Roger McShane

One of the problems with Lespinasse and similar places in their heyday was that they had a very clear 'two-tiered'ystem. Regulars and 'the glitterati' were treated with overwhelming attention and 'the general public' were treated with contempt. I say this because my experience was far from satisfactory. Food varied from excellent to pathetic. Service varied from poor to very poor. These places have to realise that they need to treat everyone as though they are a valued customer. If they do then their customers talk to their friends and recommend the place to others. The glitterati soon mobve on to the latest 'hot' place and have very few allegiances. That is why I am much more sympathetic to Cafe Boulud where the service and attitude was exemplary.

Robert I have to completely disagree. I must admit that I have only had one meal at Arun's. But the reason is that I would never go back. My meal was a pale imitation of Thai food. There was not one flavour in the whole evening that reminded me of the streets of Bangkok! There was not one flavour that even approached the flavours of David Thompson. The whole meal seemed to be orchestrated towards satisfying local Chicago socialites who wanted to pretend that they were eating Thai food. If they want to try soe real flavours they should zip up to OHare and grab a plane to Bangkok and try the food at the Vientiane Kitchen or fly to Sydney and try Sailors Thai or London at eat at Nham.

Hate to spoil the party but the meals that our group of foodies tried at Emeril's and the underwhelming NOLA were some of the worst we have had anywhere in the world. We are not just talking about bad for the style of restaurant - the food was unacceptable even in a $10 dive! When I asked to go to NOLA my foodie friend who had already endured a month in New Orleans begged me not to make her go there again. After the first dishes were tasted I could understand her concern. The meals at Emeril's were so bad that they became Fawlty Towers meals. Our US friends will probably not understand the allusion, but it is the only way I can describe it. Our food was inedible, the service indescribable and the only thing we wanted to do was escape.

Pleased we won without Shane. Notice that a Tasmanian was captain!

I must admit that from my wanderings around the US I have yet to have one Chinese meal that would rate with any in Hong Kong or Singapore or the Flower Drum in Melbourne. I have tried most of the 'name' restaurants in New York, Washington, Seattle, San Francisco and Chicago and they just don't cut the mustard. Vancouver is better! The flavours and textures of real Chinese cuisine just seem to be too muted in the US. A bit like Thai food which is inevitably dumbed down.

Niall That's about right. We generally tip betwen 10% to 15% for a reasonable meal. In Australia we don't have the problem where waiters actually lose money if they don't get a tip. Ronald Reagan has a lot to answer for!!! When I am in the US I tip 20% (because I feel sorry for the staff) unless I don't get good service (eg Nobu) and then I cut it to 10%.

Hate to be a party pooper but I have been to est est est and Ondine many times and have always found the food to be seriously flawed. I have had some really, really great first courses and then it has always been downhill from there. The main courses have always been disappointing and I have never had a dessert that I have enjoyed. Oh well!

I feel the need to support the report by phaelon56. A very perceptive set of comments on the dismal eating scene in New Orleans. I'm pleased you mentioned Lemongrass. As far as Asian cuisine is concerned this place is one I would not even consider. I have had two meals there. Both were terrible. They have no idea about true Asian flavours. I agree also about that horrible chicory coffee at Cafe du Monde - although I dislike the service more than the coffee. Antoines is an institution serving, in my opinion, food from the 1930s. Why people would go there when GW Fins is just across the road serving food that is edible is mystifying. Acme Oyster House is a tourist institution just like Cafe du monde and should be avoided. Your comments about NOLA were interesting, I found the food to be terrible. It is only the 'new' restaurants in NO that serve reasonable food. Places like Lilette, Herbsaint and Gerards Downtown are OK but the institutions are just awful.

Rosie There are trains to the Blue Mountains every hour. This is the best way to go. Stop at Blackheath if you are there on a Friday or Saturday and try Phillip Searle's amazing food at his tiny unobtrusive restaurant called Vulcan's. He is one of Australia's culinary geniuses.

That's a great story Suvir - it gets to the heart of what it means to do great cooking. I was fascinated by the bit about learning about the temperature each of the spices need to be heated to. This seems to be absolutely essential for getting the perfect flavour. It also was interesting to read about how to cool the spices before grinding. I was in a hurry a few weeks ago and didn't allow the spices to cool properly before grinding them. As a result there was too much volatile oil present and they wouldn't grind cleanly and the resultant texture was unpleasant. Thanks for sharing thos eideas with us!

Hi Suvir I constantly survey your threads looking for little gems and pearls that are dropped here. The masala discussion has been most interesting and I will add some comments concerning the proportions of spice that I like to use at a later time. However, the sentence that fascinated me was your throw-away line about the honorific of 'maslachi' or spice blender. Is this the equivalent in coffee-speak of being a barrista? Are there different levels? Is this an India-wide term or specific to particular regions? How does one become a maslachi? Is it peer recognition? Hope you can enlighten us.

I think Andrew's summary is a very good one - I agree with all of his suggestions. My inclination would be the Quay. It is perfectly located with the Sydney Harbour Bridge looming above and the Opera House immediately in front. The food is thoughtful, modern and perfectly executed without being overly fussy. Tetsuya's is of course a very very good restaurant and well worth a visit if you can get in (we have had reports that it is a bit easier to get a booking on the day).

Having now spent some time absorbing the content of David Thompson's Thai Food book I would have to say that it is clearly the best book that I have ever seen on this complex subject. All others pale into insignificance.

Lizziee and Robert I have to side with Lizziee on this one! As 'world weary' travellers who have eaten at many of the great restaurants we thought that the greeting, service, wine service and food at FL was as good as you get outside Ducasse in Paris. Anticipating Steve S, we have not had a meal at Charlie Trotters because every time we have been routed through Chicago it has been on short notice and there has not been a table available. But we will keep on trying. Back to California. The French Laundry, Chez Panisse, Zuni Cafe triage is an awesome advantage for the western states!!!

Hi Adam I assume you meant to say can't!! It's really interesting because the type of flavour we are talking about is quite removed from the flavour of vinegar. Tamarind is a sour flavour but it is much more 'rounded' and 'deep' than vinegar. It is somewhat more immediately appealing to people who have experienced Eastern flavours.

Adam and Suvir This is most interesting! I am sure that tamarind wasn't well known in England as I can find no other mention of it in any other historical cook book. The sourness of it would probably have mitigated against it being brought to England from the 'east'. There may, however, have been fermented fish sauces in the cuisine that derived from the Viking influence. Hence there may have been the equivalent of the salty anchovy flavour that is present in the sauce. I will also keep looking in my printed resources and will post if I find anything that can add to the discussion.

On a recent visit to Bangkok I was served a Chinese dumpling with a dipping sauce of Worcestershire sauce (Lea and Perrins variety). Now you might ask why I am posting on the Indian board for information about a British sauce that I tried in Thailand accompanying a Chinese meal! The main reason is that history assigns the creation of this sauce to a British army type who, on his return from India, asked his local chemists to recreate the recipe that he had become addicted to in the orient. The problem I face is that the sauce is based on two key ingredients. The first is tamarind and the second is anchovy. Something seems wrong here. Tamarind is used widely is southern India but the combination of anchovy and tamarind seems much more likely to be found in Malaysia or Burma. So, I am confused about its origins. I do not know of any similar dipping sauce in India today. Suvir - you are the fount of knowledge for me. Can you enlighten me on this matter!

Niall For the size of the city it really does have some very good restaurants. We like The Grange at the Hilton because Cheong Liew is there and does very interesting dishes such as the Dance of the Sea and the chicken in clay. Bridgewater Mill is great because of Le Tu Thai formerly of Nediz Tu. Nediz is very good and we have had two of the best meals of the past two years at Magills (Penfolds restaurant). The food has been of a very high standard and being able to order Grange by the glass is pretty special.

Zeb A A message from Tasmania. Delighted by your detailed reviews. Sounds like one of our long weekends in SFO. We agree about Chez Panisse. It is a place for purists. Clean flavours, pure ingredients. We also love Danko, Zuni, and the Slanted Door. Glad you enjoyed the experience. It makes us think that we need to visit again soon....hmmm!

Having spent a lot of time in Seattle over the past couple of years i would have to say that there are no restaurants that I have tried that have that authentic taste of Thai food. You just have to go to Bangkok or Chiang Mai. There is nowhere that I have found in the US that has the authentic flavour of Thailand. You have a Thai fanatic in Mamster who has tried the real deal at some of Thailand's most authentic restaurants so take his advice.

If you are interested in food rather than entertainment, try the Vientiane Kitchen. Great, authentic, hot, gutsy northern Thai food. They don't dumb down for farangs!

The best advice that I can offer is never to go into any Emeril-influenced restaurant anywhere! Emeril's was the venue for one of the worst meals I have eaten anywhere in the world. NOLA was slightly better. It was one of the 20 worst meals I have eaten. Try some of the newer restaurants such as GW Fins, Bayona, Herbsaint, Lilette or Victors if you want decent food.

If you are looking for a serious food place in SFO where you don't have to wear a jacket but you want a meal to remember then Zuni's is the clear choice. The cooking there is just so assured. The flavours are so real. If you are looking for a great Chinese meal, however, don't bother. There is no great Chinese restaurant in SFO. Catch a plane to Hong Kong instead.

Hi Rosie I was pleased to see that Quay got a 'promotion' this year. It derserves it. I have had some wonderful food there this year. The old favourites such as Rockpool, Tetsuya's, Claudes and MG Garage also deserve their awards. You can ewalk to most of them from the Sheraton and Claudes and MG are a fifteen minute taxi ride. You can get in to most of them easily except Tetsuya's. You should book ahead. Good to see Aqua Luna, Becasse, Sailors Thai, Tabou etc all doing well. Melbourne results are more problematic. Ondine did well but I had a very average meal there. Ezard at Adelphi also gets accolades but I just don't understand the food! Flower Drum is good as always. Look also for Bamboo House, Cafe di Stasio, Becco, Chez Phat, Sud and France Soir.

You cannot go to San Francisco without eating at Cafe Zuni!