PoppySeedBagel

I had lunch at the Bleeding Heart a couple of weeks ago - I doubt Pierre was at the stove, as the lunch was as safe, pedestrian and over-priced as it always used to be. The only difference seems to be you can no longer forgo a pudding because you get some decent petits fours with your coffee - now all you get are some measly chocolates...

Thanks for the recommendations everyone!

My husband has An Important Birthday coming up, and I want to throw a party for 14 of us in central London or Surrey/Kent/Sussex. Not many places can accommodate that number of people, that aren't the glitzier hotels. My wanting to avoid the Ritz et al isn't so much the cost, as the fact that none of the guests will feel particularly comfortable at the Ritz, and the chances are it'll be a fairly lively gathering. We just want good food, in good accommodation, with good, friendly service. All suggestions will be gratefully received.

My mother went to Austria in about 1952, and was stunned by cream and butter being freely available there when it was still rationed in UK

Carrot Top my godmother has a copy of a recent book called 'We'll Eat Again' (groan) which I think she got from the Imperial War Museum in London. It's a collection of war time recipes, and also gives a lot of background to rationing. It's written by Marguerite Patten who worked as a demonstrator for the Minstry of Food - it's very interesting, although not many of the recipe inspire me to try them!

Sorry Joe I haven't had that dish. I went for lunch in Soho yesterday - lots of eGulleteers there that day! I agree about the beans with the rabbit - perfectly cooked, looking like a green bonfire all heaped up. The vegetables that accompany the mains are real stars in their own right. The oxtail ravioli are jolly yummy too - the ginger was so subtle - just there when you put it into your mouth. I wish I'd left room for the strawberry trifle - I may have to return just for that!

I've bought some fresh lava from a butcher in Newport in Pembrokeshire - and followed his instructions to have it hot with bacon for breakfast - it was nice. It's also a delicacy in North Devon - where it's spelled Laver I think. I once bought cockles in Waitrose - where they were marked as being clams - they did change the sign & price when I pointed it out to them!

I second Konditor & Cook - their cakes taste delicious and have real style

I used to buy organic goat from our local organic shop, and very nice it was too. I'm a home cook, not running a restaurant. I'd buy horse if I could in the UK, mind - I'll eat anything good. It may be an idea to market & package it with a leaflet of suitable recipes, and tips.

Can you also please add recommendations for good BBQ cookbooks?

Well, Mr PSB & I had a lovely lunch at my Favourite Restaurant yesterday. I had the mackeral burger which was gorgeous, then a dish involving slow-cooked lamb, sweet breads and sultanas - with some very well-cooked spinach - in a good way. My pudding was, as ever, possibly the best part of the meal - hot & cold blood oranges, which was actually blood orange sabayon on a sablé biscuit, surrounded by crescents of blood orange - perfect - light & refreshing after my quite rich starter & mains. Mr PSB had the smoked eel, then the rabbit saddle/shepherds pie, plus lemon tart. All were excellent. Our only beef was Mr PSB's coffee - an espresso, which was, unaccountably, served in a small glass. It was full to the brim, and the poor waiter scalded his fingers as he served it. It was so difficult to drink out of that he didn't enjoy the coffee. Arbutus usually serves things in sensible ways - quite why they have decided to use these daft glasses and then fill them to the brim, I have no idea - handles are a very sensible invention.

The Fox & Anchor, also in Smithfield does jolly good fry-ups from very early in the morning right through the day. The bacon was superb a couple of years ago. They have a lovely little private room seating about 6. The Mitre sure is quaint but the food is v. basic. It's also often full of tourists.

I was passing Patisserie Valerie just by Harrods the other day, and smelled not lovely butter, but nasty cheap fat... It may have been a coincidence, and I haven't eaten anything by them recently. Pual is OK - at least they use butter. Amazingly light and delicious chocolate eclairs can be had at Apostrophe - there's a branch in Market Place just by Oxford Circus, and I believe it is a small chain - no website appears on a Google search though. They also do sandwiches, whcih have always seemed over-complicated to me, but look like they are made with good bread. In the Oxford Circus area there is really no contest though - head to Sketch Patisserie on Conduit Street - miniscule cakes but absolutely divine. There is also Konditor & Cook - not as sophisticated as Sketch, but lovely cakes nonetheless - I adore the orange & lavender cake. Link to website is here: http://www.konditorandcook.com/

Yes Matthew it looked a lot like that - only with added cockles. It came served in a little copper pan - they do present things beautifully. My next trip is on 16.3.07 - can't wait...

Basildog - do you do Plateaux de Fruits de Mer - and if you don't is there anywhere you'd recommend in or near Padstow that does?(apart from Rick's Place...)

I had a disappointing dish there the other day - terrine that had been pulverised - it was more like liver sausage in texture and was also under-seasoned - the main of gurnard in saffron broth with (unadvertised) cockles was very good though and the rhubarb jelly with vanilla ice cream was sensational. This was all on the pre-dinner menu. They are a bit mean with the bread basket though. The problem is that it's such good value I don't want to go anywhere else. Even when it's on expenses, I want to see how they can manage to produce food of such good quality at such prices in London. I also love the style of cooking, and the carafe business.

Rice crackers flavoured with Marmite are surprisingly nice [i don't generaly like rice crackers ]- and very handy when you're out & about if your young children like both - a good portable snack.

And if they can't help, have you tried posting on the Fench thread? IME the French home-preserve anything that moves so I bet have access to more sources than we in the UK.

My stepmother can quell with one look, so, in this case, no...

You can also cook a whole salmon in the dishwasher, well-wrapped in foil. My stepmother did once - she also barbecued a turkey one year. Eating her meals was always an experience.

I suspect it means promoting in an advertising sense, rather than Human Resources. It's rather pathetic how excited I've got over this - in any French or Italian town of comparable size there would be at least two decent greengrocers, but Reigate like most British towns has succumbed to The Wonders of The Supermarket.

Tucked away off Reigate High Street is a new gem - Charlie Hicks who's often on the radio talking about eating seasonally, has opened a greengrocers selling ... excellent seasonal produce. As the only other sources of Fruit 'n veg in the town are Morrisons (boo hiss) and M&S I do hope it prospers. I can't keep it going on my own! The Italian oranges we bought, for example, are gorgeous - sweet yet tangy.

I haven't been to Alexanders yet - but I did eat at Drakes on the Pond when Simon was there and had a truly excellent meal.

And some food at Benares is good, but it's not that special - I love the ambiance though

I'm unusual in UK in that I neither particularly like nor dislike Marmite - normally it excites fierce debates between the lovers and haters. We buy the smallest pot, and it lasts us about 5 years - about twice a year, maybe when I'm not feeling too well, I just fancy toast spread with the thinnest possible smear of Marmite, with a big mug of tea: that just hits the spot. Whe I was at university, my housemates & I cooked our way through 'The Bean Book', by Rose Elliot (I shared with some serious vegetarians). The most disgusting dish by far was Continental Lentil Toad in the Hole With Marmite Gravy'