Searching for Birmingham’s 50 Hidden Food Heroes

Around a month ago I was contacted by Carole at No Ping No Bling. She told me about a project she was working on to uncover Birmingham’s 50 hidden food heroes. These could be anything from family run restaurants to streetfood vendors, farmers markets, bloggers, caterers and more. It sounded like something quite unique and unlike a lot of the PR and product emails I get, this one piqued my interest. I was especially keen to find out more as I learnt that she’s taken this mammoth project on off her own back.

This weekend I was able to put a face to a name when we met at Brum Yum Yum. The hubby and I were impressed with her passion and found it infectious as we discussed where and what to eat and shared our views on supper clubs, chain restaurants and everything in between. Carole is planning to pull all of her research into a food guide in the form of a pack of cards which will highlight Birmingham’s hidden gems serving all types of cuisine from around world including Polish, Lebanese, Ethiopian, Keralan and Turkish. The name ‘No Ping No Bling’ means nothing reheated in the microwave and no chain restaurants. This is all about helping shine a light on the things we don’t always know about.

She’s produced a film explaining how she came up with the idea and what the project is all about. In fact, she’s using crowdfunder to help raise the money needed for the printing of the cards. She’ll also be running a launch event and some dining club groups. No one has paid to go into the guide and Carole has funded all the tastings herself. Her intention is for the guide to be available for tourists and locals alike – on sale in high street stores, on-line, at food events and even on aircraft coming into the city so that people can plan before they arrive in Birmingham.

This is a great idea and I really hope No Ping No Bling takes off – if you have 5 minutes, please watch the film and pledge to help put real local foodies on the map! Find out more by following No Ping No Bling on twitter or visit Carole’s’ crowdfunder page to make a pledge!