Andy Lynes

Have you seen www.rules.co.uk? That has details of munus etc. I know we have said on another thread that restaurant website onformation is unlikely to be totally up to date, but it looks like the pre theatre menu is your best bet as no set lunch is listed.

Jason, thanks for this. Any others more than welcome. I am thinking about recommending Gotham's set lunch to them, do you know of they are open over the Christmas period?

I'm quite suprised at the lack of response to this thread, it's seems to infer that most people don't use restaurant websites that much. Does anyone actually refer to websites before booking a table?

My brother Micheal and his son Adam (aged 16) are flying into New York on Christmas Day for some basketball game or other at "The Square" (as I'm sure they'll be referring to it when then they get back). they are staying on "29th and Madison and are on the look out for some good budget eats mid-town. He and his family have lived in Malaysia and Dubia for extended periods due in part to Mike's teaching assignments so are well up on the cuisine of those parts of the world, not least because Liza, Mike's wife is Malaysian and almost by defininition no slouch in the kitchen. On the other hand, Mike is, by definition a slouch in the kitchen. So what they are after is great ethnic and of course American food on a pretty tight budget. Their trip will also encompass a New Jersey Nets game on 29/12 at the East Rutherford stadium and then onto Washington for some guy called Micheal Jordon on 31st. All and any ideas gratefully recieved for sustenance before during and after basketball games. I've been talking you guys up so don't let me down (as if). As an afterthought, what is Micheal Jordon's steakhouse in Grand Central like. The're fans, but not stupid if you get my drift. (Edited by Andy Lynes at 10:00 pm on Oct. 23, 2001)

Thanks Rosie, I am feeling quite out numbered by as the lone Englishmen against all these overpaid, overweight and (thankfully) over there middle class professional American males taking pot shots across the pond. My choice would be: Richard Burton Peter Langan (of Langans Brasserie fame) Jeffery Bernard (British journalist) Shane McGowan (musician and former lead singer of the Pogues) Rosie, you probably wouldn't want to be in on this as I've chosen the four biggest soaks in recent British history. My plan would be a pre-lunch snifter, starting around about 10.00am, a bite to eat at around 1.00pm. Finish lunch just in time for a pre-dinner drinky poos, a bite to eat at around 9.00pm, finishing off around 1.00am in time for a few nightcaps in Soho, then back home sometime the following week, barring arrests and other unforseen circumstances. The only trouble being I've no idea of any of them would actually be interested in their food. A small detail, you've got to let your hair down once in a while haven't you.

I have to say the meal enjoyed by Felonious (second name funk? lunk? hunk even?) sounds wonderful, and as a resident of Brighton (UK) I am very envious about being able to drop in on the way back from a Sunday in the office. I could drop into to our local Co-op supermarket, or at a stretch the Elizabethian Tandoori (don't laugh) if it ever gets it's act together and re opens after last year's flooding. Oh the joys of semi rural Southern England.

Rosie, I'm blushing. Invite reciprocated. I'm still thinking about the other three.

Micheal - I'm having difficulty typing this beacuse my sides are aching with laughter. Julie Burchill lives in Brighton, and my wife bumped into her at Toni and Guy the other day were she was getting a pedicure, so perhaps we could get a message to her. I expect Jay knows her, and most Guardian/Observer journalists are contactable via their website. I'm sure she will have no problem with the expression of an opinion, I mean, I haven't accused her of plagerism or anything :)

In case our US cousins don't know, The Observer is the Sunday sister paper of the Guardian and the website covers both publications. You can read Matthew Fort's (he's a man by the way) saturday reviews on the site as well. Whilst were talking about The Guardian, although this has absolutely nothing to do with food and I won't do this again I promise, did anyone catch Julie Burchill's idiotic piece on David Beckham http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,...,576319,00.html. She has written a whole book apparently, god help us. Burchill has been peddling the same old schtick since she joined the NME in the late 70's. It boils down to "you think scenario A is true, but I, because I am so insightful and clever, yet ever so working class and don't you forget it matey, know that scenario B is in fact the case and I will now explain to you why that is." What she is in fact doing is arguing that black is white in order to generate an article, or in this case a book. It is so obvious a scam that it is not necessary to actually read the peice at all. Just think about the generally accepted view and facts about Beckham, ie great footballer but thick, common, tacky and a publicity seeker, then reverse them (apart from the footballer bit, which is sort of not the point of the article anyway) so that he becomes, intelligent, graceful, dignified and aristocratic. Yawn. All Burchill really needs to do is announce that she itends to write an article or book, get paid for it, then we can join the dots for ourselves. Rant over. Back to food. Sorry. Well, we are talking about journalism in a way aren't we.

Well, it's my joke, so I guess it's English, South if you want to be exact, except we don't have any coal mines this way. I was really just trying to take the wind out of a certain person's sales.

"Who are you to define parameters in which 'evidence' may or may not be admitted?" Why, I'm the UK community co-ordinator of these here egullet boards, thats who. I of course have no authority what so ever, but was simply attempting to draw this pointless circular arguement to a close. "Blumenthal mentions in a Caterer article from two years ago an unusal pre meal 'sour' that he impressed him on a chef's day out to El Bulli....Michel Bras' biscuit coulant also played its part at Blumenthal own admission." Micheal, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the basis of your whole arguement that Blumenthal steals recipes from other chefs trhen passes them off as his own? Yet here you provide examples of where he acknowledges his debt to others. (If you can hear a bumping sound, thats my head meeting with the nearest wall, repeatedly). "I can and will substantiate any claim that I have made, should Blumenthal be willing to reply in a public forum" You know very well that Heston responed to your claims on chowhound Micheal. Can you tell me why you are #### bent on going through this all over again? You say you have nothing to gain, well you've got peoples attention for one thing, is there anything else you'd like to tell us? "I don't wish to waste an inordinate amount of my time." But you seem to be more than happy to waste mine, having to re run through all this all over again when we have been through this every step of the way else where. "Andy 'Nez-Brun' Lynes" Please explain, I never went to university, I was working in a coal mine at the age of 12. "I have never made any effort to persuade, rather it suffices for me to merely inform and let others make up their own minds." Micheal, what you do is make groundless attacks and then refuse to provide evidence to back them up. That is not informing and it is certainly not persausive. "I am, like it or not, the most well informed on the subject." We certainly like informed people on this site, I think that's the joy of egullet. We have an excellent mix of passionate amateurs and the very best professionals who can benefit from each others view points, experience and expertise. What I don't like is when people try and use that to unconstructive and devisive ends.

I have definately read about instances where this has happened, but can't remeber specifics. I will try and dig around my completely un-indexed and un ordered food archive and see what I come up with. Anyine else have any examples of this. Strict evidence critieria does not apply in this case by the way!

Although this site is a free speech zone, we are still subject to the same laws as any other media. I am sure that if Heston Blumenthal was of a mind to, he could quite reasonably sue for deformation of character based on some of the things that have been said on this thread. Perhaps Steve Shaw could verify that statement. I certainly hope egullet have no liability for allowing the statements to stand.

Steve - Heston has responed to those specific points on "the other site" already. I don't wish to labour the point, but Heston was really pissed off about what happened there, and therefore to ask him to repeat it all for our sakes is to add insult to injury. I would also point out that The Fat Duck numbers amongst it's fans the likes of Matthew Fort, who as far as I can tell is nobodies fool, has eaten abroad, although at el bulli I know not, and I imagine would not risk his reputation in order to give a chef publicity that didn't deserve it. And why indeed would he? If LML were correct, there would have to be some bizarre conspiracy between journo's writing for any number of papers, radio 4, the food guides and Heston's customers, plus all the scientists who happily work with him to present Heston as something he is not. What, as Harry Hill says, are the chances of that happening, eh? LML - do you have any proof that the critics you so deride have not in fact heard of or eaten at the restaurants you have sited in your accusations. I'm sure thay are as capable of looking at Michel Bras website as I am if they havent had the opportunity to eat there. There is no conspiricy of silence. And if there is, I'm keeping quiet about it. Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they're not after you.

Steven - Heston has already defended himself against the allegations made by our good Lord on another site. Heston has promised to have a look at egullet when he gets the time, but I am pretty sure that he won't want to go through all this again, in the same way that I don't. I will also be a little embarressed if Heston does look in and all he sees is the same old crap being spouted about him as has been on other boards. As I've said, the upshot of the first little spat was Heston's offer for anyone to discuss the issues with him face to face and try out the restaurant on him so they could make their minds up. I was the only person to take up that offer and I felt obliged to report back, which I have done. I can catagoricaly state for the record that Heston refutes any claims of "plagerism", should such a thing exist in the culinery world, and was extremely offended by the allegations. All dishes served in his restaurants are the results of development work carried out in his own kitchen with the assistance of specialists such as Herve This and the flavourings company Fermier. Along with the detailed notes I mentioned in my last "final" message, Heston also showed me results of tests carried out on the chemical composition of white chocolate and caviar by Fermier at his request. The result of these tests led to the creation of his chocolate and caviar buttons. Fermier also supply the ingredient which allows the cocolate to be melted at a low temperature so that the flavour of the caviar is not damage by exposure to high levels of heat. Even if other chefs around the world have been through this process themselves, Heston has done it independently of them as far as I know. It's all a bit more complex than looking it up in a book, or just appropriating an idea. If as Steven says, anyone has impirical evidence that what I have described, as related to me by Heston, did not happen, then lets have it. Also, any details of how any other items on Hestons present or past menus got on there other than being developed by the man himself, we would also be very interested to hear about. Simply saying that one dish is similar too or inspired by another will not be sufficient. You will need to provide complete and accurate ingredient lists for both dishes, describe exact methods for both and be able to catagoricaly state, with evidence, of precisely when the dishes first appeared on both menus so that it can be established who got there first. Further unsupported allegations will add nothing at all to this debate. I am getting very tired and bored of hearing them. they are not what this site is about. As I very seriously doubt whether anyone will be able to meet the critieria I have specified can we now close this arguement? (Edited by Andy Lynes at 2:29 pm on Oct. 19, 2001)

Micheal, there's a link to the original article in the second one, and I do draw attention to the fact that I had a bad experience on my first visit in the first paragraph of the second article. Genius, as we all know if a very over used term, however having met Heston, I would have no hesitation in describing him as obssesive. I also have no problem with the press describing him as such because I very much doubt that the locals of Bray, or for that matter any of the Fat Duck's core customer base, when deciding where to eat think, "I refuse to step over the threshold of a restaurant unless the chef is an obsessive genius". They just want something nice to eat and have sufficient disposable income to be able to do so at Heston's place. Probably one of the reasons he opened up there in the first place. I think that we have now heard boths sides of this arguement and are in serious danger of repeating ourselves. Would it be OK if we called a halt at this point?

Nearly every restaurant seems to have a website these days. Some are great, but a few are as badly designed and maintained as any of the worst sites on this web that we call "world wide". So do you have a favourite that is either visually stunning; simply well designed with up to date, easy to access information, or so bad it's good, with vile backgrounds, impossible to read fonts and colours and info so out of date you feel you've passed through a time warp. Starter for 10 is http://www.squarerestaurant.com, a real stunner I think, despite some dodgy fonts, and a whole list at http://www.alynes.freeserve.co.uk/links.html. (Edited by Andy Lynes at 11:12 pm on Oct. 18, 2001)

Last time I went through this particular loop it resulted in the following article http://www.alynes.freeserve.co.uk/heston.html which includes a link to some notes that Heston passed to me that explained what he was up to in his kitchen at that particular time which you can find at http://www.alynes.freeserve.co.uk/hnotes.html. This shouls allow those of you interested enough to compare Hestons notes with the articles at the el bulli site and make your own minds up. Short of actually experiencing the two restaurants for yourself, this may settle the arguement. (Edited by Andy Lynes at 11:24 pm on Oct. 18, 2001)

I agree, and believe that you can compose a valid and useful review of any restaurant on basis of was it enjoyable and value for money alone.

I'm sulking now, it's not a pretty sight. I sort of concurr with Micheal in that if you want to assess the importance/originality of any particular restaurant on a global basis, then of course you must have eaten in as many places across the world as possible. However, it is quite reasonable to say that a particular place may be the best in London, the South, the country if that is your experience. If you were to review Le Manior, would it be necessary to contextualise every observation you make in terms of small luxury hotels with award winning restaurants in the rest of the world, just every other 2 michelin starred restaurant in Europe or simply every other restaurant in Oxfordshire. I think it's important to remember who you are writing for, and to what end that review might be put. In the Observer, most readers will have a casual interest in food and wine and will be simply looking for somewhere to eat rather than a scholarly assessment. As far as the Duck goes, and I know we've had this arguement before, Blumenthal is a devoted professional who has taken a different path to many chefs in this country by using the expertise of those outside catering world to improve processes and techniques within it. He is genuine about what he does and how he goes about it. And no I haven't eaten at El Bulli and yes I'm sure I'd be as impressed as everyone else seems to be. One day maybe.

Jay, thanks very much for emerging from the shadows. We hope to hear a lot more from you. I can't see how you can move a weekly column to a monthly supplement. I do agree however that additional reviews in the magazine wuold be a good idea, but you have already done this with the Rules article to a certain extent.

Yeah! If you're like, a lawyer or something! (Hold on a moment....) (Edited by Andy Lynes at 11:30 pm on Oct. 15, 2001)

Of course my anti-homogenisation arguement is so deeply flawed it doesn't stand up to the most casual analysis. No Chinese restaurants outside of China, no French restaurants beyond their own boarders? It is nonsense, but I do think we should be aware of the erosion of individuality in all of this. I'm not entirely convinced that the way to counteract the McDonalds effect is to replace it with another chain that simply has higher aspirations and charges a #### of a lot more.

Well of course I'm jealous, I live in Brighton and we don't have a restaurant that would even register on the scale. I think if Keller is going to open anywhere it should be right here by the sea in Brighton. It would make much more sense. Of course, he would go broke in about two weeks, unless he started selling bad pizza and pasta, that goes down a treat round these parts. (Edited by Andy Lynes at 10:25 pm on Oct. 15, 2001)

Whats the egullet opinion on the Observer Food Monthly. I thought the latest edition (14/10/01) was an enjoyable read. The Coppola profile was informative and well written, with some new facts (to me at least) about the history of his wines coming to light. I enjoyed Jay Rayners stuff on kids and food and his review of Rules. The 1987 and all that was a bit celebrity led for my tastes, and I can live without more boring Nigel Slater real fast food recipes, but overall 6/10.