Renowned for its thriving food and drink scene, Norfolk’s artisan producers and eateries are recognised by food critics around the world for their inspired ingredients and dishes, tweaking traditional and international recipes with a local twist.
Many of us are probably guilty of eating the same meals on a repeat rotation, but if one of your new year’s resolutions is to try different foods and broaden your culinary repertoire, Norfolk’s Heacham Manor is the perfect place to enjoy a taste of something different.
This year, Heacham Manor is drawing inspiration from the best ingredients and bringing a different cuisine to its tables each month, so why not treat yourself to a break and let our chefs take your taste buds on a culinary exploration.
It’s often said that curry is the result of the evolution of traditional Indian food to suit British tastes during the Raj. Yet, while the crown ruled from 1608, others have attributed the influence of spicy and sour flavours in dishes such as vindaloo to the Portuguese who arrived in the sub-continent as far back as 1498, followed by the Dutch in 1605 and the French who ruled South India in 1664.
Indian food for non-Indians was categorised as its own type of food and we have been enjoying a curry ever since. Dishes such as kedgeree, which combines smoked fish with rice and eggs, and even mulligatawny soup owe their origins to this delicious cuisine, and it’s estimated that more than 20% of Brits enjoy a curry each week.
Like many great dishes, the nation’s favourite chicken tikka masala came about by chance. In the 70s, Ali Ahmed Aslam, the owner of the Shish Mahal restaurant in Glasgow, claims to have thrown together a yoghurt-based tomato sauce after a customer complained that his chicken tikka meal was too dry – the alchemy of a spicy sauce and chargrilled chicken was a eureka moment, and this perennial favourite topped the UK’s favourite dishes in 2001.
If you love a good balti or masala sauce dish, piled high with pilau rice, a samosa or bhaji, naan and poppadoms on the side, don’t miss The Pavilion’s Curry Night which takes place on the 17th January – enjoy a delicious curry and a pint for just £18, all expertly cooked by our chefs while you relax with good company in a great setting.
New Year’s Eve may have seen the year in with a bang, but Burn’s Night offers a far better occasion to tuck into a hearty winter supper, preferably washed down with a wee dram of whisky!
First held in memory of the great poet Robert Burns at Burns Cottage in Ayrshire in 1801, the customary Scottish feast is held on or about 25 January, and while this year falls on a Thursday, Heacham Manor is holding a ceilidh with a Scottish Night Menu on Friday 26 January – with the weekend in sight, there’s no reason to hold back on the celebrations.
Norfolk has a long connection with Scotland after many farmers were encouraged to move south and farm the land between the two World Wars, but whether you are a Scot marking your Gaelic roots or a Scot-at-heart, Burns Night is a fabulous way to get together with friends and raise a glass to the bard. The traditional greeting, ‘Sláinte mhath!’ translates as, ‘Good health’, a sentiment we can all share at this time of year!
A traditional Burns supper includes a soup course followed by traditional haggis, neeps (swede) and tatties (potatoes), and you’ll find all of these on the menu at Heacham Manor’s Scottish Night Menu, along with a mouth-watering black pudding Scotch egg or smoked salmon starter, smoked haddock or sweet potato and leek risotto main, plus some brilliant Scottish inspired sweet treats. Starting at £15 for a single course, £24 for two courses or £30 per head for a three-course meal, what better way to see out the dark days of January and prepare for spring.
With a whole year of international food events to follow, check back regularly as special dining nights are announced, and if you have a particular cuisine you’d love to see on our menu, why not drop us a line or chat with our team and see if your favourite dish is picked by chef as our plat du jour – bon appetit!
