Last Sunday, I had the pleasure of going to my very first Binner Party, which was held at the Brink Bar on Parr Street, Liverpool.
Despite being a tad late, I got a bit carried away with my Sunday nap, I still had the opportunity to dine in a cool calm atmosphere, filled with live acoustic guitar music. I had pulled pork, fresh bread, roasted squash, gourmet chicken sandwiches, tomato, red pepper and chilli soup, carrot cake and red velvet cake. NB - all of this was 'quickly rustled up' for the 3 of us. The food had a very homely feel(although its origins were in Costco and Isla Gladstone Conservatory). In that, I felt the food is the kind of thing I would cook for guests at my home if I was given the same ingredients with the same amount of short notice that the Real Junk Food Project Liverpool had had.
The Real Junk Food Project, a not-for-profit organisation, runs on the ethos of saving/intercepting food from food retailers that would otherwise be sent to landfill...a.k.a the bin. Food can be paid for in a number of ways, including Pay As You Feel donations and volunteering, meaning that all members of community can benefit from the project. The Liverpool branch is run by the lovely Natalie Hughes-Crean and Gaby Holmes. Both Natalie and Gaby source/intercept the food and creatively cook what they find, before serving it up with help of a wonderful group of volunteers.
Although Natalie described choosing the menu in a "massive ready steady cook" style, the duo are running a tight, yet rather generous ship, which they aim to turn into a copy model for future outlets in the city. On Sunday alone, over 150 portions of intercepted goodness were served up. The pair always have vegan and vegetarian options available, as well as recording data about the food they have saved and shared for future food waste lobbying purposes. Gaby got involved with the Real Junk Food Project, which originally started in Leeds, as she was looking for unique volunteering opportunities after travelling around the world.
Some of Sunday night's team, Corinne, Gaby, Natalie, James, Jon and Liam
The Real Junk Food Project Liverpool is looking for a permanent home in Liverpool city centre, but until then you can taste their delights, ranging from fresh French macarons to meat dishes and leafy salads at events across the northwest this summer, including the University of Liverpool and Stanley Park Food Festival. The next Binner Party will be at the Brink Bar, Liverpool this September ( See their Facebook page for the fixed date)
For the founder of the Real Junk Food Project, Adam Smith, loving food and hating waste is not a fad or a shiny new concept, but redressing it is changing the mindset of thousands of people towards how they view food and food waste.
Go to your local Real Junk Food Project, or at the very least look them up online or Facebook. You'll probably have some free cake and have your faith restored in humanity. I certainly did.
