Still Here

I'm not really blogging very much at the moment. I've noticed other blogs I read are updated less frequently than they used to be as well. It's not just me! And it's not that I have no news. Just that other media have my focus. At the end of last year I added Instagram to the social media tools I use. I now post there regularly, and to twitter, Facebook, flickr and tumblr. I quite like the instantaneousness of a snap and couple of sentences. I don't really have much more to add and just blog when when I have something lengthy to say, or pin things to pinterest which I think might be interesting. I hope that's OK. So by way of an apology to anyone who checks in here regularly, here is what is going on on Instagram, you can find me there most days!

By the way this little summary updates every day, so whenever you look at this post you will see new news!

One of the Best Delis in Berkshire!

It turns out someone, or actually "someones", think Tastes Deli is the best deli in Berkshire! Unbeknownst to me people have been voting for us in this year's Muddy Stiletto Awards.  Muddy Stilettos is the most successful and influential blog in Berkshire, Bucks & Oxon: the ‘urban guide to the countryside’ for urbane, intelligent, cosmopolitan, fun-loving women in the Shires. And they are holding a competition to find the best deli, beauty salon, art gallery, bar etc etc in Berkshire.

Tastes Delicatessen has been voted one of the top five delis, along with Cobbs (in Hungerford), Deliciously French (in Cookham), The Local Larder (in Wargrave) and Saddleback Farm Shop (in Brightwalton).

And now the is quest on, to find the best of the best. For the next week, voting is live on the Muddy Stiletto blog. So if you think Tastes Deli is worthy, visit the blog, enter your name, email and postcode, scroll down and select Tastes Deli (Eton). Votes are counted straight away and you can see how we're doing! Voting ends at 12pm on Tuesday 14 June.  Thanks to whoever the nominees were. I really appreciate it!

(Very) Good Friday

Fridays are always good.
But this Friday has been exceptional; a really enjoyable day in the deli.
And what exactly has made it so good? Well I think I've worked it out.

Its all the usual things that make this a great place to work, plus ...

• It's sunny and everyone seems in holiday spirit. Even those not on holiday are appreciating the first glimpses of spring. There's a real sense of "we've survived winter" excitement. People wearing parkers and woolen gloves, but eating ice cream! 
• No one has called to save me money on my gas / electricity / broadband / telephone / business rates .... Not one, all day!
• Lots of visitors are out and about on the high street. Don't get me wrong, I love our regular customers, they're the best, but they don't get anywhere near as excited as first time visitors, ohhing and ahhing over our wares. I love that sort of feedback! On more than one occasion today someone has bought something because a complete stranger had also bought (and enthused about) it. 
• We've sold more stock than usual. The perfect combination of holiday mood, imminent end of the restrained period of lent, and influx of visitors who have to buy everything they want now because they can't pop in again next week, has greatly increased the average basket size. 

We should have more four-day weekends! And if not, I'd accept more sunny days.  Shame about the forecast for tomorrow.
Happy Easter everyone.

Perfect Pasta

Yesterday Tastes Deli, in Eton, was visited by a lovely couple, stocking up on the spaghetti they brought from us a few weeks previously. It being the best spaghetti they'd found, of course. While they were here, they admitted to reading this blog. I wasn't sure there were any real people out there reading along. Very motivating for me! What better way to repay loyal readership than a blog post about their favourite spaghetti! So here it is ....

Rustichella d' abruzzo Spaghetti was one of the first things I stocked at Tastes Deli. It should have been here on our opening day, but if I remember correctly, was delayed in transit somewhere and actually arrived two days later. It rapidly became a firm favourite with our regular customers and we sold that first case within a month. It retained its space on our pasta shelf for many years, while other products came and went. Then in September 2012 the importer we used discontinued the spaghetti. I bulk bought a lot before it disappeared, but eventually my stocks ran out. It wasn't until February this year that I found a new supplier. Rustichella spaghetti returned to Tastes Deli and is selling better than ever.

Why, you may ask? It's just spaghetti. Well... this is no ordinary spaghetti. 

Rustichella spaghetti is cast from bronze dies (the pasta dough is forced through small holes on a bronze disc to create the strands). This gives it a very rough surface, ideal for absorbing sauce. It is air dried for 56 hours and made from just two ingredients: Durum Wheat Semolina and Water. It has a wonderful springy texture when cooked, which takes about 9-11 minutes.

Just recently I was given a copy of the Rustichella catalogue. Possibly the most beautiful product list I've ever received. Packed with stunning photographs and delightful illustrations. It even has waxed paper between some of the pages like an old fashioned photograph album. It's also a really interesting read, with lots of detail on the history of pasta. Did you now pasta dates back to ancient Rome and Greece and it is believed the Arabs introduced died pasta cooked in boiling water, during the conquest of Sicily? According to the catalogue this particular spaghetti was first produced in 1924, is rough-textured, yellow to white in colour with a solid consistency and slightly bran-like taste. So now you know!

Rustichella spaghetti was the spaghetti of choice of Heston Blumenthal in his In Search of Perfection series (episode 7, the pasta part starts around 21 minutes in if you can find the episode). So for anyone looking for the perfect spaghetti bolognese recipe then a pack of this pasta and his recipe for sauce is a great start. Delia Smith's Ragu recipe in "Complete How to Cook" came to me very highly recommended by a customer, and I've managed to impress every time I've made it at home. It doesn't seem to be on Deli Online, but there is a similar recipe listed (it doesn't include any chicken livers which I'm sure are in the original). The spaghetti is also delicious with a simple pesto dressing, or sometimes I pour over a jar of Olive Branch Aubergine and Basil paste. 

I've just started a pinterest board for spaghetti recipes. I'll be trying some out over the next few weeks, but one which caught my eye immediately used cauliflower  (the romanesco cauliflowers are in season right now!). 

Cheese Wedding Cake Reveal!

Most good weddings run late. Its a given really. But last summer I built cheese wedding cakes at many weddings that were running ahead of schedule. Usually because the period planned for drinks in the garden or photographs outside was curtailed due to inclement weather. I started increasing the contingency time I plan in for wedding cake creation!

So on an unseasonably warm day last November I turned up at a beautiful wedding which wasn't running early (and, despite the best efforts of the traffic on the M25, I was!). The room where the cheese was to be displayed in just over an hour's time was still full of very happy, chatty, dinning guests and they wouldn't be going anywhere for another three quarters of an hour at least. With the bride's approval I waited for speeches to start then crept around at the back of the room stealthily building the cheese tower while the guests were all distracted.  I'd just finished my work, gone to the corner of the room to get my camera, when the speeches stopped. As I turned back the cake was surrounded; nine people had appeared in seconds, from nowhere, all armed with cameras! It was really really lovely to see their reactions as usually I am long gone before the guests come in.

Tapas

At Tastes Deli we sell lots of unusual and hard to find ingredients. I get to experience "The Delia Effect" first hand and see exciting trends emerging in what people are cooking and buying. Such as the sudden demand for pomegranate molasses, sumac and za'atar (thanks Yottam Ottolenghi) or marshmallow fluff (Hummingbird Bakery and their Whoopie Pies).

One of the most satisfying parts of my job is when someone comes to the shop for the very first time, driven by a desire to track down a particular item they need for a recipe but have been unable to find anywhere else. It's great to be able to say we have the elusive item and take them to it.  More often than not, a conversation ensues about the journey to find this ingredient, or the recipe(s) for which it is essential.

And so it was that I was told about the Morito App. Morito, the tapas bar of Moro, published its own cook book in 2014, along with an accompanying free app (i phone and i pad only). The app turns out to be a mini recipe e-book with enticing photography.

Queue, four happy hours cooking tapas dishes at home and far far too much food!

Peas, Gem Lettuce & Sweet Herbs.
Cous Cous with Broad Beans, Cumin & Yoghurt.
Grilled Onion, Pepper & Lentil Salad.
And my favourite: Beetroot, Almonds & Mint.
Plus some Morito flat breads which don't appear in the app, although the recipe is elsewhere online.



With the exception of the red peppers and the fresh pomegranate, all the veggies were English and every ingredient can be found at Tastes Deli! I made four portions of four of the dishes, plus two portions of the cous cous and spent just £15 on the vegetables. We ate like Kings for days afterwards!

Motoring Advice

Today, I thought I would embrace the eclectic nature of working in a deli and provide some motoring advice! I have no skills whatsoever in this area, but that doesn't seem to matter and since the garage on Eton High Street closed locals have been asking me to recommend an alternative. I've never been able to help before. But I've had a revelation and have a very small snippet of advice to give...

If you can't find a garage within walking distance of work and have to take a day off to get your car serviced or MOT'ed, then you might as well make a day of it. Pick a garage near to something fun.

That's it. I just had my MOT carried out by a garage near a canal. So I got to have myself a little picnic in the sunshine while they tested. Certainly preferable to sitting in a garage or showroom and far less stressful than trying to organise a courtesy car when most have to be returned long before I can get back in the evening. As a pedlar of picnics I'm a great believer that people should picnic more! And my own mini-picnic was the ideal opportunity for some blatant product placement for Popcorn Kitchen pop corn.

Abandonment

I promise I have not abandoned this blog. I know I've not posted for a while, but I think I have three pretty good excuses. Here goes:

1) The shop has been busy. Really busy. Lots of lovely people buying things, organising picnics, planning weddings.... I need every spare moment, and some, just to order stock to keep the shelves full. It's a brilliant problem to have and I'm not complaining!

2) I have a blog post in progress which, although lengthy, is not quite finished. Those of you who subscribe to this blog by email (there is a box on the right to enter your email address) will have seen a sneak preview a couple of weeks ago. It is still ongoing, and will appear soon.

3) I have carried out a major overhaul of tastesdeli.co.uk, our web site and online deli. It is now "responsive" so changes its appearance depending on whether you visit from a PC, tablet, mobile etc. Clever hey? Still more to do, as ever.

I'll be back!

Eton at Dusk

Knowing that the clocks would be springing forward on Sunday morning, and the skies would be brighter at closing time from next week, I decided to take the scenic route from the shop to the car park on Thursday evening.

I turned right outside Tastes Deli and headed for the river, turning right again onto Brocas Street then under the new Rafts Boathouse flats to the Thames riverside.

The waterfront there was pretty and peaceful with the twinkling lights of Windsor and ballet of swans (I did check that and the internet agrees ballet to be the collective noun for swans). I'm not foolish enough to think the swans were enjoying my company or eager to be photographed. I know they followed in anticipation of food, but their company was a bonus.

I wandered along beside the Thames for a bit, then back across the Brocas to the car park. Only added a few minutes to my commute, but a very pleasant way to spend them.

Next week I shall have to work later if I want to catch the sunset. And next month it might even be warm enough to picnic!

Lentils

The job of mine comes with a pretty good "benefits package". One is that I get to taste new products. Which, after nine years, I still love. Even when the new product is a lentil. Really. Let me explain ...

Last week, Katy, from Brindisa, came to see me. She supplies me with lots of lovely Spanish foods and noticed that I've been sticking to the tried and tested favourites for some time;  Ortiz tuna (so good it deserves a post of its own), chorizo, serrano ham, El Navarrico Pulses and Peppers and Santo Domingo Smoked Paprika amongst other things. All fantastic. But Katy knew of some other products we don't sell as Tastes, so popped in with samples. First out of her goody bag were some lentils from El Navarrico.

El Navarrico is a family run business that has been preserving vegetables and pulses since the 1950s.  Today, new generations of El Navarrico continue the traditional processes and define themselves as “craftsmen of the farm”. El Navarrico always guarantee a unique product, treated with the wisdom of time as well as with the best quality systems. Their chickpeas are especially popular with our customers; plump, soft and flavoursome. The alubia blanca make fabulous baked beans, and it isn't until you taste the judion de la granda that you realise why their English name is Butter Beans.

As with everything I sample, I don't just open a packet, taste and make a decision. I take things home, I use them as I expect my customers to use them. And so it was that the jar of lentils came home with me. The first thing I made was an accompaniment to some sea bass fillets. A very simple, quick meal in which the texture and flavour of the lentils really shone. Delicious and so very easy.

For two generous portions:
Fry one chopped onion and one sliced bulb of fennel until starting to brown.
Season and start to pan fry some sea bass fillets (we shared three fillets between two).
Add the zest and juice of a lemon to the onion/fennel pan (I probably should have saved some lemon zest to go on the fish).
Add half a jar of lentils to the onion/fennel (they are well packed in the jar, you'll need to dig in with a spoon to free them!).
Serve lentil mix with fish on top.

Thoroughly enjoyed.

I also wanted to see how the lentils worked in a cold salad. Limited by what was in my fridge on a wet Monday lunch time I made this:

Make up 75g of cous cous with 150ml boiling water.
Fluff it up and let it cool while you chop three cherry tomatoes into quarters and wash and chop a small bunch of watercress. You can add more tomatoes, but I only had three. Rocket would also work well here, but I had a bunch of watercress a customer ordered and didn't collect.
Make a dressing by mixing a tablespoon of basil pesto with teaspoon of red wine vinegar.
Mix cous cous with 200g lentils, tomatoes and rocket.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad, mix in and season.

Really delicious. The bite of the lentil goes perfectly with the smaller grain of the cous cous and the crunch of the vegetables.The shape and colour contrast beautifully and these lentils taste nice. Not bland bulking fillers, but tasty little beads.

There were still lentils left in the jar after making two salads and two mains. They seem never-ending, but in a very good way. Coming to Tastes Deli soon!

Questions

Last week, while meeting with a supplier, someone popped into the shop to ask a question. I can't remember what the question was, but the supplier found it amusing and asked if that happened a lot. To me, it was perfectly normal. So maybe my normal is not so normal after all. As an experiment I thought I'd keep a list of all the non-deli related questions I was asked today. Just to see how interesting they really were. My list reads a little like a foreign language phrase book! What I realised is they are mainly from tourists and actually knowing what tourists need to know might be helpful to someone. There are definite themes. In case anyone fancies analysing them, here are the questions:

How can I walk to Dorney Lake?
Is there a cash machine near here?
Is there anywhere in Eton I can I buy plain black socks?
Can you give me ten pounds in change?
Where's the nearest taxi rank?
Can I have one of your carrier bags?
Do you have change for a twenty?
Eton College?
Is the parking free for blue badges?
Where's the high street?
Is there a Boots or something here?
Do you give change for the car park?
Where's the nearest cash machine?
Where are the shops?
Is the college open?
Which is the best restaurant?
Can I get into the castle? How much is it?
Can I get some change?
Where are the toilets?
How far is the college?
Do the pubs allow children?
Can only residents park here?
Where do you recommend for lunch?
Can I swap this 10p?
Is there anywhere doing afternoon tea before three?
Can you tell me which way the toilets are?
Give us some change for the parking, love.
Does the open top bus stop near here?
When is the parking free?
Top up?
What are the flags for?
Can you give me ten pound coins for this?
Trick or treat?

OK, I'll admit that last one was unusual for the 27th September and along with the encroaching darkness, signals time to close the shop for the night!

Infusing

Eton College has an Infusion Society, for final year students with an interest in infused beverages. This year I was lucky enough to be invited along to their monthly meetings. Each time, I took advantage of my fantastic suppliers to arrange a guest speaker to "infuse" and enthuse the boys with their specialist knowledge.  Each interactive session was as unique as the speakers and the questions kept coming long after the meetings should have ended.

Here are the audience write ups of the evenings, along with my photographs.

22nd January Mr Drew Barron

The Infusions Society welcomed Drew Barron of Drury Tea and Coffee Company Ltd. Mr Baron brought three different teas for the society to sample: a Dimbula and an Uva from Sri Lanka, and an Imenti from Central Kenya. The 12 boys who attended were able to try and describe these very different types of tea, as well as hearing about the different ways that tea is manufactured around the world. Finally, different ratios of tea were mixed in order to make an English breakfast tea blend. The evening was a huge success, with Mr Baron showing his understanding of tea through an incredibly interactive presentation.

12th March Mr Malcolm Ferris-Lay

The Infusions Society were introduced to Mr Malcolm Ferris-Lay, a charismatic tea consultant with a seemingly infinite wealth of knowledge from his career as a tea taster. Malcolm regaled his audience with fascinating anecdotes whilst introducing them to the art of tasting tea and the differing results obtained from different leaves. The evening ended with the unique opportunity to taste the last tea sold at the last tea auction in London. Thanks to Karen Phillips of Tastes Delicatessen and Karen Darville of Darvilles of Windsor for arranging the event.

30th April Mr Edward Grace

The Infusions Society heard from Mr Edward Grace of the Beanberry Coffee Company about his passion for coffee.  The audience was enthralled by Mr Grace’s enthusiasm and very quickly understood the need for absolute attention to detail when brewing coffee. The need for coffee roasted to the right degree, freshly ground and added at the right concentration (1.3%) to water at the right temperature (93 degrees) was emphasised. He explained the meaning of strength (nothing to do with the five-point scale marked on the side of packs of coffee) and also body. He also detailed the complex changes which take place as beans aged after roasting and grinding which impact on flavour. 

We were able to sample six coffees, one from Café Direct, one from Starbucks, and four which were sourced from Beanberry itself, coming from Brazil, Peru, Colombia  and Sarawak. Starbucks fell well short of pleasing our now highly discerning audience, but their opinions were equally split between the latter three coffees, which all attracted keen allegiances from the tasters. This was a stimulating talk at many different levels, and many of those who attended will have spent a sleepless night considering their love of coffee.

We are grateful to Mr Grace for making the time to share his passion for great coffee, and Karen Phillips, of Taste’s Deli, who stock Beanberry Coffee, for arranging the talk.

 (Note the cupping spoons in the waistcoat pockets!)

6th May Mr John McFarlane

The Infusions Society was privileged to have Mr John McFarlane of Norfolk Cordials talk to us about his wonderful fruit syrups, thanks to Karen Phillips from Tastes Delicatessen. Along with some delicious tastes, from the fantastically dry Blackberry cordial to the fascinating combination of Rhubarb, Orange and Ginger, he brought with him a real passion for his cordials that made all of us understand why he has spent six years working to create a product of such exceptional quality.

Web Site Re-do

So, aside from buying and selling fabulous food, what have I been up to recently?

Mainly beavering* away on the shop web site: www.tastesdeli.co.uk

It still looks, pretty much, the same. But there are now more than 500 items available in the online shop. I've replaced a lot of the product images. The postage rates have decreased, as Royal Mail have now increased the size limit for small parcels. A new Parcel Force postage option has been added, which is more cost effective for larger parcels. I re-enabled the review product feature having eventually managed to adjust it to show only the last initials rather than surnames of reviewers. The entire "back end stuff" which makes the shopping cart work has been updated (mainly to improve security) and because that took hours and made no difference to how the site looked, I have also changed the buttons and added a lightbox to display the larger product images. Just to prove I had done something! Then because I was feeling confident (perhaps overly so) I added a new feature: a little button that enables you to save things from your cart for later. So you can checkout with just what you want today, and the other items you were interested in will remain in your cart for next time. Seems to be working!

Fingers crossed it will encourage more people to buy fine foods online from us. If you've enjoyed any of our products please do register online and post your reviews. Other shoppers would love to hear your opinions.

*Assuming beavers spend many hours frowning at computer screens while occasionally inhaling deeply, crossing their figures and pressing buttons!

Valentine's Paper Chain

Today I have been harnessing my inner Blue Peter presenter and have created paper chains for the shop window!

I've also shown a few customers how I made them. So I thought I'd share it here.

Not that it's tricky. 

Not only are they encouraging people to stop and look at the goodies on sale, they brighten up the view from inside on this grey day!

Another great day to be a shop keeper!

It may be a slow, wet, August day. But it has gotten off to a pretty good start here! An email from a customer to tell me he "Just enjoyed a nice Omelette with two of your lovely eggs.". Then a visit from another with the gift of a jar of fantastic salsa he'd made (using chillies I'd sold!). Another with photographs of the bread he made with the flour I sold him earlier in the week. Then another drove by, wound down her window to tell me the fruit she'd bought last week was "amazing".

I know I've said before that Eton has the best customers. Time to say it again though!

Thank you to all the lovely customers who make this such a great place to be a shop keeper every day!

Local bees making local honey

Earlier this week, I was lucky enough to observe a few hundred of my favourite fine food producers hard at work. Stephen, who supplies "Windsor honey" to Tastes Deli, was kind enough to take me on a tour of his hives, situated on the edge of Windsor Great Park. I'd been looking forward to the trip all winter, and it did not disappoint. I could quite happily have settled down on the grass and watched them work until sunset. It was fascinating.

As Stephen carefully removed the frames to inspect the bees and their activities, I didn't know what to look at first. Should I watch the bee colony as a group and their amazing comb construction, or focus on an individual bee and follow them and if so which one; the bee with the huge balls of pollen attached to her legs, the bee releasing scent and wafting it into the air, the bee on guard duty patrolling back and forth, the bee dancing on the hive to tell the other bees where to go for nectar, the Queen? I snapped away with my camera so I could inspect what I was seeing more thoroughly later. Here is what I saw (and what I learned from Stephen whilst I was there):

First we watched the worker bees coming in and out of the hive via the small entrance hole at the bottom. In the summer the entrance will be far larger than this to avoid congestion as thousands of bees move to and fro. We could see workers with baskets on their back legs filled with pollen; a very good sign. The pollen is collected to feed the brood. If there was no brood, the workers would not be collecting the pollen. So even before opening the hive Stephen new the colony was alive and growing.

Once the lid and crown board were removed I could see all the frames, into which the bees build their honeycomb, and a cluster of worker bees around the centre where the queen and brood were. Stephen pointed out some of the different workers. The bees start as cleaners and progress through the ranks including nursing the young, gathering pollen (for food), nectar (to turn into honey) or water (to cool the hive), producing wax, building the comb, attending the the queen, removing the dead, guarding the hive etc.

Stephen carefully removed the frames, one at a time, inspecting the bees and comb as he went. The bees are currently only occupying a spherical space at the centre of the hive. Right on the edge of this area some tiny ants had crept in to pilfer the honey. Guard bees were on duty to see them off.

As Stephen approached the centre of the hive the frames got heavier (with honey) and busier (with bees).

The photograph below shows many different stages in the bee life cycle. The adult bees are the female workers, working away looking after the brood and comb.

The bees start life as tiny eggs, one laid in each cell. You can see the eggs most clearly in the cell at the bottom right of the photograph, after three days these become lava, and you can see lava of various sizes in the cells in the middle and top left of the photo. They are fed by the worker (nurse) bees and grow rapidly. The biggest lava in the photo are on the right in the middle. Once they pupate the workers seal the cells with wax, as you can see at the bottom centre of the photograph. Two weeks later the new bees emerge from their cell and are set to work.

I spotted the Queen, right in the middle of the photograph on the left (marked with a circle by Stephen). She's the biggest bee, but you can't really see that in the photos as she is busy checking out the comb with her antennae. She will check it is clean and lay a different sized egg depending on the size of the chamber. Small chamber = worker bee, large chamber = drone bee. And who chooses how big the chambers are? The workers. Sounds to me like they are the ones in charge!

And just to prove I was there, Stephen's wife kindly took a photo of me, all protected and ready for my bee encounter. Honestly, I tucked my trousers into my socks for protection, not as a fashion statement! But I have to say the bees were pretty friendly. Stephen is very careful with them and they seem to trust him and weren't aggressive at all. Though it was nice to be covered up, just in case.

New Postal Calculator

What a long day. Its been a long time since I have sat still for so long and I'm exhausted!

Today was the day I set aside to add the hundred or so new products we've taken on since I last added to our online shop. For months now our online shoppers have been missing out on some fabulous new lines. And today I planned to remedy that. But first things first, I needed to fix the postage costs. As a consumer I always resented the high postage charges incurred with relatively small online purchases. So when I set up the online deli I weighed every single item for sale so that the web site could estimate how much it really would cost to post something and charge the customers that price. It is not 100% accurate. Once packaged some combinations of products weigh less than expected, some more. The model I use to estimate the weight of the packaging is regularly tweaked and I keep a record of the packed and unpacked weight of every parcel I send so I can use the data to create better models in the future.

The postage calculator was working nicely, until this month, when Royal Mail dramatically changed their pricing structure.  Not only does weight effet the price, but size as well, and the standard parcel service no longer exists. Even the post office staff aren't quite sure how the new system works.  I sent the same item on two different days, one day it was a "Medium Parcel" another it was a "Small Parcel" (as even though it was too tall for the measuring slot it got a special exception!).  I carried on charging my old prices for a while whilst I worked it all out. But it needed to be changed. I was charging £2.20 for second class post for items which now cost me £5.20 to send! And so came about today's little project.

Sadly it wasn't so little. Involving weighing, and measuring, and a few formula. I felt like I was back at school attempting some huge homework project! Our online shop now offers ELEVEN different postage services (if you include "collect from shop").

• Royal Mail First Class Standard "Small Parcel" (only available for small items costing less than £20) and Royal Mail First Class Confirmed "Small Parcel" (aka Signed For) (only available for small items costing more than £20)
• Royal Mail First Class Standard "Medium Parcel" (only available for items costing less than £20) and Royal Mail First Class Confirmed "Medium Parcel" (aka Signed For) (only available for items costing more than £20)
• Royal Mail Second Class Standard "Small Parcel" (only available for small items costing less than £20) and Royal Mail Second Class Confirmed "Small Parcel" (aka Signed For) (only available for small items costing more than £20)
• Royal Mail Second Class Standard "Medium Parcel" (only available for items costing less than £20) and Royal Mail Second Class Confirmed "Medium Parcel" (aka Signed For) (only available for items costing more than £20)
• Royal Mail Special Delivery next day.

I did add the Special Delivery 9am service as well, but removed that when I saw how many exceptions there were and how long my description would need to be to explain it all. We will still offer the service, but customers will need to contact us first to check their area is covered. I hope that is less off-putting than the list of postcodes where the service isn't available.

The Royal Mail services are now quite a lot more expensive for the sort of parcels we send a lot of. Our most commonly used service was the (less than 2kg) Standard Parcel at £5.30. The closest equivalent service is now £9.10. So I've also added an economical courier service, collect+. I anticipated this might be necessary and have been offering the service to those who ordered by telephone over the past few months. We've not experienced any problems.

Needless to say it has been a lengthy process. I'm already aware of products which won't be in the right shipping category.  Royal Mail will class up to six packs of spring roll wrappers as a "small parcel", but my model will class two or more as a "medium parcel" and some teabags which the model says are a "small parcel" but will actually be a "medium parcel".  I'll take a hit on the tea bags and am working on a discount code built into bulk purchases of spring roll wraps to compensate for the postage cost.

But seeing as I have spent an entire sunny day tapping away at my computer, have not added a single new product to the online deli , I think it might be time to call it a day. If anyone out there wants to buy any of the wonderful new products you've seen on our facebook page, but can't find in the online shop, please just email me!

A Story About Beans

Once upon a time (possibly this morning) a regular customer, lets call him Greg (because that's his name), fancied baked beans on toast. He visited his local delicatessen (lets call it Tastes Deli). But to Greg's dismay they don't sell baked beans at his local delicatessen.

They do sell plain haricot-type beans, alubia blanca, from El Navarrico in Spain. And they are pretty special beans: deliciously smooth and creamy. They also sell tinned cherry tomatoes from Mutti in Italy. And they are pretty special tomatoes: little bursts of sweetness.

Greg bought the beans, and the tomatoes, and a loaf of bread and took them home. He warmed some oil, fried some red onion and garlic, added a little dried chilli, a little ground celery seed, a pinch of herbes de provence, the tinned tomatoes (with their juice) and the drained beans. He made his own baked beans.

Greg liked them so much he took a portion (still warm) back to the deli for the shop keeper to try. The shop keeper liked them so much she almost ate them all before taking a photograph. Fresh, bright and creamy. Greg makes very good baked beans.


The end.

Easter Egg-travaganza

It's been a busy bank holiday weekend here in Eton. The Eton Traders got together to hold an Easter Egg Hunt (with lettered eggs hidden in shop windows which spelt out a secret phrase), the Easter Bunny was out and about giving out vouchers for a free chocolate treat and Ildiko's Chocolates were at Tastes Delicatessen offering samples of their amazing chocolates. The weather wasn't exactly on our side, but it only snowed a little bit, for a little while, and by Monday afternoon the sun was shining.

Despite the bitter cold, everyone was in holiday spirit. The chocolate tasting was a huge success.  Delicious chocolate, beautifully hand decorated with fruits, nuts and flowers. What's not to like? Children were rushing up to the shop window all weekend shouting "B" (the letter on the egg I had hidden as part of the hunt). Adults also took part in the hunt, but were more restrained with their excitement! The Easter Bunny had children squealing in delight and adults clamouring for photographs.  In my role as Bunny's assistant on Monday I even got to see the changing of the guard at Windsor Castle for the first time! Now I know what the visitors see after I give them directions to the castle. My view was slightly obscured by the 6 foot white rabbit, but that made it even more memorable.

I hope everyone who visited Eton this weekend, went home with some lovely memories (along with their free Easter treat!).

Seasonal events are taking place in Eton throughout the year. For more information take a look at the Visit Eton facebook page.

Irresistible Ildiko

A week ago @IldikosChocolat started following me (@TastesDeli) on twitter.

Ildiko had started her own chocolate company (Ildiko's Chocolate) in Walton-on-Thames just before Christmas and was looking for local outlets. This week, I met Ildiko and her husband Tamas. I saw, and sampled, their chocolates and was well and truly hooked.

Ildiko makes slabs of the finest Belgium Chocolate, beautifully decorated with fruits, nuts and flowers. These really are stunning. No topping has been thrown or dolloped here. Each item is delicately positioned and the result is chocolate art! But not only do they look too pretty to eat, but the tastes are fantastic. Unusual flavour combinations which work really well; milk chocolate with coconut chips and crystallised violet petals; dark chocolate with raspberries, pistachios and pink peppercorns; white chocolate with freeze dried cherries and rose petals....

It's two weeks before Easter, so the shop is not exactly short of chocolate, but these really were impossible to resist. I hope my customers feel the same! These mini bars are in stock now: £1.99 each.