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Visiting Paris next week and would love some ideas of the best butchers, traiteurs and charcutieries (sp?) to visit. Thank you in advance!

marco pierre white has seemingly taken on the talkhouse near lewknor (can't remember name of village). haven't tried it yet.

we are picking flowering winter purslane from our gardens at the moment. you will find it in the mixed salad at daylesford organic farmshop.

Favourite ever pudding: strawberry tart with basil ice cream at Fond in Gothenberg. What about basil ice cream laced with with alpine strawberries - both basil and alpines are in abundance until September. The colour would be really good. If you plan on expanding the empire, I wouldn't mind running one of your vans along the South Coast next summer?!

I bought a copy of this book last week - the UK edition launched yesterday I think. I really like it - very pretty, some great recipes, photographs, etc, but I could not help but cringe reading the intro. The constant tributes to Quantus seem unneccessary. Aeroplane food is always going to be limited - perhaps that is what he is getting at. The home cook essentailly has to compromise and innovate due to restriction in the access to ingredients, etc, in the same way that you do when contending with feeding a plane full of passengers. But it just sounded a bit daft and contrived.

Tha Fat Duck, and god knows how many other top restaurants. She stands out from the field so far as restaurant prs are concerned. Isn't the success of the Fat Duck more to do with Heston Blumenthal anyway?

Obviously a joke ... for the benefit of those who don't live in Oxfordshire, and don't know Endless Autumn.

You can buy Saveur and other US food titles at The Market Bookstall in Borough Market, open Fridays and Saturdays, and located in the Floral Hall (opposite the foie gras people).

1. Cinnamon Club 2. Crabs at Cheviely (sp.), Berks. 3. The Swan at Southrop, Glos.

For sale at £10M.

I gather that Le Vacherin is not up to much ...

Incognico should be open after its summer holiday, and their set lunch at £12.50 is undeniably a bargain ...

I went last week, and was really impressed. I did have a few reservations though. As well as many delicious taste and textures, there were a few unpleasantries that stick in my mind. The famed tandoori salmon reminded me of a pret a manger sandwich thanks to the slightly soggy fish and copious amounts of dill, and the samosas had rather thicker pastry than I would have liked. My main issue however was with the service which was really quite irksome. Our waiter had travelled from Kent via the East end and Australian, and was far too full of the joys of summer. He was a bit of a mismatch with the elegant room and graceful food, and was a bit cocky. I think we were just unfortunate because it is not a complaint of anybody else. I had a chat with him afterwards and he is certainly a busy man. I only hope that having sunk all his dosh into the place, that he can drag enough people out to Chelsea, as I cannot see it working as a local. It is far too good.

Restaurant reviewers should be a social commentators shouldn't they, on the basis that restaurants are social environments... A restaurant reviewer is effectively a travel writer, which entails much more skill than simply writing about music or theatre for example. You go to a gig to listen to music, and to the theatre to see a play, but there is so much more to a restaurant (decor, location, crowd, reputation, etc) that means that people don't just go to restaurants to eat food even if the likes of egullet view food as the essentail function of a restaurant. Thus there is a much more complex account to give. I am sure that Matthew Fort's replacement will do a fine job at entertaining Guardian readers, but I doubt that he will give as accurate an account of the food on offer in such places. Do Guardian readers care about food? If they thought that their readership did, then they might offer a better cookery section, and some more interesting editorial rather than self righteous accounts of the innards of a bag of salad.

They have just got a new front of house guy, so that might overcome the reported problems with service. The Polish Club is on Exhibition Rd I think - it is supposd to be quite fun.

Umm. Carluccio's Fulham Rd is very sparsly decorated with goodies, but I will take your word for it.

When did you last go to B St Q?

Ottolenghi in W11 is not Lebanese - its menu is sort of metro-trat'. It is also not alot like Carluccios either I dont think. You could go to OL and buy a delicious lunch to take away or eat at the communal table at the back of the room. In Carluccios you would have to make do with a tomato and a bag of coffee beans. I am glad that they have opened a second site - what they do, they do very well.

There is no need to go to the grotty Oratory (what a trek to get to the loo for eg.) when there is perfectly decent food in both Brasserie St Quentin and Racine only metres away.

Not many hidden secrets in Jersey - it is very small afterall. Zanzibar in St Brelade is good. So is Suma's in Gorey. Cooking for yourself in Jersey is a real treat. In case ... Beresford market in St Helier excellent for fish (esp. the brown shrimps and local diver caught scallops), and Lucas Bros in St Brelade has very good salad leaves and veg'. Midland Stores in St. Saviour is the best bet for making picnic lunches - very good bread, and really good selection of fresh fruit.

I went with a friend last night. Things I didn't like: - crappy scatty service - 3 people wanting to take my ordera at once or none ... - uncomfortable chairs - inside leg a small 31" but I just didn't know where to put my feet - result: leg cramps ... - decor - lots of exposed brick work which made the back wall of the basement look like a church hall, not helped by the cross shaped holes with candles in them. Things I did like: - delicious, and at time the most delicious food (esp. chinese chive dumplings, scallop cheung fun, spinach cube). - cheap - under £30 for two - full of food, generous tip but no booze. - fun atmosphere, and the potential for eternal greatness!

I find the most irksome thing about Bistro 21 is the juxta position between the style of the building and its location. I don't make a habit of eating on trading estates, but that place is an exception.

Bistro 21 is the only restaurant worth spending money in anywhere near Durham. Also, try The Seven Stars just outside Durham past Maiden Castle and Durham College of Further Education (obviously cannot remember the name of the village). When I left (3yrs ago) there was a new place in a particularly beautiful position over looking the coach depo where all the footballers wives ate. I cannot remember its name and don't think it was nearly as good as Bistro 21, but it might be worth a look. Also Seaham Hall is not too far from there.

The bottom end (Fulham Broadway) is generally much better, especially on a Friday morning when there is a fishmonger and a French cheesemonger with really good goats cheeses). There is also a chap with much more interesting produce than just tomatoes and HUGE pineapples. Just got back from there actually with some good looking beetroot and a few other bits. The beet leaves will be limp by the time I leave here at 6pm but it is very cheap. Buy to cook, and not keep is what I say! You just need to keep your eyes peeled - I go most days, but until wednesday it is pretty crap.

I nipped into turnip a couple of weeks ago to buy some rhubarb, and ran away when they tried to charge me £5/lb. I got back to the office and went down to the North End rd where I bought equally good 'barb for £1/lb. Shocking, but at last a good reason to live or work in Fulham.