sarah w

i was wondering if anyone could advise me on the nearest train station and airport to Auberge De l'ill also the accomodation availiable in the area? Thanks

I would highly recommend the french table, lovely place, 3 course lunch around £15 Also place called Michels in ripley gets good reports Take a look at www.yourbestlocal.com which covers walton(where i live)weybridge,surrey etc,kew,chiswick,richmond etc have fun x

whoops, yes it was a litre...still expensive !...see its still affecting me It was consumed at the reasonable hour of 12:30pm Bruges is reachable by eurostar, under 3hrs to brusssels and then change for a 50mins journey...Bruges is compact thus you can walk or get the bus to the centre from the station The restaurant is in central bruges I have been to other 3 star establishments, Ducasse-monte carlo, Chez nico-london(b4 he returned them) paul bocuse, lyon In comparison i would say the ratio of staff to customers was very different but pleasant as the pressure was less, the food was of an excellent standard, good wine list, great amuses..The decor,table details etc were modern and stylish..Alot of thought has gone into them The surprising thing that we noticed was that it looks like there was no choices when you get to the dessert choice. We had a set menu which had "a selection of chocolates and sweets", it looked like the table next to us who were a'la carte had the same desserts (with an extra dish). Even in the book by the chef Geert Van Hecke , there are hardly any desserts, i would not complain though because the one's we had were fab heres the website link for the restaurant, piccies and all DE KARMELIET also bruges website with restaurants, etc bruge site have fun sarah x

I have just returned from 3 nights in bruges and felt i had to write as i was very pleased with the standard of food. The only mistake we made was on arrival when we went straight to a cafe in the square for a snack and drink and ended up with £10 large pint of beer!! we started with mussels and a lovely dish of very garlicky prawns.. For dinner we went to a lovely, rustic place called cafe grand passage we had carbonade flammade-a very rich beef stew made with local gueze beer, also the local chicken creamy stew, lamb chops and garlic and a beef kebab.. The following day we booked the 3 michelin starred restaurant de karmeliet A very beautiful and modern restaurant: Lots of Amuses: Smkd salmon,:crudites with a fromage blanc and herb dip Cheese and tom beignets: tete de veau terrine(i didnt go for that) seafood jelly with puree cauliflower.. Starters: 2 x partially cooked Mackerel with confied toms and radishes a confied terrine of veg with fresh almonds goose foie gras with artichokes,girolles and leaf mains: 3 x halibut with gorgeous ratatouille and fresh spaghetti thin tomato tart desserts: I think that the chef has a no choice policy and everyone has variety of desserts and petit fours we had-choc/mocha millefuille: a plum and kirsch sobert dessert: a whipped cheese and fruit compote dessert with choc strands-tasted like an amazing black forest gateaux standard petit fours but the rum babas were outstanding filled with lots of rum !! we had a few bottles of south african white, dessert wine etc cost was 110 euros each- £70 ahead after a siesta and a good walk we had supper at a new restaurant called salad folle, far from fine dining but very good quality salads,pasta.lovely looking dining room and very good value £4 assiette of desserts the next day we had a quick, good pizza for lunch at riva da sole supper was at a lovely fondue place just off the market, we chose a meat and a cheese one with great accompaniments...very good house wine other choices were raclettes or individual cooking pans about £15 ahead all in all a very good trip drank at various establishments, good beer,wine and genevers (lethal, and remember the od tastes milder than new) lovely hotel called the azalea I would recommend Bruges to anyone as it is still untouched and a really beautiful town-lots of tourist but such is life, apparently half the population is over 60 so maybe why so clean..but as a 25 year old, 30 year old and my parents there was no end of things to do,places to eat drink etc..Not sure why but we ended up in a very good irish pub, always seem to in europe!! take care x

hiya, we went to deca last week having enjoyed eating at chez nico and incognico, we booked for a saturday at 8:30 and were dissapointed when we walked past the restaurant at 8 on our way for pre dinner drink and saw no one in there..Knowing there was an upstairs we hoped we were being seated up there...We arrived and were fortunately led to our lovely table for 4 upstairs in the window.Natasha, Nicos daughter who we have met b4 came over and said hi and said so far the restaurant was doing ok but the summer season can be quiet, there were 2 other tables when we were there. I do think that the location is odd, it is not busy like cambridge circu-Incognico or as prestgious as park lane-chez nico..The restaurant is attractive though. Now the food, the "canape" was quiche which was ok but not amazing The bread was excellent as was my always fav, echire butter We choose Langoustine ravioli-as mentioned previously this was excellent, a dish you salivate over, good portion Foie gras,brioche,orange-HUGE, tasty, dressed crab-small in comparison but very nice Salad of parma ham,artichoke,cherry toms-again a huge portions but very tasty, great toms for mains: duck with pink peppercorns and honey- excellent pink and tasty monkfish "roger verge"-quite bland and over heavy on the cherry toms and oilves, needed some seasoning and maybe a light sauce skate wing and capers- tasty but loads of olive oil drowned the flavour of the fish veggies: peas a la francaise- very good brocolli hollandiase- naughty but nice chips-good but we didnt need them we had a bottle of rose and a sancerre and aperitifs, no desserts as we were full but nice options.. £50 a head after the meal paul rhodes came and chatted with us and had a beer, we did this with his previously at incognico..He is a very nice chap and we all had a nice chat..He is confident about Deca and also his solo extreme catering project.. I think for ambience i enjoyed incognico more but only because deca needs to be busier which i am sure it will be..Food still very enjoyable and as with all 'nico's' menus i could eat virtually anything on there... I would definately say go there and would also say it would be a very good choice for shoppers around bond street...after spending all that money a £12:50 lunch would be a blessing to anyone ! x

and with ref to tomato water chat, we have on several times made a variation on Tetsuya Wakuda's (from OZ and London restaurants MJU) Tomato and tea consomme, quite simple with stunning results..It ends up tasting like a clear heinz soup,quite intense..we just use fresh toms and mi cuit toms boiled in water....and then strain through muslin,the key is do not press through,let it drip !!...(we don't add tea normally but i believe he uses ceylon) try it !!

I do agree that the choc and pistachio was v.good but my boyfriend disagreed...i suppose that is down to personal taste and my love of chocolate... As i mentioned before the food was very pleasant but i think after the year we'd had of "fine dining" incl: ducasse,verge,bocuse,chantecler-nice, etc etc i had become slightly less excited about eating out...Don't worry though I have since recovered !! I just thought it was such a lovely place and as mentioned the Provence suite was out of this world.(can't imagine spending £750-825 on a hotel room though !).the communal rooms are pleasant and nicely decorated with a bang and oulfsen stereo and board games to play,photo books to look through. We went last december, the weather on our arrival day was beautiful and made the building and gardens look even more appealing..On the morning after the night before it was a typical,foggy winters day but created a completely different atmosphere, i imagine at christmas it is wonderful.. I enjoyed walking round in the evening when there is a strange silence around the around the grounds despite a bustling kitchen and restaurant.. being so close... One thing is will say though is if i ever have enough cash i would love to get married there as the milton room looks lovely, especially after dark.. sarah x

hellooo, here are my thoughts on manoir i have to say i enjoyed the whole package of manoir but wouldn't say the meal was one of the most memorable of my life, now saying this i also may be regarded as biased because i won the night's stay and menu gourmond for 2... I won a competition in Food and Travel magazine for a week's cooking course but i couldnt take the time off and my boyfriend is a chef anyway so he didnt want to do it so i swapped if for a nights stay..A very good decision, We were given the Provence suite which was fantastic (have a look on the website) www.manoir.com.., the largest window i ever did see, beautiful bathroom, step to the bed etc, i could have cried..A bottle of chilled champers was waiting for us.. we went for dinner at 9pm, the food was of high quality and i had no complaints other than maybe a lack of excitement..This sounds awful but i cannot remember all the dishes, Jerusalem artichoke soup, Pigeon, Chocolate and pistachio dessert... What i will say though is that as a destination for celebrations and treats it is a lovely place to go,eat and stay. the staff were lovely, we sat up for many hours chatting with the staff (spending our own money i add!!) and remember to enter competitions as people do sometimes win..... sarah xx

I went to meson don felipe some time ago but colleagues went on tuesday and said they really liked it, maybe just differing opinions simon- what is the address of other tapas bar-Ma I terra , does it have a nice atmosphere....? I have never eaten laughing gravy,despite it only being about 2 mins from my office but i am always put off by the fact that the kitchen below street level has open windows level with pavement on a very busy crossroads...no guards on windows that i have seen....!! sarah x

I work in this area and can recommend tas after several work meal visits and yes there is another branch on the borough high street Also along the cut is a great tapas bar, Meson don felipe..lively and good quality tapas..can be booked b4 8pm.. Also if you want a quick taxi ride i would thoroughly recommend the lobster pot in kennington, fish,fish and seafood..Fun place,kitsch.. Finally on the walworth road-elephant and castle there is a good pizza place called pizzeria castello..far nicer than you would expect for the area have fun sarah x

Hi matthew I have been to bangkok several times and chiang mai 4 times. the funny thing is when i read your mail i suddenly thought where the hell have we eaten.!! As you know with thailand it is often the case that you just stumble accross places not knowing their names... Anyone last time was in 2000, we went to a french restaurant in chaing mai called le coq d'or, it was fantastic and so bizzare to be eating fine french food and wine in thailand..Not sure if is still there, was 68/1-2 koh klang rd.tambon nonghoi.chiangmai.. I have always enjoyed the river restaurants in chiang mai, over the main bridge turn left, 2 or 3 places to eat. our staple for snacks,brekkies,proper bread,cakes,thai food etc is jj bakery there are two, one nr the tha pae gate(the better of the 2) and one at the night market..We have stayed in various guesthouses and more recently the amari rincome, about 14 each a night(luxury !!) food was ok there. In bangkok we have spent alot of time around the khao sarn road so have probably ended up drinking rather than eating, we did the tourist thing and went to cabbages and condoms which is fun, food ok..there is also a nice indian at the end of the same soi.. I will keep thinking and check will my fella as he may remember more than me.. have fun, Chok dee !! P.S just found website http://www.chiangmainews.com also bangkok post website has restaurant guide, great paper too

Hi, beford i start i apologise for my spelling and punctuation but i am work it is a very sunny day and i want to go home !! I was interested in your cote d'azur chat and thought i'd join in. I took a 12 day break in the nice last year and thorough;y enjoyed it, i have to admit some meals were a dissapointment but generally for my boyfriend who is a chef and me, who just loves dining..it was a great holiday. We started off with Chantecler for lunch which was very formal but amazing all the same, there were 4 adults and a child and i have to say we have a wonderful table, they were brilliant with our 5 year old dining companion. When we asked if they had suitable meals for children they said she could have anything, her spaghetti bolognaise looked wonderful. We went for lunch intending to have the bargin lunch with wine but were swayed by the chantecler menu and sea menu, 4hrs and £400 worse off we left with full stomachs and big smiles. Excellent food, service, desserts were out of this world.... Next we went to Ducasse at hotel de paris, again with the intention of bargin lunch for 2 on the veranda...but once their couldn't resist the gastronomic...amazing risotto with chantrelles, seafood salad,pigeon, fraise des bois with mascarpone ice cream,chocolates with gold leaf and beautiful rose champagne...I wouldn't have chosen the armarngac that my fella did though, £36 but in the most stunning glass i ever did see.....v.expensive day but amazing food and setting, i wouldn't have changed it for the world. Then i took my boyfriend to Moulin de Mougins for dinner and an overnight stay..I have to admit the food wasn't as breathtaking as i imagined but is was still good and very filling, the stuffed courgette flower with a surprise of a huge truffle was great, lobster fricasse, roast rack of lamb and clafoutis,but the ambience won the day,it was amazing and to top it off we went for a drink in the bar, we were the only ones in there until a little table was set for dinner and Roger Verge and his wife denise sat and ate there...We got to chat to roger and this obviously made my boyfriends birthday...i was happy as Roger is a very attractive older man.!!!..Anyway to top off our trip and one of the best meals was at a place called Merenda near the Cours saleya..It has no telephone so you have to book in person, the chef is the ex chef from Chantecler i believe called Dominic le stanc...There is a black board with the menu of the day so what is there is there, when u order wine you are told there is red,white or rose and there are 2 sittings, the tables are close together but what a wonderful place.. We had ratatouille, ricotta,rocket and herbs then daube de boeuf and nicoise veg farci..dessert was a caramlised peach and goats cheese..Well worth the visit... keep writing and if u want to chat please do

Well, last weekend march 1st me and my fiancee went to luxembourg, besides reading a bit and surfing the net we had no preconceptions, whenever we said we are going to luxembourg most people had a bemused expression... anyway i have to say we loved it,small,compact,friendly,food was good,even the weather was reasonable..There are several main areas round/in the city, the european centre,hollerich (the station area !!) the central city and squares and the grund. The grund is very much like a tiny bruges in appearance with a few bars and restaurants, you can in the free lift through the city walls... food wise i believe you have 4 or 5 establishments with 1 michelin stars to choose from..We chose a place called Clairefontaine which was brilliant, the chef and his wife are quite young and the food was traditional but innovative aswell. The actual service was not as slick as i have before but it also added to a pleasant and relaxed evening. We chose the chefs menu, great amuse's of lobster consomme,tiny bit of confit duck and mash and a lobster jelly. This was followed by foie gras en bloc with the most amazing confit tasting tomatoes, then we had a beautiful, huge prawn/langoustine in what appeared to be crispy noddle with cauliflower cream, the flesh was so tender. Then scallops with balsamic , then turbot with a generous portion of truffle slice..by this point we were so full and satisfied that we asked if we could skip on the pigeon with lobster -at this point the maitre'd explained it had been started but could be packaged in a "doggy" bag, not many places would offer that service!! The sad thing is we never tried the pigeon as 3 days and no fridge probably wouldn't have done it any justice......We finished with cheese and a dessert which was interesting, praline mille fuille with star anise cream, celery coulis....not breathtaking but it went well and was a light enough finish...after aperitifs, a Saussignac with the pate, a luxembourg white and a red (cannot remeber the names !!) and the advice of our livers, we skipped on disgestifs....Very satisfiying evening, slept like babies, we were even given a home made lemon cake on departure...and total was approx £90 each.....Not bad, one of our cheapest !! take care sarah xx