A visit to MEI’s UK Event Summit
Highlights for me included the panel discussions on The Future of Live Events, with a panel of industry experts
Eat to the Beat was back on the road with Coldplay during 2017, growing its own army of fans thanks to its catering for the band’s ‘A Head Full of Dreams’ tour in Europe and North America.
Feeding up to 300 people a day throughout the tour, which began in Europe in June, before moving on to the United States and Canada.
The artist, production and crew catering specialist has become familiar with the needs and tastes of the Coldplay entourage having catered for the band since the Parachutes Tour in 2000 and being involved with all Coldplay’s tours since then – building a close relationship with the band, managers and crew across the USA and Europe.
Our Coldplay stats:
Swedish singer Tove Lo, who supported Coldplay on the 2017 European Tour, was full of praise for the catering provided by Eat to the Beat. In an interview she agreed that the tour catering is amazing saying: “Yes! We’ve just been talking about that, because that is certainly not always the case. It’s been such great food. I’m vegetarian and eat vegan and there’s always amazing options for that. When we get to the venue, it’s always like ‘Right, we’re here, who wants to eat’…and everyone there is so nice.”
ETTB cew leader Susan Power said: “The food we cook for our touring family evolves as we get to know and understand them better. The recipes we put together are often our first step in exploring new dishes, new ingredients and cuisines and, with them, new ways of living.
“We will take into account other factors too, the temperatures at the venues and the levels of tiredness for example, to offer the artists and crew the best experience possible – a tired sweaty crew often crave sugary or fried deliciousness and sleep for example, not necessarily always a fancy menu though we must cater for all tastes. They do like a good steak though, and get not a little obsessive about our crab cakes!”
“Extra little touches we add include trying to keep the design of the room consistent so they feel as if its home at each venue – a safety zone as it were, with no strangers or photos without permission, just comfort and succour,” added Susan, who headed up Eat to the Beat’s team of 17.
“We have made many friends and love looking after them. This has been a very special tour indeed, and we shall miss them once it is over.”