Le Grand Depart

Posted on February 9, 2013 by themaltshovel

We are (along with the rest of Yorkshire) hugely excited that the Grand Depart of le Tour de France will be rolling through our county next July. The spotlight is going to be on Yorkshire, and we think Yorkshire will bask in the glow. There’s no denying that this will draw crowds of visitors to Ripon and Harrogate in 2014, but also that we will see a surge in the popularity of cycling over the next year.image

Over the coming months, and particularly when we get some sunshine (we’re fair weather cyclists!), we are planning on running offers and promotions for the ardent cyclists out there, and for those who are now spurred on to get back on their bicycles. In the meantime we’d like to say congratulations to Welcome to Yorkshire, whose enthusiasm and commitment resulted in Yorkshire securing the winning bid. We’d also like to link you to an excellent blog from Moonglu – an independent bike shop in Ripon – where owner, Neil, has got the ball (or wheels?) rolling with some great routes around our beautiful countryside. Enjoy! http://www.moonglu.com/blog/

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Family Affair

Posted on January 28, 2013 by themaltshovel

We’re making the most of the family connection this month. We’re running a special offer for Malt Shovel customers on Bleikers Smoked Salmon. Simply visit www.bleikerssmokehouse.co.uk and enjoy 10% off their delicious smoked salmon by using FEB13 at the online checkout. Offer ends 28th February. In return we’re offering Bleikers Smokehouse customers a lovely 15% off their food bill throughout February. So why not visit their site to find out more?

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From Brearton to Barcelona

Posted on December 16, 2012 by themaltshovel

At the end of November, our fabulous chef, Marek, was one of just 40 British chefs chosen to head to Barcelona to meet the world-famous Ferran Adria. Marek spent a wonderful couple of days in the city, visiting Ferran’s new restaurant, Tickets, learning from the master, and sampling his incredible food, and has returned full of enthusiasm and inspiration. Marek is looking forward to using some of his new techniques and ideas, and we’re very excited about showcasing them on January’s menu. But for the moment, we’re full on with Christmas!

This Monday, December 17th, we have our final Opera Evening of the year, which is set to be a fabulous festive affair, featuring stars of Opera North, plus our very own D’Arcy Bleiker and Anna Burford. Then we’ve got lots of lovely Christmas parties booked in, keen to sample our Holme Bottom Farm bred goose. Thursday is our big Christmas Carol event, with the men of Ripon Cathedral and 5 of our grandchildren and one grand-niece (all of whom are now choristers at the cathedral – making us very proud!) joining them early evening. We’ll have more music, this time from Frankly Jazz, on Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve, so we’ll hope you’ll find something to tempt you in this Christmas season.

Happy Christmas from all at the Malt Shovel, and a Merry New Year!

 

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Christmas is coming…

Posted on November 6, 2012 by themaltshovel

…and our geese are getting fat. Our plump, free range geese will be the star of our Christmas menu this year. We are very proud of our home-produce and are certain they will be spectacular Christmas fayre. We also have plenty of other traditional and modern delicacies on our festive set menus, so take a look at our website and book your Christmas party at The Malt Shovel.

Our Christmas events get underway next week, starting on Monday 12th November with our first ever Christmas Market, featuring 20 fabulous gift stalls and superb live music – but rest assured food and drink are never far from our minds, and there will be plenty of mulled wine and delicious nibbles to go around.

We hope you’ll pick us for your Christmas night out – remember free taxis home for parties of four or more!

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Seasonal fruit

Posted on October 10, 2012 by themaltshovel

Well we know it wasn’t the warmest of summers, but it’s about this time that I remember exactly how cold it can get. The Malt Shovel fires have been lit again over the last couple of weeks, and we’ve devised a new menu with plenty of hearty winter warmers. The summer fruits are on their way out, and late-season apples, delicious sweet figs and succulent raspberries are all making an appearance on our menu. We’ve also devised a tempting Winter Berry Flummery; drawing on the success of our summer fruit dessert. So despite the chill in the air, there’s plenty to tempt you out of the house this October.

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Autumn at The Malt Shovel

Posted on October 5, 2012 by themaltshovel

It’s been a week of highs and lows, starting with the unfortunate cancellation of our October Opera Night due to the terrible weather we’ve been hit with. But we have two more Opera Evenings coming up (December 3rd and 17th), and they are bound to be full of festive cheer. In good news, we hosted a very successful Macmillan Coffee Morning this Tuesday morning. The conservatory was lined with stalls and filled with customers. Generous friends donated some delicious cakes, and even more generous coffee drinkers helped us raise in excess of £200 for this fabulous cause. We are hoping to organise another shopping event closer to Christmas, possibly with the added lure of mulled wine and canapes!

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Summer Roundup

Posted on September 3, 2012 by themaltshovel

So it’s back to school time, and we finally seem to be getting some summer. We’ve had far too many wet weekends this August! That said, it’s been a good couple of months at The Malt Shovel. We’ve revamped the Green Room and spruced up the bar and garden; we have a fabulous new chef and D’Arcy’s back behind the bar, and occasionally even gives us a song.

The highlight of the summer has to be our Swiss/Yorkshire evening. This dual celebration of Yorkshire Day and Swiss National Day on August 1st was a triumph, culminating in a roof-raising rendition of the Yorkshire Anthem by performers and diners alike. The food was a great success; so much so that a number of dishes made it on to our regular menu, namely the Chateaubriand and the Bratwurst.

We’ve also had some lovely Sunday lunch times – many to the sounds of the wonderfully talented Frankly Jazz. And it has been nice to see so many families out together to enjoy a Sunday meal. So let’s hope this spell of sunshine isn’t short-lived and September brings many more chances for lazy lunches and evening drinks al fresco – we may even finally fire up that BBQ!

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Opera Evening 25/06/12

Posted on June 27, 2012 by themaltshovel

Just a few shots from a fabulous evening of entertainment.

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The Alps Baht ‘at

Posted on June 10, 2012 by themaltshovel

I wonder how many Swiss/Yorkshire connections there are? I have been reliably informed that there is a Swiss Flower House in the little village of Coniston Cold in the Yorkshire Dales, and there is a certainly a Yorkshire branch of the Swiss Society. We’d love to hear about any more that you know of. This year, being a Swiss/Yorkshire family ourselves, we have decided to honour both aspects of our heritage and, as luck would have it, Swiss National Day and Yorkshire Day are celebrated on the exact same day of the year. So on the 1st of August 2012 we are holding a special Flat Caps + Fondue night. Jurg will be cooking up some delicacies from his native Switzerland but the menu will also feature traditional local dishes. Yorkshire band Frankly Jazz, who have proved extremely popular with our customers will be providing the entertainment, plus we may have a few special tricks up our sleeves. If you know of any local yodellers, be sure to get in touch!

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Extra special

Posted on May 24, 2012 by themaltshovel

We are so pleased to have some delicious local asparagus on our specials menu this week. This tender spring vegetable is unbeatable for its freshness and famed for its health-boosting properties. It is delicious served as simply as possible, with just a pouring of butter or dollop of Hollandaise. But sadly this year’s crop has been blighted by the unseasonably bad weather. Rain has even caused the cancellation of the British Asparagus Festival http://bit.ly/Lt12gz. Let’s hope this dry spell we are currently enjoying is here to last. 

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