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circeplum

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Posts posted by circeplum

  1. A bit of a fishy review from Marina O'Loughlin at Deep, reviewed by Jan Moir last week, and, erm, Fay Maschler. Last week.  What I find unsettling is that she describes the food as “mostly good” and then proceeds to describe the dishes she has as, variously, “splendid, intriguing”, “perfectly roasted', “fine”, “appealing”, “I liked this a lot”, “used to excellent effect”, and “princely”.  “Everything encountered at Deep was as it should be”.  So why “mostly good”, Marina?

    (the following to be read in a definitely-not-snarky tone of voice)

    because my measly 600 word count didn't allow me to outline the (few) bits that mostly weren't good and i wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt (unlike, it would seem, the rest of the world).

    and, dearest culinary bear, you should forget your worry about the recurrence of certain names in reviews. it's going to happen over and over again. we're usually (or always in my case) sent to cover NEW restaurants of note. and, yep, there are usually only about 10 or so of those at any one time.

    x

  2. i liked the place. and the food was ok - it's just it could have been better, especially given the players involved.

    space didn't allow me to say how brilliant the staff were, however (apart from the lovely helena putting up with my table tantrums). our chap was affable, twinkly and knowledgeable, and i liked the astonishingly bubbly female sommelier recommending us a cheaper wine that we'd chosen - to great effect.

    x

  3. i know that before i did the gig, i'd follow those critics whose judgement i trusted. still do, for that matter. others i read for entertainment value - what's so wrong with that? others i simply disregard. there are so many of us here with a reasonable rep that you can pick and choose and make an informed decision on the back of that.

    as far as several visits go, andy is right. besides, our brief is to cover new restaurants and there are so many new gaffs opening every week (in my patch, london, alone) that we'd never get round to a third of them if we kept re-visiting. (plus i'd have to be trundled around in a wheelbarrow.)

    we never go to 'soft' openings or first nights. we always go anonymously when the restaurant is open to paying customers and report as we find. much as paying customers would do.

    x

  4. second the drapers arms. but went to an astonishingly good gastropub last night i want to share with everyone. (might even get 5 stars...)

    called the greyhound, it's in battersea high st. not only is the cooking of first class resto standard, but the wine list would blow you away. it's a truly handsome space, too. 3 courses, 28 quid. not giveaway, but so so worth it.

    (we had boudin noir with hazelnut crisp, chicken giblets and pancetta; slow roast beef 'carpaccio' with poached egg and wild rocket; splendid mutton with a kind of mutton kofta and red onion jam; monfish lyonnais with cipolline onions and tarragon emulsion; chocolate brownies with horseradish (!!) icecream - amazing; and glorious english cheese.)

    go...

    x

  5. JC will be the chef for part 2 according to press reports...ideal, he can teach the celebs how to look good while taking a restaurant bankrupt.... :sad: just kidding,  I'm sure he'll swear alot too.

    On another bit of news...Daniel Galmiche is taking over from Mark Dodson (of Waterside Head Chef fame) at Cliveden. Daniel is formerly of michelin starred L'Ortolan and signed up to 'celebrity chefs UK' booking agency - you can view their array of household names  here

    i can see JC doing that quite well, bet circe will be desperate to get on that guest list!

    the celebrity chef's? Household names? Certainly not in my house!

    cheers

    gary

    :biggrin:

  6. Oh dear, thats a rather bad tempered review isn't it! And how does Marina know what Shake'n'Vac tastes like I wonder.  As a matter of interest I was once in a band that did a cover version of the Shake'n'Vac advert. Altogether now "Do the Shake'n'Vac and put the freshness back...."

    not at all bad-tempered! i'm the sweetest natured creature on the planet. :biggrin: what was good was praised, what was bad was reported.

    and you try and do the shake'n' vac without accidentally ingesting any of it.

    x

    p.s. you have the prize for the 174th person to ask that question. :wink:

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