About

I started this blog almost 2 years ago, at the very beginning of our adventure to build The Black Swan it’s very own kitchen garden. The aim: to become self sufficient on the very best fruits and vegetables. Looking back on these posts now, it really shows how far we’ve come since I wrote my  first blog and how this idea has grown to be the whole inspiration for The Black Swan. Something that every dish on our menu relies upon, and something that every member of The Black Swan team is now so strongly involved in.

As time’s gone on, the seasons keep changing and lessons are still being learnt. We’ve had great success and considerable failure, but the more we experiment and push the boundaries of what we originally set out to do, the more we accomplish.

As you can see writing regular blog posts, as I intended, hasn’t quite gone to plan. It turns out this ‘growing your own produce’ business takes more time than I expected! The garden along with our location has lead to a lot of exciting projects, but more importantly it’s given me the best opportunity a chef could ever ask for; the opportunity for our whole team to be a part of everything that’s being created. Not only the chefs, but our Front of House staff all have their part in the story; planting the seeds, harvesting the produce, developing the dishes and then most importantly telling their stories to the customer, so they too can understand the passion we have for our food.

So, with such incredible stories to tell, I’ve decided that this blog will rise from the ashes. It will be populated with fascinating posts written by the fascinating people who make The Black Swan what it is today. I will still endeavour to write about my culinary meanderings, but I also want you to hear everyone else’s stories too.

I hope you will join and follow our new posts and updates. Whether you’ve visited us before, or just stumbled upon us, we welcome you to be part of The Black Swan Stories.

Stories Made in Oldstead.

Visit our website here – www.blackswanoldstead.co.uk

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