BITE Food Festival 2014 // Señor Ceviche

The first week of February saw the return of the much talked about Cotswolds Food Festival, BITE. With a nine day long programme of events including breakfasts, brunches, lunches, teas & dinners; pop-up restaurants; cocktails & fine wines; masterclasses, talks & tastings; meet the chef & book signings; food fairs & farmers markets, I had to go to at least one thing.

Unfortunately, for those of us that work the usual 9-5pm Monday to Friday job, the majority of these special events are during the day, and unless you book time off, you won't be able to go. Also, for those of us who aren't very flush with money post-Christmas - cough, me - you have to be very strict with yourself in choosing what you want to go to. So, an evening dinner, under the £40 mark, it had to be..

Thankfully, a Peruvian pop-up at The Kings Head Inn, Bledington, fit the bill; and for one night only, in the quaint Cotswold pub, Señor Ceviche took the helm. Señor Ceviche is a food concept, where by a team of well travelled folk host no choice/set menu feasts-for-all in various locations, most notably in London. Here, they are serving the kinds of things you'd expect from this type of cuisine, super fresh ceviche and punchy Pisco Sours. If it weren't for the crappy weather, and the very British pub like decor, with added dogs, you'd think you were in Lima - well, sort of.

'La Comida' (the food) on this Thursday evening comprised of four dishes, kicking off with Nikkei Tartar; salmon and tuna tartar with yuzu, hass avocado and baby corriander. It attacked all the senses with sharp diced fish, silky avocado, fragrant herbs and a crisp-like slice of toasted bread (which, thanks to the 'boat' it was served in, looked remarkably like a sail). It was everything I expected and more.  

Alas, I think we may have been forgotten about at this point as most other tables were finishing their third course by the time we were even served our second. I was glad I had a cocktail in hand to sip the wait away because there was some serious food envy on the go. When it did arrive, the self titled Señor Ceviche barely spent any time on the table, and was gobbled up in a flash. King prawn and finely sliced sea bream ceviche in aji tiger's milk (the Peruvian marinade), topped with salty crispy squid rings, red onion slivers and corriander leaves; served on a crisp lettuce leaf in another 'boat'. It was a lighter, more refreshing dish in comparison to the first, and set us up nicely for the main event.

Arroz con Pato was brought out as a sharing dish (we're greedy, but not too greedy to share - thank God); confit duck legs, the biggest I've ever encountered, Andean rice, nicely spiced and flecked with colourful vegetables, and a tangy salsa made with scallops. With the meat falling off the bone, and a wealth of wholesome flavours, it was the standout course, and rightly so.

Last but not least, the dessert, or 'postre', was Pisco Love Cake; a fluffy sponge, which I'm guessing was made using ground almonds, saturated with a Pisco syrup, served with a drizzle of mascarpone cream, and scattered with pomegranate jewels. As far as cakes go, this kind of thing was right up my street; a perfect Peruvian finale, though I could have easily snaffled up a piece double the size - it was that good.

All in all, The Chap and I thoroughly enjoyed our evening at the BITE pop-up. For the quality of food we had, £30 per head seemed incredibly reasonable, and I'll be making sure I have my pennies saved up for similar events at next years festival.

If you see Señor and his Rita's on your travels, definitely pay them a visit.. They ply you with Pisco and feed you well. Muchas Gracias!