The Soul Fire Restaurant illustrated by Kayleigh Bluck.
A gourmet three course meal served up by a world class chef (Charlie Nicoll, visit web cure formerly of the River Cafe) – at a festival? You could be forgiven for thinking you’d just heard wrong. But this was exactly what I enjoyed on Friday night at the Soul Fire Restaurant at Secret Garden Party this year.
Guests were encouraged to book their place online, order and the restaurant (housed in three cosy yurts backing onto a kitchen preparation area) was busy as soon as we arrived for the first sitting at the leisurely hour of 9.30pm.
In the first yurt diners were treated to some live music, sick and out back we were seated in candlelit surroundings at a shared table, with walls decorated in contemporary art. The waiters were delightful, and from the incredibly reasonably priced £30 three course menu we were soon chomping on our starter choices of Uig Lodge Smoked Salmon Blinis with Sour Cream and Avruga Caviar, and a large portion of succulent Wild Mushroom Arancini with Rocket and Aioli.
Illustrations by Katie Harnett.
My only quibble with the menu was the lack of an obvious main vegetarian option (we had to ask for it) but in the end we all settled on the same dishes – French Freerange Guinea Fowl with Sweet Potato Dauphinoise and Greens. I am generally a vegetarian but will occasionally eat freerange and organic meat – and this just sounded too good to pass up.
French Guinea Fowl by Tigz Rice.
“The Soul Fire menu has been deliberated over with the utmost love and attention to offer guests an exquisite choice of fine food to suit all palates,” states the press release for the restaurant, which served only ethically and locally sourced food. I can confirm that our guinea fowl was absolutely delicious, sentiments agreed on by my two dining partners as we enjoyed our meal with an accompanying bottle of wine.
Illustration by Dee Andrews.
For desert we chose Lemon Curd Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce and a moistly rich Chocolate Brownie with Ice Cream, which were both superb and again arrived in very reasonably sized portions that would set us up nicely for a long night of partying.
Puddings by Lisa Stannard.
It may seem slightly strange to chose such a fabulous dining experience at a festival, but we returned to the madness outside refreshed, relaxed and fully sated.
On our travels later we overheard a punter passing the restaurant say “Best Eggs Benedict ever” to his companion. My only disappointment was that I was unable to sample the Soul Fire brunch experience for myself – by the time we made it back to the restaurant in the mornings it was always full already. It’s funny how news of a good thing will travel so fast.
I very much look forward to news of the next Soul Fire pop up restaurant in a yurt. This idea could grow and grow…
The Soul Fire Restaurant illustrated by Kayleigh Bluck.
A gourmet three course meal served up by a world class chef (Charlie Nicoll, clinic formerly of the River Cafe) – at a festival? You could be forgiven for thinking you’d just heard wrong. But this was exactly what I enjoyed on Friday night at the Soul Fire Restaurant at Secret Garden Party this year.
Guests were encouraged to book their place online, viagra 60mg and the restaurant (housed in three cosy yurts backing onto a kitchen preparation area) was busy as soon as we arrived for the first sitting at the leisurely hour of 9.30pm.
In the first yurt diners were treated to some live music, and out back we were seated in candlelit surroundings at a shared table, with walls decorated in contemporary art. The waiters were delightful, and from the incredibly reasonably priced £30 three course menu we were soon chomping on our starter choices of Uig Lodge Smoked Salmon Blinis with Sour Cream and Avruga Caviar, and a large portion of succulent Wild Mushroom Arancini with Rocket and Aioli.
Illustrations by Katie Harnett.
My only quibble with the menu was the lack of an obvious main vegetarian option (we had to ask for it) but in the end we all settled on the same dishes – French Freerange Guinea Fowl with Sweet Potato Dauphinoise and Greens. I am generally a vegetarian but will occasionally eat freerange and organic meat – and this just sounded too good to pass up.
French Guinea Fowl by Tigz Rice.
“The Soul Fire menu has been deliberated over with the utmost love and attention to offer guests an exquisite choice of fine food to suit all palates,” states the press release for the restaurant, which served only ethically and locally sourced food. I can confirm that our guinea fowl was absolutely delicious, sentiments agreed on by my two dining partners as we enjoyed our meal with an accompanying bottle of wine.
Illustration by Dee Andrews.
For desert we chose Lemon Curd Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce and a moistly rich Chocolate Brownie with Ice Cream, which were both superb and again arrived in very reasonably sized portions that would set us up nicely for a long night of partying.
Puddings by Lisa Stannard.
It may seem slightly strange to chose such a fabulous dining experience at a festival, but we returned to the madness outside refreshed, relaxed and fully sated.
On our travels later we overheard a punter passing the restaurant say “Best Eggs Benedict ever” to his companion. My only disappointment was that I was unable to sample the Soul Fire brunch experience for myself – by the time we made it back to the restaurant in the mornings it was always full already. It’s funny how news of a good thing will travel so fast.
I very much look forward to news of the next Soul Fire pop up restaurant in a yurt. This idea could grow and grow…
The Soul Fire Restaurant illustrated by Kayleigh Bluck.
A gourmet three course meal served up by a world class chef (Charlie Nicoll, sick formerly of the River Cafe) – at a festival? You could be forgiven for thinking you’d just heard wrong. But this was exactly what I enjoyed on Friday night at the Soul Fire Restaurant at Secret Garden Party this year.
Guests were encouraged to book their place online, mind and the restaurant (housed in three cosy yurts backing onto a kitchen preparation area) was busy as soon as we arrived for the first sitting at the leisurely hour of 9.30pm.
In the first yurt diners were treated to some live music, capsule and out back we were seated in candlelit surroundings at a shared table, with walls decorated in contemporary art. The waiters were delightful, and from the incredibly reasonably priced £30 three course menu we were soon chomping on our starter choices of Uig Lodge Smoked Salmon Blinis with Sour Cream and Avruga Caviar, and a large portion of succulent Wild Mushroom Arancini with Rocket and Aioli.
Illustrations by Katie Harnett.
My only quibble with the menu was the lack of an obvious main vegetarian option (we had to ask for it) but in the end we all settled on the same dishes – French Freerange Guinea Fowl with Sweet Potato Dauphinoise and Greens. I am generally a vegetarian but will occasionally eat freerange and organic meat – and this just sounded too good to pass up.
French Guinea Fowl by Tigz Rice.
“The Soul Fire menu has been deliberated over with the utmost love and attention to offer guests an exquisite choice of fine food to suit all palates,” states the press release for the restaurant, which served only ethically and locally sourced food. I can confirm that our guinea fowl was absolutely delicious, sentiments agreed on by my two dining partners as we enjoyed our meal with an accompanying bottle of wine.
Illustration by Dee Andrews.
For desert we chose Lemon Curd Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce and a moistly rich Chocolate Brownie with Ice Cream, which were both superb and again arrived in very reasonably sized portions that would set us up nicely for a long night of partying.
Puddings by Lisa Stannard.
It may seem slightly strange to choose such a fabulous dining experience at a festival, but we returned to the madness outside refreshed, relaxed and fully sated.
On our travels later we overheard a punter passing the restaurant say “Best Eggs Benedict ever” to his companion. My only disappointment was that I was unable to sample the Soul Fire brunch experience for myself – by the time we made it back to the restaurant in the mornings it was always full already. It’s funny how news of a good thing will travel so fast.
I very much look forward to news of the next Soul Fire pop up restaurant in a yurt. This idea could grow and grow…
Hay bales for seating in the Collosillyum area. Photography by Amelia Gregory.
If Latitude is a well planned amble between the South Bank, view ICA, viagra order Royal Opera House and Somerset House with added sheep, then Secret Garden Party is the biggest most eccentric three day party in the grounds of a country mansion you could never dream of. Two more diverse festivals you could not imagine.
The Party Blimp – accessible only by boat.
Music is just one of the elements that make up the Secret Garden Party experience, surely the only festival where the main acts are liable to be upstaged by a death-defying wheelchair race or a mud wrestling fight. Because the stages are not the central focus there is always space to sit down or to dance, and the natural layout of the main stage in particular means that there’s always space to see the bands properly – which makes for a far more comfortable viewing experience than at most festivals. Despite a distinct lack of well known bands the quality of music on the line up is never low, and as usual I discovered lots of great new music.
My favourite Secret Garden Party stage is built into the side of a huge tree. This year there were giant eyeballs sewn into the back and the front was made up to look like the prow of a ship, complete with a naked female figurehead. Shortly before the prow had been swung into destruction by inebriated climbing mammals Animal Kingdom took to the good ship Where the Wild Things Are with a beatific set of melodic songs that have gleaned comparisons to Radiohead, Sigur Ros and Coldplay.
Animal Kingdom by Holly Exley.
Over in the geodesic rave dome – AKA the Remix Bubble – the Lake District’s finest Burn the Negative were proving to a small but highly motivated crowd (including security on balloons) that danceable indie electro doesn’t just come out of the big cities.
Burn the Negative by Alexis West.
Secret Garden Party has expanded massively since I first came in 2004, and the more idiosyncratic attractions are now linked to the main arena by a floating bridge that caused much swaying hilarity on every crossing. As a mid afternoon treat I decided to get my toes nibbled by some miniature carp from Turkey.
Yes that’s me. White legs! Photography by Tim Adey.
The Doctor Fish has been used for centuries to cure skin ailments, and they were particularly excited by my friend Jemima’s Psoriasis. It was a very soothing experience, and my skin felt notably softer afterwards. This is the first time this particular species of fish have been imported into the UK and entrepreneur Keon Petre hopes to open a range of fish nibbling franchises.
Emma Ware.
A huge pink tent housed stalls from a carefully picked range of artists and designers including Spitalfields based illustrator Dan Hillier and jeweller Emma Ware, who makes gorgeous contemporary pieces from recycled inner tubes. Expect to hear more about her designs on this blog soon.
Fionn Regan by Abigail Daker.
Fionn Regan was the perfect treat for a sunny day, following in the traditional mould of talented Irish folk singers with added 80s McEnroe hair band action. Never a bad thing in my book.
Steve Mason by Katherine Tromans.
I knew there was a reason I felt immediately warm towards main stage act Steve Mason despite having no clue who he was – turns out he was one half of the excellent Beta Band. And anyone who twitters about Ian Tomlinson is even better in my books. Musicians with a conscience – we need more of them.
Marina and the Diamonds by Emma Block.
I’ve been a big fan of hot tip Marina and the Diamonds for some time now, but we missed most of her set whilst enjoying the most wonderful three course dinner at the Soulfire restaurant, housed in three yurts (look out for my full review, coming soon). Instead we caught the last few songs, which still gave me ample time to admire her vermillion lips and whippet thin waist: I can now confirm that she is every bit as sexy in the flesh as she comes across on record.
Afterwards we were treated to some nefarious circus fun from Down Under – including pubic angle-grinding, sword swallowing and weights hooked into eyelids. Tasteful.
I featured the Infadels way back in issue 04 of Amelia’s Magazine in 2005, and they’ve been steadily plugging away ever since. I haven’t heard any recent albums but they seemed quite happy to play lots of the old tunes, which perfectly suited the late night party crowd.
Infadels by Harriet Gray.
Most amusingly they seem to have acquired a female joint lead vocalist on one of their most famous tunes. Maybe all ageing bands will one day invite drunk negligee-wearing teenagers on board to spice things up. Oh hang on, it’s already become a trend… (see Saturday’s blog…)
The Delays by Abby Wright.
Last up on Where the Wild Things Are at gone 1am the glitter-covered Delays played a fantastically energetic set to a shockingly small crowd. “Let’s see some shoulder action,” they pleaded. “It’s not a festival without it.” Several people obligingly mounted their friends with rapidity. I hope one day this vastly underrated band finds the success they deserve. Catch our recent interview with them here.
Remember, there’s more where this came from – you can read about Saturday’s events here.
The Comfort of Strangers by Christopher Morris, site a contributor to Amelia’s Magazine
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last few months, rx you’ll know that we have a soft spot for illustration here at Amelia’s Magazine.
So I popped along to the grimly-titled but rather splendid Save Our Souls illustration exhibition a couple of weeks ago – the latest offering from Camberwell College of Arts. Free booze flowed (sometimes too closely to some of the works, which made me ‘eek’ aloud. Seriously) and there was SO much to see – too much, actually – it was a little overwhelming. With so much talent on display, it made me realise just how competitive the illustration industry is – but thank heavens we’ve been featuring so much on here recently!
Most people chose to sit outside and booze – it was a pretty hot evening.
How you digest all of this wonderful work into 500ish words is beyond me, but I’m going to give it a damn good try. The exhibition featured not only traditional, framed illustrations but lots of other mixed media works, fashion, film and sculpture. Here’s my top picks of the day, whose souls I’ll be saving by featuring them in this article.
In no particular order, honestly:
Katie Brookes
I was absolutely astonished by Katie’s intricate, large-scale drawings, pleasantly-titled The Pathway To Hell. (‘What is it with all this talk of death?’ I wondered, ‘these students need cheering up!’) The detail in Katie’s drawing was incredible, and amongst a lot of delicate, minute pieces, this really stood out.
Moa Ceder
In contrast, Moa’s diminutive and very simple line drawings also grabbed my attention. I enjoyed musing over the impish characters and Moa’s appreciation of light and dark. Simple but effective.
Alice Lindsay
Alice also made attractive use of light and dark with her slightly weird scenes. These intriguing lithographs derive inspiration from literature (these are in fact based on ‘Something That Needs Nothing’ by Miranda July). Their monotone colour palette with flashes of red created drama and were a striking inclusion into an exhibition which featured so many bright colours.
Colin Stewart
Colin Stewart’s mixed media pieces were unmissable in this exhibition (and not only because they were immediately visible from the entrance!) They featured unusual characters with Picasso-like faces, amongst architectural backgrounds.
Feronia Parker Thomas
I very much enjoyed glaring at Feronia Parker Thomas’ childlike pencil drawings, featuring domestic scenes such as smokers outside Battersea Power Station and Elvis. Feronia’s technique made her colourful pieces appear motional.
Emma Denby
I loved loved LOVED Emma’s eccentric short film about schizophrenia, with each scene hand drawn or making use of mixed media techniques. With a 1950s informational-video-voiceover, this video made the room of viewers chuckle aloud. Watch it!
Yana Elkassova
Yana produces playful illustrations for children’s books, made up of beautiful pencil crayon sketches, but it was her fabulous Russian Doll series that had me drawn (illustration pun intended) to her little section. Two sets of dolls appeared, one saucy Burlesque stripper, complete with flirtatious wink and hands-behind-back-undoing-of-bra, and a 1950s housewife going about her domestic duties.
Jason Colbert (Double Barrel)
As fashion editor of Amelia’s Magazine, I simply couldn’t resist featuring Jason Colbert’s quirky t-shirt prints. Manufactured using vinyl, digital techniques and screen-printing, Jason’s pieces feature simple geometric shapes and animal faces – making use of contrasting colours. Great styling in these photographs, too.
Categories ,Alice Lindsay, ,Camberwell College of Arts, ,Colin Stewart, ,Double Barrel, ,Emma Denby, ,Feronia Parker Thomas, ,illustration, ,Jason Colbert, ,Katie Brooks, ,london, ,Moa Ceder, ,Nicholls and Clarke Building, ,Save Our Souls, ,shoreditch, ,Yana Elkassova
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