This post strays quite far from the path, but I think it is both relevant and most worthy. There is a great new site for foodies which both facilitates and publishes food events;
Melba is the place to find undiscovered culinary talent and experience the joy of eating with others. Our easy-to-use platform allows individuals to organize and discover food events like communal dinner parties, cookery classes and tastings. We are building a community of passionate food lovers and providing a social alternative to dining out in restaurants.
The launch party, which was held at Salvation Jane in east london, was a roaring success. 4 amateur chefs cooked 4 courses, each delicious, imaginative and exciting. Not only was it a great pleasure to sample some of the impressive delights that these young chefs had to offer, but the evening was intimate and personal, which only contributed to the delicious edible treats on offer.
The menu was as follows…
Starter of Hake and Kaffir Lime Fish Cakes with Nahm Jim Dipping Sauce and Asian Herb Salad by Tim Dorman
Tim Dorman is the head chef at Salvation Jane. His fish cakes were light and delicious, and well complemented by the fresh and zingy salad that accompanied them.
2nd Starter of Salamagundi in the 21st Century- a many component salad by The Candle Stick Maker
This second starter was actually my favourite dish of the meal. Not only was it incredibly beautiful and colourful, but it had loads of delicious and subtle flavours threading through it. A salad like no other.
Main of Duck Soup by The Wandering Chef
This was the most popular dish of the evening, being both tasty and extremely exciting. As dish upon dish was brought out and piled onto our table, we were informed that we were to make our very own Duck Soup.
Platters of duck meat, herbs, noodles, crackling and other delicious sides were laid in front of us to ladle into our bowls and create our meal. The golden orb-like duck egg yolks were the hero piece and tasted delicious when paired with the meaty duck and flavourful broth. I wasn’t a massive fan of the cold noodles, but otherwise this dish was so much fun and really did taste great.
Dessert of Bee’s Galangal Ice Cream Vs. Wood Fire Choclatesby The Thinkers Balcony
The chef of this last course is a philosopher and a budding foodie, and clearly has skills. Unfortunaltey, I wasn’t a fan of the excessive and borderline pretentious thought process behind the food, especially because it didn’t really match up. The first dish of the pair was supposed to represent the lightness of being, and was a reduced ice cream with honey comb. There being a large amount of honey comb on the plate, this dish actually really wasn’t very light at all, despite looking delicate and lovely. 
The heaviness, or weight, was represented by some very dense, smoked chocolates which were quite tasty but the smokiness reminded me of bacon which wasn’t that great an association .
All in all, it was a seriously lovely evening. The crowd were great, and there can be no doubt that the Melba guys really do love food and all it brings. I will definaltey be using the site, not only to hold events but to attend them, as it is clearly a great portal for some very exciting foodie moments… Congratulations Melba!
I think you have captured the beautiful Salamagundi better than any photo I’ve seen so far!
It was a really fun and delicious night!
Love this. What gorgeous dishes!