Ortega – Spanish with a Riojan accent

Visitors during Ortega’s Rioja Festival can enjoy a tasting of the restaurant’s Rioja selection with matching tapas dishes specially selected to help enhance the flavour of each wine. A tasting of six wines from the Rioja selection, paired with six specially selected tapas dishes, along with bread and olives will be available for £15 per person from today.

Bringing Gastronomy to Gaol

Douglas Blyde goes to prison. No, not as punishment for his purple prose, but to sample the food at the Clink, the only restaurant in the UK to be located inside a prison. Not only did he rather enjoy this unique experience, he was even allowed out to offend again.

Quartz to Crystal

Following the first glass masterclass in Britain, Douglas Blyde catches-up with Maximilian Riedel, 11th generation figurehead of the world’s most famous luxury glassware firm. It was founded in 1756 in northern Bohemia.

Fight Hunger/ Eat out 2009. Tables now open

Last year more than 500 restaurateurs helped raise awareness of Action Against Hunger and raised over £400,000 towards the organisation’s vital work. This year you can do your bit by encouraging restaurants you know to take part but even better, choose the participating restaurants as places to spend your money.

Papillon designer menu launches

Three of the world’s leading fashion icons have teamed up to create a designer menu for the Chelsea brasserie, Papillon, The menu will be available during London Fashion Week (18 – 25 September) to celebrate its 25th anniversary and part of the proceeds will go to the Eve Appeal charity.

The Big Chill House

The names of some bars and eateries give little away as to the mood to expect inside. The Big Chill House, on the other hand, tells it like it is. Depending on which way you interpret the name grammatically, this is both a place where you can chill – big time – as well as a big house in which you can chill. Either way, you get the picture: chilling is the name of the game here.

The first green bean coffee hits supermarket shelves

A new type of coffee which contains high levels of naturally occurring polyphenol antioxidants has been launched in the UK by NESCAFÉ. Made from a blend of roasted beans and unroasted green coffee beans, NESCAFÉ Green Blend has been specially created by their coffee experts to deliver on flavour and aroma, as well as health benefits.