Eating experience

An eating experience like no other....

Chef Ben Parris hard at work!

As you can probably tell I like to eat, in my house growing up as a kid it was all about social situations and food.  My mum would cook and invite unlimited amount of friends and family over,  she would also invite people she had just met, who would in turn come over to sample her food, the atmosphere was always relaxed and it turned us into very social people. I have definitely inherited the need to have people over for food and drink and go to theres for social eating.

Since moving to Cobham I have made a good set of friends who all love eating and drinking too. We often meet at each other places or go out but this weekend there was a new twist to the social phenomenon. The brilliant generous hosts treated us to a chef in there house! Now before you write this off for being too fancy or expensive think again and read on - it actually works out cheaper then going to a restaurant that cooks the same standard of food, in fact I would say this chef cooks as good as a Ramsay restaurant, if not better!

So here's how it works, Ben Parris the chef, discusses with you food dislikes, and likes, he then goes away for a bit and works his magic on a menu that will suit all of your guests. His imagination, creativity and flair is represented in the description of this menu. Ben blows your mind with his skill to use food that compliments each other, getting flavour out of everyday food that you never imagined existed. A very clever cook, that constantly wows you on every bite. 

We were ask to sit at the table, in my very good friends kitchen, which then felt like the chef's table but at home. It was all a bit ooooi, and this is fancy. To be honest, it made us all feel special, that no one was cooking, and that someone else was here to do it for us. As we sat, Ben served 3 different breads that he had baked himself in mini bread baskets per person.

It was Amuse Bouche to get the taste buds warmed up serving Spiced Butternut squash soup with coconut and coriander. This did not just come out in a bowl with a roll! Ben made soup an art form, it came out in a mini pot with a lid, surrounded by roasted squash and roasted coconut. The flavour was out of this world, a creamy soup with an Asian hint, so many flavours came through. For some people on the night this was there ultimate favourite in the flavour stakes. My husband doesn't normally like coriander, but this didn't put him off, he loved it.

Amuse bouche - Spiced butternut squash with coconut and coriander

The starter followed, and I am a seafood fanatic so this was fantastic for me, butter poached prawns, seared scallops, squid ink crumble and samphire. Holy moly this was just divine, every mouthful exploded with flavour, each bite you wanted more, the seafood was cooked to perfection, the tenderness of the prawns, and scallops, complimented by the crumble and the samphire just gave it that added sense of utter heaven.

Starter - Seafood sensation

For the main course we had Ballontine of Chicken breast with textures of cauliflower. Now I never order chicken out, because I eat it alot at home, and because I find it is never cooked that well. But this changed it for me. Firstly the chicken was moist, and considering it was breast it tasted alot like dark meat, again the flavours poured out, and made it so much more interesting. The textures of cauliflower, really showed you how Ben likes to experiment in his cooking. Every kind of interesting way cauliflower can be done was achieved. I also think that it made the vegetable trendy again, bought back to life in so many different formats, my personal favourite being the mousse. This was a winner for my husband as he finished it in record time.

Ballotine of chicken

Moving on the dessert, and consider what we had just eaten above  we had enough room as nothing left you bloated and over the top full, the portion sizes were perfect. This was my personal favourite, not because I'm the biggest pudding fan, but because I love it when people experiment. Ben served us Essence of Black forest Gateaux. What is this?? Well let me tell you, first of all its delicious, second of all its gateaux broken down into different elements so you can taste it in all its glory, its like each bit had its own personal show on a plate, the cherries, the cake, and even the meringue, nothing got lost in each other, everything got to go onto the palate, and served its purpose of delivering a fantastic well thought out pudding.

Essence of Black forest gateaux

Petis fours were delivered and then a cheese plate with quince jelly.

Overall this experience was undeniably something very special. Each person at the table felt like a new experience had been had, the hosts felt special, they got to put the kids to bed, and then get changed to walk downstairs to someone else cooking in their kitchen. The guests felt honoured to be invited, but loved that the hosts were at the meal to enjoy it in there home.

Ben Parris is a fabulous chef, whom has opened up our eyes to a new experience, I would defy you not try this with your friends or family at home. First and foremost his cooking is that of a top London restaurant, up there with the well known chefs. Second he brings it into your home a special way, making you feel like you are celebrating an occasion. Thirdly he leaves the house tidy.

We have all booked Ben again for July, and this time 10 of us are doing it! We wasted no time and booked it before the meal was gone. Prices start from £50pp and includes all of the above. You obviously add your own wine to the evening. I cannot recommend it enough. It truly is a culinary delight, that ticks all the boxes.

For more information on Ben and how to book him:

Benjamin Parris
Executive Chef

 

Mob; 07949 014 889
Web; www.benparrischef.com

Blog; www.bparris.wordpress.com

Twitter; @BenParrisChef