Family Food Fight With Flora
It’s not often that you get to eat a meal that’s been overseen by a top chef. But when my colleague, Marie-Anne Hamilton and I were invited to take part in Five’s brand-new cookery show, Family Food Fight With Flora, that’s exactly what we were treated to. And not just one top chef – but two.
In the show – which starts in May — culinary clever-clogs Jean-Christophe Novelli and Matt Tebbutt go head-to-head, with each in charge of teaching a family how to cook not only meals from scratch, but food that is healthy too. If that’s not difficult enough, they then have to cook for 40 diners – and we were two of them. (And that’s Matt, me, Jean-Christophe and Marie-Anne in the pic)!
But before we went into The Deep restaurant on London’s Imperial Wharf, we were whisked away by Jean-Christophe Novelli’s PR, Freddie and Five’s press officer Tracey, to The Waterside, a nearby pub with beautiful views over the Thames for a chat, a G&T – and a celeb spot in the form of Karl Davies, who used to play Robert Sugden in Emmerdale!
Once the production team were ready for us, we wandered over to the restaurant which had been turned into a fully fledged TV set, complete with lights, cameras and wires – plus a curtain shielding us from the action already going on in the kitchen.
Our table was nicely tucked away in the corner, and we had to switch off our mobiles while a producer ran through the safety issues and the rules of the show. We were going to tuck into not one, but two main courses and two desserts, and it was vital that we tasted all the food, so that we could make an informed decision about which meal tasted the best. Just as well we went easy on lunch.
He also warned us against getting too carried away with the free-flowing wine — apparently red, blurry faces don’t look good on-screen. Oh, the pitfalls of being on TV!
Taking photos was forbidden, and so was making funny faces at the camera when other diners were being interviewed. Luckily, toilet trips were permitted.
And with that, the attractive waiting staff (were they actors and models, we wondered?) began pouring the afore-mentioned wine (which was delicious) from huge carafes and we tucked into the bread rolls – served with Flora (who sponsor the programme) of course!
As we waited for our main courses to be served, much shouting could be heard from the kitchen. Never have I been more relieved not to be cooking!
Portions were huge. The first was Pork Tenderloin with Mash and Cider Sauce, which was drizzled with caramelized mushrooms and onions, and presented with vegetables served in a ramekin on the side of the huge, white plate. Just as I’d started tucking in, along came the Rack of Lamb with Ratatouille and Roast Potatoes. We found it hard to decide which we preferred as both were delicious. And when it was time to be filmed filling out our voting cards, we chose differently.
When the desserts arrived, we wondered how we were going to find room to sample the gorgeous Lemon and Lime Cheesecake with Summer Berries and the wondrous Strawberry Pancakes and Ice Cream. The voting form was a bigger challenge though. And I overheard much talk about the pancakes when I was in the toilets.
Feeling thoroughly satisfied, we waited anxiously – although not as anxiously as Jean-Christophe and Matt, who had, by now, come out into the restaurant with the contestants — to hear the results. We wouldn’t want to spoil it, but it’s safe to say that us diners left happier than the losing chef who, even after the cameras had finished rolling, was still asking us why his pudding hadn’t won…
By Elaine Penn
