Eat to the Beat helps HM The Queen celebrate 90th birthday

Eat to the Beat (ETTB) have successfully completed one of their most prestigious assignments ever by catering Her Majesty The Queen's 90th birthday celebration at Windsor Castle.

ETTB, part of Chesham-based Global Infusion Group, were appointed to supply catering services to participants and backstage crew for the spectacular event coordinated by HPower Group, the leading organisers of military and national commemorations and celebrations in the UK and worldwide.

Mary Shelley-Smith, ETTB’s Global Operations Director, said: “We were immensely honoured to be selected to cater such a prestigious occasion. It was a massive job for us which required being on site at Windsor Castle for six weeks. Our 50 strong ETTB crew under the direction of Event Manager Lyn Smith produced 35,000 meals during the build-up and for the event itself.”

The celebration, which coincided with the annual Royal Windsor Horse Show, took place over four days with The Queen’s 90th Birthday Celebration broadcast live on ITV on Sunday, May 15, hosted by Ant and Dec.

A host of stars performed for the Queen at thisspecial event to mark the monarch's 90th birthday.Kylie Minogue, Katherine Jenkins and Gary Barlow were among those who sang on a night of equestrian, military and musical displays in Windsor Castle's grounds and actors including Dame Helen Mirren and Damian Lewis narrated historic moments from The Queen's life.

The Queen was joined at the event by The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.The show included 900 horses, a dancing Shetland pony, a pantomime horse and a pantomime corgi as well as 1500 performers.

ETTB’s chefs, led by head chef Blaise Vasseur, worked in a 400 square metre temporary kitchen and served meals in two dedicated temporary dining areas for event crew and officials. They also produced food for all the stars and participants of the stunning show.

Mary Shelley-Smith added: “I met the Queen during the build up to the event which was quite amazing. She is fantastic, it was such an honour and a memory I will treasure always.”

Nick Brooks-Ward of HPowersaid: “Mary Shelley-Smith and the entire Eat to the Beat and Global Infusion Group team were simply amazing. They produced 1,900 meals every day and met every challenge that we threw at them. They went far and beyond what we expected from them, and everyone has commented on how excellent their food and service was.”

The Queen's birthday was on 21 April, and more celebrations will take place next month on her official birthday.

About Global Infusion Group
Originally launched in 1984 as Eat to the Beat – an artist, production and crew catering business specialising in backstage catering services for music, entertainment, film and TV industries – the company has catered many of the biggest names in the entertainment world.Eat to the Beat provides backstage catering support for international tours, major festivals such as Glastonbury and Reading, concert venues and TV and film locations. Additional divisions were added to the Eat to the Beat brand as the business evolved and diversified and now includes a bespoke corporate & private party planning, catering and event design division (GIG…fyi)since 1988; global sport and automotive event catering (GIG SPORT) since 2002 and a logistics and brand support division to promote predominantly food and drink products (e2B Logistics) since 1997. All divisions trade under the umbrella of Global Infusion Group which has its UK headquarters in Chesham, Bucks. The company has catered functions at iconic locations such as Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street to the Great Wall of China and the more remote; the Ice Fields of Inner Mongolia. GIG were also on site providing catering at London 2012 and Sochi 2014 Olympic Games.GIG has established international offices in California, United States, Qatar, Middle East and Shanghai, China catering across Asia and the Far East. It is soon to open a branch in Brazil to service the South American market. The group employs around 170 full-time staff world-wide supported by up to 3,000 freelance professional specialists to support the hundreds of global events and functions it works at each year.

For more information, please see:
www.globalinfusiongroup.com

PAUL SMITH ASSOCIATES
31st May 2016