Scallop Week starts Saturday, February 22 and lasts slightly longer than a week until Sunday, March 1 with a programme of events and menus designed to make you feel hungry and eager to get out and about.
The event programme (which has been pushed through many front doors and hopefully can be found in participating venues and more generally in and around Rye) includes over 30 events with most in Rye – but also includes Peasmarsh and Ewhurst Green.
Events however include both special dinners and musical soirees (depending on who is performing) and 24 restaurants of all shapes and sizes are listed along with their menus which cover almost anything any cook and any country might do with scallops.
And “foodies” are encouraged to look outside Rye as the venues include Iden, Stone in Oxney, Winchelsea, Camber, and Cock Marling in addition to Peasmarsh and Ewhurst Green.
More information can be found online and if you want a scallop to cook try Botterells at Sea Farers in Harbour Road at Rye Harbour or Rye Bay Fish at 73 New Road in Rye.
The music and venues are varied and range from shanties at the Queen’s Head in Landgate to the Rockitmen at the Cinque Port Arms and the Paris Texas Trio at the Ypres Castle Inn.
Webbe’s in Tower Street features a scallop school for adventurous cooks while the Landgate Bistro has a scallop bash on February 28. The Queen’s Head on the other side of the road mixes (as they have done before) scallops with shanties – and possibly even shandies on February 21.
Image Credits: Clive Sawyer .
The Rye Bay Scallop Poem is celebrating its’ 10th Anniversary this year. Penned in a frantic 3 or 4 minutes whilst the kettle boiled one day between Xmas and New Year up in Arrington, near Cambridge).
Go on the scallops.org.uk website and see the box on the right hand side, under “Scallop Poetry”.
I will try to dig out the original “Paintoem” illustrated by the Rye Leg End Mr John Izod (RIP).
There is one of the illustrated Masterpieces (!) above the first table on the right in SI (Simply Italian) unless Maurizio has moved it !
Hip, Hip, Rye Bay !!!