On our travels, and whilst developing our own range of favourite flavours, we cam across some really wacky and weird ice cream flavours. Here are a few of the bing boggling, or stomach churning examples.
Viagra Ice Cream
Evidently it caused a bit of controversy this one. The brainchild of a Welsh food inventor Charlie Harry Francis who created it for one of his A list celebrity clients. It is claimed that each scoop contains 25mg of viagra. Can’t see this one appearing on the shelves of Tesco.
Wasabi Ice Cream
Wasabi, that ultra hot Japanese delicacy made from a Japanese horseradish. This can be blisteringly hot on the palate, and is a firm favourite of our MD. We haven’t actually tried this one, and wonder if the coolness of the ice cream offsets the heat of the wasabi.
White Chocolate Banana Curry
Take a nice white chocolate melted with banana’s and fragrant Indian curry powder. It brings to mind Indian take outs and summer nights.
Goat’s Cheese With Red Cherries Ice Cream
An American concoction this one. Creamy goats cheese melded with the tart taste of roasted cherries. This one supposedly tastes like a cherry cheesecake.
Ghost Pepper Ice Cream
A strange blend this one, the world’s hottest chili pepper blended with a sweet peppermint ice cream. Definitely one for the spice lovers. As they say indulge at your own risk.
Squid Ink Ice Cream
From the land of the rising sun, another way out weird option. Squid ink ice cream. Purportedly this has a fishy taste and a shocking black colour. It was originally a novelty flavour but has become more of a staple option.
Horse Meat Flavour Ice Cream
Definitely not on the wish list this one, there is a reason that horse meat should be kept in dog food.
If you want something a little more traditional for your wedding or event rather than these weird ice cream flavours then check out our boutique ice cream hire carts.
This should be first on your list when planning A Corporate Event . Setting a theme will dictate many of the requirements for things like catering, entertainment and the size of the venue you will need.
Certain times of the year lend themselves to themes. Mid December and a Christmas party can be just that, Christmas. Middle of the summer it doesn’t work as well, though we have actually done Christmas at that time.
Are there any major sporting events on, tennis themed parties are popular around Wimbledon time, or a football theme to celebrate the World cup, though if you are English there will probably be very little to celebrate.
Fancy dress is always one of our favourites. People seem to really let their hair down when they start dressing in character and it seems to amplify the fun.
Finding A Perfect Venue
This needs careful consideration. Most venues will also provide the food for your event, and this can really make or break it. Your theme and entertainment will to some extent dictate your venue requirements. Are you thinking of having something like funfair attractions as part of the event, if so then you won’t be able to use a city centre hotel, as you will need somewhere with it’s own grounds to accommodate them.
If you are not having outdoor entertainment, then it allows a wider selection of locations. Traditionally events were held in ‘fancy’ hotels. This might still be the case depending on the expectations of your guests. However there are some really quirky venues popping up now, places such as Hawker House, a large warehouse type venue, with resident street food vendors and plenty of space is one we have worked at in the past, this gives you pretty much a blank canvas, though with an on trend industrial feel.
If you are trying to plan a party for a small amount of party, say an office with 20 people or so, then it might pay for you to go down the shared party route. This is a venue that provides the catering, entertainment, venue etc, and then hires out tables. So you can take as little as half a dozen guests, but still get the big event experience.
Planning The Catering
This one is the biggie. Nothing can break an event like the quality of the food. At one time everyone expected a 3 course meal, hotel style, and if your guests are of this persuasion then that’s the way to go. On the other hand, there is so much more to choose from now. A younger crowd will delight in street food style catering, and that opens up a wide vista of choice. You will need a venue that allows you to bring external caterers in, and make sure there are no ‘corkage’ charges for food. We once provided a hot dog cart to an exhibition client, they ended up being billed for more by the venue for the hot dogs than we actually charged them.
Gourmet-Burger-Streetfood-Stall
Planning A Corporate Event, Entertainment
After the food this is the next big one. The usual is something like a wandering magician, some music on arrival, perhaps a live band followed by a DJ and disco. Booooring! Well, not the magician, we like them, but the rest is formulaic. Kick it up a beat and give the guests something to do. Some competitive games on arrival, fake paparazzi or a themed photo booth. All a bit different to the norm. Something like a dodgem ride never fails to impress if you have the room and budget. In fact we have provided full scale fairgrounds to some of our larger clients for the maximum wow factor.
We have looked at this from the point of view of it being an adults event, however many companies run family fun days for their staff, so don’t forget to factor in entertainment for all age groups.
DIY, Or Bringing In The Professionals
This depends on your budget, and whether you have someone who is not only capable of planning an event, but more importantly actually wants to do it.
Professional planners are not cheap, but, they not only save you time, but can in many cases save you costs, as they will have deals in place with caterers, venues and entertainers. So don’t dismiss them purely on a cost basis.
Many planners are happy to put together a proposal without cost, so you could always have 2 or 3 pitch for your work. With the time saving element, they may be the way to go.
With the Christmas party season rapidly approaching, here are some of our best Christmas treats for your events.
Hot Roast Chestnut Cart
Hot chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Memories of childhood, when Britannia ruled the waves, politicians were honest and kids respected their elders. Well perhaps not that far back, and I doubt politicians were ever honest. But the aroma of freshly roasting chestnuts is still a memory of Christmas in many parts of the country. Available on a range of carts for both indoor and outdoor use.
Chestnut Cart For Hire
Spicy Mulled Wine
The perfect complement to chestnuts, hot spicy wine. Originally adding spices and heating the wine was a way to keep drinking wine that had spoiled, to save wasting it. But over the years it has become a classic favourite at Christmas time. Known in other countries as Glögg and gluhwein, this is the perfect reception drink for those cold winter months. We can also provide a fabulous non alcoholic version.
Mulled Wine Cart Hire For Weddings And Events
Minced Pies
A great accompaniment to mulled wine, the classic mince pie. Ever so funny when foreign guests are present as they try to reconcile Christmas with eating a pie full of minced meat. We have provided a mixed mulled wine and minced pies cart to many shopping centres and indeed supermarkets such as Tesco’s.
We have a selection of stalls available for chestnuts or mulled wine, from our classic engine cart, to the rustic bar we use for the Mailbox Shopping Centre In Birmingham.
Whichever Christmas treats you choose for your events, they are sure to be a hit with your guests on.
There is a large selection of funfair games for your Christmas party, from the timeless hook a duck, to themed Christmas shooting galleries.
Over the years we have provided thousands of stalls to different events so have a good understanding of which work the best, not only at parties, but at weddings and corporate events.
There is no one size fits all, as it does depend on the age of the guests, type of party etc, and talking to us would allow us to put a package together to suit your specific requirements.
Hook A Duck
We have included this one first, just to point out that it is a game we DON’T recommend.
Everyone assumes this is the go to game if you have young kids, because it’s a prize every time, and something they remember from their childhood. The truth is that there are no games as boring. Because it’s usually used as a prize every time game, after a couple of hours the prizes are all gone and no one bothers playing it. Something like a coconut shie, even with the prizes gone, the guests will keep playing just for the prestige of showing they can do it.
And if you want a prizes every time for the kids, well we can do that with any of the games.
Hook A Duck Hire
Coconut Shie
Now this is one that we always recommend. Its another of those classic fairground games that everyone remembers. By varying the throwing distance, you can make it easier for the kids and harder for the grown ups. If you are putting together a package of games this should always be on the list.
Coconut Shie
Tin Can Alley
This one is one of our harder games, throw the soft balls and knock all of the cans off the shelf. It makes a good second game for events with adults, as this really brings the competitive streak out in everyone. We help younger players out by removing some of the cans and giving them extra throws, but its one we recommend for the older crowd.
Darts An All Time Classic
This is one of those super versatile games. If you need it difficult, no probs, 3 darts and score over 50 with 3 separate numbers. Sort the men from the boys. Want an easier one, bust the balloon, not as easy as it looks, but still doable by the kids.
Test Your Strength
Another all time classic. Again a perfect mix for all ages, the big boys have to ring the bell to win, the kids can score over 5. But its not totally about strength, the peg needs to be struck perfectly level. We have seen small ladies ring the bell, whilst big hairy bikers struggle to get past the half way mark.
Test Your Strength For Hire
Hoopla
One of the easier games, and again suitable for all ages. Throw the ring over the block, but remember, it has to lay flat on the table, just hanging over the prizes doesn’t count, Stevie Wonder could do that. When we used to operate at traditional funfairs, this game caused more arguments then all the others combined, because people didn’t bother reading the rules.
Shooting Gallery
A personal favourite, mainly because growing up when I started out, my first stall was a shooting gallery. On the traditional funfairs we used pellet firing air rifles. Unfortunately as many of our events are weddings and corporate parties, where alcohol is involved, we now fire corks.
Cowboy Shooting Gallery For Hire
Most clients tend to go for a package of three games, our usual recommendation is coconut shie, cans and hoopla. But of course the client is always right so we can put a package together from these games and
ball in a bucket
ring toss
ball in a milk churn
penny on a plate
knock the teeth out
Mini Crossbows
Mini Basketball
Penalty Shoot Out
We can also design and build custom games for corporate promotions with custom branding and even custom games. These are the best funfair games for your Christmas party, but work equally well at weddings or summer events.
Not everyone calls it candy floss. That is its UK name. The Americans call it cotton candy, the Aussies fairy floss. In France its ‘barbe a papa’ or Papa’s beard. The Afrikaans call it spook asem, and the Dutch suikerspin.
It’s Not As Bad For You As You Think
Although it is made basically from sugar alone, it consists mainly of air. So a typical serving is about 70 calories and contains less sugar than a can of coke. It is also fat free, so its almost healthy lol.
Brandedable
It is possible to add branding to the actual floss itself. This is fully edible and available in various colours. Ideal for parties, weddings and corporate promotions.
It Can Be Frozen
Cotton candy itself doesn’t actually go off, but it slowly deflates and shrinks down into a lump of sugar. However, it can be frozen and its usable lifespan extended for months. The best bit is when you take it from the freezer, it isn’t actually frozen and can be eaten straight away.
It Was Invented By A Dentist
Yup, that’s right, a guy called William Morrison introduced the first machine spun floss to a wide audience at the 1904 World’s Fair in St Louis. He sold 68,655 portions at the price of 25 cents. Equivalent to a price of $7.11 in today’s money.
