Mark Donnelly

For me it can only be Valrhona. Waitrose has a limited selection. Otherwise go online or try Wild Harvest.

If more people complaied/voted with their feet such places would quickly go under, where they deserve. Far too many people in the UK just can't be bothered to complain. Fawlty Towers is alive and kicking the length and breadth. Good old Basil.

Stephen Out of curiosity, what do you do with unsold leftover red wine if sold by the glass. I guess either (i) the staff drink it or (ii) you "keep" it for the next day. Say the latter isn't so.

For me dinning in is the new dinning out. Given that cooking is an all consuming passion for me, I'm often disappointed by 1 starred restaurants. But 2 stars are a step up in price. And mark-ups on wine - enopugh to give you a heart attack. I'd rather entertain friends at home than think about what time the last tube train is.

Keep it up Gavin. I live in Essex (well, technically speaking), if you call living on the Central line Essex. May give some you've reported on a try.

Theobalds is ok, as you say a step up from supermarket and your average high street butcher. It's tiny, but they do do veal bones and caul. Would have thought Hamps was more getaway home county than sticks.

No mention of Allans in Mayfair - but then, only buttlers actually go there. What is worrying is not how many names are on the list, but just how short it is. For a city of seven million, a handful of good butchers is a damning indictment of the convienient, ready-made, through-away culture that is the UK today. How many good local delis are there, or bakers, or cheese shops? All so depressing.

So if I could summarise the posts so far...it's a big thumbs down. Bring back Lloyd Grossman and his strangulated voice/accent. actually he was quite funny. Deliberate, cogitate, copulate (or something like that).

Gary I forgot reasonable prices, but you've got that covered too. Just a small request; could you move your restaurant/inn 250 miles closer to London. Thanking you in advance...

It should at a minimum: have a booking policy allow children be completely non smoking use seasonal ingredients concentrate on national food (eg no Thai food unless in Thailand) offer great steaks P.s.: Stephen I will be returning to Vancouver in 18 months to retire after 20 years in London. My recollection of restaurants in Vancouver was the diner/customer came first, second and third. In London the chef comes first, the waiter comes second and the customer comes third.

I would like to see michelin starred chefs that are still chefs and not celebreties cook restaurant dishes by course (amuse, starter, etc.). About a decade+ ago (could be longer) there was a great series on Channel 4 (I think) on MPW. This was fantastic. Each episode featured him cooking just one dish. This was in his Harveys days, so you got the thin not bloated Marco. In one episode he cooked braised pig's trotter Pierre Koffmann. Fantastic stuff. Today I really like Tony Bourdain. Not really a cookery show, but that acerbic social commentary is just fantastic. More please.

This programme is pathetic and gives the BBC a bad name. I've only seen the show a couple of times but it is dire. The two hosts are clearly trying to out do each other. John Torode is a grumpy, miserable middle aged man and I have no idea what competencies Gregg Wallace has to judge food. The ritualistic humiliation of the contestants being made to stand up and listen to which of them is in and which is out is invidious. 10 out of 10 on the cringometer.

As long as we don't see CMGs, KCMGs and GCMGs usurped as Call Me Gordon, Kindly Call Me Gordon and Gordon Calls Me Gordon...

Michel Roux Jr's Le Gavroche Cookbook is organised by season. Most of the recipes are pitched at beginner level but with hilarious/ridiculous (by whch I mean uber expensive) wine suggestions.

London can be spatially confusing. You are staying right in the heart of 'the City', London's financial centre. You will be spoilt for choice in terms of restaurants within both walking and taxi distance. A good bet would be to try an online restaurant guide (such as www.squaremeal.co.uk) and remember that anything with the following postcodes is within reach: EC1***, EC2***, EC3***, EC4***, E1***, WC1***, WC2***.

JeAnne London is a large city (some 600 square miles). East London is also large, divided into east London (north of the Thames) and southeast London (south of the Thames). Can you be more specific in where you will be based?

I hate spreading rumors, but what elese do you do with them! And I was hoping that I was above punter but slightly below god.

Well I've never worked in a commercial kitchen, so I suspect what I'm about to say is utter tosh. (a) Surely kitchens can have, say, 4-5 servings of scallops at a temperature of 10 degrees. These can be put back into the fridge if scallops are not selling well (the exact number can be based on past experience or if you are really scientific use time-series econometric techniques). (b) Alternatively, take from cold fridge and put into tepid/warm water for 5 minutes.

Yes, but a cold raw scallop does sound like standards are variable. Cooking scallops is relatively straightforward (i like mine pan fried in bacon fat), it is their internal temperature when they go into the pan that is important. My fridge is set to 3 degrees (C that is) and take scallops out for 45 min before cooking. Don't know how youcan do this in a kitchen when you don't know what people will order and the fierce heat of a commercial kitchen. Stll, no excuses for a cold raw scallop in a 2 star restaurant.

Clearly experiences and standards are quite variable - which is a shame.

About 18 months ago I think. Just no "wow" moments.

If the Square is two stars, the Midsummer House is at least two stars. MSH is in a splendid setting, with a comfortable dinning room (avoid the main house and ask for the conservatory), infinitly more accomplished (and daring) food and staff that make you feel very welcome. The Square is virtually the opposite. My meal wasn't bad, but neither was it memorable. I'm convinced it keeps its two stars soley because of its wine list. Haven't been to Petrus since it was in St James. Again not memorable: one star quality at three star prices. The New Angel in Dartmouth deserves one star simply because of the quality of the ingredients. The scallops and crab are to die for. But you pay for it. I would imagine that MG politics would dictate that London must have at least one three star restaurant. So I think GR@RHR is safe for a few years.

Personally, I'd never eat at KFC. Once saw a show on BBC2 or C4 on cheap imported chickens. The chickens are soaked in chemicals that turn them into sponges. They artificially soak up a huge amount of water and hey presto: a 5kg chicken for under 2 quid at the supermarket. And the chemicals are not good for you at all. Quite frightening actually.

Over-rated: Saffron - great for colour - but that taste Fillet Steak - top dollar for bottom flavour Nigella Lawson, Nigel Slater, AWT, et al - please, enough said Under-rated: black pudding - never seen it at a dinner party (in any shape or form)

Salt Yard is a great tapas bar and restaurant. I agree with Sarah that tables can be a bit close together, but I seen worse. Most tapas are in the £4-£6 range; and three is more than enough if you also have some bread. Upstairs is an L-shaped bar with a few tables to accommodate smokers. Avoid the back of this room as you are (i) near a staff entrance and (ii) tucked well out of the way. Bar stools are straight out of Austin Powers (groovy baby). We repaired to the bar after our meal as the chairs are not the most comfortable. Downstairs is squarish, but eclecticly laid out. A word of caution, SY does try to cram tables into every available space. Hence thereis a four seater literally at the foot of the stairs (intimate!). We were seated right next to the kitchen, which is visible through two large hatches. Unfortunately one of these also functions as the Pass. Great fun if you are into seeing a real kitchen at work; but could be irritating as the waiting staff traffic by your table to pick up and deliver orders. It is clear that the whole restaurant has been decorated on a fairly limited budget. But hey, this is a tapas bar. As a general observation, the tapas are generously sized. We ordered Confit of 'Gloucester Old Spot' Pork Belly with rosemary scented cannelini beans (£5.50). It's hard to go wrong with pork belly, and SY didn't. Very good. Next up was four large morcilla (black pudding) croquettas (£4.50). Again these were very good. Next was tiger prawns chargrilled with rosemary and chilli. At £7.00 for five, these were a little on the pricey side. The prawns were skewered on rosemary, which imparted too strong a flavour into the prawns. Next up, porcini mushrooms with celeriac puree (£6.00). These were very good, although the celeriac was under seasoned. Our penultimate tapas was slow-roasted Lamb shoulder with farro and herb salad (£5.50). This was generously sized and fab. Farro is an Italian grain that resembles barley. Yum yum. Finally, we had pumpkin gnudi with brown sage butter. This was perfectly served: crisp on the outside, slghtly wet on the inside. We had two belinis to start and a bottle of Rioja. We then repaied upstairs to the bar for a couple of glasses of Inurrieta Norte (terrific stuff). SY is very, very good. It could be great. what shines through is the food. It doesn't pretend to be anything other than hearty tapas.