Gary Marshall

but harvester is another matter.......

atelier-great glass champagne chestnut and foie gras soup oeuf en cocotte glass macon langoustine ravioli (ok at e21 not great value) several glasses red burgundy, can't remember which. lamb chops and pomme puree (one of the best food experiences this year) pigeon and foie gras more soup vanilla and chocolate pots coffee calvados 3.5 hours £125 i will deifnately return. gary

moby, the partridge is steamed, it's quite a delicate dish and a few customers have complained its not hot enough but mine was fine. The inspiration is from joel robuchons atelier. as for return vists i tend to go most fridays for a swift lunch and chat with denis, but will be back soon to give the alc a full work out. cheers gary

sorry thom, had to avoid this thread as have justr moved and beloved smeg is now sat in the garage under a dust sheet rather than in the kitchen. i now have a lovely white 4 burner aeg and electric oven, luckily i now live even closer to the pub so will just have to dine there more often! gary

despite phoning the restaurant and telling them we'd be half an hour or so late for our reservation we were still kept waiting at the bar for half an hour (or so. We managed to down two bottles of wine in that time, so could have been longer ). Starter: Scallops in lobster sauce. Both were tasteless. Not good. But managed to cadge a slice of chum's boudin noir, which was excellently spicy. Main: Venison in pepper sauce. Hmm. This combination was new to me. Venison medallions nice and pink in the middle, as I'd asked for. In contrast with the tasteless lobster sauce in the starter, the pepper sauce was overpowering (tongue of fire syndrome) and the accompanying bubble and squeak was acceptable filler, but no more. Someone else's rare steak, on the other hand, was very good. Again, I jumped the wrong way. Tant pis. Dessert: Chagrined by the lack of tarte aux pommes, I plumped for the tarte au citron. Not bad. Very good cheese board, for those who like that sort of thing. Have to say that at this stage, after a bottle and a half of very nice Madiran and a glass or three of Muscat de Beaumes de Venise, critical faculties were getting somewhat clouded. Then the service, which had been frustratingly erratic all night (we think the owner was in and everyone was uptight about it), disappeared totally and we were left to grumpily rescue our own coats. All in all, a night of bad to middling choices (for me) and annoying service. Perhaps we should have gone to No 3 York Place instead. ahh, i could have guessed the restaurant from the review alone erratic service and waits for tables are all part of the typical french charm! and you will almost certainly be correct that the staff were jumpy because the boss is in town. they have suffered from lack of a decent maitre d for a while now, although they do tend to try and get authentic french staff! to be fair we usually don't mind waiting for a table as its chance to blow a few cobwebs off before getting stuck into the house (literally, Guy laval the restaurant owner, owns chateaur auris) red a very gluggable corbieres, and we rarley have a booking so tend to bully our way in, (customers eh who'd have them!). Number 3 (old guellers) is a much more polished affair, michelin starred territory, whereas LG's is definitley a brasserie/bistro. As you discovered, stray away from steak and a sauce and the food can be a bit hit and miss (indeed i don't think i've had anything else and if i have a starter its onion soup/salad aux lardons/ boudin-not all together though). The atmosphere is generally what brings the punters in and its been a fixture on the leeds business circuit for years so it's much more a lunch place than dinner, but there's little in leeds in the way of sensible restaurants. The majority are either chains/fashion oriented. if you're ever back try no3, or perhaps sous les nez.

new winter menu at no 3, just popped in for a swift main course and a chat, breast of partridge 'en papillote' (breast topped with foie gras, wrapped in savoy cabbage and pancetta) very good www.no3yorkplace.co.uk cheers gary

i second bapi's thoughts on the new tayyab. best indian food i've had, i thought bradford would be able to compete but so far it doesn't. cheers gary

mumtaz: great horton road www.mumtaz.co.uk no alcohol, very busy, very good. My choice. New decor quite modern though not trad indian. nawaab: 32 manor road, more traditional in decor, licensed.wwwnawaab.com karachi: 15-17 neal st, very basic, rick stein raved about it, i've not tried it. gary

hi steve to my mind that lack of parking is a big drawback to this site versus the old rascasse site. i walk past york place and the streets parallel every lunchtime and you'd be shocked how many cars are broken into in broad daylight, its opportunistic phone theft etc, people pop into offices and think it'll be ok but it's not. I mentioned this to denis if we could park safely (and if sarah would drive!) then we'd go more often. He said, even at night if you don't leave anything in the car at all it'll be ok, he used to leave his car outside all the time. The street is quite busy at night. other option would be the station car park but i'm not sure if its not something ludicrous like £14 a day there, might be cheaper for a few hours but not sure.

I’ve been frequenting no3 (or guellers as it was originally known) since inception about 3 years ago, and been through the trials and tribualations of winning and losing a star, going bust and the eponymous head chef simon gueller leaving. Since then Maitre d denis le franc and Chef martel smith have worjed very hard to build the business up from its shaky start. most recently I’ve been enjoying their set lunch but when maitred/sommelier denis mentioned the a la carte was changing into winter mode I did what I’d been threatening to do for ages and booked wifey and I in for a Saturday night. Herein is the main problem why I don’t patronise the place as much as I’d like, as from my home it’s a 25 min taxi ride to York station, then a 30 min train ride to leeds, luckily the restaurant is but a stroll from the station. On arrival it struck me just how much more convivial the restaurant is at night, during the day its white interior, minimal art and dark leather banquettes can look a little cold, but at night with the lights down it looked great, and I’d forgotten how glamorous leeds had become on a evening, most diners were very well turned out and I felt a little underdressed not being in head to toe gucci! I was also pleased to see seemingly the tipple of choice for the leeds glitteratti, was the house champagne, pol roger white foil nv, although a selection including vintage and vintage rose are also offered by the glass along with a short cocktail list that also proved popular. We were happy to have a coupe whilst reading the menu in the small bar area, I of course being very sad had already checked the menu out on the internet and was pretty sure of my choices! After choosing we were shown to our booth and an amuse of pumpkin veloute and fresh bread quickly arrived. Starters for me were a very large roast escalope of foie gras, tarte tatin of endive, orange sauce I had a glass of goldlackerl beerenauslese willi opitz 99 with this. It was all well timed in terms of cooking and the orange sauce which came as very reduced blobs dotted around the plate were an interesting idea that cut through the richness. Unfortunately the FG was just a bit too big which left me momentarily over powered, next time it think I’ll have the terrine,my original internet choice but I was just being greedy at the time of ordering! Sarah had the salad of wood pigeon, smoked bacon, pine nuts, wild mushrooms & sherry vinegar this was not as expected it was not really a salad more just the breasts with the other ingredients, salad element just a little ball of frisee. Pigeon was nice but not a great dish. Main courses both made up for this though I had roast saddle of venison, pumpkin fondant, creamed savoy cabbage, chocolate sauce. This was excellent, the saddle was nice and rare cut & into three cylinders almost the same size as the pumpkin and the sauce was dark, glossy and rich. Being a greedy git and having had them before, I also had a side order of pomme puree. I’ve not had joel robuchon’s but these are in a similar vein, lots of butter and cream held together with a bit of potato! Sarah’s roast partridge, fricasse of parsnips and chestnuts, seared foie gras, jus of redcurrants was also a success, and again came with a very generous slab of foie. To accompany this we had, not unsurprisingly, a bottle of 97 Ch Musar. (£32.50). I was worried that they may have run out as they were down to their last bottle on my last lunchtime trip but they’d re-stocked and denis is also awaiting a delivery of the just-a-bit-better 96 vintage. A shared cheese platter followed, they have a list of approx 20 english/french cheeses and we made a selection of about 8, accompanied by proper ‘beurre echelle’ walnut bread and chutney. Two comped desert wines arrived shortly before the dishes themselves, a tart tatin, cinamon ice cream, caramel sauce I love the chef martel’s tarte tatins and this traditional apple version was perfect, ice cream was a bit too cinamony for my taste though. Sarah had mille-feuille of red fruits, kirsch sabayon, iced crème chiboust which she enjoyed greatly and I thought very nice though red berries don’t usually do it for me. Coffee and petit fours finished and by this time it was 11pm (we arrived about 8.15pm) and we had a brief thought about rushing for the 11.07 train but decided to wait, although the next train was until 12.12am, as I fancied a calvados to help it all digest!. However Denis joined us and although I did mumble about buying him a drink he proceeded to his fridge and we shared the (substantial) remains of a very good 95 pol roger rose, which was greatfully received, and i forgot about the calvados! After a pleasant chat we eventually left at midnight to run to the station, not a good idea with half a foie floating around the old bloodstream and despite severe taxi issue at york station managed to get home at 1.45am, a long but very enjoyable evening. gary www.no3yorkplace.co.uk A la carte Menu (Updated 29.09.03) Lunch & Dinner Monday-Friday Dinner on Saturday Smoked Haddock Soup £ 4.95 Terrine of Rabbit, Foie Gras, Savoy Cabbage & Trompette Mushrooms, Pickled Onions, Horseradish Cream, Toasted Brioche £ 7.95 Salad of Roast Wood Pigeon, Smoked Bacon, Pine Nuts, Wild Mushrooms & Sherry Vinegar £ 8.95 Ravioli of Duck Confit, Sweet Potato Purée, Sweet & Sour sauce £ 6.95 Pithivier of Goats Cheese, Red Onion Marmalade £ 7.95 Roast Sea Scallops, Tomato Risotto, Aged Cabernet Sauvignon Vinegar £ 13.95 Roast Escalope of Foie Gras, Tarte Tatin of Endive, Orange Syrup £ 12.95 ******** Steamed Escalope of Sea Bass Farci, Creamed Spinach, Crispy Pasta, Tomato Butter Sauce £ 15.95 Poached Fillet of Halibut, Caramelised Endive, Young Asparagus, Onion Ravioli, Beurre à l’Orange £ 13.95 Roast Fillet of Turbot with Braised Oxtail, Root Vegetables, New Potatoes, Sauce Lie-de-Vin £ 18.95 Pan Fried Fillet of Beef with Bourguignon Garnish, Celeriac Purée, Red Wine Sauce £ 17.95 Roast Saddle of Venison, Pumpkin Fondant, Creamed Savoy Cabbage, Chocolate Sauce £ 15.95 Braised Pig’s Trotter stuffed with Veal Sweetbreads & Black Pudding, Pomme Purée, Essence of Morels £ 16.95 Pot Roast Corn Fed Chicken, Fresh Noodles, Asparagus, Trompette Mushrooms, Tarragon Velouté £ 12.95 Roast Partridge, Fricassée of Parsnips & Chestnuts, Seared Foie Gras, Jus of Redcurrants £ 16.95 Side Order: Panaché de Légumes or Pomme Purée £ 3.95 ******** Ginger Crème Brûlée, Caramelised Pear, Lime Sorbet, Pear & Ginger Syrup £ 6.95 Prune & Armagnac Soufflé, Chocolate Sauce, Prune & Armagnac Ice Cream £ 6.95 Mille-Feuille of Red Fruits, Kirsch Sabayon, Iced Crème Chiboust £ 6.95 Trio of Chocolate £ 6.95 Tarte Tatin of Apples, Cinnamon Ice Cream, Caramel Sauce £ 6.95 Assiette of Desserts £ 12.95 Selection of English & French Farmhouse Cheeses £ 7.95 ******** All prices include VAT 10% service charge will be added to your bill! Smokers are quite welcome to use the bar area during food service! Many Thanks!

Duncan, From my report on my trip to tours.... 'girlfriend suggested she'd drive us somewhere, i opened the michelin and found 'le choseuil' in Ambroise a 1 star hotel/rest. had no idea what to expect but turned up to find a nice old house with a large first floor dining room, a bit bright but welcoming staff. We were not looking for a menu degustation but plumped for a menu 'le jardin du france' which was comprised totally of tomtatoes. i was initially sceptical but it was bloody good. starter was a selection of tomato and parmesan bruschetta, a tomato quenelle and a tomato sorbet. all light and very fresh. mains were a stuffed tomato with a variety of seafood, crayfish tails and lobster sauce i had a tomato tart with braised beef and tomatoes again great. cheese followed (no toms!) and then a confited tom to finish. all in all a great meal, for E 45 i think, would recommend it. restored faith that had been lacking from previous nights. the current menu from their webiste at www.choiseul.com On the theme "Gardens of France" the summer menu is around "tomato" till middle of september Galette de socca aux tomates confites et caillé de brebis du "Pays Lochois",fèves et pistou *** Morue fraîche caramélisée aux épices douces et jeunes légumes, beurre noisette à la tomate ou Tarte fine à la tomate, champignons et râble de lapin, sauce diable à la graine de moutarde *** Sélection de fromages frais et affinés, pain aux noix *** Gaspacho de tomates et fruits rouges, pain de Gênes au thé vert et angélique,sorbet tomate-ananas 46 € No beverage 65 € wine included cheers gary

i had an all tomato menu at le choiseul, just outside tours, i thought it ws rpetty unique but obviously not! gary

no! gary

execellent review mate, am hopefully going to sort out a trip tonight, a bit of a planes, trains and automobiles but think i've worked out how to get there by train and back in a day. only 4 hours and 2 train changes but i think it'll be worth it. i think your review will push my mate over the edge into commiting himself to an early start on his only day off, mind you i shouldn't feel too sorry for him as he's presently lunching at winteringham grrrr. gary

a good friend is staying in siena for a week on honeymoon, any suggestions for good value dining? thanks gary

just a poor joke, if you were going to spell lager phonetically you'd probably spell it larger, no? you've not heard people say ' i'm a lager man myself' when asked what they want to drink? gary nb its what happens when trying to occupy myself and not get embroiled in the aa gill thread -again

maybe you switch to drinking wine? larger can be fattening gary

langans brasserie, still buzzy, good service, food can be a bit hit and miss but a good place for an informal night out. You'd struggle not to enjoy yourselves there. probably what qualifies as 'local colour' for the area

well, i was on my way to prets but somehow ended up in no3 york place, such strange things happen to me on my lunchhour! they offer a two course for 14.50 and 3 for 18.95 set lunch (which i'll print below). maitre d'/sommelier denis can be relied upon to pick decent wines, and recently i've been starting with a house sauvignon which is sufficiently tart to wake up my palete but not too acidic. an amuse of carrot & orange (i think) veloute was first up, not the best i've had there but technically fine. i then ordered the goats cheese cromesquis and red onion marmalade. usually i'd run a mile at a marmalade not accompanied by toast but this came immaculatley presented a level disc of very dark purple onion with the cheese cromesquis on top and a very nicely dressed rocket salad. it all worked very well the acid in the marmalade counterbalancing the goats cheese nicely. for main i had a roast rump of lamb with potoato fondant, confit garlic and sauce nicoise. The lamb was perfectly pink but with a lovely crispy, fatty layer and the sauce nicoise was lamb stock based with tomato brunoise & olives, very light and worked well. i had a glass of house shiraz with that which was sufficiently heavy to match the lamb, and my taste . a quick taster of some belgian fruit flavoured brandy's that denis had brough back from his homeland, an orange and much ncer pear one finished off the lunch nicely and the bill 26.95 inc service was good value for a very pleasant lunch. the a la carte changes next friday so i will be returning for dinner to give it a full work out here's the menu in full.... LUNCH & EARLY EVENING (until 7.30pm) MONDAY TO FRIDAY Pan fried Black Pudding, Caramelised Apples, Calvados Jus Cromesquis of Goats Cheese, Red Onion Marmalade Button Mushroom Soup *** Marinière of John Dory & Queen Scallops, New Potatoes & Tarragon Pot Roast Chicken, Buttered Savoy Cabbage, Parsnip Purée, Jus Roti Roast Rump of Lamb, Pomme Fondant, Confit Garlic, Jus Niçoise *** Hot Apricot Soufflé Crème Brûlée with Raspberries Selection of fine French & English Cheeses *** TWO COURSES £14.50 THREE COURSES £18.50 Inclusive of vat 10% Service charge will be added to your bill gary

i would have loved to have tried the cooking at aubergine, i'm sure you are correct, in order to win initial stars risks were taken. now in order to retain the 3 i think its certainly more evolution than revolution and they cook a 'greatest hits' of what people expect from RHR gary

have a search under 'beaune' i remember a post that i've added to that contains a comprehensive list of reviews by david russell which covers most of the hot spots in the area. my personal favourite is les jardin des ramparts in beaune which is well worth a trip, one star in beaune town centre. there's a lot of good places within 20 min sdrive of beaune and probably enough in the town centre to keep you going! gary

yes, it's called guellers event cuisine. www.guellers.com gary

oh no it wasn't you andy, it's that n'eer do well from the other side of the pennines! (see earlier posts, all started after a beer in manchester and a discuusion about cars). i got my pans from peter maturi in leeds, i think they do mail order, divertimenti also stock them they're quite readily available i think they're the classic stainless steel, copper sandwich based pans. but quite stylish and indestuctible. the best way to buy them is as a 'starter set' you get small saucepan & lid, big saute pan and lid and medium 'casserole' with lid. you save a lot buying them this way. then you can add as you need, once you've got the lids i just buy the pans alone so i now have a milk boiler which makes a good bain marie, another sauce pan and a bigger casserole. if it's any recommendation nigel slater and conran use them! gary

i'd avoid heathcotes, although still a good setting they've made the decor very monochrome and its losts its welcoming feel. food was poor too last time i went, indeed it was so bad i've not been back. stick with number 3 if you liked guellers, in any of its incarnations! pool court is a bit odd in that its a shared kitchen that serves the brasserie '42 the calls' and the (was starred but not sure if they've lost it) more formal 'pool court'. Again went once but never really featured heavily on my must return list. my colleagues are quite fond of the brasserie but for large gatherings rather than gourmet nights out. i should really try Leodis again but last time we went we really were a drunken shambles, (many years ago, expenses were a novelty) so much so we had to ring up the next day to apologise, i still cringe to think about it, might have to leave it another few years!

I suppose it all boils down to how much you want to spend. when i bought mine i wanted the industrial look but didn't want to spend an arm and a leg, so for about a grand got the cooker, the splashback and the hood (baumatic). It looks a lot more expensive than it was and is always a talking point when people come round, although i was amused when potential house buyers look at the range, the shelves full of pans and cookbooks then go, 'do much cooking then?' one thing i do like is the width of a range, thinks mine's 90cm, you've got space to take pans off the heat or rest meat, warm plates etc without having to clutter up worksurfaces (of which i have little) i would agree that good pans and sharp knives make a bigger difference to your cooking than an expensive cooker. ps before you slag them off inadvertently my pans are le pentole, and very nice they are too! gary