In the frantic world of foodservice the run up to Christmas is always a hectic time, so for the past few years the Jellybean Christmas party has been a January affair. The exact details of the party were a closely guarded secret up until the week before, with only a few clues to go on. We knew the menu looked amazing and we were in for some entertainment, but beyond that it was mainly all guesswork. Imagine our joy therefore when it was revealed on Thursday that we were heading to the world famous Cafe Royal, Regent St, nestled between the elegance of Mayfair and the creativity of Soho (very fitting we thought!). Not only were we to enjoy drinks in the Green Bar with an Absinthe experience (for those brave enough to take the challenge), but we would also be dining in the exclusive Domino Restaurant and then, the ‘pièce de résistance’, we were to be entertained by the Black Cat Cabaret in the legendary Oscar Wilde Bar. Well, to say we were excited doesn’t really do it justice. Even the boys were in deep discussions about what to wear for such a glamourous night ahead!

We couldn’t wait to don our glad rags and head up to the big smoke, so with sparkle, feathers and a fair amount of lippy (and that was just the boys) we headed up to ‘get the party started!’. Drinks in the Green Bar were accompanied by delicious canapés and for the adventurous few the resident mixologist demonstrated the Absinthe fountain and their exclusive range of Absinthes. Synonymous with the Parisian bohemian scene frequented by artists , poets and alike, the ‘green fairy’ (La Fée Verte) was once famed for inducing hallucinations, but thankfully this modern day incarnation didn’t seem to have the same effect. This aniseed concoction was quite an acquired taste, but one our Digital Director seemed quite apt at acquiring.

Once we had all mixed and mingled, with glasses in hand, we headed to the Domino Restaurant to enjoy not only a delicious meal from chef Andrew Turner’s team (who we had worked with previously for a client video) but also some truly astounding close-up magic from Laura London. Having wined and dined, we then tottered down the stairs to the Oscar Wilde Bar where lemon posset dessert and the evening’s main entertainment awaited!

Our host for the evening at the Black Cat Cabaret was the deliciously camp singer and performer Dusty Limits accompanied by Michael Roulston on the piano (along with his rather fetching moustache). The acts for the evening’s line-up included an array of comedy songs from Lady Carol, Dusty Limits and Jaz Delorean, a gentleman juggler – Matt Ricardo and even some twirling burlesque from Vicky Butterfly (which went down very well with the Jellybean boys, unlike Dusty’s foray into the crowd for some hands-on crowd participation). During the performance we found our group in for some special attention, as our lovely Laura was celebrating her birthday and therefore had a less than conventional birthday song dedicated to her (along with a number of asides).

Once the applause had died down and the cabaret was over, in the decadent spirit of the venue it was time to hit the bar and the dance floor. With shots for all, not to mention the gin and tonics, all on top of champagne and wine with dinner, it was always going to get a little messy, but everyone had a great time and made it back to their beds in one piece. Showing the youngsters how it’s done, Gary and Fiona (Our Creative Director and MD) were the last ones standing on the dance floor, throwing shapes and generally having a great time. In fact as the taxis arrived to whisk us home to bed all anyone could talk about was what an amazing time we had had and what terrible hangovers we could all look forward to – but hey! What’s a Christmas party without a hangover and some truly embarrassing photos (for the latter you can visit us on Twitter).

Thanks as ever must go to Fiona, our esteemed leader, for another fabulous Christmas party. What a wonderful way to see in 2015. The only problem now is, how will she ever manage to top this for next year?!

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Since completing my Graphic Design Degree at UCA, I’ve wanted to work in a lively, thriving and sociable Design Agency, and all I can say is that I have found exactly that here at Jellybean!

I came to Jellybean from working as an In house designer for a furniture company. This meant I had one client, which in turn meant I never felt I was working to my full potential, and my creativity felt a bit limited – being only one client. I enjoyed my time there though and learnt a lot, but it was time for a change!

I wanted a challenge, somewhere that I could really develop my skills and really grow within the company. I knew that Jellybean would allow me to do this, and so far I have been right!

I hit the ground running and was able to learn the ways of agency life quickly. The work is wide and varied, and differs on a day-to-day basis. One day you could be working on a magazine ad, the next day a packaging brief or a photo-shoot, and all this for several different clients -which really gets the creative juices flowing!

I couldn’t have joined at a better time – just before Christmas! A time when companies come to life – Jellybean was no exception. The whole team made me feel welcome from the get go, with social events happening after work, it was a great way to meet everyone.

I have learnt so much in a short time and hopefully have brought some fresh creative thinking to briefs! I really don’t know where the time has gone, but all I can say is that is the sign of a great job and I am looking forward to what the future holds.

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice digital agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
It was either between Art and Math’s

What was your best subject as school?
Again I think it was the same, although I was pretty good at design technology

What was your first-ever job?
Working in my uncles hairdressers sweeping and washing hair

What was your worst ever job?
I would probably have to say working in Woolworths in the homeware section, it’s not the most exciting of jobs

What was the first music single you bought?
I have a feeling it was either a snoop dog or five song, which were on cassette and yes they are very different genres

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
When I was about 12, my sister and I would put up a stall in our driveway and sell food from the house and objects we didn’t want anymore, needless to say we didn’t make much money.

What is your motto in life?
Its cheesy but I really like ‘You only live once’ just take life by the horns and have a good time.

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
Free buffet at lunch everyday! With maybe a few drinks on the side.

What’s your favourite movie and why?
I have so many it’s hard to pick one! Saving Private Ryan, Goodfellas, The Butterfly Effect, Training Day and of course 10 things I hate about you! I could name so many more.

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Richard Ayoade, but as his character Moss from the I.T Crowd, he is just a genius, although I don’t think I would get much work done.

What luxury would you have on your desert island?
Probably my iPod, I couldn’t imagine not being able to listen to music.

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
Possibly a monkey, I can be rather loud when I want to, very mischievous and playful also.

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
I think it would have to be Richard Branson, just because of the way he thinks and works, finding the gaps in the market and filling them and producing one of the biggest brands in the world.

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
English

What was your best subject as school?
English (no surprise there)

What was your first-ever job?
Waitress at a pub in Betchworth

What was your worst ever job?
Delivering magazines when I was 11, my backpack was bigger than me!

What was the first music single you bought?
Oasis – Little by Little

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
Buy multi-packs of crisps and sweets and sold them for more money at school

What is your motto in life?
Travel the world, see you new things, explore new destinations and start your own adventures!

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
Three day weekends!

What’s your favourite movie and why?
Toy Story, it was funny as a child and even better as an adult

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Probably Micky Flanagan because he would have me in stitches all day!

What luxury would you have on your desert island? 
Percy Pigs – food of gods

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
A sea turtle because they go with the flow

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
This is a tough one, but I think I would have to say Harry Potter (who wouldn’t want to live at Hogwarts and have an invisible cloak!)

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
French

What was your best subject at school?
French again!

What was your first-ever job?
Woolworths Saturday girl

What was your worst ever job?
Data entry – keying in sales reps’ time sheets. Extremely repetitive and dull!

What was the first music single you bought?
Well I was pretty cool, so probably Take That 😛

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
When I was about 10, I sold cherries from our cherry tree to passers-by in my front garden

What is your motto in life?
Everything happens for a reason

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
To eat whatever I want and not gain weight

What’s your favourite movie and why?
Perfect Pitch…I love ‘Fat Amy’.

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Michael Mcintyre – he’d have me in fits of laughter all day!

What luxury would you have on your desert island?
My Kindle

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
A sheep according to one of those personality tests

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
No idea, probably myself but much younger, stress/worry-free!

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school? 
Swimming

What was your best subject as school? 
Domestic Science – eating the leftovers

What was your first-ever job? 
Retrieving Balls

What was your worst ever job? 
Chasing cats they scratch

What was the first music single you bought? 
Dog Day Afternoon
 
What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done? 
Learning new tricks every day for the rewards

What is your motto in life? 
Love everyone and they will love you

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be? 
To swim in the sea every day

What’s your favourite movie and why? 
101 Dalmations – because they are soooo cute

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why? 
Ben Fogle because he is well travelled, interesting, down to earth and loves dogs

What luxury would you have on your desert island? 
Daily treats as there would be plenty of sticks about to chase in the water

What animal best reflects your personality and why? 
My best friend Seve (a cocker spaniel) as he is fun,lively, loving and such fun to be around.

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why? 
Lassie because he was loved and respected around the world,  is a legend in the world of dogs and humans and his legacy lives on today.

Jellybean Creative is a leading food service public relations agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
I loved History, and Media Studies, but I would probably settle on English Literature because the love is ongoing.

What was your best subject at school?
Media Studies.

What was your first-ever job?
Working as a Saturday girl in a Wedding Dress shop. Most girls dream job I am sure!

What was your worst ever job?
Honestly, I don’t think I have had any jobs I didn’t like for one reason or another. I had a Saturday job at WH Smith while I was at University which was the only one I didn’t really enjoy – it was an early shift doing the papers, which after a Friday night out at the University bar was never a fun wake up call.

What was the first music single you bought?
On tape, Aqua- Dr Jones. On CD, Semisonic – Secret Smile.

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
When my friend and I were about 14, we baked cakes every weekend to sell at our church on Sunday. We noticed those hungry adults in search of a sugar fix after a long service, half-heartedly munching on ‘Nice’ biscuits at coffee time and saw our market.

What is your motto in life?
Not sure I have one, but something often quoted over the last few years is “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Also the genius of John Hughes “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
To time travel. In the Tardis. With the Doctor.

What’s your favourite movie and why?
I love film, so this is always an impossible question, I can’t even nail down a top ten! Favourites include.. Lord of the Rings, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Lars and the Real Girl, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Intouchables, It’s a Wonderful Life, Unforgiven, Groundhog Day, Rear Window … it goes on and on and I know I will beat myself up later for ones not mentioned!

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Victoria Coren-Mitchell. A great writer, creative, witty, and smart. I just want to be her friend.

What luxury would you have on your desert island?
A Kindle with Unlimited Wifi Access.

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
Difficult, but I will go with a Baby Deer. Big eyed, a bit skittish, but quite playful when comfortable.

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
Audrey Hepburn, because she is perfection, or David Bowie because he is David Bowie.

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice design agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
Textiles

What was your best subject at school?
English

What was your first-ever job?
Waitressing

What was your worst ever job?
Waitressing, the chef nearly reduced me to tears when I smashed a plate

What was the first music single you bought?
Westlife – Uptown Girl (safe to say I could still listen to Westlife all day)

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
Making perfume from crushed flowers and trying to sell it to my friends in primary school

What is your motto in life?
Learn from your past and build for your future

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
A bank card that has endless amounts of money on

What’s your favourite movie and why?
Bridget Jones, I can relate to the situations she gets herself in

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Leonardo DiCaprio so I could stare at him all day

What luxury would you have on your desert island?
A chef to cook for me, along with some bottles of wine

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
Probably a Chihuahua, I’m small but can definitely be heard

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
Coco Chanel, I would have all of the most amazing handbags

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
Media Studies

What was your best subject at school?
English and Media Studies

What was your first-ever job?
A paper round

What was your worst ever job?
Probably the same paper round. Not only did I have to deliver the newspapers, I also had to put all the leaflets and supplements in them one by one. All for about £2 an hour.

What was the first music single you bought?
I think it was All Saints – I Know Where It’s At. Or it could have been something even more embarrassing like Boyzone.

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
Probably outsourcing the paper round to other children but keeping the money!

What is your motto in life?
Everything works out ok in the end – if it isn’t ok yet, it’s not the end.

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
Unlimited holidays

What’s your favourite movie and why?
There are so many, it depends what mood I’m in! Man on Fire is brilliant, Super Bad is hilarious and The Notebook is the ultimate tearjerker.

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Peter Kay – always good to have a bit of humour in the office

What luxury would you have on your desert island?
Aside from the obvious friends/family I’d have to have a fully loaded Kindle – I am a massive bookworm but don’t have as much time as I’d like to read. On a desert island I’d have all the time in the world!

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
Dog – friendly, loyal, enthusiastic, love going for walks!

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
Beyonce – what a life.

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

What was your favourite subject at school?
Spanish

What was your best subject at school?
Spanish “Dos cerveze y un bocadillo de jamon por favor” – it’s all you need to get by J

What was your first-ever job?
I worked in a golf club café serving fry-ups, sandwiches and muffins

What was your worst ever job?
Being a promo girl for The Telegraph at East Croydon train station in rush hour

What was the first music single you bought?
Bros – Drop the boy (oooherr)

What is the most entrepreneurial thing you have ever done?
Made and sold lavender bags to neighbours when I was 6

What is your motto in life?
Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.

If you were allowed one dream perk what would it be?
Free flights around the world

What’s your favourite movie and why?
Shrek. Gingy is by far the best character!

If you could pick a celebrity to join the agency who would it be and why?
Channing Tatum. So I could look at him. A lot.

What luxury would you have on your desert island?
Mojitos

What animal best reflects your personality and why?
A cat. Independent, like a fuss every now and then but on my terms, bit of a night owl, partial to a daytime nap, mastered the look of disdain, jump at loud noises and pretty low maintenance.

If you could be anybody in the world (alive or dead) who would you be and why?
Me. Because if I wasn’t me I wouldn’t have met the people I have met, done the things I have done and seen the things I have seen. And so far, it’s been pretty good.

Jellybean Creative is a leading foodservice digital agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

This year, after the usual excesses of Christmas, I headed off to NYC with my other half and son for a trip which would take in the very best of the New York foodie scene (as well as a fair amount of sightseeing and the obligatory retail therapy!). There are of course hundreds of restaurants to choose from in New York so there are doubtless ones that we failed to grace with our presence, but with five days to cram in as much as humanly possible we did our very best at a foodie safari of the Big Apple!

So here’s a bite size review of the ones that made the cut…

5 Napkins Burger
In the heart of Hell’s Kitchen this hip burger joint boasts some of the best burgers in town. We sampled the deep fried pickles with pastrami and of course we had to have burgers, which were very good, especially the ‘special of the day’ which included a Portobello mushroom and truffle aioli – yum!

Brooklyn Diner
Diners are quintessentially American and no visit to New York would be complete without a visit to one. Our first (there’s more to come!) was the Brooklyn Diner where we had a less than light lunch with some fabulous malt shakes and half a tonne of pastrami – how much more American can you get!

Keens
A legendary steak restaurant and owner of the largest collection of churchwarden pipes in the world Keens dates back to the 19th Century and is famed not only for its colourful history (including a run in with Lilly Langtry) but also, and more importantly, its amazing (and huge) steaks. It is fair to say that if you plan to eat at Keens you want to arrive hungry which was a challenge after the Brooklyn Diner, but we did a sterling job and at the end of the meal, two steaks, each approximately the size of a human head, had been demolished (I opted for fish which was equally substantial but a little lighter).

Fresh & Co
After a rather carnivorous couple of days we opted for a healthier start to the day with breakfast at Fresh & Co, a chain similar to Pod in the UK. This high street concept offers healthy options throughout the day including kale smoothies, porridge, a build your own salad bar and much more. After the a couple of days of true USA indulgence it was a welcome break from the supersized meals and set-us up for the day.

Ritz Carlton Central Park Star Lounge
Our New Year’s Eve plan was to visit Schillers which came highly recommended, however, having weighed up the challenge of getting around town on New Year’s Eve we chickened out and stayed at the ‘none too shabby’ Ritz Carlton’s Star Lounge for dinner with a wander out at midnight to see the fireworks in Central Park amongst revellers from around the world. Not for us the joy of being penned-in in Times Square for ten hours awaiting the iconic ‘ball drop’, instead we opted to dine in style waited on by possibly the most attentive staff in history – it was a tough choice but the right one I think.

48th Street Diner
On our way to the ‘Top of the Rock’ (Rockefeller Centre) we stopped off for a bit of breakfast at the 48th Street Deli. Although a little more rough and ready than our usual destination breakfasts it set us up for the day with the US special – pancakes, bacon and maple syrup – well, when in Rome!

Magnolia Bakery
On-route from our bus tour around Downtown Manhattan we passed the famous Magnolia Bakery (as featured in Sex in the City) – for once it didn’t seem to have a queue snaking around the store – so I waited for a mere five minutes before being welcomed in to make my selection. I went with vanilla, chocolate and red velvet cupcakes and a few cookies for good measure and I have to say they didn’t disappoint. I can certainly understand why they are the cupcake of choice for Carrie & co!

John’s Pizza Bleeker Street
A New York institution, John’s of Bleeker Street is world renowned for serving the best pizza in New York. So much so that they don’t take bookings nor do take-away, so if you want to sample the joys of John’s Pizza you can expect to queue in line (in our case in the freezing cold) to get in. After a forty odd minute wait whilst staring with mouths agog and noses pressed against the window at the lucky diners inside, we were in! And it was worth the wait – what a pizza. It was so good we even got the t-shirt to remind us of our visit.

Carnegie Deli
New York is famed for its diners and although we took a look at Katz (which had a starring role in ‘When Harry Met Sally’) and had of course swung by the Brooklyn Diner, this time we plumped (being the operative word) for the famous Carnegie Deli as our ‘last hurrah!’ in New York. The pastrami sandwich that would require dislocating your jaw to tackle without a knife and fork (thankfully cutlery was supplied) and a slice of classic New York Cheesecake that could feed a family were “awesome”. As ever the customer service was outstanding, something that struck us throughout the trip and brought into sharp relief the difference between London and the US. Some may argue that it’s the focus on tips that drives it, but it seems to go deeper, as even shop assistants can’t seem to do enough for you and you don’t tip them!

Anyway, having eaten our way around the city, seen the sights and shopped ‘til we dropped, we made our way home a good few pounds heavier and a fair few dollars lighter back to Blighty, having seen-in 2015 in style in the Big Apple (pretty much the one thing we didn’t manage to eat!).

Jellybean Creative is a social media foodservice agency as well as a foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.