BEHIND THE MENU Words by
Portraits
Toby Weidmann
Ian Derry
B E H I N D
t’s often said that three is a magic number, and that’s certainly true with regards to tonight’s specially crafted menu. The culmination of weeks of trialling and tastetesting, the Film Awards meal was created by a triumvirate of talented chefs: Nigel Boschetti, executive chef at Grosvenor House Hotel; Anton Manganaro, head chef at BAFTA 195 Piccadilly; and Jon Bentham, executive chef at Hotel Chocolat. Together they have crafted a perfectly balanced and original menu, with a specific British (and BAFTA) fl avour. “The inspiration came from a desire to use seasonal produce,” explains Boschetti. “We like to source as locally as possible. That can mean using cheeses from Somerset or the north of England, it doesn’t necessarily mean from London. We do like to use good quality British produce.” Manganaro adds: “Nigel was the main driver behind the dinner menu, I just tweaked it a little. For instance, I swapped wasabi in the starter for British horseradish. That’s my focus at BAFTA. It is the British Academy after all. We have some great suppliers and you’ll see that coming out in the
canapés I created for the Champagne Taittinger reception at the Royal Opera House. I like using British ingredients quite simply because you don’t have to mess about with them – the flavours are so good if you choose the right ingredients.” For chocoholics, tonight’s dessert should have you salivating long before it arrives at the table. Created by Chef Bentham specifi cally for this event, the pudding utilises cacao beer, St Lucian milk chocolate, praline and caramel. As Bentham says, it should deliver “the wow factor. It’s all about the fl avour. We’ve also featured a BAFTA mask on the dessert, which we’ve sprayed gold. I think this is a nice touch, and it certainly epitomises BAFTA.” Naturally, preparing the whole meal is a massive operation, with more than 36 chefs used throughout the day of the Awards to feed the expected 2,000 guests. This would be a daunting proposition for even the most experienced chefs, but for Boschetti, Manganaro and Bentham, it’s all in a day’s work. As Boschetti says: “If we’ve done our job properly, then there’s no need to be nervous.” Bon appétit!
From left to right: Nigel Boschetti, Jon Bentham, Anton Manganaro
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TO EN SU R E T H E EE B R I T I S H A C A D E MY FI L M AWA R DS R E M A I N S A U N I Q U E E V E N T, T O N I G H T ’ S F O O D H A S B E E N S P E C I A L LY C R A F T E D B Y T H R E E C U L I N A R Y M A S T E R S …