Tag: Turkey

Ten of the Priciest – 2025’s Most Expensive Food & Drink Products

Anthony Smart explores the background to ten of the world’s most expensive food and drink products

Whilst Aldo Gucci once said that “quality is remembered long after price is forgotten,” some of the most expensive food and drinks products out there are very, very expensive with good reason.

Topping the list of steeply priced foods and drinks are items that are made with scarcely available ingredients or produced in peculiar ways that might be labour or time intense, or indeed both.

If you can stomach the outlay involved, here are ten of the most expensive food and drink products you might wish to add to your shopping list:

Almas caviar (as much as £40,000 per kilogram)

The world’s highest value caviar is known as Almas and harvested from albino beluga sturgeon eggs taken from the South Caspian Sea. It is so highly priced mainly because it is considered the “rarest of the rare” caviars and the process of harvesting it is laborious.

Alba white truffle (approximately £8,800 per kilogram)

Another pricey treasure is the Alba white truffle, which originates from Piedmont in Italy. Valued for the depth of flavour it provides; it is in high demand, but very difficult to grow due to its unique climate and soil needs.

Matsutake mushrooms (approximately £1,760 per kilogram)

The Japanese value matsutake mushrooms (pine mushrooms) for their distinctive aroma and flavour. This especially hard-to-find fungus, which can go for £800 a pound (around £1,760 a kilo), are wild foraged, not farmed, and require very particular growth conditions. In 2020, they were added to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list of threatened species for the first time.

Kobe beef (approximately £352 per kilogram)

Kobe beef is raised in Hyōgo prefecture in Japan, using a particular breed of Wagyu cattle. This beef can be sold for £160 per pound (around £352 per kilogram) because of its fat marbling and tenderness, according to Lottoland’s guide. One factor that adds to its high price is the strict regulation of its production and its limited supply.

Elvish honey is also known as ‘Fairy Honey’ and considered “the densest, highest and most magical honey harvested in the north-east Black Sea. It is cultivated “high in the untouched mountains of Arhavi and produced by a colony of Caucasian wild bees that pollinate from medicinal, endemic herbs and plants.”

Almas caviar is lauded as “boasting the rich buttery notes of fresh beluga, enhanced by a natural aroma that is entirely its own.” The albino beluga sturgeon must reach the age of 100 years before its eggs can finally be harvested and the result is said to be a “caviar of breathtaking beauty, with a brilliant ethereal white hue that sparkles like diamonds.”

Matsutake mushrooms are prized in Japanese cuisine for their distinct, spicy aroma. Whilst abundant in the country until the 1940s, the annual harvest of matsutake in Japan itself is now less than 1,000 tonnes per year – which has resulted in their price rocketing.

Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of crocus sativus. It is used as a seasoning and colouring agent in food and is the world’s costliest spice by weight.

Saffron (approximately £8,800 per kilogram)

Often referred to as ‘red gold,’ saffron is the most expensive spice in the world, going for roughly £4,000 a pound (£8,800 a kilogram). It has a premium price because harvesting saffron is very labour-intensive, needing thousands of crocus flowers for a small number of saffron threads.

Bluefin tuna sushi (as much as £250,000 per fish)

At the top end of sushi cuisine, particularly in Japan, is bluefin tuna. This beautiful fish can touch six feet in length and weigh hundreds of pounds. With individual fish going for upwards of £250,000 at auction, the prices have rocketed because of overfishing and endangered species status. Seafood lovers will appreciate the deep flavour and texture.

Kopi luwak coffee (approximately £1,100 per kilogram)

Kopi luwak is the priciest coffee in the world, costing approximately £500 per pound (£1,100 per kilogram). Made from coffee beans that are consumed and then excreted by civets, this speciality coffee is fermented in the digestive system of these animals, which adds to its flavour.

Ibérico ham (between £400 to £5,500 per leg)

Ibérico ham is Spanish cured ham made from free-range Ibérico pigs fed on acorns during the ‘montanero’ period (October to February). Prices can range from £400 to more than £5,500 depending on grade and quality and the process of ageing can take a number of years. Its umami taste is rich and is in demand for gourmet goods.

Elvish honey (around £4,500 per kilogram)

This ‘elixir’ is harvested under challenging conditions in Turkey and can reach a price of around £4,500 per kilogram. The steep cost is largely due to the specialised environment in which this ‘precious nectar’ is produced on the north-east Black Sea and the laborious process of harvesting it; honey hunters need to work extremely hard to access the hives and walk for eight hours to reach the ‘safeguard tree’ once per year.

Densuke watermelon (upto £5,000 each)

The Densuke watermelon, prized for its unique black skin, is only cultivated on Hokkaido Island in Japan. As there are only about 10,000 harvested each year, these watermelons can fetch as much as £5,000 each at auction.

Anthony Smart is a food writer who has spent his life sampling delicious delights and whose grandfather was Field Marshal Montgomery’s personal chef. Follow him on Twitter / X at @A_Smart_Writes.

January 14, 2025
Word of the Week 2022 – Galanthophile

In cultivating a new variety of snowdrop Joe Sharman – known to many as ‘Mr Snowdrop’ – has brought joy to ‘galanthophiles’ everywhere and made himself £1,850 from just one bulb also; amusingly there’s even a variety named ‘John’s Y-Fronts’

It’s always great to improve one’s grasp of etymology and this morning I learnt about a word that describes a charmingly endearing collection of people. That word? Galanthophile.

A noun of 19^th century origin that takes the snowdrop galanthus’s taxonomic name from the Greek gala, galkt ‘milk’ and antho- ‘flower,’ those that so enthusiastically collect these “magical and really special” bell-shaped flowers are known as galanthophiles.

The official flower for January birthdays and brought to Britain by the Romans, the “milk flower of the snow” – as it is sometimes described – is said to symbolise hope, purity, innocence and sympathy. It is the first flower to bloom at the end of winter and though Victorians associated it with death and bad luck, on Saturday, The Guardian’s Steven Morris charmingly reported on “hordes of galanthophiles” descending on Buckland Monachorum on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon this week to “take in the sight of a beloved flower that this time of year provides a vivid reminder than warmer, cheerier seasons are ahead.”

In a second article for The Guardian this morning, the paper’s Jamie Grierson enthused that a single bulb of new type of snowdrop – a variety named ‘Golden Tears’ – that has just sold on eBay for the remarkable sum of £1,850.

Grown by Cottenham, Cambridgeshire plantsman Joe Sharman (AKA ‘Mr Snowdrop’) of the Monksilver Nursery, ‘Golden Tears’ received 55 bids and finally hammered down to a buyer “unidentified.” It was listed as:

“A narrow-flowered yellow pterugiform with a very large mark and bright yellow ovary. Very beautiful and distinct. Quite different from Golden Fleece. Exceptionally vigorous. 25cm. The result of a deliberate cross by me using the same parents that created Golden Fleece. First time sold by us on eBay only named 2 weeks ago. Only one for the season.”

In 2015, in an interview with The Guardian – clearly the paper with the most enthusiasm for snowdrops on the planet – Joe Sharman concluded:

“They come up early in the year when nothing else is growing, so if you have the kind of brain that needs lots of things to think about, you focus in.”

“They seem to be almost infinitely variable. You collect the 10 you recognise, then you realise that you can recognise 20 and it just goes from there. I don’t think there is another group of plants quite like it.”

Pictured top – Joe Sharman (right) and the now famous £1,850 flower he has spent years cultivating.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQv7kHDHb5E

Britain’s leading botanist by far Dr Shirley Sherwood OBE – the widow of the late buccaneering businessman and one-time owner of hotels including the Cipriani in Venice and the Venice-Simplon Orient Express train service also James Sherwood – is a noted enthusiast on the subject of snowdrops. In December 2021, this delightful lady took to YouTube to discuss a painting of the flowers by Susan Ogilvy and commented: “I love snowdrops. I have lots in my garden and we have a very particularly version of the snowdrop. Whole groups of people, clubs of people who like snowdrops and grow every single kind they can think of. I think there are many, many varieties and of course there are wild snowdrops too.” Of her painting, she endearingly declared: “This is a lovely painting and it justifiably is one of the favourite ones in my collection.”

Speaking to the ‘Daily Mail’ yesterday, gardening writer Val Bourne remarked of the bulb sold of eBay: “[It’ll] go under the knife. They’ll cut it into 20 pieces and start selling individual plants. They’ll get their money back in three or four years. It’s a mad hobby.” Going further previously, Mr Sharman commented: “Security is a big problem. I know people who have opened their gardens and had everything stolen. I don’t open my garden or nursery. But stealing snowdrops is like stealing a Van Gogh. If it’s rare, all the galanthophiles will know who propagated it and where it was stolen from.” In 2019, two men were arrested for stealing 13,000 bulbs from the Walsingham Estate in Norfolk and amongst famous collectors are Lord and Lady Heseltine. The former Deputy Prime Minister under John Major has accumulated over 700 varieties at Thenford House in Northamptoshire in his “garden of major importance.” Whether they have the variety named ‘John’s Y-Fronts’ is unknown.

Anyone who picks an endemic variety of the plant in the national park will be fined £5,954 ($8,070, €7,113 or درهم29,600, 110,000 Turkish Lira) according to a report published in the ‘Hurriyet Daily News’ in February 2022. The fine has risen from £4,330 ($5,870, €5,174 or درهم21,600, 110,000 Turkish Lira) last year and of why, Halil Ernalçacı, the head of Mount Spil Nature Park, told the paper: “Our visitors should be cautious when they walk in the park. They should look for where they take their steps.”

Artist, botanist and horticulturist Edward Augustus Bowles (1865 – 1954) of Myddleton House, Enfield, London was a well known “snowdrop enthusiast.” In January 2013, the blog ‘Plant Heritage’ delved into his connections to the flower after visiting a snowdrop sale at his former home.

Types of Snowdrops

Snowdrops bloom from September through to March and peak in January and February. Amongst the many types – there are in excess of 1,700 in the collection of Joe Sharman alone – are:

Galanthus ‘Dionysus’

Named after the god of the grape harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit.

Galanthus ‘Elwesii”

Named after H. J. Elwes, an English plant collector who found the original plants in Turkey. Its leaves “neatly fold inside the other” and its “flowers have two green spots on the inner petals, which sometimes fuse together.”

Galanthus ‘Fly Fishing’

Features a “long, slender pedicel (stalk) that looks like a fishing rod.”

Galanthus ‘Golden Fleece’

Joe Sharman spent 18 years developing this and sold a bulb of this variety for £1,390 ($1,884, €1,661 or درهم6,920).

Galanthus ‘Golden Tears’

A new variety and record breaker in terms of the £1,850 ($2,508, €2,210 or درهم9,210) price Joe Sharman sold it for, this variety features a “narrow-flowered yellow pterugiform with a very large mark and bright yellow ovary” and is noted as “very beautiful and distinct” and “exceptionally vigorous.”

Galanthus ‘Ivy Cottage Corporal’

“Features two green Vs resembling a corporal’s stripes.”

Galanthus nivalis ‘Norfolk Blonde’

Rather like a blonde bimbo, this snowdrop features “pale leaves and pale yellow flowers” and has a “long ovary” also.

Galanthus ‘Ophelia’

Named after Shakespeare’s tragic young noblewoman of Denmark who ends up in a state of madness that ultimately leads to her drowning.

Galanthus ‘Nothing Special’

Modestly named though lauded by Joe Sharman as “one of the best forms I have selected,” this “very clean white and wonderfully scented” snowdrop is supposedly “vigorous” also.

Galanthus ‘Primrose Warburg’

Described as a “dainty snowdrop with yellowish leaves” and named after the “legendary galanthophile Primrose Warburg.”

Galanthus ‘Trumps’

Described as having “an elegant flaring pagoda shape” and thankfully has nothing to do with the 45^th POTUS of the same name.

Galanthus ‘Wendy’s Gold’

Described as “far more vigorous than [other] yellows.”

Galanthus ‘John’s Y-Fronts’

This variant is described as “small, late, neat, single with a very clearly Y-shaped mark on inner.” It has grey leaves. Could it’s name have been inspired by the former British Prime Minister John Major’s “underpant episode” with Edwina Currie where he allegedly tucked his shirt into his allegedly grey Y-fronts?

February 22, 2022
Saving Ibex; Stopping Switlyk

As the ‘Guardian’ report on trophy hunters flocking to Sudan to shoot rare ibex, we remind the public to support our petition to put a stop to mentally unhinged ibex slaughterer Larysa Switlyk

This morning, the Guardian reported that “conservationists fear for endangered Nubian ibex in Sudan as westerners [are] sold permits to hunt” them.

In an article in the paper’s ‘Global Development’ section – which is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation – Kaamil Ahmed remarked:

“Sudanese conservationists have accused trophy hunters of exploiting the country’s political transition to hunt the country’s unprotected rare animals.”

“Photographs posted online of westerners posing with the body of a rare Nubian ibex angered Sudanese wildlife campaigners this week. They called for Facebook to remove the pages of tour groups promoting such hunts.”

“While wildlife hunters have long come from the Gulf, Abubakr Mohammad, a biodiversity researcher, has seen a recent trend for western trophy hunters to come too, which he said could be a result of the country being more open to outsiders since the removal of Omar al-Bashir, the former president. Permits for hunting are being given out without sufficient scrutiny, says campaigners.”

Elsewhere, our Change.org petition against Larysa Switlyk, a marauding monster with a penchant for killing rare ibex in Krygyzstan, Spain and Turkey, is fast approaching 20,000 signatures. Equally, our second against giraffe slayer Merelize van der Merwe will soon be at 45,000.

If you have not signed, please take a moment to do so and if you have, yet again we kindly request that you share as widely as possible. These reprehensible individuals truly must be stopped.

Pictured top: Larysa Switlyk and an associate posing smugly with an ibex she massacred.

Join the nigh on 44,200 people who have signed our Change.org petition seeking to get giraffe slayer Merelize van der Merwe banned from Facebook by clicking here.

Join the nigh on 19,500 people who have signed our Change.org petition seeking to get Ibex massacring Larysa Switlyk banned from Instagram by clicking here.

Larysa Switlyk’s delight at killing rare ibex is clear in these photographs. In reality, the snaps simply illustrate a woman who truly belongs in Bedlam.

After murdering a Bezoar ibex in November 2018, wicked wastrel Switlyk took to Twitter to boast about her “dream” coming true. Whilst most would consider this a “nightmare,” 386 fellow psychos pressed ‘like’ on this morally reprehensible tweet.

Last week, Larysa Switlyk took a break from slaying rare ibex and announced on Instagram that “the new hunting trend in Florida” is slaughtering “invasive” iguana. She claimed: “They are also tasty to eat and one can use their skins to make leather goods out of.” She justified herself by arguing: “Iguanas cause damage to the infrastructure of sidewalks.” It’d be interesting to know if she’d also support, perhaps, say, shooting pests on motorised scooters on pavements on the same basis.

In this gruesome 4:04-minute video shared by Donald Trump Jr.’s bestie Larysa Switlyk on YouTube in July 2019, the lover of shoving sex toys up the bums of dead sheep shot a Bezoar ibex and then posed with bits of it. She claimed: “Lots of conservation efforts and government regulations go into managing these ibex,” but neglected to mention that for each one shot, the species moves closer to being wiped out.

In another video, wholeheartedly evil Switlyk declared: “Discover what dreams are made of” in a video about slaying mid Asian ibex in Krygyzstan. In the twisted footage, her first shot failed to kill one unfortunate animal and then after letting it suffer for some time, she childishly giggled over her “awesome” massacre whilst stroking the blood covered beard of her unfortunate victim.

March 23, 2021
Ban the InstaKiller

Wolf slaying ‘InstaKiller’ Larysa Switlyk disgracefully remains on Instagram in spite of campaign to remove her going viral on Change.org

On 11^th September, Matthew Steeples of The Steeple Times started a Change.org petition calling for the removal of bear and wolf massacring monster Larysa Switlyk’s Instagram ‘blue tick’ verified badge and, better still, her account entirely.

In the time since, over 3,630 people have already signed, yet still shover-of-sex-toys-up-the-bums-of-dead sheep ‘InstaKiller’ Switlyk continues to post shamelessly and freely on the site. Why, one has to ask, do Instagram continue to allow this extremely offensive content to pollute their medium?

Amongst updates posted in the time since are offensive images of this evil woman posing whilst on a chamois and wolf ‘hunt’ in Macedonia and another asking: “What is your go to knife?”

Clearly indicative of her and her followers deranged mental statuses – especially at a time when knife crime is so sadly prevalent – in response to one follower revealing: “I could go broke buying knives,” Switlyk distastefully answered: “You and me both!”

We again ask readers to please sign the Change.org petition to ban Larysa Switlyk by clicking here and that you all also please share as widely as possible.

Thank you.

Pictured top: Larysa Switlyk with two of her ‘kills’ this month, a wolf and a Balkan chamois and with a knife she is promoting as part of a competition. Why does Instagram allow this vile content sharer to continue? #ShameOnInstagram

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Ban the InstaKiller – In a post yesterday, this distinctly un-ladylike lunatic asked: “Who would be interested in a ladies waterfowl hunt?”

Ban the InstaKiller – Larysa Switlyk has previously shared images online of herself with a sex toy she inserted into the arse of a sheep she’d shot in England and in countless shots with wolfs she’d slayed.

September 22, 2020
Instagram – Ban Larysa Switlyk
Change.org petition launched to demand the evil sex toy-shover-up-the-bums-of-sheep Larysa Switlyk be banned from Instagram

Given the angry reaction to our story on Friday about Larysa Switlyk from our readers, we have now started a Change.org petition calling on Instagram to at the very least remove this Trump supporting endangered animal slayer’s ‘blue tick’ and a the very best, ban her altogether from the medium.

Posting a petition to the Change.org site about the hunting world’s equivalent of Katie Hopkins, Matthew Steeples remarked:

Animal massacrer Larysa Switylk has a blue tick on Instagram in spite of the fact she has:
1. Posted pictures of herself with the bodies of endangered spieces she has killed such as mountain goats and Coke’s hartebeests. She posts these images to Instagram.
1. Has bragged about shooting a sheep in England and shoved a sex toy up its bum. She posted this toecurlingly sick image to the site.
1. Associated with other killers of amongst animals including alligators, peacocks, turkeys, elephants, lions and leopards such as Donald Trump’s sons and brags about what they kill. She has no respect for her victims and posts pictures of such to Instagram.
Larysa Switlyk’s content is offensive and her smugness about killing endangered creatures is morally reprehensible. It is unacceptable and should not be posted to a medium where it can be seen by hundreds of millions of people.

Larysa Switlyk should a) lose the blue tick she should never have been given by Instagram in the first place and secondly b) she should be banned from Instagram for posting offensive content.

We ask readers to please sign the Change.org petition to ban Larysa Switlyk by clicking here and that you all also please share as widely as possible.

Thank you.

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Twitter: @SteepleTimes and @M_Steeples

Ban Larysa Switlyk from Instagram – That this vile woman enjoys shooting slow moving creatures like sheep about sums up her complete lack of a moral compass. Why do social media operators allow her to continue to share such imagery?
September 11, 2020
Monster of the Moment – Priscilla Magana

Bear butchering barbarian bitch and slutty sportswear seller Priscilla Magana should be banned from social media; this Trump supporting monster instead belongs in the nuthouse

If you thought Larysa Switlyk was barbaric and bloodthirsty, meet Donald Trump supporting trashbag knicker retailer Priscilla Magana.

Whilst the former has a brain that plainly got bashed with the very same sex toy she rammed up the arse of a sheep, the latter not only also goes around shooting bears; Magana somehow also finds time to help run a supposedly “successful” sports underwear manufacturer, WSI Sportswear, with her husband Joel Wiens.

Priscilla Likes to Pose – “There’s just something about winter in a cozy fur coat!” she announced on Instagram in February; with her husband Joel Wiens on their wedding day and with a turkey she’d shot.

Bear Butchering Barbarian Bitch – Priscilla Magana poses with an ‘Idaho Spring Black Bear’ and expresses her “gratitude” after she “harvested” it. “Memories that will last a lifetime,” this evil woman remarked in June 2020.

In business for 30 years according to CBSN Minnesota, whilst “cozy fur coat” wearing Magana’s firm “makes clothes for big league and college sports teams,” she also finds time to massacre alligators, billy goats and turkeys even.

Sadly, ‘Maniac Magana’ also finds time for “rolling around in the mud” in New Zealand with Switlyk for snaps with “feral goats.” In one shot posted to Instagram, this madwoman even goes as far as to term one she’d slayed: “What a Boss!” She then bragged about “stalking” the slowest-and-stupidest-creatures-on-the-planet, sheep, also.

A “sickened citizen,” whom submitted information about this lunatic to The Steeple Times by email, remarked:

This is absolutely disgusting, this woman is going around bragging about killing a bear. And then she talks about how she has a deeper connection to life by taking a life!

Totally unbelievable… And her whole Instagram account is full of these sick pictures.

She is the owner of WSI Sports clothing brand, and she advertises the latest fashions alongside these poor defenseless murdered animals! If it’s not enough to take their life, she makes them help advertise her clothing in their death! And she recruits other women to wear her clothing too in front of the animal corpses… Please make this more public so she will be stopped!

She is barbaric!

Here, indeed, in Magana is a butchering bitch of epic proportions and here in WSI Sportswear is a business those colleges and sports teams should respectfully start boycotting. Today, we deservedly name and shame Priscilla Magana as our Monster of the Moment.

#BoycottWSISportswear #BanPriscillaMagana #NameAndShame

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Monster of the Moment – The legwear marketed by Priscilla Magana is as trashy as her sorry, evil self.

Priscilla for POTUS – On 15th June this year, Magana declared: “Happy Birthday POTUS” alongside hashtags including #freedomisntfree.

As You Don’t – In May 2019, Magana reminisced about a “DIY hunt” of a billy goat “in their back yard.” It was “worth every drop of sweat and effort,” she stated before adding: “I’m extremely grateful for these chicas, they are the real deal.”

Agitating Alligators – Priscilla Magana posed with “two big dinosaurs” she’d killed in October 2018. “Man o man we Gator done,” she enthused.

“What a Boss!” (NOT) – Larysa Switlyk supposedly spent time “rolling around in the mud” to capture this shot in July 2018. What a horrendous thought.

“Unique to New Zealand” (and killed by Priscilla Magana) – “Some call it the rasatafari ‘Bob Marley sheep’ and I can see why!” enthused this moronic massacring moron in July 2018. “The anticipation, the nerves… The feelings… Bursting out,” she disgustingly gushed.

“The best birthday party I’ve ever been invited to” – Priscilla Magana ‘celebrates’ an “incredible moment together” with Larysa Switlyk in June 2018.

June 25, 2020
Gertrude Bell did NOT live here

Should there be a blue plaque in honour of the controversial explorer Gertrude Bell in Cadogan Square in spite of the fact she did not actually “live” there?

Today, in The Guardian, arts correspondent Mark Brown reported on the controversy that has arisen as a result of English Heritage deciding it appropriate to approve a blue plaque in honour of Gertrude Bell CBE (1868 – 1926) in Cadogan Square, Knightsbridge.

Gertrude Bell has variously been described as an administrator, peace maker, preserver of heritage, pioneer and a woman of international influence. She was also considered a spy and mocked for opposing vote’s for women.

Though home to the explorer’s grandmother and a place she stayed at on “numerous occasions” for over 40 years, Bell’s biographer, Graham Best, asks: “Is this a case of cultural appropriation? … She didn’t really have anything to do with London.”

He continues:

“The thing with Gertrude Bell is that everyone is trying to appropriate her as a person. She is deeply misunderstood.”

“The thing is everyone is trying to grab hold of Gertrude Bell and say yes, she’s one of us. But she’s not.”

Going further, the article also attempts to smear “Queen of the Desert” Bell by referring to the fact that she opposed vote’s for women and repeatedly makes reference to the William Morris designed Red Barns in Redcar being her genuine home.

Just like with Queen Elizabeth I – a woman who seemingly slept in every bed in the land – it is effectively plaques to famous people could end up being put up just about everywhere they ever went. In February this year, The Steeple Times reported on a condominium in Pacific Heights, San Francisco that was for sale complete with a plaque that proclaimed: “2151 Sacramento Street: This house, built in 1881, was once occupied by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.” It turned out that the author had “visited” the building for just a few hours.

Pictured top: Nicole Kidman as Gertrude Bell with Robert Pattinson as T. E. Lawrence in the “muddled mess” that was Werner Herzog’s 2015 film ‘Queen of the Desert.’

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December 26, 2018
A $20k Gobble

New York hotel offers a Thanksgiving dinner complete with gold-flaked turkeys and bottomless champagne for £15,100

Late last week Guest of a Guest reported that a New York hotel is to offer a Thanksgiving dinner with a difference.

Priced at £15,100 ($20,000, €17,000 or درهم73,500), HGU New York at 34 East 32^nd Street’s “luxurious holiday dinner experience” includes the services of a personal event planner, butler service, a 5-piece jazz band, and two king hotel suites. Two gold-flaked turkeys, liquid gold hot chocolate and bottomless champagne form part of a “curated meal” by executive chef Keith Geter also.

Those with pockets deep enough to book should email [email protected]

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November 20, 2017
Hero of the Hour – Chuka Umunna

Chuka Umunna MP speaks sense on Britain’s membership of the Single Market

This morning, Chuka Umunna spoke for many when he was interviewed on Radio 4’s Today programme.

The Labour MP commented:

We’re saying from the point of view of London where you’ve got over 600,000 jobs that are linked to our membership of the Single Market, whether you voted to Remain or Leave, you didn’t vote to be poorer.

Our membership of the Single Market was not on the ballot as it were, during that EU Referendum campaign. We’re saying that yes you can be outside of the European Union and be in the Customs Union, like Turkey for example and you be outside the European Union and in the Single Market like Norway.

You can actually reform the ways freedom of movement works within that context. For example, at the moment there’s one thing that we don’t do that could do now under free movement rules – which have never, by the way, been unconditional. So, for example, if somebody comes here, and they’ve been here for three months, they haven’t got work, and there’s no prospects of that, they can be asked to leave. We don’t do that at the moment.

And there are counties in the Single Market like, for example, Lichtenstein who have actually been able to apply quotas to the number of EU citizens coming. So, I don’t accept this kind of binary explanation of how things work.

We can actually stay in the Single Market, have the benefits it brings but also reform the way our immigration arrangements work.

Yesterday, Umunna was joined by sixteen general election candidates to launch a pamphlet called Stop Hard Brexit: Why London needs the Single Market. He should be saluted for this bold move and for his wise words today also.

May 13, 2017
Emir Bahadir – What’s on your mantelpiece?

A 20-question interview with 25-year old New York based BHDR real estate brokerage and development firm founder Emir Bahadir

The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom”. What’s your guiding force?

My driving force is being able to bridge the gap between international investors and local markets. Being a member of the fifth generation of my family, my guiding force is maintaining the business standards set forth by my ancestors.

“Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?

‘More is more, work smart not hard’ and ‘Well done is better than well said’.

Kerry Katona was considered unacceptable in 2007. Who or what is unacceptable in 2016?

This is relative depending on the realm of the industry you are in. Two of the things that I find unacceptable are dishonesty and lack of communication.

Tony Blair misses being Prime Minister. What do you miss most in your life?

I miss my high school days when I had no responsibility and was surrounded by intellectual people. Maybe this has a lot to do with my young age and my active business life, even then. I feel I never got to be reckless after graduating from high school in Switzerland and became very responsible and focused instead.

What might you swap all your wealth for?

I would swap my wealth for helping end hunger and poverty throughout the world. Most people don’t have awareness of what the world’s real needs are.

Donald Trump was once a case of: “If you owe the bank a thousand, they close you down; but if you owe the bank a billion, you own the bank”. What’s your view on the state of the financial system?

Based on that comment, that statement is truthful. Based on that statement, today the banking system is changing for the better. I believe in the short-term we will see a lot of improvements.

What phrase or word do you most loathe?

I used to think: “The worst thing in life is to end up alone”. It’s not: “The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel alone”. The reason why I hate this phrase is because it is so true.

In the UK, some people consider charity to “begin at home”. What’s your view and what causes do you personally support?

Charity does start at home. Growing up, my parents emphasised the importance of charity and then it became a way of life, a routine. I have volunteered in Zambia to help build schools and teach kids. Whilst there, we also took 500 mattresses to the schools in different tribes. Today, my family’s foundation helps hundreds of children with scholarships to study and become successful members of their communities.

The judge in Law Abiding Citizen states: “I can pretty much do whatever I want” before being blown up whilst answering her mobile phone. What’s your view on the appropriate use of such devices?

There is always a risk using any kind of technology regardless if it is security based or not. However, I think there is a strong need for technology, especially with the fast pace of the business world these days.

If you could fill a carriage on The Orient Express, who would be your fellow passengers?

Benjamin Franklin, Steve Jobs, Abraham Lincoln, Mozart and Picasso.

If you were unfortunate enough to end up on death row, what would be your last meal and where would you eat it?

I hope that won’t be my reality ever. However, to answer your question, I would like to eat the judge who sentenced me to death.

What time is it acceptable to consume the first drink of the day?

Lunchtime usually is the time to start. However, at weekends, noon bellinis are acceptable.

A Negroni, a martini or a cup of tea?

A martini; a very, very dirty martini.

Whose parties do you enjoy the most and why?

I do enjoy my own parties because I pay so much attention to the details prior. It means that, during the event itself, I can put all my energy and efforts into entertaining my guests.

Who is the most positive person you know?

My grandmother is one of the most positive people I know and my COO, Tanya, always calms me down when I get a little wound up.

What’s your most guilty pleasure?

Eating chocolate late at night.

If a tattoo were to sum you up, what would it be of?

Even though I have a tattoo of the OHM sign, it does not really sum me up. I wish it did. My other one, Dum Spiro Spero (When I Breath I Hope), would be the one to describe me. I tend to hope and dream and work hard to make my dreams come true.

If you were a car, what marque would you be?

A Bentley – Fast and furious, yet classy and comfortable.

Cilla Black presented Surprise, Surprise. Tell us the most surprising thing about you.

That I am humble and relatable to is a surprise to most people. Considering my background and my current motivation to succeed on another level, people don’t expect it.

What’s currently sitting on your mantelpiece?

I have a small sculpture by Jeff Koons.

Emir Bahadir is a 25-year old entrepreneur based in New York. He was educated at the American School in Switzerland and New York University. Bahadir is the founder and CEO of the BHDR real estate brokerage and development firm, invests in tech startup firms and is also an art collector.

Follow him on Instagram at @emirbahadir and use his own hashtag, #bahadiring

October 18, 2016