CarolineLD

Not nil, honestly! My parents live in that area of Brittany, so I've been thinking of eating there and really appreciated the info, as well as the great photos. Definitely on my 'must try' list now. Caroline

On a related point, how long can wine be kept in the regular fridge? Caroline

I've had the same experience. However, that's with their cheapest crockery (I just wanted a couple of dishes that would go in the microwave). Their second-cheapest crockery seems to stand up better. Also, strangely, their incredibly cheap blue mugs. They usually have sets of three pairs of scissors which are really cheap and surprisingly strong - mine have lasted and lasted. Caroline

Lakeland do one - it's basic in terms of functions, but it has an alarm, and mine works fine: Digital meat thermometer

Note that those restrictions only apply to "West Country Farmhouse Cheddar" (and note also the lack of any mention of farmhouses in the rules!!). Plain old Cheddar can be made anywhere - look at the Canadian, Irish etc Cheddar on sale in any British supermarket. fromage.com states that "Aujourd'hui de grandes fromageries industrielles se partagent la fabrication du Cheddar dans l'ensemble des pays anglo-saxons" but doesn't explain why it's only so-called 'anglo-saxon' countries which make it (Details du fromage Cheddar). Caroline

My friends and I split bills evenly, and I almost invariably do the calculations so there's never any problem about the tip. Probably because of the implied threat that if they want to change the total, they have to do the maths! And yes, like most other people on this thread, if my dining companions didn't like to tip properly I wouldn't want to eat out with them again. I'd agree that outside the US (I'm in Britain) 20% is not a standard tip. In fact, when I spent a lot of time in New York about 15 years ago, 15% seemed to be considered standard there too (albeit in practice people tended to double the sales tax, bringing it closer to 20% - is this still normal practice?). Caroline

1 crown = 50p. (I found this in the smallprint of the brochure). Caroline

I've also come across places which, when near-empty, like to seat everyone near the windows so the restaurant looks a little fuller and more appealing. One would imagine that this would backfire if the parties concerned are unhappy with the seating arrangements... (Not just when this involves being seated close together, but also when it means being right in the draft from the door). However, when it happened to me I just asked for another table. Simple but effective. Caroline

Specials boards that are too far away to read/round a corner are a real problem, too. And at the other extreme, the waiter who not only pointed out the specials board but then read out the specials - at length - even though I could see the board as well as he could. And the waiter who, unasked, decided to talk me through the menu by effectively repeating each description (the conversation went along the lines of "selection of ice creams and sorbets with a tuile biscuit - that's some delicious ice creams and sorbets, served with a tuile biscuit alongside." "What flavours do you have?" "Er, I'm not sure. Now, the raspberry creme brulee is a creme brulee with raspberries in it, very nice..."). And while I'm moaning... getting good service all the way through the meal, but then being ignored for ten minutes when it's time to ask for the bill. Why is this so common? Caroline

Erm, anybody that likes a bet I would've thought ← Funnily enough, no. First, most people betting for fun (rather than professionally/out of financial desperation) enjoy the excitement as well as the winning itself. Second, if you invariably won no one would take your bets! Back on topic, I agree that there's a fascination about Michelin stars quite separate from any decisions about where I personally would eat. Of course, for those chefs etc whom our analogy might equate to professional gamblers, it's presumably a bit different...

Wow, thank you for all the information and ideas - time to start experimenting! Caroline

Yes, definitely take this up with them. I don't know if US law is the same on this point (although I suspect it is), but in English law a contract is as binding when it's a verbal agreement as when it's in writing. The point of having it in writing is simply that it makes it easier to prove what's agreed (rather than it being your word against theirs). In other words, if they told you the room was (virtually) free, they're bound by that. And yes, do ask for a breakdown of the bill. They may get embarrassed if they have to own up to charging twice the menu price for a pizza! It also gives them a chance to back down gracefully: they can find a 'mistake' in the adding up, rather than having to admit they deliberately overcharged in the first place. Caroline

My fishmonger gave me similar advice - wrap them loosely in a wet cloth and keep them in the bottom of the fridge. Definitely don't put them in water. Caroline

On holiday in Egypt, I had Nubian coffee in Aswan. This is similar in some ways to Ethiopian coffee: the beans are roasted then and there. It also has spices added, and the end result is an absolutely gorgeous strong, sweet, rich drink. However, I didn't see exactly what went in it, and have heard all sorts of suggestions since - none of which agree with each other - cloves, cardamom, figs, etc. Does anyone know exactly how this is made?

Hopefully it will cheer you up to know that the outlet stores very rarely, if ever, carry food! I visit the one in Street, Somerset and the one in Portsmouth a couple of times a year each, and can't recall ever seeing any food items.

Wendy's by King's Cross has become a McDonald's too.

I bought the Time Out guide a few years ago, used it once, and have never touched it since! I found a great-looking restaurant, we got there and it had closed down. Flicked through again, found somewhere not too far away, and walked on to it; it had changed hands (seemingly some little while before, although the guide was only a few months old). Gave up and went into the first hopeful-looking place instead. Harden's is probably my most-used print guide, but I do tend to use the internet more and more.

I ate here for the first time last night and (thankfully) had a very different experience to Balex. The service was lovely, relaxed and friendly but still very smooth and efficient. Food was excellent - even my sister, for whom offal has very little appeal, found that she had interesting choices. In fact, having initially agreed a little reluctantly to take me there for my birthday, by the end she'd decided that she'll definitely be going again! My bone marrow and parsley salad was very good; my sister had venison with beetroot and pickled walnuts, just superb, and her partner had an excellent mutton broth. Mains of crispy pigs' tails, guineafowl, and faggot respectively were all lovely; my pigs' tails were a delicious mixture of textures and beautifully flavoured, while the faggot was absolutely delicous. After all that (and a rather late lunch earlier in the day) we just shared some madeleines for dessert, which we enjoyed very much. Highly recommended, even for those who aren't keen on offal!

Very or slightly, the key word is intolerant rather than allergic. (Lots of people say 'allergic' when they mean 'intolerant', but just about nobody gets it wrong in the other direction).

Quite. Although I would just comment on the doom-laden scenarios of near-death experiences: the friend is lactose intolerant - ie it will do her health no good if she eats food containing it but no, she won't go into anaphylactic shock. While it is certainly a nightmare dealing with, eg, peanut allergies where food contaminated by traces of nuts but not actually containing them can trigger a potentially fatal reaction in extreme cases, here it's a question of knowing if the food contains the problem ingredients. Much easier and surely something that restaurants should be able to advise on or organise.

I've got an upright freezer divided into drawers, which I love - so easy, and nothing is ever more than a few inches from the top of its drawer! Over the summer I was using my parents' chest freezer, and the huge drawback was not so much knowing what was in there (I'd mostly stocked it so I knew) but rather the hideously difficult 3D-jigsaw puzzle with icy cold items when I had to get something out of the bottom and then get everything else back in. (Obviously my parents disagree on this, as they bought the thing, so I guess which model you choose is a question of taste... and spatial skills...) Caroline

The Willow Tree restaurant in Taunton is well worth a visit while you're in the area (it's my favourite place to eat out when I'm staying in Bridgwater). It would be a 'nice dinner out', but is really good value for money; it stands out locally and has won various awards. The food is superb, and there are always good vegetarian choices too. I don't tend to eat out in Bridgwater itself - Taste of India is supposed to be a good Indian (at least by local standards) but my sister had a really bad experience of being hurried out so they could accommodate a second sitting. As that's a pet hate of mine, I've never tried the place. Caroline

Hmm, the figures don't tell most of the story though (do they ever??). First, many, many British people buy a large part of their alcohol in France where it is a lot cheaper. That skews the figures. Second, it is not so much levels of consumption as patterns of consumption which are important. I don't think many people would be surprised if the French drink rather more than the British, because regular but moderate consumption is more normal in France. By contrast, Britain's problem with heavy drinking is one of people (particularly young people) drinking little in the week, but then binge drinking at the weekend - ie drinking a lot, with the specific aim of getting drunk. The latter pattern, but not the former, is directly linked to increased crime, injuries, etc and hence is getting a lot of attention in the UK as a social problem. (And like all such problems, there's a lot of media exaggeration and some dubious definitions of 'binge drinking'...).

Did it work?

I used to organise conferences, and while staying at a hotel in Blackpool we also had dinner there. The vegetarian option was pasta in tomato sauce; when it arrived, the pasta had been boiled to mush while the sauce was just some reheated, canned chopped tomatoes (no seasoning, no reduction, nothing). My fellow-diners' meals were similarly bad. And everything, including the pasta and the fish, was garnished with a limp slice of orange. Halfway through the meal, the waitress came over and asked if everything was alright. Told that my meal was inedible, she looked confused, said 'oh', and walked away. Never mind, we thought, we could fill up on dessert since we could see the cakes were ready-made. Wrong: they were stale. Most amazing of all was that a fair proportion of the customers were non-residents who had *chosen* this place for a night out.