When we found out that Dippy, the nation’s favourite dinosaur, was back at the Natural History Museum, the team were delighted at the news. Having been a VIP guest at some of our favourite events for many decades, we were honoured to be chosen to cater his return.

Dippy was the first Diplodocus to go on display anywhere in the world when it was gifted to the Museum in 1905. He quickly became a star, capturing hearts and imaginations. Dippy then left the Museum in 2017 to complete a whirlwind tour of the UK.

Throughout the journey, Dippy witnessed the changing state of nature and how the UK’s biodiversity is in sharp decline. Dippy’s tour also gave us a much-needed reminder of the joy we can find in our local landscapes – from embracing the urban buildings of Birmingham to the lochs of Glasgow.

With Dippy’s habitats in mind, we created a bespoke vegetarian and vegan menu inspired by the Diplodocus himself and his surroundings. Here are the canapés we served:

Belfast: Thyme smoked woodland mushroom tartlet, miso jelly (vg)
The scene from Belfast depicts the forest the natural home of woodland mushrooms

Cardiff: Sundried tomato, avocado, vegan mozzarella, charcoal (vg)
The proud mining heritage in Wales is depicted in the charcoal of this canapé

Rochdale: Herb crusted goat’s cheese, fig, heather honey, artichoke leaf
The heather honey takes influence from the heather lands of Rochdale

Birmingham: Cauliflower Biryani arancini, mango gel, coriander (vg)
As Birmingham is the home of UK curry, we have paid homage to this