Cheryl Ewan

I'd recommend Hereford Road. I think the chef is ex-St John (but someone will doubtless correct me if this is wrong), the food is seasonal with a daily changing menu and has a fair amount of offal and cheaper cuts. On the occasions I've been there, we've managed to have drinks, two courses each and a pudding to share, with a good bottle of wine for well under £100 for 2 - not cheap certainly but pretty favourable for good food in London these days. It's had a reasonably tough time on London Eating with regard to service and staff being miserable, but I've never found this to be the case. Website: Hereford Road

Spanky I've eaten in Gamba a couple of times recently and my opinion, for what it is worth, is that the fish is fresh and beautifully cooked, but they do tend to "fanny about" with their dishes to much. Maybe I'm just an old-fashioned gal, but I prefer my seafood simply cooked, whereas last time I went, about 4 out of 7 dishes were cooked with an Oriental theme, e.g. with a black bean sauce, with a sweet soy dressing etc. As I say, that's just my opinion and it probably wouldn't stop me going back. Sort of opposite Gamba is a restaurant called Rococo (not to be confused with Rogano) which seems to be getting a lot of good reviews from friends in Glasgow, but I couldn't get a table so can't comment personally. I've also eaten in Stravaigin (Think Global, Eat Local) and Stravaigin 2, the latter being more casual, and had good meals there. Cheryl