For years we have been accustomed to seeing matched wines accompanying dishes on tasting menus and in recent years we have even seen craft beers paired with dishes, but with innovation and creativity at their core the team at Chef Adam Handling’s newest venture, The Frog E1 are launching a Kombucha and Tea Paired Tasting Menu.
Maintaining the restaurant’s ethos of using the finest possible ingredients, Adam Handling and his team at The Frog E1 have paired up with luxury tea brand, Newby Teas. With Adam’s Development Chef, Jamie Parks leading the way they have curated a tasting menu that is not only on trend with its use of the new super-drink ‘kombucha’ but also offers a non-alcoholic alternative ideal for mid-week lunches – or simply for those looking to explore the possibilities of how a soft (or even hot) drink might enhance the flavours in food.
Guests can expect to enjoy Adam and the team’s light and intricate Crab and Apple dish, accompanied with a fragrant jasmine kombucha, followed by a theatrical flowering tea to accompany the warming Hake and Limestone dish – and whilst you may traditionally expect tea to arrive in a tea-cup with hot water, Adam and his team will throw traditional out the window, serving you an Assam Tea consommé to accompany Roast Lamb and Black Garlic.
With a rise in popularity and science suggesting kombucha is good for your digestive system, all those featured on the menu are made in-house at The Frog E1, using Newby’s exquisite teas as their base. As an advocate for the benefits of kombucha, Adam says: “I believe that if your tummy is happy, then you’re set for a good day – that’s why Jamie, my Development Chef, began developing and creating kombuchas. I get my chefs to drink a small glass each day to set us all up for the day. Through some experimentation we realised that if we used Newby’s amazing teas as a base, then these kombuchas became much more than just a healthy drink and were transformed into some of the tastiest drinks we’ve tried. We all like to push the boundaries here at The Frog, E1 (particularly Jamie!) – and we think this menu works brilliantly.”
