mostyn has been involved with the tea industry for years. She created Teajay after becoming disenchanted with the range of teas on offer in the UK. She said: “Tea has become polarised between the highly-commercialised end of the market with cheap bagged teas and some specialised tea companies that seem to sell products that only dedicated tea enthusiasts understand. Tea drinking should be fun. We want it to be like music: the right mix for the right situation. We want to stir it up and open up exciting teas to anybody who wants to enjoy our greatest passion in new and exciting ways.”

Teajay’s unique infusions are inspired by modern music: they’ll move you, delight you and surprise you. Everything about them – from the gorgeous containers to the extraordinary colour, flavours and scents of the teas themselves – will redefine those precious and relaxing moments you spend indulging one of our greatest passions.

TeaJay’s great tea infusions are made for enjoying at any time of day. TeaJay’s unique teas come in 10 different infusions; blends that everybody can appreciate. They have a selection to suit every mood and every taste: herbal teas that restore and revive, zingy fruit teas to lift and lighten, caffeine-free Rooibos for unwinding before bed and, of course, black and green tea blends that will delight and stimulate your taste buds.

All the teas are names after song names. “I’m a survivor”, “Day’n'Night”, “Pennyroyal Tea” etc. All with their own unique flavours and health benefits. Some herbs are not available anywhere else in the UK. The Teas are contemporary yet full of health benefits.

If you happen to be someone who wants to begin your day with a good cup of tea it’s time you switch over to Teajay, a modern tea company with contemporary values and very unique in its approach to tea lovers. Tea lovers the world over hunt for tea shops and lounges when on an outing. You can’t blame them for tea is positively addictive and known for its therapeutic values.

Teajay is very innovative and will be introducing loose tea to customers and retailers. They have named tea after songs adding the zing thing. Teajay has their own online tea shop. Teajay believes drinking tea should be fun and enjoyable activity than a necessity.

You can join the tea revolution on www.teajay.com

The biggest restaurant in the UK is in Bristol

Za Za Bazaar is a new bar and restaurant idea that is going to be opening in the centre ofBristol. It is a very large restaurant with over 30,000 ft.² available and is capable of doing 1000 covers. The location is set to open at the end of November.

The idea of the restaurant is to offer an oriental style night market location where people can enjoy a great range of food at a fixed price. This is the first restaurant that is being opened by the company and it is expected that others will follow, assuming it is successful.

Live cooking and adventure are the core idea of this restaurant concept and cuisine that is found in Asia as well as South America and Europewill be involved. The decoration of the restaurants will be themed from the countries where their food comes from.

With 300 different drinks inspired by five continents, Za Za Bazaar’s bar offering will be as adventurous and varied as its cuisine. On offer will be 35 cocktails inspired by European, Asian, American andArctic cuisines. There will be a huge range of spirits, wines and champagnes. Also beers from 10 countries, includingChina,India,Portugal andBrazil.

Executive Chef, Nitin Bhatnagar says: “We have researched the market and we are delighted to announce that when we open, we will be theUK’s largest restaurant, featuring one of the widest ranges of world cuisine from all the continents.

“But, what is important to us is not the size of the restaurant, but the quality, freshness and variety of the food that we will be serving.

“It is the personality, skill and individualism of our master chefs that will make Za Za Bazaar famous – as well as the scale and variety of this operation. Set to open in Bristol at the end of November, the new restaurant is located on a landmark site on the city’s very popular Harbourside waterfront.

Great Britain & Ireland 2012

The Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2012 is available in today bookshops, priced at £14.99 (€17.99 in Ireland).

This is the first year that the Michelin guide has awarded a British pub two Michelin stars. This pub is located in Buckinghamshire and is called The Hand and Flowers. The pub was opened by husband and wife Beth and Tom Kerridge in 2005. It was awarded its first Michelin star in 2006.

Rebecca Burr is the editor of the guide and she has commented, “for the pub industry in Britain this is great news, it shows that the pubs in the country are continuing to serve up excellent food. The guide this year sees an amazing 13 pubs being awarded, or maintaining, their Michelin stars.”

Tom Kerridge’s cooking is a large reason the pub is so successful, his dishes are familiar and very sophisticated. When enjoyed in the surroundings of the very relaxed pub the meal is immensely enjoyable.

The pub is only one of two restaurants to get the second star for the 2012 copy of the guide. Sat Bains is a restaurant in Nottingham that has also just achieved the honour. The cooking here has always been creative and recently they have focused on adding a little something extra to their foods. Sat Bains got their first Michelin star back in 2003.

Normally the guide is published after Christmas but this year it has been published early. Many restaurants and pubs nationwide have been awarded stars. Three restaurants have achieved stars in Scotland, four in London, and one in Wales. Heston Blumenthal’s new restaurant was also awarded a star.

The guide also highlights those restaurants that represent value for money. We are therefore delighted that this year a further 28 restaurants have been awarded a Bib Gourmand, the award given to those establishments offering good cooking but at moderate prices.

Rebecca Burr said “Our readers have told us how much they enjoy these places so we are very pleased that our inspectors have found so many new ones, particularly in London”.

Also launched today is the Michelin Guide London 2012, priced at £10.99(€12.99 in Ireland). This guide provides extended text on London’s restaurants, with additional photographs and information on all starred establishments. It also includes a selection of London’s best hotels, across all categories.

London Oyster Guide is released

By Colin Presdee with a foreword by Charles Campion.

Publication date: October 31 2011 from Amazon.co.uk and all good book shops

Graffeg

ISBN 978 1 905582 56 0

£12.00

To chew or not to chew? Is it a rock or a native? How do I open them?

Where can I get decent oysters for under £10 in London? Is it wrong to cook oysters?

Oysters were once the food of those who smoked cigars and drank champagne but it seems that this is changing as those in the city are beginning to enjoy a plate of oysters while rushing from business meeting to business meeting. They have also become popular snacks for people shopping on the West End. Richard Corrigan and Mark Hix are among some of the most prominent celebrity chefs who are beginning to put oysters on the menu. It seems the market for them is expanding rapidly and more people are prepared to give them a try.

Despite their increased popularity many people are still confused about how to eat oysters when they are doing it for the first time. This is understandable, it is hard to know how to open and eat them, let alone knowing which ones to choose. Fortunately a book has been published for oyster lovers and those who want to try oysters, it is called the London Oyster Guide.

The author, Colin Presdee has taken on the huge and enviable task of trying oysters at some 150 different locations, including bars, merchants, restaurants, producers and retailers. He has also made selections of some of the best recipes for oysters as well as selecting some drinks that go particularly well with them.

This new guide has been described as, “essential for anyone who is just starting out with oysters.” In the foreword of the book Charles Campion says, “I would recommend anyone try oysters, if you see them on the menu give them a go.”

Colin Presdee’s genuine passion for oysters is evident throughout the book: “Freshly opened oysters glisten in the light as a pearl glistens by day,” Presdee writes. “I believe that an oyster should be chewed exactly as any meat or fish. The succulent flavour as the teeth sink into the firm and creamy flesh is an explosion of mineral nuances with the flavour of the seashore on the lowest spring tide. Merely to swallow an oyster misses this essential part of the oyster experience, but everyone to one’s own.”

Presdee, originally from the village of Oystermouth in Mumbles in south Wales, opened the Oyster Perches restaurant, followed by the Drangway, both in Swansea. These specialised in seafood and oysters from fisheries including Colchester and Cornwall. Now a food writer and consultant living in London, he retains close links with Wales. He has written several books including ‘Food Wales – a second helping’ and ‘Food Wales – eating out guide’.

The book contains:

√ A guide to the different types of oysters and how to identify them (“The Rock is more elongated with a crinkly shell, with a flat top shell and deep cupped bottom shell; the native is fairly round with a flat top shell and a cupped bottom shell”).

√ Advice about when is best to eat oysters (the traditional season for native oysters was September to April (or the winter months with an ‘r’) and a list of oyster festivals and merchants.

√ How to open and present oysters, and a guide to which drinks and accompaniments are best served with them.

√ Original recipes including oysters with chilli and celery crumbs and oysters crisp-fried in breadcrumbs.

√ A directory of more than 150 places where oysters can be enjoyed in London segmented by region including Sheekey, Randall & Aubin and Livebait.

As the “squeezed middle” faces the fallout of frozen wages and government cuts, there are a number of life’s little luxuries that many households are finding themselves having to forego.

However, for the savvy consumer, eating out shouldn’t have to be one of them, since there is a wide range of affordable eateries on offer across the country, with menus that provide good honest grub at prices even those feeling the pinch can afford.

Whatever type of food tickles your tastebuds, there is likely to be a budget eating opting out there that will allow you to enjoy the occasional eat out treat with friends or family, meaning that your social life will not have to suffer simply because you are counting the pennies.

Pizza Hut

This well known brand has long been a family favourite and bosses at the well-known chain have reacted to the recent economic downturn by offering customers even more appealing savings when they choose to dine here. As well as offering great prices on menu items such as pizzas for sharing and individual pasta dishes, the chain offers as well as a happy hour deal for early evening diners and has recently introduced a free unlimited salad option for those ordering main course while carbonated drinks come with free unlimited refills for all the family.

Jimmy Cheungs

This north of the border-based Chinese food chain is a great choice for diners on a budget who want to be sure of getting a good meal. The all you can eat buffet style set up offers lunches from as little as £5.49 per adult (depending on location and demand) and dinners for under a tenner. Children receive a discount on the already low prices, and diners can choose for a varied selection of meat, vegetable, noodle and rice dishes – as well as a loaded sweet trolley – that is if they have any room left.

Wetherspoons

For traditional pub grub on a budget there can be no better place than Wetherspoons. The countrywide pub chain offers great menus at low prices with regular promotions such as the ever popular “beer and a burger” and “curry club” offerings continuing to draw in diners on a daily basis.

Food options range from fresh salads to traditional fish and chips, with more meaty menu items such as mixed grills and steak and sauce also on offer.  Unlike some other pub chains, Wetherspoons offers dining throughout the day meaning visitors can enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner in this traditional British bar. Regional tastes are also catered for with Welsh menus offering Rarebit, Faggots and Lamb Cawl, Scottish Menus featuring Scotch Pies and Haggis, Neeps and Tatties, and Northern Irish outlets providing Irish Stews and Ulster Fries.

Budget Menus Mean Eating Out Remains Accessible to All

With so many food styles available from restaurants offering real value for money, consumers can rest assured that a nice meal out is not something they will have to sacrifice whatever state the economy is.

Time Out has published the results of its 2011 Eating and Drinking Awards, detailing the best places to eat and drink in London.  The winners and nominess are as follows.

Best New Bar

Winner: Worship Street Whistling Shop  (Victorian-themed basement bar, City)

Nominees: Booking Office (Hotel bar, St Pancras Station);  Experimental Cocktail Club (speakeasy-style cocktail bar, Chinatown);  Zetter Townhouse (Quirky hotel-style bar, Clerkenwell)

Best New Cheap Eats

Winner: Manchurian Legends (Dongbei Chinese, Chinatown)

Nominees: Ariana II (Afghan, Kilburn);  KaoSarn (Thai, Brixton);  Meza (Lebanese, Tooting)

Best New Design

Winner: Massimo (Italian)  designed by David Collins Studio
Nominees: Nopi (Pan-Asian);  Riding House Café (Brasseries); Spuntino (North American)

Best New Fine Dining

Winner: Pollen Street Social (from chef Jason Atherton)

Nominees: Dinner by Heston Blumenthal;  Hedone; Medlar

Best New Local Restaurant

Winner: Malina (Polish, Chiswick)

Nominees: Brawn (French, Bethnal Green); Corner Room (Mod European, Bethnal Green); Kateh (Iranian, Warwick Avenue)

Best New Restaurant

Winner:Hawksmoor Seven Dials (British steakhouse)

Nominees: Kopapa (Kiwi brasserie);  Morito (Spanish);  Spuntino (New York style no-bookings)

Best Park Café

Winner: Lido Café (at Brockwell Lido, Brixton)

Nominees: Fulham Palace Café;  Lido Café (Serpentine, Hyde Park); Pavilion Café, Highgate Woods

Best Sushi Bar

Winner: Yashin  (modern Japanese sushi, Knightsbridge)

Nominees: Atari-ya;  Dinings;  Sushi of Shiori

Many people, when bemoaning the prices that they are paying in different establishments, fail to comprehend the hidden costs behind the scenes. The largest bill by far, after staff wages and any rent on the property, is for energy. It isn’t only domestic electricity prices which are soaring, it is also business power costs, and some establishments, such as restaurants, have to either absorb these costs or put their prices up.

There is a huge north/south divide in business electricity prices, so those restaurants in London who are trying to keep their heads above water in an already fragile economy must feel like crying into their woks every time their energy goes up. Businessmen, just like domestic customers, should make the time to shop around and find the best deals they can for their business electricity.

It is possible to lower your electricity bills if you are restaurateur in London, and finding the best deal you can could mean the difference between your business staying open or becoming another casualty of the crumbling economy. One of the best ways of doing this, and the quickest, is to use an online comparison site that specialises in commercial electricity.

There are just a few simple steps to doing this, and you could end up spending just a few minutes to save yourself a lot of cash. By inputting your current supplier and you will get a list of options up showing you the different tariffs offered by alternative suppliers. Your current supplier will obviously want you to renew with them and may offer short term incentives, so it’s important to balance these against the long term gains from changing supplier.

You shouldn’t be surprised to find that your current supplier has lower tariffs than you are already on, they are in business to and it’s no different to offering a customer in your restaurant an omelette when they are happy to pay for a fillet steak.

If you are happy with the service from your provider just not the cost, have a chat with them first to see if you can change your contract, if these lower rates are just for new customers then it will be worthwhile switching. This process is very simple and can also be done online. Once you have selected the provider and the tariff you require just follow the prompts to change supplier.

Once you have done this you will receive a confirmation email of the switch and also the contact details for your new supplier. You should get a resource transfer date within 4 weeks of applying for your switch, and on this date you should take your last meter reading and send it to your supplier.

There will, of course, be no interruption to your service, and before you know it you will be cooking away to your hearts content and be safe in the knowledge that you aren’t paying through the nose for your electricity. Now you can concentrate on feeding the hungry diners in London instead of worrying about your energy bills.