Whisky Sour Day – creative cocktails at your next event

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It may seem like there is a special ‘day’ or ‘week’ dedicated to almost everything at the moment. Some (e.g. Radio Commercials Day ) may be rather odd but many serve as a nice little reminder of our favourite treats, like yesterday which was Whisk(e)y Sour Day in the US.

Our mixologists have been providing stylish and creative cocktails at events for years, whether your tipple is classics like cosmos and mojitos or you want to wow your guests with some cocktail wizardry and special effects, we can create the perfect bar and menu for your event.

Find out more about our bespoke event management services here and drop us a quick email sales@effectiveeventsolutions.com to talk about your next event.

Find out more about Whisky Sour day here.

National Waffle Day, check into Hotel Bloom! in Brussels …

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Today is National Waffle Day in the USA (it’s the date the US waffle iron was patented) so we decided there was no better time to introduce you to one of our favourite Brussels event locations: Hotel BLOOM!

Hotel BLOOM! (yes the exclamation mark is part of the name not just us getting excited) is a Brussels hotel with an enviable city location, early this year they added a traditional Belgian and completely renovated waffle van to their breakfast restaurant.

Plenty of hotels have waffles on offer for breakfast these days … but how many serve them from a converted VW camper van eh?

This 4 star property has more to offer than just waffles though – with 12 different meeting rooms and 305 bedrooms they can hold a range of events from small meetings to big conferences, quirky product launches to awards dinners.

Each of the spacious bedrooms has it’s own unique mural, and for art connoisseurs (or nosey folk) each room has a QR code on the outside so you can see what your neighbours’ painting is like.

Back to the waffles though – what a fun way to liven up your meeting coffee breaks? Or you can even theme a whole lunch around them with a selection of savoury waffles too!

Give us a call on 01865 877 877 or drop an email to sales@effectiveeventsolutions.com to talk to us about your next event!

Corporate Away Day in London

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When gathering important delegates from different international locations it can seem difficult to please everyone, which is why we were enlisted to work with a VIP team of corporate executives this week.

Bringing high level executives from the company’s international HQs in China, Israel, India and the USA to London for a crucial 2 day meeting, our client had the opportunity to plan a corporate away day during the trip. These teams meet annually but don’t often get much ‘down time’ to spend with each other, nor sightseeing time to enjoy all the incredible places they travel to. So we produced an afternoon that encompassed exactly that.

Collecting guests from their morning meeting we began an afternoon seeing ‘unusual London’. The Effective Event Solutions tour guides know all the frequently asked city facts, but unlike a big bus tour they have a whole lot of unusual facts and entertaining tales to show our clients London in a completely different light.

Today’s tour guide Charley led the group on a whistletop tour of St Paul’s cathedral, enchanting them with tales of Prince Charles & Princess Diana’s wedding plus a few fun facts about the whispering gallery, before we whisked them off to the river for a private lunch time cruise.

The vessel we used was once a Royal barge; the perfect cruise option for our overseas guests! Catered by Jamie Oliver’s team, they took in the sights and sounds of the river during a sumptuous three course lunch with paired wines.

After disembarking from the Royal Nore we led the tour around St Katherine Dock and the Tower of London before whisking the guests back to their hotel for a relaxed dinner.

Check out our snaps from the day in this facebook album

We also organised private dining and private transfers throughout the week. If you’re looking for some corporate away day ideas to treat your team or wow visiting executives then get in touch via sales@effectiveeventsolutions.com or 01865 877 877

Social Media at Events

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Social media at events can be quite daunting if you’re not familiar with all the terminology out there, let alone the technology involved.

Whether you’re looking to create a buzz ahead of your event, generating engagement during an event or gaining meaningful feedback post event, there are a range of social media options to help achieve your goal. As part of our event management service we can advise and provide onsite support to ensure you nail it every time.

An interesting article caught our eye from Emerald Street this week; “Twitter and Marc Jacobs have joined forces to revolutionise shopping”

It is a fantastic concept, joining two of our favourite past times; social media and shopping! From 15–17 August, the Covent Garden Tweetshop in London will throw open its doors to lovers of all things Marc Jacobs.

Promoting the Daisy fragrances with Daisy macaroons, a luxury nail bar and a Vine booth, the Tweetshop encourages you to tweet updates, snaps and comments – with big prizes to be won. And it’s simple enough – just include the hashtag #MJDaisyChain for a chance to win!

Send one tweet and you’ll take home a deluxe mini fragrance, plus, if you include a picture or a Vine you’ll enjoy a beauty treat. The most creative social media posts will (literally) bag you bigger prizes, such as a Marc by Marc Jacobs accessory or handbag.

Ingenious!

For more information about this particular event see marcjacobs.com #MJDAISYCHAIN

London’s social media week (22nd-26th September 2014) might also be worth a look if you’re still a little befudled by the whole Social Media thing.

Or talk to us about how we can incorporate social media at your next event!

photo credit: daniel_iversen via photopin cc

It’s National Afternoon Tea Week!

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Thanks to the Duchess of Bedford, who in 1840 began requesting tea, bread and cake at 4pm in order to keep hunger at bay until dinner, Afternoon Tea is now a much-loved British tradition.

So much so it now has it’s own week of the year! Celebrating the quintessentially British pursuit of afternoon tea you will find activities, themed menus and plenty of special offers across the UK this week – see what’s happening near you here.

At Effective Event Solutions we have provided many Afternoon Teas over the years; be it a fun afternoon break during a conference or as catering for a prestigious product launch, there are many ways to incorporate this wonderfully British tradition into your events.

If you haven’t yet sampled the delights and delicacies of Afternoon Tea and are not sure if it would work for your next event, then these are a few of our favourite places to try it:

Sketch, London

(Pictured) The home of quirky fine dining; Sketch is on of London’s best Michelin starred restaurants. So it’s no surprise their afternoon tea is absolutely divine – intricate pastries, picture perfect macaroons and sandwich fillings to delight the tastebuds (caviar and quail’s egg for one!), see their menu here.

Bea’s of Bloomsbury, London

This charming little chain of cake eateries currently has three locations in London: Farringdon, Bloomsbury and our favourite St Paul’s (which can be privately hired for up to 36 guests). They also do wonderful take-aways and occassion cakes if you haven’t got time to stop by for their award winning afternoon tea.

The Lowry, Manchester

Situated on the banks of the River Irwell, The Lowry is undoubtedly Manchester’s most fashionable hotel. Recently awarded ‘The Tea Guild special award of Excellence’, you can be sure their afternoon tea is every bit as 5 star as the hotel itself.

Coworth Park, Windsor/Ascot

If the stunning scenery isn’t enough to tempt you to Coworth (set in 240 acres of parkland on the borders of Windsor Great Park), then the afternoon tea surely will; served in the elegant Drawing Room, the experience is quintessentially British in every way.

The Tower, Edinburgh

As the name suggests, this restaurant is perched on top of the tower over the iconic Museum of Scotland, boasting stunning views of the city’s skyline. Best enjoyed in summer time on the outdoor terrace, afternoon tea is served between 3pm-4.30pm.

We can organise private dining afternoon tea at a range of restaurants and cafes nationwide.

Team building – Unique, Innovative & most importantly FUN!

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We’re not saying that a round of ‘It’s a knock-out’ on inflatables isn’t fun … just that you’ve probably seen it, done it and got the team t-shirt … several times.

If you’re a bit bored of the old team building classics or looking for something innovative to motivate your colleagues, how about this?

‘Break The Ice’ with an Ice Sculpture workshop

Ice carving workshops can be run for 2 people to 200+ and can be worked into 1 hour, 3 hour or a full day of team building depending on your needs.

Guests are divided into teams of 2 or 3, which maximises participation for everyone, an ice-sculpting master will provide a demonstration and discuss ice carving techniques with the teams before they take on their own ice challenge.

A 1 hour class would work on a basic ice template, whereas the 3 hour workshop is divided into 3 sessions: a design workshop from which an expert ice sculptor carves the winning sketch created by the delegate teams, a workshop for teams to work on their own basic ice sculpture and a short course in fusion techniques with a team challenge to design the highest and most creative ice fusion structure.

This activity works indoors or outdoors – ice sculpture team building can be brought to company offices, hotels, conference spaces or even private rooms in restaurants.

An Irish Whiskey Master (and where to drink it)

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The Irish Whiskey Sector is booming right now and our client’s at William Grant & Sons are top of the class with their Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskeys. So today we’re raising a glass in celebration of their achievements at this year’s Irish Whiskey Masters!

Judging this year was; Adam McCullogh, bar manager of The Cadogan Arms, Toby Quirk, freelance brand ambassador, and Charles Montanaro, group manager for 5cc. The panel began with a large flight of Blended Premium whiskeys, where the standout whiskey was William Grant & Sons’ Tullamore DEW 12yo Special Reserve, which was described as “just delightful” and awarded the one and only Master of the round! They scooped a further 2 awards with Tullamore DEW Original and Tullamore DEW Phoenix.

To read more about the Irish Whiskey Masters, check out The Spirit Business’s write up, or to find out more about Tullamore Dew products have a look at their website.

If you fancy sampling Tullamore Dew then here are a couple of our favourite places for a tipple:

Silk’s Bar

Housed in the fresh, modern Grange St Paul’s hotel, this sophisticated cocktail lounge offers an extensive drinks menu alongside sharing platters and light salads.

Benihana

These Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi restaurants view ‘food as an event’, with chefs preparing dishes on a teppan (large hot plate) at each table – head along to their Picadily or Chelsea restaurants and indulge in a world class Tullamore Dew whiskey pre, post or during dinner!

Slug & Lettuce

With 70 bars across the country, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding your ‘local’ with  Tullamore Dew on the menu.

Private Dining rooms for Meat Lovers

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Our focus this week is something for the meat lovers out there – although we promise they all offer some lip-smackingly good veggie options too. Here are our top pick of private dining rooms for meat-eaters:

Smiths of Smithfield / Smiths Spitalfield

An Icon of the East London foodie scene, Smiths now has two restaurants where you can sample their expertly cooked British meats and dishes designed with seasonal produce.

The original restaurant is at the heart of Smithfield market, housed in an impressive grade II listed venue spanning four floors. The 1st floor private dining room here seats up to 14 and has a built in projector and screen for any pre-meal meetings or post feast presentations.

The private loft (pictured) at Spitalfields is the show-stealer though, with space for up to 38 seated or 65 standing this intimate space has all the chic style of the restaurant itself but it’s all yours!

Their carefully sourced British beef is butchered in-house to ensure the absolute best cuts, so for meat lovers looking for a little something extra, we can arrange butchery showcases along with lunch or dinner too.

Tramshed

Part of super-chef Mark Hix’s portfolio, this venue may appear casual with sharing starters, simple chicken options and humongous steaks but the mouth-watering flavours elevate it to a much higher level.

The mezzanine area overlooking the main restaurant seats up to 40 and offers the best views of the iconic Damien Hirst work that takes centre stage here.

Iberica

With four London locations and a new Manchester venue due to open in Autumn this year, Iberica brings the best of Spanish Gastronomy to your table.

As for private dining, there is a rustic mezzanine level at Canary Wharf suitable for up to 30 guests seated (or 50 standing), Marylebone has a similar sized space for dining and an additional area ‘Vino y Artes’ for cocktail parties up to 35 guests, surrounded by some of Spain’s finest wines.

If you fancy trying your hand at one of their most popular dishes here is the recipe and a ‘how-to’ guide filmed at the Canary Wharf restaurant

Hawksmoor

The growing chain, boasts ‘dictionary-thick’ cuts of prime British steak and has a variety of locations; best for groups we like the wood paneled private dining room at Guildhall (seats up to 22 & has it’s own bar too!) or you can hire the rear part of their Spitalfield’s restaurant for private parties of up to 55.