Food, Friends and the Festival

And when I say Festival, I obviously mean The Edinburgh Festival, the wonderfully chaotic collection of events which takes place here in my city every August. It's the world's biggest arts festival, featuring over 54,000 performances in the month.

Don't be fooled into thinking there is just one Edinburgh Festival. The picture shows The Hub, centre of the Edinburgh International Festival, sometimes known as the official Festival. It was established in 1947. But I can think of about 16 festivals which take place here in the capital, many of them in the month of August. Never mind which one they're attending -  when you're entertaining guests, they all roll into one (the festivals that is).

From the title you may have thought that I was going to start looking at food options in the town itself. Not the plan, though in the past twelve months we've enjoyed Tuk Tuk (near the Festival Theatre) and Ting Thai (two outlets, handy for the Usher Hall and the Book Festival respectively). I must also give special thanks to Dine, the original one above the Traverse Theatre. L and her chums at the Festival Chorus laboured manfully through John Tavener's 8 (yes, EIGHT) hour vanity project, The Veil of the Temple. There were breaks for performers, but until just a day or so before, they weren't told precisely when. Despite this uncertainty, Stuart, Paul and their team managed to fit in a table for 6 and feed them in three quarters of an hour. Bravo!

But the food in question comes from the kitchen of Casa Johnston. And the diners? Well to paraphrase Donald Rumsfeld, you have known knowns - the dates of the performances, and those who always stay for a few days. But the known unknowns are many.

Those who have to split their time to keep family happy. Other halves. Are they coming too, or is the golf course a greater attraction? Then there's me. Am I attending a performance, or will I be at home cooking? That changes the dynamic considerably.

In August, expect the unexpected. This year, eldest daughter and grandson from Vienna. Then, out of left field, an unknown known, if you will, Cork based friends M & I, coming to town for a couple of events to commemorate M's late ma. Is there room at the inn, they ask? Of course.

Then the feeding schedule kicks in. I took grandson to the zoo - their food rotas are much more straightforward because they're fixed. And for your sanity in such circumstances, keeping the food simple is essential. Breakfast, for example. Stewed fruits and muesli and yoghurt are easy. Just make sure the inhouse baker has been tipped the wink. For the two of us, a loaf lasts about a week. With the house full you can go through one a day. Rolls are extremely useful, especially milk rolls which stay soft for a while.

Evenings are tricky. If there is no performance the singers will almost certainly be out rehearsing. They

probably won't want much before they go, but may be ravenous when they get back. Then again, they may have been to the Traverse Bar for a couple of bottles and stopped for chips on the way home. All the while you are doing a sit down dinner for the others. Top tip - over cater. We usually have a freezer full of exotic sausages from Castle Game. Leftovers will be wolfed down at any time, especially after a session in the Traverse Bar* if the chef has been at the performance too. (*Other bars are available.)

Pushing the boat out, I bought a large chunk of sirloin. Expensive, but served cold and thinly sliced it did us for five or six meals. For bulk, tatties are your friend. Potato salad for those who like it, plain boiled with butter and mint for the others. Another pal is the air fryer. Roasted peppers in 15 - 20 minutes; sausages in 10; proper baked potatoes in 40 minutes, much less if you start them in the micro.

If you're trying to do a slightly classier dinner, have dishes which can be cooked quickly. One of my standards is venison in a port and redcurrant sauce. 10 minutes, including prep. Pudding at this time of year is simple. Who doesn't love a plate of berries with yoghurt or home made ice cream which you can do well in advance?

If you have pals like mine, under no circumstances underestimate the amount of booze you will need. A couple of bottles of white in the fridge at all times, whether for a welcome glass, an aperitif, or to assuage the adrenaline highs of the singers post performance. After that, you can then take drinks orders.

On a more mundane level, hotel software would be useful. In its absence a carefully prepared chart will enable you to work out who will be the next occupant of each bed. In other words, can you leave the sheets on till next time? As I write this, the washing machine is merrily spinning.

On a fundamental level, make sure your freezer is full. This year we've had a variety of frozen snacks which can be on a plate in quarter of an hour. One of the biggest hits was L's home made sausage rolls using Castle Game wild boar Lorne sausage and frozen Jus-Rol pastry.

I suspect no one outwith the excellent Edinburgh Festival Chorus has an inkling as to the professionalism and dedication involved. Rehearsals will begin in October for next August. Last Saturday and Sunday there were rehearsals each day from 3 to 10 (after the Sunday morning shift at St Giles Choir for some). Today's rehearsal will be in Glasgow because of a lack of space in Edinburgh. It will continue apace through tomorrow night's performance and the final concert on Sunday.

This reminds me that the next guests arrive in a couple of days. Must do some food shopping and, most importantly, check the bottles. The whole business is great fun, but it doesn't half decimate your wine cellar, despite their generous gifts!

L read the first version of this and suggested I was making it sound like hard work. Absolutely not. Roll on next year!