First ‘Feast Anglia’ dinner takes place at University Arms Hotel, Cambridge

The inaugural ‘Feast Anglia’ dinner, a celebration of the best of East Anglian food suppliers, farms, producers and products, was held at the University Arms Hotel on Regent Street, Cambridge, on Thursday evening (July 28).

Chef Tristan Welch, who runs the hotel’s Parker’s Tavern restaurant, and his team created the one-night-only meal, serving a three-course dinner created from the produce of a number of East Anglian companies, to guests which included members of the press and representatives from some of the region’s burgeoning food and drink scene, such as Saffron Grange Vineyard and Wylde Sky Brewing Ltd.

Ahead of the dinner, which was served in the Crick and Watson Ballroom at the hotel, Tristan spoke of his intense passion for cooking and amusingly recalled his childhood growing up on a smallholding and not realising how lucky he was to eat all that natural produce until years later. He also suggested that ‘Feast Anglia’ could become an annual event.

[Read more: Cambridge chef Tristan Welch comes home, Saffron Grange vineyard near Cambridge offers tours, tasting and more]

On the menu was a wonderful and varied selection of food including smoked salmon from Chapel & Swan in Newmarket, sourdough bread from Fitzbillies, and a strawberry choux bun (my favourite of all the dishes) using strawberries from Lutton Farm near Peterborough. For more on Parker’s Tavern, go to parkerstavern.com.

University Arms Hotel has launched an ‘Ultimate Upgrade’ offer for stays between August 14 and September 4. The complimentary upgrades include spa treatments, private walking tours of Cambridge, and the hotel’s afternoon tea. For more information, visit universityarms.com/offers/.