Last Thursday we held our Christmas Pop Up at the exquisite Oxleaze Barn. This event allowed guests to come and enjoy a three course meal, drinks and enjoy an evening with their friends, work colleagues or loved ones. Guests had the opportunity to roam around the venue which was adorned with twinkling Christmas lights and strands of holly to put them in the festive spirit. Not only did we cater the food at the pop up, but we also served drinks from the bar and introduced our guests to our new Cocktail concoctions, including Espresso Martini and the option of Driver Cocktails. Additionally we displayed our ‘Personalise Your Cava’ which gives the choice to add various types of liqueur to your glass of Cava, including Strawberry, Peach, Raspberry and Blackcurrant.
At around 8pm, guests sat down in their seats enjoying their drinks and waiting the arrival of our chef Ross Whitmill to delve into what everyone will be enjoying that evening. Once Ross had made his appearance, it was ready for the first course to be served. To start was the Christmas Sharing Board combined a number of extremely tasty starter dishes, allowing the guests to share with their party which encouraged conversation focused on the food. Included in the Sharing Board starter was Buttermilk Fried Turkey, Chicken Liver Pate, Red Onion Marmalade, Hot Smoked Salmon & Celeriac Remoulade, Pear, Apple & Chicory Salad & Caramelised Walnuts, Arancini, Saffron & Lemon and Rollright Cheese & Chutney. This was not your average starter as there was an abundance of various flavours and ingredients to try and share the experience with your friends and family.
Our guests had a choice of which Main Course they would like to tuck into, which was decided previous to the event evening. The majority of our guests chose 12 hour Slow Roasted Blade of Beef, Dauphinoise Potatoes, Bacon & Shallot Jus; the remainder of our guests enjoyed Pan Fried Salmon, Thyme Creamed Leeks & Capers, both of which were served with Bowls of Roasted Root Vegetables & Seasonal Greens. The Beef and Dauphinoise Potatoes were perfectly sculpted into a cylinder, drizzled over with the Bacon & Shallot Jus. The Potatoes were incredibly soft, delicate and creamy which teamed well with the softness of the slow cooked Beef. The Beef fell apart with one stroke of your fork; collapsing into the Jus which soaked up into the meat offering an extra smoky flavour.
Before we knew it, it was time for Dessert which guests also decided on. The various options included Pineapple Panna Cotta with Almond Topping, Chocolate Truffle Torte, Salted Caramelised Peanuts & Cream and a traditional and seasonal Christmas Pudding & Brandy Cream. The Chocolate Torte proved the most popular (unsurprisingly) and we heard nothing but rave reviews about how intensely rich and delicious it was. The addition of Cream really balanced out the richness of the Chocolate and left you wanting more!
After the meal guests could stay relaxed in their seats by the roaring fireplace or wander outside and seat themselves around the glowing fire pit, obviously with a drink in hand. The venue was cosy and the entire surroundings with the decorations really made you feel at home and want to get into the Christmas spirit.
We would like to say a big thank you to the team at Oxleaze Barn who allowed us to host this Christmas celebration at their truly beautiful and breathtaking venue, and alowing us to transform the bar. In addition we’d like to say thank you to all the waiting staff and our sensational chefs in the kitchen for creating such delectable dishes which received plenty of positive feedback. One last thank you and well done to our Events Team here at Ross & Ross Food who continue to impress and make every pop up uniquely special and go above and beyond to ensure all our guests enjoy their evening and their food. This event was an absolute success and it couldn’t have been done without the hard work of all these people.
We hope all our guests had a wonderful time at our Christmas Pop Up. Next on the list is our Burn’s Night Pop Up on the 27th January which has completely SOLD OUT! We’re really looking forward to the pop up which has proven incredibly popular with our customers.
See you at our next Pop Up and we hope you enjoyed reading the blog! Look out soon for our last blog of the year.