Jacaranda were incredibly proud to be part of the Children In Need event ‘Carfest‘, which took place over the final weekend of August at Laverstoke Park Farm in Hampshire. Amidst the fast cars, fine food and fun times, we were responsible for catering for Chris Evans and his guests in the VVIP tent.
In honour of this, we made sure that the VVIP area was indeed very, very special by pitching up alongside the fantastic C(6)n structure, from where we ran our own little catering area, supplying everything from breakfast pastries to evening aperitifs for our selection of esteemed guests.
Our specially curated menu for Saturday included a selection of bowl food for a cold lunch made up of:
Laverstoke farm buffalo mozzarella with Nutbourne organic tomatoes, basil cress, extra virgin olive oil and artisan ciabatta rolls
Lightly smoked rout fillet with beetroot, carrot, apple and horseradish slaw, pumpkin seeds, watercress and rye bread croute
Laverstoke farm pork belly with king prawns, pink grapefruit and Asian vegetable salad with lemongrass dressing
As dusk began to fall, we fired up the barbecue for supper in order to offer Turkish flat bread wraps to be filled with a choice of:
Laverstoke Farm buffalo rump rubbed in harissa
Laverstoke farm lamb koftas
Chick pea, lentil, tomato and sweet potato stew cooked in a large paella pan
Tabbouleh
Smoked paprika or garlic sauce
Although the weather on Saturday was a bit grizzly, we still saw a wealth of motor racing heroes and enjoyed having many of the races whizzing past our tent.
Our chefs were particularly excited to meet and cater for Raymond Blanc and James Martin. The great thing about Carfest is that it’s equally as delightful for foodie types as it is for petrol heads, with a host of food stalls, the best of British food and drink suppliers and bake-offs to whet your appetite.
Amidst the car parades, air displays and auctions throughout Sunday, we were back on site to make sure the VVIPs had more than their fill. For lunch, we served:
Laverstock Chargrilled legs of lamb with Ferretti ciabatta bread Mint apple and pomegranate jelly, fresh mint sauce
Salads: Chargrilled Mediterranean salad
Rocket Salad
Spiced cous-cous with aubergine, chickpeas, coriander and mint
Vegetarian: Ferretti ciabatta’ s with haloumi, sunblush tomato, rocket salad
Spiced cous-cous with aubergine, chickpeas, coriander and mint
By the time that Razorlight took to the stage on Sunday evening, we were gearing up to serve a lavish Pan Asian feast consisting of a wok and soup station providing noodle boxes filled with stir fried vermicelli noodles or rice with Laverstoke farm beef sirloin, marinated Laverstoke pork belly rashers and king prawns. This was all cooked fresh to order and served with a selection of Asian vegetables, herbs, chillies and sauces. We also provided bowls of Tom Yum soup with a choice of chicken or prawns.
The event managed to raise £750,000 for Children In Need and was an absolute delight to be a part of. The family-oriented feel of the event meant that we saw people of all ages revelling in everything from classic cars to welly-wanging! And we’re delighted to say that all the VVIPs enjoyed their grub and found perfect relaxation in our special area.
If you would like to know more about Carfest, visit the website and make sure you get a ticket for next year!