Thanksgiving, or ‘Turkey Day’ as it is sometimes known, is a popular US holiday that we are all pretty familiar with. It takes place on the last Thursday in November and involves large family gatherings where everyone reflects on things they are grateful for from the past year before tucking into a delicious spread, which centres around – yes, you guessed it – turkey!
As fun as it all sounds, though, it isn’t something we tend to see observed very much here in the UK. So when Jeff submitted a catering request, in which he asked our Hog Roast Oxshott team to serve a traditional – no expense spared – Thanksgiving dinner with all the bells, whistles and frills to 61 guests, we couldn’t help but jump at the chance!
First and foremost, Shaun, Hog Roast Oxshott’s incredible catering manager, was in charge of adapting and modifying our Full Festive Menu to suit the client’s very specific needs. This involved adding canapes and an extra special dessert option for after the main course. Once Jeff had given us the thumbs up, all there was left to do was wait for the day of the event to arrive.
The Thanksgiving feast was held at King’s Chase, a luxury 8-bedroom home on the Crown Estate, which previously earned the ‘Best House in Britain’ title. When Hog Roast Oxshott arrived, they immediately understood why. Large oak gates swung open to reveal a perfectly manicured lawn, in the centre of which was a stone path leading to the huge, red-brick property. The entrance hall was particularly awe-worthy, with a large winding staircase encircling detailed marble floors.
After taking it all in, Hog Roast Oxshott set up the cooking equipment and set to work preparing the feast, which comprised of moist and tender turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce, cauliflower cheese, a medley of glazed seasonal veg, pigs in blankets, roasties, gluten-free rolls and gravy. For the veggie/vegan guests, grilled vegetable skewers were available, and bite-sized fillets of beef, roasted duck wraps and spring rolls were served as a buffet to start.
The guests were all really impressed by the variety of options there was to choose from, and after clearing their plates, they happily indulged in a delicious slice of either pumpkin pie with cream or homemade mince pies with brandy cream.