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•  21 January 2013

Tickets now on sale for Edinburgh’s glamourous bingo fundraising evening in aid of Action for Children Scotland.

Date: Friday 1 March 2013
Time: 6:30 pm – 11:30 pm 
Venue: The George Hotel, Edinburgh
Ticket Price: £65 per person (or £650 for a table of ten), which includes: 

• Drinks reception
• Bingo games hosted by Gala
• 3-course dinner 
• Fabulous prizes
• Grand auction hosted by Grant Stott

To book contact katie.forsyth@actionforchildren.org.uk or call 0141 550 9022.

All the money raised on the night will go to Action for Children’s Gilmerton Road service which helps families across Edinburgh and the Lothians who have a child with a learning disability and severe behavioural problems. The charity helps them live the lives they choose by providing fun, inclusive and flexible support, including short break care, help for families in dealing with challenging behaviour and provision of specialist education and leisure opportunities. The project  currently supports 40 children aged 0 – 19 years.

•  15 January 2013

Further to the closure of Restaurant Mark Greenaway at No. 12 Picardy Place in November last year, the Edinburgh-based chef has announced his restaurant will re-launch on Friday 18 January 2013 on the capital’s North Castle Street.

The award-winning chef said:  

“I’m delighted to reveal the new location of my restaurant and equally thrilled to be getting back into the kitchen.  By being more central I hope to have a better lunch trade, and having more covers means that ultimately I can serve more customers.

“Despite the new location, my menus and cooking style will remain the same.  I’ll continue with my modern approach to classic dishes.  I’m also very fortunate to have retained my staff and suppliers during my short break from the kitchen.

 “I look forward to welcoming new and existing customers to my new premises.”

The site had been home to Italian restaurant Librizzi’s since 1999.  The previous owner, chef Filippo Librizzi, retired at the end of last year.

The Georgian building is currently being renovated using interior and architectural designs from Four-by-Two’s creative director, Adam Storey.  The basement floor of the building houses an old bank vault which will be transformed into a specially-designed wine vault, where sommelier Loic Druyver will invite diners to try wine before ordering.  And from spring 2013, a private dining room seating 12 will also be available.

The 60-seater restaurant will be open Tuesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner.

Mark will be appearing in the 2013 series of Great British Menu.  The programmes begin in early 2013 on BBC2.

ENDS

Restaurant Mark Greenaway - www.restaurantmarkgreenaway.com

About Mark

Mark Greenaway received nationwide acclaim following the opening of his eponymous restaurant in Edinburgh in February 2011.  The following January Mark was the only Scottish chef to be newly awarded 3 AA Rosettes for outstanding cuisine.

In April 2012 Mark represented Scotland on BBC2’s Great British Menu and will appear again in the 2013 series.

With a passion for Scottish ingredients, Mark uses only the very best local, seasonal produce, transforming them with modern techniques.  Mark’s menus are always intriguing with a presentation that is pleasing to both eye and palate.  Mark’s signature style is desserts; a visit to Restaurant Mark Greenaway is an invitation to indulge in dessert.

With a career beginning in Scotland in 1992, Mark then went on to gain valuable experience during a 5-year stint in Australia, working at some of the nation’s top establishments.  On his return to Scotland, Mark continued his profession at One Devonshire Gardens in Glasgow, Kilcamb Lodge Hotel in Strontian and The Dryburgh Abbey Hotel in the Scottish Borders.

Away from the kitchen, Mark has taught at Braehead Cook School and the Edinburgh New Town Cookery School, as well as giving regular cookery demonstrations at food events including Foodies Festival, Taste of Edinburgh, Hotel Olympia in London and the Scottish Chefs Conference.

Awards

Scottish Hotel Awards 2011 ‘Rising Star Chef of the Year 2011’

Scottish Style Awards 2011 ‘Scotland’s Most Stylish Restaurant’

The AA Awards January 2012 - 3 AA Rosettes for outstanding cuisine

To find out more, visit: www.markgreenaway.com

•  7 January 2013

Earlier this month we made a case-study film for new client Eau de Vie with Cut Mustard TV. We were incredibly lucky with the weather! What are the chances of filming in December in Scotland and getting two days of beautiful sunshine and not a breath of wind. It was VERY cold though.

•  20 December 2012

Launching Foodies Festival Christmas with Jeff Bland, Neil Forbes and Mark Greenaway at The Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh. Picture: Malcolm Irving

•  28 November 2012

LIFE STORY - OPENED 17 NOVEMBER 2012

LIFE STORY, a new lifestyle concept store, opened in Edinburgh this month, offering a well-edited, affordable collection of products.

Husband-and-wife team, Fee and Adam Storey (pictured above) spotted a gap in the market for an independent lifestyle store.  They felt Edinburgh lacks what other European capitals offer and have created a unique concept store, drawing influence from their travels and passion for design.  Fee has hand-picked beautiful objects for the store including emerging Scottish contemporary designers, artisan Italian leatherworkers and cutting-edge products from Japan.

Fee commented: “I’m carefully selecting stock from around the globe, each with a unique story, and many that will be exclusive to Life Story.  Throughout the store, we’ll create a narrative for each product, explaining who the designer is, where they come from and why we love what they create.  Our aim is to promote emerging talent and encourage customers to discover pieces they identify with, helping them to feel inspired and tell their own story.”

Adam continued: “People today are much more design savvy and want something a little bit different.  Customers care about what they are investing in, which is why we have chosen to share the story behind their purchase.  We want people to get excited, share our passion and bring accessible beautiful objects to a wider audience with a move away from more expensive boutiques or stuffy art galleries.

Fee and Adam both have successful careers in design.  Fee is a textile designer who has worked with British and international fashion houses including high street brands H&M and Marks & Spencer before establishing her own textiles company, Alphabet.  Adam is the creative director of an international interior design business that has produced strategic retail concepts for Harvey Nichols, LK Bennett, Dune, Pied A Terre and Selfridges.

Creating the right retail environment was an important ingredient in formulating the Life Story business plan.  Adam has drawn on his experience of branding and retail operations to create a unique concept; cleverly using simple, honest materials to create texture, and most importantly, a completely flexible store interior.  The Life Story layout will transform with the ebb-and-flow of new stock and seasonal trends.  Influenced by products already sourced, including Scandinavian and Japanese designs, the store has a calm and elegant atmosphere.  

Using their experience of visual mechanising Fee and Adam have worked together to create different zones within the store to engage the customer and capture their imagination.  The show-piece back wall uses over a kilometre of timber to create a unique sculptural structure offering complete flexibility and the opportunity to interchange shelves and hanging rails.  It also forms a discrete screen, separating Fee’s studio space from the retail space.  Alphabet will be re-housed at Life Story where she will continue to create her own range of home accessories and screen-prints, and work on bespoke designs for private clients.

In the course of her travels, and in her experience as a textile designer, Fee has connected with a rich network of emerging designers.  Through these collaborations she hopes to bring customers a fun, exciting and fresh approach to shopping.  The pursuit of designers sharing the same vision will be ongoing, and coupled with customer feedback will inform the future of Life Story.

Life Story will open an online store in 2013.

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

Media enquiries, please contact:

Lee MacGregor at Mitchell MacGregor Public Relations on

0131 226 1442 / 07801 286 005 or lee@mitchellmacgregorpr.com

Life Story 53 London Street, Edinburgh EH6 6LX

Opening Hours: Mon, Tues, Wed, Fri, Sat 10-6, Thurs 10-7, Sun 11-5

Web: www.lifestoryshop.com

Tel: 0131 629 9699

Fee Storey, 32

A graduate from Edinburgh College of Art, Fee has 10 years experience in surface design, print development, production, manufacture and project management.  She has worked for British and international fashion houses before co-founding Alphabet, a multi-disciplinary design business based in Edinburgh, in 2010.  With skills in visual communication, styling, and fashion design management, Life Story feels like a natural progression and a place to showcase designers she’s passionate about as well as her own designs, creating a world-class shopping experience.  As a freelance textile designer and graphics artist, Fee has worked with a variety of companies including Marks & Spencer and H&M.  Fee sources all stock for Life Story, creates the visual displays in store as well as working on her own designs from a purpose-built studio at the back of the store.

Adam Storey, 33

Adam graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Interior Design from Kingston-upon-Thames University, and has over fifteen years’ experience working with a number of London’s design and architectural agencies.  He has been creative director at Four-by-Two for 8 years, setting up the Edinburgh office 5 years ago.

Approached by Harvey Nichols, Adam has created strategic concepts for the brand’s future experiential retail offer.  He has developed long-term working relationships with clients such as Pernod Ricard, working closely with the Beefeater Gin brand over a 6-year programme at their multi-million-pound mixed-use development in central London.  He has also used his retail specialism to design flagship stores at Westfield London.

Taking inspiration and reference from his travel and career experiences, Adam has applied his uniquely creative approach to a breadth of projects including luxury retail, hotel design, bars and restaurants, brand homes, and exhibition design for clients such as Westfield, Harvey Nichols, RBS Group, Diageo, The Dune Group, Selfridges, L K Bennett and Pernod Ricard.

•  10 November 2012

The Create:Eat collaborators got together last week over a few drinks to get to know each other and share ideas. A vibrant mix of talented people: chefs, artists, designers, chocolatiers, florists, mixologists, wine merchants, photographers and coffee blenders. This will be the most exciting dining event in Scotland this year. To find out how to buy a ticket, click here.

Picture: DN Anderson Photography

•  3 September 2012

Oh we do like messing around on the river. This morning we launched Foodies Oxford with Nick Holzherr of BBC Apprentice fame on an Edwardian gentleman’s river boat on the Thames.

•  21 August 2012

Friday 19 October, 7pm, £100

The dramatic setting of Trinity Apse, just off Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, will transform for one night only into a unique dining room for some of Scotland’s most creative talent to entertain 25 paying guests.

Hailed as ‘the dining event of the year’, the evening will begin with bespoke Hendrick’s Gin cocktails concocted by Mike Scott and Jason Aikman, co-owners of Bramble and The Last Word Saloon.

AGA are installing a kitchen in the vast space where a 3-course dinner will be cooked by 3 talented young chefs, mentored by former Scottish Chef of the Year, Neil Forbes.

Neil commented: “We wanted to open this opportunity up to some of the unsung talent out there.  Professional cooking can feel quite formulaic sometimes, and as this is ultimately a creative project, I felt chefs who are at the beginning of their careers would have something fresh to offer.”

Matching wines from Vino Wine Shops, expertly roasted coffee from Freemans Coffee and unusual artisan chocolates from Edward & Irwyn Chocolatiers will complete the meal.

Pyrus Flowers will be adding some drama to the space with local and seasonal blooms used in large-scale floral installations.

Other collaborators include artists, photographers, film-makers and writers ensuring the evening’s creative juices are flowing.  It is anticipated that those who pledge for a ticket will be drawn to the opportunity to meet other creative types, as well as enjoying a once-in-a-lifetime dining experience.

The brainchild of Aoife Behan and Carol Soutar aka Jelly + Gin Productions, of Burgher Burger notoriety, Create:Eat’s primary goal is to showcase talent in food, drink and design.  With no upfront investment they decided to crowd-source the elements required and a resulting request for collaborators on social networking sites secured the talents required to bring the event to life.

Tickets can be secured by making a £100 pledge and 25 will be sold to cover production costs and expenses involved in staging an event of this scale.  

Aoife commented:  “We felt that this is more in line with the collaborative ethos of the project.  We want our guests to feel that they are part of the event, that they have had an important role in making it happen and we plan to give them the night of their lives to thank them for their pledge.”

50 limited-edition Create:Eat canvas bags are also available for a pledge of £20.  One of the bags contains two tickets for the event.

ENDS

Editors’ Notes

To buy tickets visit:www.pleasefund.us/projects/createeat

Website: www.createeat.com

Twitter: @create_eat

Facebook: facebook.com/createeat

About

Create:Eat is a collaborative dining event, featuring the very best of everything.  The idea is simple, take 25 collaborators: designers, chefs, mixologists, food and drink producers, food and drink retailers, artists, chocolatiers, coffee experts, photographers and film-makers.  Ask each of them to donate a skill or an item that will contribute to a spectacular dining experience.  Joining these people at the table will be another 25 paying guests whose contribution will have ensured that this amazing and unique dining experience takes place.

With a venue secured, Trinity Apse, and the twenty-five collaborators in place; from multi-award winning Chef Neil Forbes, to artists such as Alice Dansey Wright, a truly mind blowing event awaits its guests.  Rather than selling tickets the usual way, Aoife and Carol have decided to crowd-fund the event; offering tickets as a reward for pledges.

The response to the project so far has been overwhelmingly positive, as a result Aoife and Carol are planning further Create:Eat events.

Media enquiries, please contact:

Lee MacGregor at Mitchell MacGregor PR on

0131 226 1442 / 07801 286 005 or lee@mitchellmacgregorpr.com

Or Aoife Behan aoife@createeat.com 

•  20 August 2012

Create:Eat is THE dining event of the year.  We’re VERY excited to be part of it.

•  16 August 2012