On your marks, get set, GET PICKING!!!
17th June 2010

The Compasses crew, Nick Dearsley, Paul Gooding, Heather Tarling and Jane Clark, (all donning a Strawberry themed fancy dress outfit!...) took part in the annual Tiptree strawberry picking race at Wilkins & Sons Jam Factory to raise money for the Royal Agricultural Benevolent and The Lady Taverners.

Over 200 people were involved in the event, all keen to win the strawberry picking race! The Compasses just missed 1st place and came in 2nd place having picked 7.25kg of Little Scarlet Strawberries!

After a great day of strawberry picking and strawberry themed fancy dress costumes, The Compasses crew later found out that £4000 had been raised for the Royal Agricultural Benevolent and The Lady Taverners charities and the number of strawberries picked could fill 5000 jars of Little Scarlet conserve!

The Compasses TV debut

Celebrity chefs, Galton Blackiston and Ed Baines took over The Compasses at Pattiswick to go head to head on BBC2’s programme “Put your money where your mouth is”.

The rival chefs were challenged to design a menu in keeping with The Compasses ‘gastro pub’ and sell the most dishes to win the competition. They visited local suppliers to get the best deals on their ingredients in the hope to make a profit for their chosen charities.

Our chefs at The Compasses had the great pleasure of working with the celeb chefs throughout the day to prepare a three course menu for evening service. Chef Brendan Timms and Martyn Harker teamed up with Ed Baines, whilst Alec Maxfield (head chef of sister pub The Swan) and Christopher Gill worked alongside Galton Blackiston.

Winning chef, Glaton Blackiston’s menu of a smoked salmon with homemade bread starter, confit duck main course and apple sponge pudding, proved to be the most popular with The Compasses guests!

The Compasses triumphs again…

The Compasses at Pattiswick has done it again! For a second year running the North Essex Gastro Pub has scooped Great British Family Pub of the Year for the whole of the UK.

Owner of the Pattiswick pub, Jono Clark, was presented the award by legendary comic Barry Cryer at a glittering dinner for 750 guests at London’s Hyde Park Hilton on Wednesday evening. “Totally stunning is the only way to describe it!’ says Jono. ‘Having scooped the award for Best Family Pub last year we really felt we had no chance this year. It just goes to show how much effort the crew have put in over the past year to maintain our standards and drive the business forward. I am so proud of them.”

The judges commended Jono and Jane Clark for not resting on their laurels. Last year The Compasses at Pattiswick was voted Great British Pub of the Year yet this accolade has not stopped the duo from investing more time, effort and money into improving already existing facilities at the family-friendly freehouse. Around £17,000 has been invested over the past year on items such as activity trails for kids between four and 14 along with more outside parasols and heaters. Already in the pipeline are plans for an outside wood burning pizza oven next year. The judges commented “Jono and jane’s meticulous approach to providing tasty, healthy food for younger customers is evident in that all the dishes are freshly prepared and homemade. A truly remarkable pub!”

Great British Family Pub of the Year wasn’t the only award Jono brought back to Essex; sister pub The Swan at Felsted also hooked the award for Best Food Pub in East Anglia. “I am particularly pleased with this award. We have had a really tough couple of years at The Swan and the crew have put every ounce of their dedication and skill into turning it back into what I truly believe is the finest food pub in the country. We have a cracking Head Chef in Alec Maxfield with a pedigree that includes Heston Blumenthal’s three Michelin starred Fat Duck at Bray and Hambleton Hall in Rutland. And he is backed up by a superb front of house crew lead by Abbie Robertson. They truly deserve this award.”

Owners Jane and Jono Clark, who have two children of their own are passionate about creating a family friendly environment including hosting their Family Fun Day every year. Jane says “The Compasses has a really wonderful atmosphere, as soon as a family walks through the door the children are greeted with a kid’s menu and toys to entertain them, the parents think it’s great. We have also just had a brand new children’s play area built in our pub garden which the kids love”.