World environment day is celebrated around the world on the 5th June to raise global awareness of the need to take positive environmental action.

 
This year the focus is to address the huge annual food wastage. The campaign this year aims to bring about awareness in countries with lifestyles that result in food wastage.

The forum company is very aware of this and strives to ensure we avoid food wastage as much as possible. We are very particular in the number of meals we prepare daily at the forum |deli to you, our staff restaurant which caters for up to a 1000 meals a day.  The forum | deli to you’s philosophy of ‘fresh in, fresh out’ ensures that all meals are made on the same day that it’s delivered with minimal left overs. Thus our team calculates the amount of food prepared on a daily basis.

With our big conference and evening events, dependent on the food served,  we get in touch with local charities that are involved in feeding schemes for the homeless and deliver our left overs to them straight after the event.

We also have a number of greening policies that we strive towards as a company in creating a greener environment.

Click here to view these.

On Saturday the 18th May, the forum | turbine hall was delighted to host The JCTA (Johannesburg City Tourism Association) who had arranged a week end to promote the Johannesburg inner-city and specifically the upcoming Jozi City Tourism Festival to the media.

The Turbine Hall team hosted 80 guests which included 60 media on Saturday evening between the turbines, sponsoring a “Power of Gold” sit down dinner.

On arrival guests enjoyed some bubbly with gold sparkles and a delicious amuse bouche, crispy brochette shaving with smoked duck and orange and gold jelly.

Once guests were seated they were presented with the “Gold Diggers” starter that our innovative chef, Arno and stylist, Stefania had put together. The two cleverly combined forces to incorporate the decor as tools to cut open the food.

The salted hard dough casing covered the juicy grilled beef fillet served with sundried tomato pesto, mushroom duxelle and mustard. Guests used the hammer and chisel to crack open the casing which was a fun and interactive start to the evening.

Main course was served family dining style and consisted of a variety of dishes;

Fragrant Indian Malay chicken curry
Marinated slow roasted leg of lamb with mint jus
Saffron and grapefruit roasted sweet potato wedges
Potato bondas
Lentil and spinach dahl
Steamed rice mustard seeds and coconut
Selection of flat breads and crispy poppadums

Tomato and onion sambal
Coconut chutney
Brinjal relish
Cucumber mint raita

And of course without fail the kitchen team presented the most amazing gold dessert buffet for guests to help themselves throughout the evening;

Dessert
Coconut panna cotta with passion fruit crumble
Golden caramelised pecan nut tartlets
Creme brulee with kumquat preserve
Salted caramel fingers/broken honey comb
White and gold macaroons

If you are looking to host a private birthday dinner, get in touch with our Events Coordinator, Tsholo Molosioa on 087 310 3888 or email Tsholo.molosioa@theforum.co.za 
 

Choosing a venue for your ‘I do’s’ can be a quite daunting task, especially if you aren’t sure what you’re looking for. Here are our top three tips to help you in your quest of finding the perfect wedding venue:

A numbers game

It’s important to decide how many guests you will be inviting and how big your budget will be before looking at wedding venues as these are most probably the biggest deciding factors. Speak to your other half about your ideal size wedding and how much money you are prepared to spend. Then, if your families will be contributing, find out how much they will be willing to pay toward your wedding.

A question of style

Once you’ve decided on a budget and the size of your wedding, you’ll have to decide on the style you’re after. Whether it’s urban chic, rustic or classic, your venue needs to fit this theme because, let’s face it, an intimate rustic wedding set in a lavish ballroom won’t quite work.
 

What are the restrictions?

Before committing to a venue, you’ll need to ask a few important questions. Is there enough parking for your guests and what time will you have to cut the music? Are there any vendor requirements or restrictions and are there any hidden costs? Are the bathrooms adequate and will your wedding be the only event at the venue that day?

the forum company venues

From urban chic to modern, to rustic and even classic, the forum company’s multiple venue options suit many styles. Our venues are able to accommodate small and intimate weddings as well as larger, more elaborate celebrations. Read more about our approach to weddings, our iconic venues and excellent services to get an idea of how magical your wedding could be.
 

You may remember our blog, WAM! Seeing Stars, where the forum | private label took on the project of launching the newly built Wits Art Museum in Braamfontein. With the one year anniversary coming up next month, we have been appointed to host and manage the celebration which will be an exclusive and high profile auction and cocktail. Watch this space for details on this event.

Have a look at our Facebook Page, The Forum Company for more pictures from the evening.

With all of the above happening at Wits Art Museum we were delighted for the forum | private label to be brought on board to cater and host the Gerard Sekoto “Song for Sekoto” opening at WAM last night. The guest list of 400 descended into Braamfontein from 18h00 yesterday evening to view the beautiful exhibition of Gerard Sektoto; who is recognised as the pioneer of urban black art and social realism. Guests enjoyed sparkling wine on arrival from our stylish and chic champagne bar, along with a selection of starter canapés such as an orange & beetroot shooter with iced yogurt and nori crisps; glass noodle salads with black pepper chicken and zucchini & parmesan doughnuts with coriander relish, to mention a few.

The guest speaker of the evening was Redi Tlhabi a respected South African author, journalist, producer and radio and television presenter. The Gerard Sekoto Foundations “Song for Sekoto” exhibition and opening could not have been possible without the sponsorship of Merrill Lynch, bhpbilition, Business and Arts South Africa, National Lottery and Webber Wentzel.  It was a wonderful event to be a part of and we look forward to catering for many more exhibition cocktails in the future.

For more information on exclusive offsite catering contact Richard Malyon on 011 575 7388 or email richard.malyon@theforum.co.za
venue

Each year Earth day takes place on the 22 April. More than one billion people participate in Earth Day-related activities, making it the largest public observance in the world. Communities across 192 countries voice their concerns for the planet and take action to protect it.

In support and celebration of Earth day and as it is a Monday today, a great idea would be to arrange a picnic with family and friends this upcoming week end. It could also be the last chance for summer entertaining and enjoying the outdoors.

Our Innovation and Development chef recommends a delicious Pumpkin and Cashew couscous salad as part of your picnic menu. Have a look at our weekly recipe page for this easy recipe. When picnicking, a fun and environmentally friendly idea to package the salad is in a consol jar along with the written description on the bottle or a tag tied on with fun coloured ribbon. These jars can be reused over and over when entertaining and add a very different element to serving food.

It is so important for everyone to get involved and take initiative in preserving our planet and we as the forum company want to do just that. This year one of the Earth Day Network’s many programs connected to Earth Day 2013 is the Canopy Project. The organization plants trees that help some of the world’s most impoverished communities. The planting of trees helps reverse the impact of land degradation and provide food, energy and income to those communities.

Since 2012 we have offered a full day conference package whereby companies can pay a small fee more per delegate and we then arrange to plant trees on each delegate’s behalf.

For more information and booking this conference package, click here.