The seventh annual Polo Day took place on Sunday at Beaufort Polo Club in Gloucestershire. The event consisted of polo games and a three course meal prepared by award winning chefs. In total, over £50,000 was raised for industry charity, Hospitality Action.
The event was catered for by seven award-winning South West chefs including Lucknam Park’s Hywel Jones, serving an array of exceptional dishes. Lucknam Park is a Palladian mansion set in 500 acres of parkland just outside Bath. The property boasts a Michelin-star restaurant, an award winning spa and stunning new bedrooms and suites. Guests can enjoy walks in the grounds, relax and be pampered and take advantage of the fine equestrian centre.
Dishes included dressed Cornish crab with violet artichoke, roasted crab mayonnaise and yuzu puree. Chefs from Calcot, Whatley Manor, The Pony & Trap, Bath Priory and Lords of the Manor took part with over 1,296 guests.
Key figures from the industry attended the event to enjoy the polo matches and the wonderful food on offer. Guests included Harry Murray MBE of Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa, Richard Ball, executive chairman of Calcot Hotels and Graham Grose, Director of Thurlestone estates.
Penny Moore, chief executive of Hospitality Action, added: “Tickets to the Polo Day sold out almost instantly, a true testament to the hard work everyone puts in. We are indebted to all our event sponsors especially PSL The Food Professionals, Taitinger and Hatch Mansfield for the wines.”
Hospitality Action supports employees from the industry with issues ranging from bereavement to domestic abuse to addiction.
South West Chefs has launched South West Chef of the Year 2016, seeking to highlight exceptional standards of hospitality in the region. It is an opportunity for chefs to receive recognition for their culinary skills and gain valuable feedback from a panel of expert judges.
