When I was invited by Charlotte at EdenCanCan ( http://edencancan.co.uk) to the press launch of Bourgee, it goes without saying I was excited.

Along with all the noise Mr Mark Baumann’s new venture was making in the press, a couple of people I work with had actually passed the venue and said it looked lovely.

First impressions did not disappoint. The venue, on eastern esplanade, makes a bold statement, without being imposing. Set on the corner where the Kursaal is, it is safely nestled just far away enough from the arcades and fish and chip shops to be taken seriously.

Upon entering, I noticed some impressive little details in the décor, that sufficed to warm up the modern design.

As a gentle precursor to Bourgee’s attention to detail and excellent customer service from staff, we were all offered a glass of champagne at the door (Laurent Perrier no less). Another tiny detail which was noticeable, was how much everyone working there seemed to enjoy being there.

I tried my hardest to get a few more photo’s of the venue, but it got packed incredibly quickly. One TOWIE ‘star’ seemed to take it upon himself to feel I was lingering around him at one point to listen to him and his friends conversation, while taking photos, so unfortunately I departed from my photos of the bar area before my mouth said something my brain would only later catch up with. Fortunately, the rest of the celebrity clientele were lovely, and most importantly, enjoying the food.

When Nick from the PR agency introduced me to Mark Baumann, he grabbed a waiter and got me to try the Gazpacho shot. These little treats are available on the menu, as palette cleansers, and with a slight, but not overwhelming hint of mint they certainly did the trick.

Mark himself was the perfect host, and his passion for Bourgee was so infectious, that you really just genuinely want them to do well. He took me into the kitchen to meet the head chef, see the pride and joy of the kitchen, the oven, and explain a few things aout the concept.

All of the steak is sourced from Spain, as Mark quite plainly put it, because it’s the best. After trying the steak, I’d have to agree. one of the questions I simply had to put to Mark was the choice of location, and how it all come about, and it turns out, he simply fell in love with the venue. Bring a quite run down pub before, the Bourgee team had their work cut out from them, and when you step into the lushness and luxury of Bourgee, it’s a nice reminder that dreams can come true, and if you work hard enough, the concept in your head can come to life.

After my tour of the innermost workings of a steak and lobster restaurant, I continued my networking and struck up a chat with Michelle from http://www.greedygourmet.com/ and I can honestly say meeting her made my evening. It’s always nice to meet other bloggers, and it was clear we both had a shared love of food, from the way our eyes were both on stalks when the trays of canapés did the rounds.

If you like food, looking at food, or eating, I would strongly suggest you follow Michelle’s blog, I am actually going to give the chicken pathia recipe a go next week.

Another little treat which I didn’t get a picture of as it went into my mouth so quickly (hold your rude connotations with that one please) were the meatballs in delicious sauce. I can’t say I tried one canapé I didn’t like, they were all phenomenal, and I cant wait to eat a whole meal here.

Unfortunately, I did have to leave a bit earlier than I would of liked, so I couldn’t get as many pictures as I would of hoped to. Luckily, Mr Simon Ford was on hand to snap loads of snaps, so check out his website for more http://www.simonfordphotography.co.uk/.

All in all, I couldn’t be more excited that a touch of glamour has come to Southend, as for a seafront town, there really are a lack of places doing such great lobster.

We were also treated to a very generous goody bag, with loads of goodies from Amara (https://www.amara.com/)

You can get more information, or make bookings here: http://www.bourgeerestaurants.com/

I would also like to thank https://stylemeceleb.co.uk/ for the dress.