Simon Majumdar

martin Better warn them to get an extra pig or two in S

That would be totally lost on an Australian. Where is Adam when I need an Ocker to wind up? S

our kid'll come too but not until 7.30pm S

I don't The only reason India are not world champs right now is that it is not yet Sunday evening S

I'm in, even if it is in the company of someone who couldn't hack it as an Ombud on an internet food site S

Yes it's moving food from my stomach to the floor S

Sunday is the big day Snacks aplenty Much beerage and we will send the convicts back home with their tails between their legs

I think it is Chamberlain's He was a fish trader ( two haddock= 1 pollock ) who opened a restaurant andn wet fish shop. It is very expensive and not a patch on Mr Hatt, but worth a try S

Hello Fergus Thank you for taking the time to look at some of our questions When I am describing St J to friends in London or abroad, I often call it the one truly unique restaurant in London and, in my travels, I have never seen anything like it anywhere else. Does it surprise you that, given the commercial and critical success of St J's that more people have not taken up a similar approach or that there is still very little nose to tail action to be found on London's menus? It is interesting that with the opening of the new St J's bakery in Spitalfields ( I am not sure if you feel comfortable talking about that ) that you have in fact had to copy yourself and no one else has thought of/been able to do that Best S

Not in the slightest rubbery They were crunchy, wondefully greasy and had quite a lot of meat with them. There were four big chunks of them on the plate with a sharply dressed salad Excellent S

Very good meal at St J's last night. They had a great starter of confit chicken necks on as a special. if any one is going soon, I can really recommend it S

Bombay Brasserie, while not my favourite place in London is about a million miles above what I experienced at Diwan. The food there is far from simple. It is quite complex, but reasonably prepared. My reasons for reservation are mainly down to service S

I know Channel 4 were considering picking up the programme but didn't take up the option I do think they offered Tony a place on "Help, I'm a Celebrity Chef, get me outta here" though I hope they someone picks it up soon or he may come over lots more to do more personal appearances and boost his profile. God save us S

Steve Comparing Diwan with Tabla is missing the point a tad as they are both trying to different things ( with varying degrees of success ) and I would not even recognise tabla as an Indian restaurant. Better comparisons ,and you are in the position to make them, are between Tabla and The Cinnamon Club in London ( both fail equally in my opinon as the concept is flawed and the execution of the dishes inept ) and Diwan with an equally mid - high end place ( I am not sure there are any places in Manhattan that are at that level, Perhaps Nirvana, but that was a grave disappointment also ) such as Zaika or to be more fair the Red Fort ( MId Level ) I would not say that Diwan's dishes were "over spiced" they were however inexpertly spiced. nina is incorrect in saying that food from India lacks subtlety. I cooked, in my own inexpert way, two dishes for her at a recent supper which showed the breadth of possibilities. She is just eating at the wrong places. The butter chicken dish I had at Diwan was bland and lacking in the necessary spice. I found its use of spicing to be the level of a fairly standard UK curry house. Fine, but not worthy of pages and pages on Egullet. Of the two, I would return to Diwan before Tabla, but perhaps only if Suvir was ordering ( and paying ) S

looking online at the both the main menu and the Bread bar menu, these are not dishes that would be recognised in any Indian kitchen be it a home one, a store front place or the highest end hotel. That does not mean necessarily that they are bad, but from my experience of eating there, they usually fall between acceptable but strange to actually inedible and sometimes revolting. S

Take a look at the Indian board, beginning, perhaps, with the thread on the history of Indian cooking. Suffice to say that Diwan, for example is trying to offer a wide sampling of dishes from lots of different regions to give people an over view. I am not too down on it, I just didn't see the reason for all the hoo ha. I read the menu, looked closely at the buffet and tried a couple of dishes and it was underwhelming. But that's OK, so many Indian places of its ilk are better then to start here and move to restaurants that specialise in regional cooking in all it slight and shade. I don't know enough about Ny to know where you find them, but great Goan food, Kerulan food, kasmiri food can be understood by anyone with a palate but has to be prepped by someone with an lifetime. S

Sure. I am writing on the hoof as I head out to set up for the London Book Fair, but let's give it a go first of all what's a lifetime? By SP's argument ( stretched to the absurd ), if the place was full of Indians even if they were all six years old, that would be better than a bunch of western Gourmands. Patently not. Secondly, there is the assumption that people understand what they are eating just by eating it. trust me I know enough people from Bengal and every other region of India that have been brought up on this stuff and wouldn't know Dimple from Zaika. Understanding comes more from a desire to understand than from an accident of birth. I would be more swayed by SP's assertion that Tabla has improved than I would by that of an uncle of mine who would eat cardboard if it was put in front of him with enough chilli on it even though he has spent his life being cooked for by the most exceptional Bengali Chefs. why? Because, although I don't always ( very rarely in fact ) agree with Steve P, I have enough respect for his palate to be intrigued. The person i know whose judgement I would most value on Indian food is a 42yr old Welsh guy. He has not spent a huge amount of time in India but has developed a passion and hunger to learn. He has forgotten more about the regional differences, the spices, the ingredients than I will ever know and I hope I am pretty knowledgeable S

It's not like you give us much of a choice, especially when you say things like: I have to say that I agree with FG on this one. just consider me his life preserver To say that 2/3 of the diners in a place being Indian makes an Indian restaurant any good does not make sense. Indians are just as capable of misunderstanding , being ill informed about Indian food as you americans are Not this Indian mind S

not waving but drowning Fat Guy, Not waving but drowning S

That statement shows you entire lack of understanding of Indian food. While the food on 6th avenue is cooked by Bangladeshi's ( not strictly Bengali's anymore ) it is not Bengali food in anyway, no more than the food on brick Lane in London is. You are right in saying that it is crap however Indian food ( again I wont go in to the whole " there is no such thing as Indian food it is like saying European food" thing as it will confuse matters more ) is like all cuisines a balance of haveing exemplary ingredients, flavourings and seasonings that compliment the ingredients and bring out the natural tastes with cooks who have a knowledge of the food and the grace with which to carry it out Tabla displays none of those things. Diwan displayed some of them. Although I am shocked that people think it is a reasonable excuse that a dish was crap because the chef was not there. that's ok then??????? S

tony, I can see you are reading this Think Cinnamon Club but even more nasty that's all you need to know As for Diwan. I found it fine, no more. Certainly no more than a mid level London Indian restaurant S

what is it like to live in your world? S

There are one or two beef dishes in india that really hit the spot ( particularly those that come from Kerulan Christian kitchens ) The problem is not with the beef per se, it is used in India ( if in a limited way because of the obvious religious restrictions ) my concern is more that Tabla ( and I am not sure I would even call this place an Indian restaurant ) has displayed all the cackhandedness of those who don't know what they are doing with the ingredients or the spices. one dish I had there ( a spiced quail ) was one of the nastiest dishes I have ever tried in the US. The preparation of the bread was poor ( a good way to judge any Indian place ) and I found the whole thing a bit "square peg in a round hole" In effect what they are doing is exactly as you said, taking standard western techniques and "tweaking for local custom" Still, all his other places have never let me down so I shouldn't complain too much S

My three visits to Tabla have all been middling to revolting. It is a total misfire IMHO. The addition of beef to the menu makes me shudder S

I have no problem asking for a doggy bag if the portions are so huge that I can't finish them. It is just that outside the US, that very rarely happens as most other countries have some understanding of the word "ample" S