TASTE OF SCOTLAND NEWSLETTER
September 2010
Welcome to another tasty selection of foodie morsels from Taste-of-Scotland.com This month we encounter grouse flying out the kitchen, mussel power for kids, quacking web site from ducks, ultimate Italian wine dispensers and much more ... latest additions including the opportunity to sample a world record venison haggis can be found on our Tasty Blog. Enjoy!
The Partner’s Bistro in Bearsden is on a mission to boost the nutritional value of children’s restaurant meals with an innovative addition to their kid’s menu…wee sea beasties.
Mussels are rarely seen as a kid’s option while dining out but acclaimed North Glasgow eatery, The Partner’s Bistro, is championing healthy eating by offering fresh Scottish mussels on their children’s menu.
 This initiative has been spurred on by a series of studies that confirm children benefit significantly from eating more seafood, especially mussels, as they contain essential Omega 3 oils vital for brain growth and development. Mussels contain as much as eight times more iron as green vegetables which is a crucial mineral in preventing childhood anaemia and boosting red blood cell production.
With the new school year about to start, there is an added incentive to give children nutritional meals that stimulate their mental abilities and allow them to continue to learn effectively in the classroom and beyond. At Partner’s they see mussels as the perfect way to introduce children to eating seafood in a fun and exciting way whilst providing vital nutrients for their development i.e mussel power = brain power.
According to Bistro owner Andy Hull: “This experiment has been a great success, the kids love the novelty of eating the mussels from their shells and of course dipping the bread! We are delighted to see children trying something different and are proud to be promoting responsible eating habits for the next generation.”
Imagine the kids of tomorrow knocking up a quick moules mariniere with some tasty Scottish mussels instead of popping a pizza in the oven … stranger things have happened.
http://www.thepartnersbistro.co.uk
 Within a few hours of the start of the Glorious 12th, the kitchens at Roxburghe Hotel near Kelso had their first delivery of grouse. As one of Scotland’s most popular country house hotels, the Roxburghe Hotel has access to prime game and produce from the Roxburghe Estate. For the start of the grouse season chef Alasdair Stewart and his team created an innovative dish for the hotel menu comprising roast Roxburghe Estates Grouse, bubble and squeak cake, parsnip puree with sweet pickled beetroot and piquant jus.
The Roxburghe Hotel sold out of grouse on the first night of the season. Roxburghe’s F&B Manager is quoted as saying: “Fantastic customer response - we could have sold another six portions easily. With only a couple of hours to prepare from the time the birds arrived, service from chef and his team was perfect. We had quite a few people who had never had grouse before enjoying this for the first time.”
The Roxburghe Country House Hotel is set in the heart of Scotland’s Border country. With its own championship golf course and a superb angling location on the banks of the River Tweed, the hotel is fast becoming a leisurely retreat with a growing reputation for good food expertly prepared by its young chef, Alasdair Stewart.
Web Site for Ducks at Kilspindie
As the Internet continues to develop and the value of social media grows it is refreshing to see examples of simple yet innovative use of the web emerging within the Taste-of-Scotland.com members. This is one I was lucky enough to stumble on last week.
www.ducks.co.uk
With Facebook, Twitter, their Blog and a latest news panel this radiates confidence and clearly wants to communicate with existing and potential customers. As well as a page of positive client testimonials and a well stocked Photo Gallery, the Ducks at Kilspindie web site includes information on local visitor attractions and popular outdoor activities in the East Lothian area.
Perhaps the nicest surprise was Ducks newsletter. Full of interesting items and not the usual clutch of special offers this really highlights the energy that Ducks are putting into their online communications. (Ducks Quack - click to view MS Word doc.)
If Scotland’s tourist chiefs are to achieve anything in 2010 it would be to promote the benefits of good, clear customer communications and best practice for web site design. Duck’s is a quacking example.
 Edinburgh’s Festival and it’s boisterous offspring The Fringe provide platforms on which our popular icons of culture, celebrity stardom, literary genius and theatrical wizardry delight audiences, woo agents and dodging the often caustic tirades of the critics.
For several years now the Edinburgh Foodies Festival has provided a similar platform for Edinburgh’s top chefs, Scotland’s food producers and a smattering of UK culinary stars.
For those lucky enough to be in Edinburgh on the 13th,14th and 15th of August there will be three days of events celebrating the finest in seasonal food and drink with tents, stalls and celebrity kitchens packed with budding chefs, interested bystanders and a large number of visitors like me who are eager to sample and snaffle our way round the food and drink on offer. Continue Reading >>
 With the same enthusiasm, passion and a keen eye for fine food and wine that has built the reputations of the Vittoria and La Favorita restaurants, Tony Crolla and Sebastiano Ingaliso have transported the authentic flavours of Italy to Edinburgh and into their DIVINO ENOTECA - perhaps the holy grail for any food lover with a quest for the ultimate Italian wine and food experience.
Divino Enoteca literally translates as ‘Wine Library’ and is the newest wine and dining adventure to hit Scotland. Top Edinburgh restaurateur Tony Crolla has enlisted the help of award-winning Sommelier Mr Sebastiano Ingaliso to realise his dream of creating the best wine bar in the UK.
Divino Enoteca also features a technological first for Scotland - a state of the art wine dispenser that allows customers to sample around 200 of some of the world’s finest wines by the glass. The wines perfectly complement the selection of Italian foods on offer, such as fine cheeses, Salami and cured meats, olives, marinated vegetables and other delicacies that will be available from the bar.
The Taste-of-Scotland crew are looking forward to their first Divino Enoteca experience - watch this space!
www.divinoedinburgh.com
FOOD IN SEASON - SEPTEMBER
September is a good month for all round fruit & vegetables as summer fruits and vegetables are joined by early winter fruit and vegetables. It's also a good time for wild mushrooms in Scotland.
So get ready to enjoy spinach, onions and all the cabbages, curly kale, French beans, courgettes, marrows, sweetcorn, beetroot, broccoli, swede and brussel sprouts.
  
Fresh from the seas - clams, sea bass, grey mullet, john dory, lemon sole, lobster, scallops and turbot. Pheasant, woodcock, partridge, grouse and excellent Scottish lamb.
On the fruit counter we can expect to find plump Scottish blackberries and raspberries, damsons, early pears, plums as well as strawberries, blackcurrants, red currants, white currants.
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The company picked up 14 Gold, 25 Silver and 11 Bronze Medals for its Old Pulteney, anCnoc, Balblair, Speyburn, Hankey Bannister and Catto’s whiskies. In addition, Hankey Bannister scooped The William Grant Independence Trophy for its 40 year old blend.
