Food and drink in Birmingham
As with any large town or city, food and drink has played an important role in the commerce and culture of Birmingham, England.
Food
Local dishes
Birmingham soup - In the late 18th century poor harvests in England resulted in high food prices and the resultant opening of soup kitchens to provide cheap, nourishing food for the poor. In 1793 the inventor and industrialist, Matthew Boulton, noted a recipe in one of his notebooks for a soup was which intended to be sold for a penny a quart. This was a hearty broth made up of stewed beef and vegetables served with a slice of bread. In 2014 Glynn Purnell recreated the dish as a fine dining course and served it at his restaurant, "Purnell's".
A dish titled "Brummie bacon cakes" is said to also be a dish local to Birmingham - it consists of a mixture of flour, salt and butter or margarine with chopped bacon and cheese added to it. With the addition of Worcestershire sauce, ketchup and milk the mixture is made into a dough and sliced into wedges which are then baked with cheese sprinkled over them.
Dishes identified with the neighbouring Black Country are also traditionally popular in Birmingham including faggots and peas and, in the past, groaty pudding made with beef, leeks, onions and oat groats.
The dish which originated in Pakistani restaurants in Birmingham in the 1970s - the Balti - should also be considered as a local dish (see below).
Tea
During the 1830s, Thomas Ridgway began trading in the Bull Ring, selling tea. Ridgway later went bankrupt. Setting up business in London, he paid back all of his creditors and continued his tea trade, becoming one of the first English tea companies to hygienically prepack tea so as to avoid adulteration. In 1876, Queen Victoria commanded House of Ridgways to create a blend for her own personal use. In 1863, William Sumner (founder of Typhoo) published "A Popular Treatise on Tea". In 1870, Sumner started a pharmacy/grocery business on the High Street, Birmingham. This grew and forced Sumner to move to new premises on Castle Street and then on to Bordesley Street at the canalside. Typhoo was bought by Indian tea company Apeejay Surrendra Group on October 31, 2005.
Limes
Birmingham's earliest food trade connections with the West Indies involved the importation of limes and cocoa during the mid-to-late 19th century.
The Montserrat Co. Ltd. was formed in Edgbaston by J.& E. Sturge. Lime juice was produced in the city and then exported for use in the manufacture of citric acid. The failure of Sicily's lemon crop at that time resulted in an opening in the market which Sturge took great advantage of utilizing their extensive chemical works based in Edgbaston. The company was set up by the Sturge and Albright families who funded the development of Montserrat estates in 1867. Joseph Sturge bought the Elberton Sugar Estate in 1857 and converted it into a lime production plant. He also wanted to prove that free labour could be made profitable. Members of the Sturge family were instrumental in the British anti-slavery movement.
Brands
Famous food brands that originated in Birmingham include Typhoo tea, Bird's Custard, Blue Bird Toffee, Bournville cocoa, Cadbury chocolate and HP Sauce.
Restaurants
"The Old Crown" public house, a black and white timber-framed building, is said to be the oldest secular building in Birmingham dating back to 1450 to 1500. It is situated in Deritend and is documented as serving as an inn from 1626. Birmingham Corporation proposed its demolition in 1851, 1856 and 1862 but it was saved by the efforts of Joshua Toulman Smith. It is still used as a public house which serves food. "The Saracen's Head" in Kings Norton dates from the same period as The Old Crown and is now a visitor's centre with a snack bar. The work to restore The Saracen's Head came as a result of it being chosen for financial assistance by a vote of the viewers of the BBC television programme "Restoration" in 2004.
The Leicester Arms which became known as Freeth's Coffee House, situated at the corner of Bell Street and Lease Lane, served as a tavern and coffee house from 1736 to 1832. It served as a meeting place for small businessmen and lawyers and when bought by John Freeth, a topical ballad writer, in the second half of the 18th century, it became a place for groups which supported radical politics including the Birmingham Book Club which held dinners at the coffee house. Freeth sent out rhyming invitations to dinner to club members. The club was recorded as having 24 members in 1775.
A more recent hostelry of note is "The Garrison" in Dale End which served as a model for the public house by that name featured in the BBC television drama series "Peaky Blinders". The real public house was sold at auction for £183,000 in May 2014 and re-opened to take advantage of the image created by the television series with staff dressed in costumes similar to characters in the television programme and drinks offered for sale which could be related to the television programme.
In 1896, a new building was erected in Corporation Street to house James Henry Cook's vegetarian restaurant, one of the first in England. In 1898, 'The Pitman Vegetarian Hotel', named after the famous vegetarian Sir Isaac Pitman, was opened on the same site, and the proprietors subsequently opened a long-running health food store.
In the latter years of the Victorian era, a number of Italians migrated to Birmingham and occupied a small number of streets off Digbeth and by 1914 they numbered about 700 people, mostly originating from villages around Rome. Many were street-traders and sold the first ice cream in the city using broken eggs from the egg market in Moor Street and ice from Fazeley Street. Camillo Biglio opened a confectioner's shop in Cannon Street in 1878 and afterwards is thought to have opened the first Italian restaurant in Birmingham.
Birmingham is home to a wide variety of Asian eateries which have served the people of Birmingham since the 1940s. The first Chinese restaurant was the Tong Kung on Holloway Head which opened in 1956. In the late 1950's there were also Kam Ling in Livery Street and Tung Hing at 15 Snow Hill. Notable also were The Slow Boat opened in 1961 under St. Martin's car park (this business failed after a public health action for the use of illegal meat in its dishes), Heaven Bridge in Smallbrook Queensway and by 1968, The Old Happy Gathering in Pershore Street which offered more authentic Cantonese cuisine, the earliest restaurants being more in the style of "chop suey houses".
In the early 1970's Chinese businesses and community associations were gathered around Hurst Street and Digbeth and Wing Yip opened the first Chinese supermarket in Bromsgrove Street establishing a food empire in Birmingham which now has its headquarters in the Chinese Quarter along with other fine oriental restaurants.
In 1945, Abdul Aziz opened a cafe shop selling curry and rice in Steelhouse Lane. This later became The Darjeeling, the first Asian restaurant in Birmingham, owned by Afrose Miah. The second Asian retaurant in Birmingham was The Shah Bag on Bristol Street. Also noteworthy was The Curry House opened, by Abdul Motin Choudhury and Abdul Jabbar on Bristol Street in 1965, which was later to become the Aloka in 1981. There was also the Banu restaurant on Hagley Road which was opened in 1969.
The dish known as Balti was invented in Birmingham in the 1970s in restaurants owned by members of the Pakistani community in Sparkbrook, many of whom had migrated to the city from the Mirpur area of Pakistan in the 1960s. When non-Pakistani customers began to visit their restaurants they required curries to be cooked more quickly than occurred in traditional Mirpuri cuisine and the restaurateurs consequently developed dishes in which meat was cooked off the bone at higher temperatures in steel dishes with fresh dried spices rather than curry pastes and vegetable oil in place of the traditional ghee. The steel dishes in which the food was cooked were called "baltis" (said to derive from the Hindi word "balty" meaning a bucket) and then the food was served in the steel dishes with naan bread.
The geographical area in which the balti serving restaurants were concentrated became known as the Balti Triangle and is defined as having a northern apex at the junction of the A41 and A453 Camp Hill roundabout, an eastern boundary of the A41 going south to Stratford Road, a western boundary of the A453 and a southern edge just north of Wake Green Road and College Road. A visit to a restaurant in the Balti Triangle is often promoted as an important activity for tourists visiting Birmingham.
The first recorded written reference to balti dishes was made in a 1984 edition of "Curry Magazine" and it is said that there are now about balti 50 restaurants located in The Balti Triangle. In 1998, the balti restaurateurs formed themselves into the Birmingham Balti Association.
In the city centre, among current notable south Asian restaurants are the "Rajdoot" in George Street in the Jewellery Quarter which serves North Indian cuisine and which was opened 50 years ago, listing among its former notable customers The Beatles, The Princess Margaret and, more recently, the television personality Simon Cowell. In Hurst Street is "The Maharajah" which also serves North Indian cuisine and which was opened in 1971. It is able to boast that it was the Egon Ronay "Indian Restaurant of the Year" in 1999 and includes among its former notable customers John Major, Cliff Richard and Take That. Off St. Paul's Square in James Street, is located "Lasan" which was opened in 2002 and which won "Gordon Ramsay's F Word Best Local Restaurant" award on Channel 4 television. The Chef Director, Aktar Islam, has featured in BBC's "Great British Menu" three times in 2013 and 2014 as well as in 2011 when his dish of Sea bass with battered soft shell crab won the Fish course category.
Outside the city centre and Balti Triangle, the many suburbs of Birmingham are home to numerous South Asian-style restaurants, some of which are award-winning, an example being "Thania Spice", situated in the small suburb of West Heath on the border with Worcestershire, whose chef, Abdul Subhan, was awarded the "Curry Life" award of 2013 as one of the 42 best curry chefs in The United Kingdom.
Birmingham's first Spanish restaurant was "Los Canarios" in Bartholomew Row which closed in 1996 due to redevelopment in the area. The restaurant was additionally notable for being used as a location in one episode of the former television drama "Boon" the star of which, Michael Elphick, as well as other celebrities which included Ken Livingstone, Brian Clough and Trevor Francis and famous Spanish flamenco dancers, were celebrated as having dined at the restaurant.
Thai Edge, which opened in Brindleyplace has been praised as one of the top ten Asian restaurants in the UK by The Independent .
"Opus", opened by entrepreneur Ann Tonks and Chef Director David Colcombe in 2005 in Cornwall Street, won several awards as a modern British restaurant. David Colcombe left his post there in 2015. In his training he had studied at Solihull College and afterwards under Anton Mosimann at the Dorchester Hotel in London and then the Lygon Arms in Broadway, Worcestershire. He later worked at the former Swallow Hotel in Birmingham (now The Marriott Hotel).
During the 1970s and 1980s the restaurant of "The Plough And Harrow" Hotel in Hagley Road in Edgbaston was one of Birmingham's finest dining venues. Andreas Antona was Head Chef at The Plough And Harrow from 1987 for 3 years before opening "Simpson's" in Kenilworth in 1993 (see below). The Plough And Harrow is situated in a building dating back to 1704.
As of 2016 the city has 5 Michelin starred restaurants - Simpson's in Edgbaston which retained its 1 star grading which had been awarded to it in 2005, Purnell's in Cornwall Street in the city centre and Turners in Harborne both of which had been awarded 1 star in 2009, Adam's which relocated to Waterloo Street in 2016 and had been awarded 1 star in 2013 and Carter's of Moseley which was awarded 1 star in the 2016 Michelin Guide. Birmingham has more Michelin-starred restaurants in Great Britain than any other city apart from London.
Simpson's had been opened in Birmingham in 2004 in a Grade II-listed building by Andreas Antona who founded the original Simpson's in Kenilworth in 1993 which was awarded a Michelin star in 1994. Chef Director, Luke Tipping, had previously been Chef at Simpson's in Kenilworth. Andreas Antona was later to establish a restaurant at The Cross in Kenilworth which was awarded a Michelin star in 2014. The name "Simpson's" was taken from the chemist's shop which occupied the site in Kenilworth before Antona opened his restaurant there.
Purnell's Chef-Proprietor, Glynn Purnell, was formerly chef at "Jessica's" in Portland Road in Edgbaston, which was opened in July 2003 by Keith and Diane Stevenson and was awarded AA Restaurant of the Year within 1 year of opening. Jessica's was awarded 1 Michelin star in 2005 and retained it until the restaurant closed in 2007 when Glynn Purnell and his wife and partner, Kerry O'Carroll, decided to open their own restaurant in Cornwall Street. The former Jessica's was reopened by the former Maitre D', Pascal Cluny, as Pascal's and it was awarded a Michelin Bib in 2008. Subsequently Glynn Purnell acquired the building to open a restaurant called "The Asquith" but this was relocated to Newhall Street and later renamed "Purnell's Bistro". The building which had housed Jessica's was eventually converted into luxury apartments.
Before opening Purnell's in July 2007 Glynn Purnell was quoted by "The Birmingham Mail" as saying that he hoped that the new restaurant would achieve the award of 2 Michelin stars in 5 to 7 years but that hope remains unfulfilled. The restaurant was awarded 1 Michelin star in 2009. The first Maitre D' at Purnell's was Jean Benoit Burloux who had previously worked in a more junior role at Jessica's.
Glynn Purnell, who had once worked as a Chef de Partie and then Sous Chef at Simpson's in Kenilworth, is a familiar face on British television food programmes and won The Great British Menu competition for 2 consecutive years (2008 with strawberries with tarragon and black pepper honeycomb with burnt English cream surprise and in 2009 with masala spiced monkfish with red lentils, pickled carrots and coconut). Purnell's first book, "Cracking Yolks And Pig Tales", was published in 2014.
Adam Stokes, originally from Northampton, opened "Adams" with his wife Natasha as a "2 year pop-up" restaurant in Bennett's Hill in 2013. He had previously worked up to Sous Chef under Aaron Patterson at Hambleton Hall in Leicestershire and then in 2008, at the age of 26, became Head Chef at Glenapp Castle in the Scottish Lowlands and achieved his first Michelin star there a few days before his 30th birthday. He relocated "Adam's" to Waterloo Street in January 2016 having been awarded a Michelin star for "Adam's" in 2014.
Turners Restaurant in High Street in Harborne was opened by Midlands-born Richard Turner in 2007 and was awarded 1 Michelin star in January 2009. Turner's work had previously included some years at Thrales Restaurant in Lichfield which was closed in 2011. Alex Bond now works at Turners as Head Chef while Richard Turner is Executive Chef. The restaurant specialises in French and British cuisine.
Carters of Moseley was opened in November 2010 by chef Brad Carter and his partner, Holly Jackson, to serve British cuisine. Brad Carter had studied at University College, Birmingham (previously the Birmingham College of Food) and then worked in Marseilles and Menorca and Michelin-starred restaurants in southern England and London. His restaurant was given the Good Food Guide Restaurant of the Year award in 2015 and achieved 1 star in the 2016 Michelin Guide.
Breweries
Events
Fairs and festivals dedicated to food were held in the Bullring during the 18th and 19th centuries though William de Birmingham had gained permission for a three day-long Ascensiontide fair in 1250 with an additional Michaelmas fair taking place by 1400. The most popular fair was the (Michaelmas) Onion Fair which celebrated the harvest of onions. It was held on the last Thursday of September in front of St. Martin's Church. In an article in The Illustrated London News published in October 1872 it was noted that dealers and customers of the fair were mainly "the country folk of Warwickshire with a few tradesmen of the town and some of the work men's wives for the onion gives a palatable relish to a poor man's dinner or supper". The sale of onions was accompanied by stalls, sideshows and amusements and special excursion trains were run to the event from all over the area but the sale of onions was separated from the amusements in 1875 with the latter moving to Aston to later become a large funfair.
The BBC Good Food Show takes place at The National Exhibition Centre and is Britain's biggest and most extensive food event.
The Colmore Food Festival has been held for 2 days in early July annually since 2011 in Victoria Square. It is organised by the Colmore Business District and highlights food and drink establishments in the area offering members of the public the opportunity to sample food and drink and to attend cookery demonstrations by local chefs, including in the past, Glynn Purnell and David Colcombe.
In recent years a resurgent interest in local food has led to the growth of farmers markets. In line with other UK cities including London and Bristol, street food events have also gained in popularity, leading to national recognition.[1]
A major food festival, Birmingham Independent Food Fair at Millennium Point, showcases local food businesses,[2] with restaurants, artisan producers, local brewing and distillery represented.[3]
Notable meals in Birmingham
In May 1998 the G8 Summit was held in Birmingham and the Summit banquet was held in Birmingham Botanical Gardens. The menu was constructed by Jonathan Harrison, Chef de Cuisine of The Swallow Hotel (see above), for the world leaders, including President Bill Clinton of The United States and Chancellor Helmut Kohl of Germany, and it was necessary to take note of foods which the leaders could not eat (Chancellor Kohl did not eat shellfish or lamb and President Clinton would not eat chocolate) and food eaten at other meals by the leaders - beef and asparagus were being served elsewhere and so could not appear on Harrison's menu. The final menu was made up of Pan-fried Dover sole served with baby leeks and seasonal mushrooms and a Mediterranean sauce, Basque-style pork wrapped in Parma ham roasted and braised served with quenelles of polenta and braised artichoke base filled with roasted peppers, aubergines, fennel and courgettes, and, for dessert, glazed lemon and mascarpone tart. The menu reflected Jonathan Harrison's previous experience of working under Alain Ducasse at Hotel de France and his wish to combine British food with Mediterranean-style cuisine. Harrison provided the banquet for 56 guests; the 18 VIP guests being seated in the Pavilion of the Botanical Gardens. Jonathan Harrison left Birmingham in 1999 to become Chef Patron of The Sandpiper Inn in Leyburn in North Yorkshire.
References
- ↑ Griffin, Mary (1 October 2014). "Birmingham three times lucky at British Street Food Awards". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ↑ Griffin, Mary (22 August 2014). "Food and drink producers gear up for Birmingham's first independent food and drink fair". Birmingham Post. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ↑ "Region’s foodies flock to first independent food fair". Grapevine Birmingham. September 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
External links
- Dine Birmingham - Restaurants, cafes and bars in the gourmet hub of the Midlands
- The Balti Triangle
- Birmingham Plus - 2000+ reviews of restaurants in the area
- French, Spanish, Chineses, Japanese, Thai and Italian restaurants in Birmingham City Centre
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