Caspian, Sheffield

Update
I have since learnt that Thursdays are the head chef's day off... hence the average review. Go, but not on a Thursday and tell me that you fared better than I.

I wasn't planning to blog this so my review won't be as detailed as others, but after stirring up interest about this place as I tweeted through my meal, I thought I better had.

Last Thursday night I had nothing in the fridge and was absolutely knackered.  I needed good solid food in a relaxed atmosphere.  We considered Wig and Pen, Dhanista's and Amigos amongst others, but I persuaded Gav that we should give Caspian ago.  I'd read a couple of decent reviews on Sheffield Forum and fancied trying it for myself, especially as I haven't really tried any Persian food before.

It was dead when we arrived (not normally a good sign) but went for it.  Thankfully it filled up a bit as the evening progressed.

I can't remember the names of the dishes but to start we had a feta salad....

That was one huge chunk of feta.  It was served with fresh parsley (bleurgh) and fresh mint (yum).  It wasn't in any way an imaginative dish and the iceberg lettuce leaves along with the insipid tomatoes were hardly inspiring.  However I liked the feta so it was fine.

We also had a dish of lamb cooked with chickpeas (I think, or lentils).

This was really tasty and rich and, although there weren't any chunks of lamb in there, the lamb flavours were quite delicious.  We were also served some traditional Persian bread which was good.

So, starters were tasty, but I'd heard that dreaded microwave 'ping' at least 3 times as we'd waited to be served.  This really did affect my enjoyment of the lamb dish as I'm sure it had been zapped.

Onto mains and we had a lamb shank.  This was pretty big and the meat literally fell off the bone; it was lovely, as was the sauce it came with.

We also had a lamb stew.  Again the lamb was well cooked and the flavours in the sauce were slightly unusual, or at least different to any combination I have tried, and it was, again, tasty.

The down sides were the side dishes.  The rice was dry (probably another victim of the microwave) and the salad was bland (more iceberg lettuce).

We also ordered a skewer of grilled tomatoes.  I had expected that my tomatoes would have been marinaded, then lightly char grilled to add a slight smoky flavour.  Hmmmm; a far cry from what I was actually served.  Tomatoes were bland, cremated to one side and raw in the middle.

The tomatoes weren't the worst bit though.  Oh no.  That would be the hair in my salad. 

It was as though the chef had prepared all his dishes earlier in the week so that he could just zap them in the microwave before serving.  All in the name of laziness.  Hell, he couldn't even be bothered to turn my god damn tomatoes over on the grill.  And there's not a lot to say about that hair.

Tweeters asked if I complained and whether i paid.  The answers to those questions are no I didn't complain (Gav scoffed the burnt tomatoes declaring that there were 'alright' and he knocked my hairy cucumber onto the table, splattering all the salad dressing on it and making the hair look as though I'd set them up) and yes I did pay (because I couldn't complain).  Thankfully the bill was £29.50 (including a large glass of white, a glass of cherry juice and a glass of mango juice) so it didn't break the bank.

As I said on Twitter, it was a shame and I stand by that.  The good points (i.e. some really tasty lamb dishes) would have pulled me back for more had I not heard that microwave ping, found that hair or ordered the tomatoes....

The Versatile Blogger Award

Whoop!  I've been nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award.  Admittedly I had never heard of it until I received the nomination from Natalie of What We Ate Today, but hey!  Any appreciation of the blog, is, well, appreciated!

No, seriously.  Although I could lie and tell you all that I write this purely for my own enjoyment, it wouldn't be true.  Of course I do enjoy it, but I also write this blog to a) promote good eateries and food producers, b) warn you all of bad eateries and food producers and c) provide a bit of an enjoyable read for my followers (that's the aim, anyway).  So to be nominated for an award is lovely and it tells me that I might be doing something right!

What's it all about then?  Well according to my nominee The Versatile Blogger award 'is passed on through the blogging community. You get nominated, you receive the award and you pass it on to those who’s writing you enjoy and admire.

There are some conditions attached.

1. You have to display the award with pride on your blog.
2. You have to thank those who nominated you.
3. You have to disclose seven random facts about yourself.
4. You have to nominate fifteen blogs to pass the nomination on to.'

So here goes...

You have to display the award with pride on your blog.



You have to thank those who nominated you.

Thank you Natalie!

You have to disclose seven random facts about yourself.

1  I may be gobby, but stick me in a room full of strangers and you'll find me cowering in the corner.
2  I always dreamt of being a writer when I was a teenager.
3  I grew up in a small town called Pontefract, but was actually born in Sheffield.
4  I was vegetarian for a year when I was a kid but got fed up of the TVP (textured-vegetable-protein) meals my mum made me.
5  I worked in Greggs, KFC and Morrisons as a student and considered a career in retail management.
6  My favourite colours are purple and green, although orange is doing it for me right now.
7  I hate trashy novels, films and reality TV but would be lost without Eastenders and Corrie.

You have to nominate fifteen blogs to pass the nomination on to.

I'm not sure what the criteria for nomination is to be honest, but I've decide to focus on those you might not already know about.  Unsurprisingly the majority of them are about food and Sheffield/Leeds.  Have a gander; they're all worthy of this award!

Steel City Kitchen
Exploits of a Food Nut
Northern Food
Eating isn't Cheating
Tonight's Menu
Breadsticklers
Come Dine With Rach
Geek Leeds
Missie Cindz
Sheffield Blog
Sweet Komal
Veg Box Chronicles
Local Food Stories with PJ Taste
Beanies
Cocoa

My Honeybunch Cake Pops

The concept of the cake has changed a fair bit over the years.  Thanks to the cupcake craze, taste and comfort isn't always enough now; it's also got to look good.  Of course there's still a place for that big old slab of carrot cake with your cuppa but there's no harm in having a bit of fun once in a while.

And fun is precisely what My Honeybunch (aka Shelly Wareing) is all about... well that and good cake.  Since making her first bunch of Hello Kitty cake pops for her friend's daughter's birthday in March last year, Shelly has not only been kept busy with requests from family and friends, but she's made a business out of these crazy little cake pops.

After falling in love with Shelly's designs on the My Honeybunch website, I recently arranged to meet with her for a coffee to learn more.  With a background in catering, sales and marketing, Shelly has the perfect skills to make a real goer of the business and she's already supplying Wentworth Garden Centre and the Marble Slab Creamery in Meadowhall.

Not being much of a baker I had no idea how to make cake pops and I was surprised to learn that Shelly bakes a cake as normal, processes it into crumbs, stirs in her magic ingredient to bind everything together and forms balls out of the mix.  These are then dipped into candy melt which gives a smooth finish to the sponge and a base for Shelly to form her design.

Sounds simple, yeah?  Unfortunately they don’t always work out so well as the pops are prone to cracks and leaks.  Shelly reckons it’s all to do with the temperature of the sponge and the candy melt, but admits that it isn’t an exact science and things can go wrong even when she’s sure that everything’s at the right temperature.

As for the designs, Shelly is happy to turn her hand to any design from farm animals and cartoon characters for the kids to pretty floral bouquets for the adults.  She adjusts her designs according to the season and there were reindeers and robins at Christmas.  With Valentine’s Day coming up Shelly is busy making up the perfect Valentine’s Day gifts.

The cake pop bouquets are a good alternative to the real thing.  They look as good, stay fresh for longer (1 week at room temperature or 2/3 weeks in the fridge) and taste a damn sight better than a few roses.  Bouquets are around £25 for a bunch of 15 cake pops and there’s free delivery to Sheffield and Barnsley (£4.95 to the rest of Yorkshire).

If you’re planning to pop the question on V-day, then Shelly can help out with the wedding too.  From beautiful little topiary trees for favours to centre pieces and bouquets for the tables, My Honeybunch cake pops would be a great option for couples with a sweet tooth.

Of course it’s all well and good that these cake pops look great but they have to taste good too, and you might be glad to hear that Shelly uses free range and organic produce where she can.  She has a few different flavours up her sleeve including rum & raison and mint chocolate amongst the many (including the popular Victoria sponge).  But, as they say, the proof of the pudding is in the tasting and I took some home to try.

I was especially keen to try the black forest gateau, which is a new flavour that Shelly’s working on.  It’s a ball of deliciously rich chocolate sponge; so rich that it was more like a truffle than a cake.  In the centre was a sherry soaked cherry; it was gorgeous!  There was also Victoria sponge which was a bit too sweet for my liking (I am more pie than cake anyway) and Shelly reckons I’d be more of a coffee or ginger fan.

So, if you’re after an unusual gift I would highly recommend My Honeybunch cake pops… just get in touch with Shelly through her website, on facebook or through twitter to find out more.

La Terrazza, Sheffield

Since visiting Rome (yes I am still banging on about Rome) and learning a bit about Italian food I have become a bit of a snob when it comes to Italian restaurants here in the UK.  I don't necessarily need the glitz and glamour of Nonnas or Gusto (the best ever carbonara I have had in Britain was at Zerboni Taste), but the thought of those Italian restaurants who cater primarily for the British taste-buds fills me with dread.

With this in mind, you won't be too surprised to know that I wasn't exactly jumping up and down at the prospect of going to La Terrezza (one that I had automatically lumped into this Brit-Italian category).  Now don't get me wrong, a meal out is a meal out and the lack of washing up will always please, but I was preparing myself for a pretty average meal.

La Terrezza is located on Sharrow Vale Road; on the Hunters Bar side.  We almost missed it as it looked completely different to how I expected.  The website (which is under construction) made me think that this place would be a bit tired looking.... but no.  La Terrezza's name is proudly displayed against a large gleaming black background giving it a modern look and setting it apart from any other restaurant surrounding it.

We were warmly welcomed and given the pick of the tables available.  It was a Sunday night and it was busier than I expected with enough diners to create a nice atmosphere.  As we sat down, menus were handed to us, although it was strongly suggested that we focused mainly on the specials.

We spent some time weighing up all the dishes on the menu (there are a few).  It’s pretty standard stuff; a selection of 15 or so pastas, say 10 pizzas, a few chicken dishes and some steaks including the obligatory steak Diana.  The specials board offers a fresher approach and includes about 5 starters and 5 mains, the majority of which are fish dishes.  I had just about made my choice, when Mario (the owner) came to take our orders.  I asked for recommendations and we altered a couple of our choices under his guidance. 

To start I had Mozzarella in Carrozza (£6.95); a speciality from Campania, the region Mario hails from.  Described as mozzarella sandwiched in the restaurant’s homemade bread, deep fried and served with a salad, I was happy when the dish was served with a tomato sauce rather than a salad.  The balls of mozzarella, although deep fried, were light and free of grease and the crispy breaded outer gave way to melting mozzarella which oozed gently into the warm tomato sauce.

Gav looked to the specials board for his starter and picked the herring (£6.80).  A whole herring came with a herb crust, a fresh salad, bread and some more of the tomato sauce.  The herring was well cooked; beautifully moist and tasty and Gav also enjoyed the salad which was dressed simply in olive oil with salt and pepper. 

By this point my earlier reservations began to wane and I was looking forward to my main of tilapia (£12.50).  The whole fish came with a pepperanta; a fresh pepper and tomato sauce.  It was gorgeous.  The fish was, once again, perfectly cooked and the sauce had a tasty kick of cayenne.  Having said that, it didn’t overpower the fish which was well flavoured after being cooked with a fat slice of lemon within its cavity.  There was salad and a side of veg too, so there was no chance of me going hungry. 

Although La Terrezza is clearly all about the fish dishes (all sourced from H Boldock in Woodseats by the way), there are a number of steaks on the menu and Gav plumped for the filetto boscaila (£17.50) which was a fillet served with a mushroom sauce.  It was a sizeable steak cooked to Gav’s specification; rare.  Beautifully tender, this was melt in the mouth stuff… and it had good flavouring.  So after years of choosing a rib eye over a fillet due to is lack of flavour, this steak has caused me to question my steak preferences. 

Unfortunately it also left me exceptionally jealous.  Yes, my fish was good, but oh my god, as a real meat lover the fact that Gav had that huge hunk of cow to himself killed me.  Thankfully, he didn’t mind me stealing the odd bit!

Despite being fit to bursting by this stage, we went for desserts.  Keeping to the Italian theme I had the tiramisu which was perfectly formed.  However I really was quite full and I couldn’t finish it. 

Gav had the banoffee pie, despite its lack of Italian heritage.  Italian or not, it was homemade and gorgeous.  From the tasty biscuit base to the luxurious creamy topping, Gav loved it.

We rounded off the meal with a digestif of limoncello served in an ice cold glass and took some time to reflect on the meal.  We had both thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  Ok, there’s nothing ground breaking going on here; but with good ingredients, simple cooking techniques and friendly, efficient service, La Terrezza is a no brainer, especially for fish lovers.

I would happily return to La Terrazza for more!

Gusto, Sheffield

A few months before Christmas our beloved Gusto Italiano closed down. Thankfully rumours of a new restaurant opening on Norfolk Row quickly spread as did a fair bit of excitement and intrigue. At least I was excited and intrigued.

Somehow I got it into my head that there would be more of a restaurant feel to the place. You know, somewhere to go for a full three courser, not just a sandwich. Quite nicely I turned out to be right.

We popped into Gusto (as it is now called; presumably it no longer feels the need to declare the nature of its cuisine to us) for a leisurely lunch in between Christmas and New Year. It was one of the (many) days when Gav was working a night shift so an early lunch with a couple of glasses of wine would set him up nicely for an afternoon snooze before going to work.

Anyone who went to Molly's on Norfolk Row (I didn't) will be astounded by the transformation. As you would expect from an Italian eatery the whole place oozes style. I am told that the idea behind the décor was to replicate the feel of sipping a glass of wine on the beach; hence the cool blue walls, the flashes of sunshine in the gold accessories and the sandy coloured chairs. There's also a lot of dark wood in there adding warmth and earning its keep as a wine rack stretching along the far back wall.

The staff fit the bill too. Smartly dressed in the classic black and white combos, they worked swiftly and precisely whilst managing to keep the service friendly and comfortable.

We were seated on one of the many small tables for two. Normally I hate automatically being ushered to these tiny tables but as the place got busier and busier (with larger tables being split in order to accommodate further couples) I realised it wasn't an automatic ushering but one of necessity.

Given the enormous wine rack it was hardly surprising to find a decent wine list. To be honest, there were fair few pricey bottles on there and if your budget's a bit more Sheffield than Milan, I'd stick to the first page; which is what we did with a tasty Montepulciano. We also ordered olives to nibble as we decided on the food.

The menu is a nice size; starters, pasta, pizza and both fish and meat main courses. I narrowed the starters down to a choice between the scallops and the carpaccio of marinated fish. Expecting a plate of light and fresh raw fish with hints of the marinade of lemon and ginger I went for the carpaccio.

The dish looked promising and on first mouthful I was happy. It was delicious.... but it tasted as though it had been smoked. Maybe it had just been marinaded long enough to cure the fish; I'm not sure but I had expected something fresher tasting with a bit of zing from the ginger. Having said that, it was still tasty and I happily scoffed my way through.

Gav went for the sausage and fennel ragu with polenta and I have to admit to being jealous. It was deliciously rich and seemed to have been cooked away for hours. The sausage was tasty; the polenta was soft and perfectly smooth. It was a good job he had bread to pop up his juices otherwise he would have licked the bowl clean (literally).

Onto the mains and although I love a good pasta dish, I fancied the pork fillet wrapped in pancetta served on creamed potatoes and oyster mushrooms. It did not disappoint. The pork had a slight rose blush to it (something I'm starting to get used to, but not yet replicating at home) leaving the meat juicy and tender; something of a rarity in pork.

We also ordered a side of asparagus gratin.

Gav had the monkfish with pancetta, creamed squash and pickled walnuts. Just like the pork, the monkfish was perfectly cooked and it was a good choice.

In all fairness portions hadn't been huge and this meant that we could fit dessert in too. One of the waitresses took me to the display of cakes and talked me through each one. This was a mistake as I then had to try and remember all ten of them to recite to Gav!

I went back to the table remembering both the chocolate and lemon varieties. I chose the chocolate which was gorgeous with a bit of tiramisu to it. In all fairness this cake alone makes a trip here worthwhile.

The lemon cake turned out to be almond and lemon with more of the former than the latter. It had a lovely texture, but I do feel responsible for getting the flavours confused and I think Gav was disappointed by the lack of zinginess.

We finished our wine and paid the bill (a little more than I'd expected at £86) before heading off home suitably fed and watered and ready for that snooze.

So. Was it an improvement to the last Gusto? Yes. Yes it certainly was. There are very few real Italian restaurants in the city centre. It's hard enough to find an independent Italian never mind about somewhere that does the food well. With its glitz, glamour, super cool waiting staff and solid Italian cooking Gusto should be welcomed into the city centre with open arms.

Have you been yet? What's your favourite dish?

My amazing 2011

2011 has been a funny old year; one I'll never forget.

It began with me on garden leave after being made redundant from a job I loved. I'd been there for seven and a half years and I didn't just feel part of the team, I felt part of the furniture. It had been a relatively amicable affair and I still keep in touch with my boss, but it had still been a real kick in the teeth all the same.

So, times were not easy, but I was keen to get on with things. Yes, I allowed myself a couple of weeks to fester, but that was it. I had three months of garden leave to get through before I could get another job and I was conscious that was probably long enough for me to settle into some deep dark depression.

I read various articles on the net, seeking advice on how to cope with redundancy. Taking some of it on board, I made sure I had something to do every day, that I got up and out of bed when my husband left for work and that I wasn't sat about watching day time tv.

My employer had paid for a degree conversion course before I left and this made sure I had plenty of assignments and study weekends ahead. I also signed up for some voluntary work, giving advice at Castle Advice Centre, but I wanted something new and exciting to sink my teeth into. I wanted to make sure that my garden leave wasn't wasted and that something good would come out of it.

So I set myself the task of starting a blog. At first I didn't know what I wanted to write about. I had initially thought I'd write about coping with redundancy, but once my initial festering period was over, I'd started to enjoy my time off. I also knew that we were going to be ok financially (of course, I needed to find another job, but I knew we weren’t looking at losing our home) so it didn't feel right for me to attempt to share the woes of others. The next most obvious choice was food. I'd always enjoyed cooking and eating out so it was something that would hold my interest.

Of course, having my days to myself meant that I had time to cook and, more importantly, time to shop. I discovered Castle Market and the unusual ingredients I found down there, including offal. Not only does this meat generally take longer to cook than other cuts of meat, offal gave me something to research and to experiment with. It also gave me something to write about.

Thankfully I was only unemployed for one month (which meant I only had to visit the job centre 2 or 3 times) and I soon found myself a part time position in Huddersfield. I only stayed there for 6 months. It just wasn’t right for me and I left for a full time job at a large firm in Sheffield. This does mean that I don't have the time to cook as much as I used to but I've still kept the blog going.

So, it’s all been a bit weird work wise, but, thanks to this blog, I have still had an amazing year. It’s lead to so many new and exciting opportunities and, in a peculiar way, the massive kick in the teeth of redundancy has actually given me the confidence to throw myself at new things and place myself well and truly out of my comfort zone.

These are my (mostly) highlights of the year. I’m not going to go into too much detail here as it's all been blogged before. You’ll gather from the tone of the last few paragraphs that there will be some personal notes in the round up of my year... so here goes!

Writing a Food Blog for Exposed

I was very excited when I met with Exposed and learnt that they were looking for someone to write a food blog for them. Of course, I jumped at the chance.

It’s helped get my name out there, especially as I’ve managed to get a few articles in the magazine too and it's been a great way in to meet new people and attend different events. I've been bee-keeping with Sheffield Honey, to a cupcake and cocktail event with Fancie and The Wig & Pen, had tours around the Moss Valley farm and the Our Cow Molly farm, baked cakes with Lorna of Heavenlies, had a tour around Tai Sun, had a cookery class with The Milestone and been to a dinner shuffle with Spice Yorkshire, amongst many others.

It’s hard work keeping two blogs going at once, but I’m determined to stick at it!

Trip to Paris

One thing I wanted to do with some of my redundancy pay out was have a break away. I didn't want to blow the lot, but I did want a short break somewhere. So when the opportunity to go to Paris arose I didn’t need asking twice.

It was a lovely foodie break as I ate stupendously well (as detailed in my blogpost here) and I met David Downie for a coffee! I'd raved about his 'Food, Wine, Rome' and 'Cooking the Roman Way' and David got in touch to say thanks. A few emails later and we were meeting up for a coffee in Paris!

The Perfect Carbonara

The worst carbonara (ever)

Many won't understand why a carbonara would please me so much. All I can say is that until you've eaten a truly Roman carbonara, you'll never understand. I had a truly appalling attempt at a gastronomic version of this dish here so I was over the moon to finally find Zerboni Taste and the perfect pasta dish. It’s easily the best (probably only) place for genuine Roman food in Sheffield.

GDL

I completed the GDL (Graduate Diploma in Law) in June. It was something that I really struggled with at first. Motivation was lacking as I wasn't entirely sure I'd be able to find another job in law at the time. Having said that I stuck it through and I'm glad I completed it (and did rather well too) even though I have no current plans to go on and do the LPC (due to lack of funding). So, after many years of studying and working I am a qualified Legal Executive (essentially a solicitor without the grand title/pay packet) and that is where I will stay.

London

After a rather stressful week of law exams, I was able to celebrate with a trip to see a couple of friends down in London. Gav came with me and we had a great time; it was lovely to see our friends and spend some time catching up. Just as importantly we managed to eat well too! Lunches at Cambden market and down Brick Lane, sweet snacks at Chin Chin Labs and dinners at The Forge and Canteen was enough to keep my taste buds happy; it was just a shame that Fergus Henderson’s Bread and Wine couldn’t squeeze us in. Oh well… there is always next time.

I had intended on blogging the whole trip, but something or other came up and I never got any further than part one, which is here. Unfortunately I’ve now completely forgotten what I ate and there isn’t much chance of me getting part two blogged any time soon. Hopefully I will be more organised when we next head down to the big smoke!

Das Boot

Ok, my trip on a narrow boat shouldn't really be compared to some epic war film but, Jesus Christ, it was the worst holiday of my life. 7 days in very close (and grubby/uncomfortable) confinements with my family was far too much to bear. 'Cruising' for 10 hours plus a day crushed my dreams of relaxing pub lunches and boozy afternoons. Instead it was a week of grumpiness and locks. Lock after lock after lock. My God. Some days we had 25 locks and each was met with a crash as nobody could drive the damn thing properly.

Never. Ever. Again.

Sheffield Food Festival

I was giddy about the food festival; unnaturally so. I planned and shared an itinerary before the week started and then I went crazy trying to cram everything into the time and budget I had. It was a great week and it was lovely to see so many people in the food industry working with the community to create a real buzz for the city.

I was shattered by the end of it as I blogged a lot of it for Exposed too. Needless to say, I’m already looking forward to Sheffield Food Festival 2012. Bring it on!

Anniversary Meal at Anthony's

This is the most acclaimed British restaurant I have ever eaten at and although our anniversary meal wasn't our first meal there, we'd never tried the tasting menu. It was, as expected, amazing. Of course I blogged about it (see here).

New Name and Logo

I never liked the name Live To Love To Eat; it was a means to an end. I feared that I would procrastinate at setting up the blog if I dwelled too much on the name.

Feast And Glory was created in a brain storming session with a friend over a bottle (or two) of wine. I wanted something related to food (obviously) and the idea of sharing (feasting). I didn’t want to focus solely on Sheffield (although the majority of this blog is about Sheffield), but I was keen to give a British feel to it (Land of Hope and Glory?).

Once I had the name sorted, I knew I needed a new logo. Two year old pictures of a skinnier me were not going to cut it any longer and I wanted to make both my blog and twitter profile look more professional. Knowing Cindy Cheung (a designer and fellow food blogger) through Twitter I knew that she was the ideal person to help. She took on board my ideas, added some of her own and came up with these beauties!

 

Eat Sheffield Awards

This must have been the biggest food event of the year in Sheffield, so I was honoured to get an invite. It was a great opportunity to meet some people in the media world (as I was sat at the ‘media table’) and of course it was lovely to hear the awards being announced first hand. My full write up of the event is here.

Sheffield’s food scene

Sheffield doesn’t have the best of reputations for food but I do honestly think it is growing. Not only do we have some fantastic producers in this great city, eating out is on the way up. Over the past year I’ve had good meals at The Milestone & The Wig and Pen, the Devonshire Arms and, of course, the Samuel Fox. With Barretts and Kitchen also receiving much praise over the past year the restaurant scene is rather exciting at the moment.

For more informal dining there’s The Great Gatsby, The Wick at Both Ends and the Rutland Arms offering bar/pub eats in town and I’ve enjoyed meals at each of these over the past year. The number of Chinese restaurants has exploded recently too. The new Orient Express, Mandar Inn and the recently expanded Harmony all aim to feed the huge influx of Chinese students that come to our city every year. This is excellent news for us locals as the food is good and, as aimed at students, cheap.

In other food news Gusto Italiano has moved to Norfolk Row and now sports a tasty

A la carte menu; good coffee has landed, thanks to Tamper Coffee and the Bradfield Farmers market has had a very successful first year.

* * *

An eventful year, I’m sure you’ll agree and this little lot is just scratching the surface! There was the PJ Taste ‘Taste of Christmas’ event, the Tamper Coffee evening, my first trip to a Supper Club and various trips to Bradfield, Nether Edge and Sheffield Farmers markets. I also discovered the power of the smart phone which means I tweet constantly and bore others with pictures of almost everything I eat.

Without wanting to sound cheesy I must say that the best thing about this year was meeting so many different people. From Sheffield food producers, to chefs and restaurateurs it's been lovely meeting so many in the food industry. I've also had the opportunity to meet many other food lovers and bloggers. If you haven't read the blogs by Ros, Anna or Komal then you really should. They're as enthusiastic about food in Sheffield as I am and are lovely people too. Ros and I have become good friends and we're currently working on a food project together, which is rather exciting. I won't go into too much now, but all will become clear soon.

After such an amazing year, my main new year resolution is to make sure that 2012 is even more amazing. As for my other resolutions... watch this space!

Happy New Year everyone. Thanks for reading.