Michele and Ava Newton took on the business of the much-loved Gurnard Press in Worsley Road, Gurnard. It is a family-run business that values hospitality! Michele has experience in the food industry as a chef, food safety advisor, restaurant owner, nutritionist, and trainer. She also runs the Four Seasons Cookery Academy. Ava is a chef, and her other skills are as a trainer for hospitality, customer service, cooking workshops, plus an event organizer/manager. She also holds a personal license.

During our conversation, the grandmother and granddaughter have a strong bond with each other. Their skills complement each other perfectly, and they have planned a menu that appeals to both adults and children. The Gurnard Press Bistro has received positive feedback in the first few months since its reopening! Ava and Michele aim to continue with the previous owners, the Clark family's ethos, for the Gurnard Press. They talk about respecting the ethos the Press had before, as you will hear Michele viewed the Press as her local cafe.

Many locals who previously viewed the Press as their go-to spot have responded positively to the food and service provided by this dynamic team. Michele and Ava's hard work and creativity will continue to bring them more positive feedback from new and old customers. The Gurnard Press Bistro is in talented hands!

Family is essential to them both, as evidenced by their shared choice of music.

This is the Voice only episode. You will hear the whole of every track if you have a Spotify Premium account. If not, you will hear 30 seconds of each track.

You can subscribe to the podcast on your favourite podcast provider, just search for FoodandMusicIOW. It's available from Spotify, Amazon, Google, and Apple, plus a few more!

To find out more about me, go to ⁠⁠⁠The Island Chef Links⁠⁠⁠

Thank you for listening!

Eat Street IOW! In this episode, I talk to Laurel and Alex Wibberley, who are a dynamic team with a business that has attracted a growing following here on the Isle of Wight! They share the work and the loads equally. Alex is the chef, who worked on the Cunard ships until the pandemic. Laurel is multi-talented, doing the finance and website for the Eat Street IOW! They also use social media extremely well! Now securely installed in their new HQ on the edge of Cowes, they are establishing a great reputation for the food and service they offer their clients.

Teamwork, community minded, with goals for sustainability and zero waste, they have set high standards for what they do and how they do business! The website ⁠EatStreetIOW⁠ is all about the business, lots of food pictures, menus and so on. Also, a blog with lot that talks about what they do, how they do it and other personal issues such as mental health and wellbeing. As you will learn,this is an important issue to them both. Their relationship began with the COVID lockdowns. Starting the business in COVID, they worked together, and formed a strong partnership that is the foundation of Eat Street IOW.

The Burnt Chef Project is a part of their ethos and how they work. Here they talk about how they use the new HQ and as support the project. They also talk about their new plans for the summer, and into the autumn! If you check the website, they have innovated again and have a new service on offer! They never stop!

Their choice of music is personal and reflects the care that they have for each other and what they do. I hope you enjoy this episode and getting to know both Laurel and Alex. I wish them all the success for the future and seeing more successful client events on social media!

This is the Voice episode.

You can subscribe to the podcast on your favourite podcast provider, just search for FoodandMusicIOW. It's available from Spotify, Amazon, Google, and Apple, plus a few more!

Find out more about me, got to ⁠⁠The Island Chef Links⁠⁠

Thank you for listening!

This is a special episode of the podcast which is bringing the exciting news of the first Great Wight Bite Festival! This is taking place on the 9/10 September 2023 at Northwood House in Cowes! I was so excited when I heard about this festival earlier this year. So I contacted Richard to find out more about the plans. I have watched as the festival has come together. That it is only weeks away now, I am getting so excited!

The idea of a festival celebrating the food, drink, chefs, restaurants and the range of hospitality here on the island is so exciting. In my chat with Richard Nowell, he talks about festivals he runs and why the Great Wight Bite is important. Covering all the exciting things planned and the sponsors, chefs, producers and so on. This is a festival you don't want to miss!

Please check the website, ⁠The Great Wight Bite ⁠for all the information and to buy tickets. The great news is they are not expensive. As you will hear, Richard and his team have planned for a wide range of food to be on offer, so that you can try several cuisines during your visit!

Also check social media Facebook, Instagram for updates and news about the weekend. @greatwightbite on both, I believe.

This is the Music and Voice episode.

You can subscribe to the podcast on your favourite podcast provider, just search for FoodandMusicIOW. It's available from Spotify, Amazon, Google, and Apple, plus a few more!

Find out more about me, got to ⁠The Island Chef Links⁠

Thank you for listening!