Andy Lynes

The restaurant has a website.

Press Release from Jori White: "Award winning London Japanese restaurant Zuma will ban smoking from the restaurant on 5th November 2003 as a direct response to customers’ wishes. As the rest of the nation lights up in one way or another on Bonfire Night – diners at Zuma will be asked to extinguish their cigarettes. Throughout the summer and autumn 2003 the restaurant has been canvassing its diners and the overall response was to impose a smoking ban in the restaurant. With Japanese cuisine long recognised as one of the healthiest diets in the world, consisting of some of the most delicate flavours, the smoking ban will surely enhance the restaurant’s customers’ enjoyment of the acclaimed menu. Chef and co-owner Rainer Becker comments, “Fine nuances of taste and aroma are far more noticeable when the air, and your taste buds, are clear of cigarette smoke. We have taken into consideration our customers’ wishes and believe that a smoke-free Zuma will offer the same, if not a greater, dining experience”. The restaurant at Zuma will be smoke-free from 6th November 2003."

Here's the new a la carte menu: Carpaccio of octopus £7.50 Saffron pepper and potato Roasted stuffed baby squid £7.50 Baby fennel and a raisin and pine nut dressing Hot smoked salmon £8.00 Watercress mousse, shallots and Parmesan crips Falmouth native rock oysters £12.00 Cucumber jelly and spiced tomato essense Confit of swordfish a la nicoise £9.00 Atlantic chowder £12.50 Langoustine, mussels, clams, sea bass and pancetta Salad of organic beetroot £6.50 Dill and fromage frais de chevre Roasted porcini with pancetta £9.50 Thyme and rocket Foie Gras terrine £11.00 Pickled red currant, toasted brioche Joselito Gran Reserva Iberico ham £14.50 Black figs and bitter leaves Chef recommends to share……… Wild mushroom risotto £9.50/£13.50 Spaghetti with prawns £8.50/£12.00 Organic zucchini and pepperoncini Pappardelle with lemon £9.50/£13.00 Parmesan, basil and toasted pine nuts Line caught sea bass £21.00 Baked in a bag with fennel, lemon, thyme and crème fraiche Atlantic bouillabaisse £19.50 Garlic crostini and saffron rouille Seared hand caught Scottish scallops £19.50 With zucchini noodles, basil, pine nuts, raisins and cauliflower puree Grilled Yellow fin tuna £16.50 Frittata de tomate and cinnamon Grilled shish of pigeon and pork belly confit £16.50 Braised chicoria, toasted seeds Roast rump of lamb £16.50 Braised artichokes, caramelised garlic Yorkshire grouse £21.00 With traditional dressing of gaufrette potatoes, grouse pate and bread sauce Whole roasted English Stony White Chicken £30.00 Porcini and potato (For two) Buccleuch beef comes from Angus, Galloway and Shorthorn cows from the Scottish Boarders. The beef is regarded as the highest quality produced, with the meat having a good layer of fat, good marbling and a deep red colour. All the cows are fed on a natural diet without additives and all are Scottish born. Poached fillet of Buccleuch beef £22.50 Ravioli of foie gras Grilled Buccleuch sirloin (11oz) £19.00 With watercress, home cut fries and béarnaise sauce Grilled smoked Cote de boeuf £40.00 Creamed horseradish, dauphinois and French beans (For two) SIDE ORDERS £3.50 Cauliflower cheese Gratin Dauphinois Spinach, creamed, steamed or sautéed Green beans, braised, tomato, lemon and marjoram Mash Mixed leaf salad Home cut fries Sugar snaps

I associate skipping dessert and wanting to pay less than the standard service charge with really bad experiences. The piece of turbot I had was probably the highlight of my meal, a decent size nicely cooked. But thats the very least you should expect from a 2 star restaurant.

Bob Godfrey of Rhubarb and Custard fame?

See my first post in this thread for details.

Its an unusual list isn't it?

I went along to the Harpers & Moet awards last night which were held in the ballroom at Claridges Hotel. They were formerly known as the Premier Crew awards and were created to reward front of house staff. The remit has now been expaned to cover restaurants in general. The winners and highly commended are : Best Restaurant in London Winner: Club Gascon Highly Commended: Angela Hartnett at the Connaught Chez Bruce Racine The Ivy Best Restaurant Outside London Winner: Gidleigh Park Highly Commended: The Vineyard at Stockcross The West House (Biddenden in Kent) Hambleton Hall The Greyhound (Stockbridge in Hants) Best Newcomer Winner: Tom Aikens Highly Commended: Cru Fino L'Etranger Rivington Bar and Grill Chef Of The Year Winner: Marcus Wareing Highly Commended: David Thompson Richard Corrigan Rainer Becker (Zuma) Pascal Proyart (One-O-One) Sommelier Of The Year Winner: Ronan Sayburn (Gordon Ramsay) Highly Commended: James Payne (The Square) Geroid Devaney (Tom Aikens) Loic Mallet (Aurora) Emmanuel Hardonniere (The Glasshouse) Premier Crew Award for Best Font-Of-House Team Winner: Racine Best Scene Winner: E&O Highly Commended: Zuma Sketch Les Trios Garcons Hakkasan

I was recently invited to try Anthony Demetre's game dishes which appear across the lunch, a la carte, degustation and set menus at Putney Bridge restaurant at the moment. The meal will form the basis of an article that will appear in the near future about menu composition so I will not go into full details here, but simply pick a couple of highlights which I think are particularly indicative of the chef's style and strengths. Firstly, a classic civet of hare, available on the night I dined as a special. This was a deeply flavoured plate of food. The inclusion of the animal's blood to thicken the sauce gave it an elemental intensity that, combined with a powerful red from the South West of France to drink (details to follow), was breathtaking. The dish was finished with spatzle, blanched walnuts and pomegranate which lent body, texture and tiny acidic explosions respectively. Later on in the meal, a roast loin of venison dusted with juniper and orange powder and served with a bitter chocolate scented sauce and caramelised chicory interleaved with slices of apple and thyme showed off the kitchens agility with lighter flavours. As the dish was described to me on its presentation, I couldn't quite believe that all those elements could possibly hang together to make a coherent whole. But the assertiveness of the juniper and orange had been reigned in by the grinding and dusting process, with just enough applied lift the relatively mild, gamey notes of the rosy pink flesh. The chocolate scent was just that, lending richness to the sauce in a similar manner that the blood had to the civet, but with none of the attendant pungency. Chef Demetre told me that he had tried a number of astringents to balance the sauce but had come to the almost reluctant conclusion that the 80's standby, raspberry vinegar, was the most appropriate agent for the job. Gleeful leg pulling from his supplier ensued, I am advised. The chicory, apple and thyme assembly was not overpowered by what was a lightly caramelised treatment, and provided a still slightly sour foil. Although served with more garnish when ordered from the a la carte, I found the dish to be perfect as it was, an exemplary piece of cooking.

That's dinner, lunch is a very reasonable £16.00 for 3 courses. Barring unforeseen circumstances, I'm going next Thursday.

I have also cooked Hopkinson's Goose (as it were) a couple of times at Christmas and the recipe is a cracker. The meat is very rich however, and all the usual trimmings make for an even heavier meal than usual.

I was invitied to a celebration of the festival of light at Benares bar last night. Although this turned out to be no more then the usual restaurant PR bash with people standing around swigging as much free champers as possible and decending on what little food there was available, it did allow me the chance to have a good look at the stunning interior of the building. Although on the first floor, the rooms do not benefit from natural light, but the design is so beautiful as to pretty much overcome that one drawback. There are several interior shots on the website so I won't bore you with my poorly formed thoughts on the place, although the pictures really don't do it justice. The £14.95 set lunch sounds a particularly appealing option.

Yes, that rather sticks out from the rest of the menu items doesn't it?

I passed a Polish/Mexican bistro in Lonond's Shepard's Market last night. Not fused, just a list of Polish specialities and a list of Mexican specialities. Very odd indeed.

"New Scandinavian cooking", what does that mean exactly? Looking at the website its difficult to see how that differs from what other New York chefs are doing. Does he claim Southern Hemisphere influences?

I've been forwarded a menu for a new French restaurant in Mill Street, Mayfair called Patterson's. Charles Campion gave it a very positive review in the Evening Standard recently and it sounds just the thing for those yearning for some good, solid, old school cooking. Suppliers to the restaurant include Allens for his meat, Rossmore oysters and cheeses from La Fromagerie. I should be paying the place a visit in the next couple of weeks and will report back. For now though, here is the a la carte, which given the number of luxury ingredients and location surely can't remain at £35.00 for too much longer : STARTERS FOIE GRAS BALLOTTINE WITH SAUTERNES JELLY LOBSTER BISQUE WITH CRAB BEIGNET SMOKED HADDOCK SOUFFLÉ SERVED WITH A CHIVE CAVIAR SAUCE ROAST SCALLOPS, CAULIFLOWER PUREE AND NOILLY PRAT VELOUTE QUAIL WITH A CITRON RAVIOLI AND PEA PUREE ASSIETTE OF NATIVE OYSTERS TRIO OF PORK WITH AN APPLE SAUCE TERRINE OF WILD MUSHROOM AND BABY VEGETABLES WITH A TRUFFLE CREAM MAIN COURSES VENISON WITH POACHED PEAR, CELERIAC ROSTI AND GAME SAUCE TOURNEDOS ROSSINI HERB CRUSTED LAMB WITH AN ARTICHOKE BARIGOULE BRESSE CHICKEN, FONDANT LEEKS, A SHALLOT AND TARRAGON VELOUTE SEABASS WITH A RAGOUT OF MUSSELS, COCKLES AND CLAMS DOVER SOLE WITH LOBSTER TORTELLINI AND CHAMPAGNE SAUCE MONK FISH WITH PANCETTA, TRUFFLE POLENTA AND MUSHROOM SAUCE TART FINE OF TOMATOES AND GOATS CHEESE WITH A HARICOT VERT SALAD DESSERT BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE WITH A LEMON GLAZE MIXED FRUIT CRUMBLE WITH CRÈME BRULEE ICE CREAM CHOCOLATE FONDANT WITH MALTED MILK ICE CREAM APPLE TATIN ORANGE AND CHOCOLATE TART WITH ROAST KUMQUATS SELECTION OF CHEESE £35

Finally made it there yesterday and was not disappointed. The "hot now" sign was blazing and I was offered a free original glazed, right off the production to munch on whilst I queued to buy another. I chose just one chocolate iced custard filled and a Kaffe Kreme (espresso, steamed milk and original kreme flavour) to go with it. Both doughnuts were delightful, the hot original glazed disappeared like candy floss in my mouth as I bit down on it, whilst the topped and filled cold version had more substance and was a little less sweet. The Kaffe Kreme however was a big mistake, so sickly that I was in danger of toxic shock from all that sugar. Prices are not bad at 90p for a glazed, £1.10 for a topped and filled. By far the best deal are by the dozen however, including an assortment for £7.95. Can't wait to take the kids.

This is pure gossip and unsubstantiated rumour from a single source, but the prospect of it, if it were to be true, is so enticing that I thought I should share it with you. I have been told that Pierre Koffman may be taking over the Bleeding Heart in Bleeding Heart Yard, Greville Street and will be offering back to basics "terrior" cooking. No idea when this might happen but fingers crossed that it will happen. Could be a very good excuse for an egullet get together.

I hope you are able to as well.

That, I'm afraid, must remain a secret.

I loved the canapes the first time around but somehow this time they failed to wow. The dishes I ordered were the ones that really jumped out at me from what is a short menu, but in my opinion failed to really deliver either visually or in the taste department. At 2 star level, I want to be squirming with pleasure from the wonderful flavours and superb service and at Peid A Terre I just wasn't. If the meal had been £30.00 for 3 courses and the wine a bit cheaper I might have had a better opinion of it. As it was, the food was fussy whilst failing to impress, and the service would have been more suited to a high volume place.

No, just the a la carte which is totally different from the one on the website. As regards your reservation, as JC70 so rightly says, the consensus opinion appears to be that PAT is hot at the moment. I know that eGullet member Scott is of that opinion and has stated it on the boards several times recently. Both myself and my dining companion were underwhelmed however.

Pied a Terre is currently getting the thumbs up on the grapevine and so it seemed like a good time to return to see what all the fuss was about. Although the room and table settings are very elegant (I particularly liked the striking floral glass cover plates) the room is small, bordering on claustrophobic and I didn't like it anymore than the first time I ate there just after the refurbishment. Dinner started with canapes which arrived before we had ordered any food and were still reading the menu and wine list. This would have been ok, but as one was a shot glass of pea foam and required both hands to eat, it seemed bad timing. The plate, which also included a smear of foie gras parfait between sesame filo crackers, a nibble of tuna and a tartlet of braised beef, turned out to constitute the amuse bouche as starters appeared next. Although all 4 bites were perfectly nice, and on reflection mimicked savoury courses of a tasting menu i.e. a soup, a terrine, a fish and then meat course, they seemed to make no sense in relation to one another when eaten in such quick succession. Stuffed pigs trotter, snail beignets and bacon arrived on a large, white square plate with two small and quite thin slices of trotter at the bottom, two fritters on the right hand side on which tiny slices of bacon had been balanced and the rest of the space taken up with child like squiggles of sauce and blobs of puree with little tails. I'm sure this demanded a steady and somewhat skilled hand in the kitchen, but did nothing for me visually and simply meant that I had to scrape what sauce there was off the plate with the edge of my knife to get a taste of it. The beignets themselves were formed of chopped snail meat encased in a brioche crumb and deep fried. These were really quite tasteless and a little oily, as though deep fried at too low a temperature so that the crumb had absorbed some of the cooking medium. A good shot of garlic and parsley butter in there would have made the world of difference, although they still would have been a tad soggy of course. A terrine of what I think was duck, foie gras and pigeon turned out to be three slices from a slim ballotine balanced one on top of the other with some green beans layered between. I didn't get to try it but it was not greatly remarked upon. I was looking forward to my main of turbot with oxtail, lentils and red wine sauce and it was certainly a nice piece of fish well cooked. The oxtail and red wine turned out to have been mixed into the lentils and formed a bed on which the fish sat. The exact same mixture then made a reappearance stuffed into two halves of roasted shallot (skins still on). More blobs, this time of parsnip puree and squiggles of sauce completed the picture. Nothing wrong with the dish taste wise, but was overbalanced by way too much of the lentil mixture. A special of venison came as slices of the "canon" layered on a potato fondant with I believe root vegetables and a game sauce of some description. Competent but not outstanding. An unpleasant tasting (to me at least) dish of apple sorbet and jelly was a precursor to desserts of an excellent chocolate tart with stout ice cream and a very ordinary roasted peach with almond topping, almond froth and peach puree. With champagne, a bottle of Josmeyer Riesling and one of Rasteau, water, coffee and service, bill for two was £220. I really didn't feel as though I had experienced 2 Michelin star food or service. There was no sense of luxury or of being cosseted. Again, the charms of Shane Osborne's cooking and David Moore's dining room have completely escaped me.

And I wonder if they would have anything to gain by trying for or gaining a second star other than possibly unrealistic expectations from their customers.

Do you think that is necessarily a bad thing? The food you describe sounds pretty damn good to me and if the service had been its equal then could you ask for more?