THE FOOD

Food Design for Nutcracker Noir
By Jenny McNeill of Feast + Fable for Secret Theatre
The menu design process for The Nutcracker Noir started with a very good read - the script, by Richard Crawford.

It’s crucial for this project that the food follows key beats in the performance, reinforcing and underpinning links between Richard’s dynamic characters and their emotions. In this way we can bring the guests further into the adventure, giving them deeper insights and adding complexity to the narrative.

The Nutcracker Noir is a dream project, as alongside the intricate characters and their back stories, we also have a high element of fun.
This allows the food to play its way between the traditional and the non-traditional, the old and the contemporary.

 

Ingredients-wise, we have a raft of festive. British influences sitting alongside flavours from the Nordic regions (a nod to our main character’s heritage). Cooking in December means we have to be clever with fruits and vegetables, using pickles and ferments that preserve them in the summer months.

All in all, diners are in for an interactive, multi-sensory treat, both on the plate and on stage.

Sample Menu
While the final menu will remain a closely guarded secret, sample menus so far include:
Rum-spiked brioche rolls with whipped miso, maple & rosemary butter
Family Christmas - roast poussin with mustard cream sauce, brünkal & pickled red grapes
Midwinter salad of seasonal squash, apple, crispy kale & fermented cranberries
La Recette Perdue – Soused ginger cake, pear & chocolate mousse, custard cremeux, wild blueberry meringue shards