Brinda Delights at City of Bristol College

The Chefs’ Forum were delighted to be at a special evening at City of Bristol College last night (30) November, to taste the wonders of Brinda’s Mauritian Delights.

Local chef, Brinda Bungaroo is well known for her blog and social media channels where she cooks for from her native Mauritius.

The Gourmet Evening, held in the The City Restaurant (College Green Campus) was an opportunity for catering students to get a valuable introduction to the food of Mauritius where Brinda grew up and was inspired by her parents and the local cuisine.

Brinda said

“I love cooking with the students, its so very rewarding seeing how much they enjoy these guest chef evenings and it’s great to see how supportive the lecturers are of the students.  It was great that we had a full house last evening and loads of positive feedback – I can’t wait for the next one.”

In simple terms, Mauritian cuisine is a hybrid of Chinese and French styles with both cultures playing a part of the history of the island (which is located in the Indian Ocean not far from Madagascar and The Seychelles).

Lola Spurrell

Desmond Smith, Restaurant Manager welcomed the guests and thanked them for the support he said

“Without customers support in attending these dinners, the students can’t practice and develop their skills to make them industry-ready, gaining valuable function experience.”

Lola Spurrell, L2 Professional Food and Beverage student was dedicated to serving The Chefs’ Forum’s table, she said

“I really look forward to these events, its so lovely to talk to the guests and meet so many different chefs cooking various cuisine types.  I am currently working at Bristol Airport in Brig & Stow, as a bar attendant and waitress and being able to hone my skills at guest chef evenings like this, really helps me with my job outside of college.”

Guests ate:

Followed by sharing dishes of

These were both served with egg and vegetable fried rice and stir fried bok choi.

Catherine Farinha, Director of the Chefs’ Forum, said: “What a brilliant evening with delicious food from Brinda and the students, overseen by Chef Lecturer Ryan Fernandes and excellent service from Lola and the excellent front of house team, headed-up by Desmond Smith. Mauritian cuisine is so unique and it was a triumph and a great experience for the students. Hats-off to City of Bristol College for organising using such a memorable evening.”

Gourmet dinners at City of Bristol College are a four-course set menu planned by guest professional chefs. Dishes are produced by the catering students under the watchful eye of the guest and lecturer chefs, who offer advice and guidance to help them hone and develop their skills.

The final gourmet evening of the year will be held on 9 June with Chef, Author and Presenter, Romy Gill MBE. Call 0117 312 2712 to book your table!

Photography: Carlos Farinha