When Holly Sugars was looking to take a step away from the life of a private chef to concentrate on her young family, there was never any question of leaving the world of food and hospitality behind.
Launching Food Envy - a Swiss army knife of a business that can do anything from catering for exclusive events to delivering high quality meals to homes and offering nutritional advice – in 2016, Holly sought to continue pouring her passion into her chosen profession - but this time on her own terms.
Recently she's added yet another string to her bow with a series of supper club nights, which aim to bring the local community together over a meal in her home village of Byfleet in Surrey.
She kindly invited Local Food Britain along to join in the festivities at her third supper club and, well, we couldn't resist...
Take me to church
So it was that we found ourselves driving through rows of neatly appointed houses and parking up opposite a pretty little village church.
This may be a long way from the yachts and homes of the rich and famous that Holly was used to, but her team had managed to transform the everyday church hall into something rather different.
A number of trees had been potted around two large tables with fairly lights added to cast their magic glow as the sun eventually dipped into the evening.
You may arrive at a church hall but by the time the canapés are finished, you've had a drink and you've got chatting to your fellow diners, you could be anywhere.
At just £20 per head and with 'bring your own' policy, these events are a perfectly unpretentious way for the local community to gather and feast.
Local Food Britain recently interviewed Holly about the vegetarian and vegan aspects of her business but in reality that's only part of the full story.
The evening's supper club menu, for instance, featured lamb koftas, crab cakes and baked chicken legs, so we attended without any preconceptions about what to expect. Appealingly billed as 'gorgeous healthy yummy food', we were certainly looking forward to it though.
Healthy eating
The lamb koftas and crunchy mini poppadums that were delivered around the room on arrival with a mojito offered a window into Holly's unfussy and clean style. Tasty stuff.
Sat down around family-style tables, a starter of mini crab cakes was then served up with a tomato sauce and watercress salad. The ladies across from us had been to all of Holly's events so far, and were already planning their next visit.
Lemon and herb baked chicken leg with red peppers and piccolo tomatoes on the vine hit the plates next and the table creaked under the weight of barley salad with roast butternut squash and toasted pumpkin seeds; crunchy green beans with a garlic oil; and a mixed green leaf salad with a French vinagrette and a nut and seed topping.
Star of the show though had to be the decadent pot au chocolate dessert. Stick the word 'decadent' next to dessert and we're pretty much yours anyway at Local Food Britain, but the hushed reverence that took over the room was noticeable. We spotted at least one diner eagerly wondering if there happened to be couple of spares – and, if we're completely honest, we were thinking the same.
All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our evening with Food Envy in Byfleet: the food was excellent value and the atmosphere relaxed. Holly has an infectious personality that's sure to take her wherever she wants to go. Let's face it, there's a little food envy in all of us, right?
Now, pass us another one of those chocolate pots please...
Tags: healthy
supper clubs
