Bapi

Marvellous - I am going to use all of them at once at your place next May. Did anyone watch the programme? I thought it was very interesting from a social history perspective. Especially, how the British trait of not wishing to complain about risible food was inculcated into people, because of the hardships in getting food during and after the war. BTW- Ordered my 2006 copy from Play.com at a bargain £11.99, delivered free

. Although it has its detractors, I really like it and have been buying it religiously for years. We find it invaluable when travelling to a new part of the country. One has to eat well ! That and the fact that they give you four £5 tokens to use at restaurants, one would be keen to try anyway; which pays for the book. Genius I'll watch tonight- Thanks Nicola

Come on chaps, this is just horrendous "work of the devil" PR at it's worst. Wasn't there a £100 Burger earlier this year as well, aimed at getting some cheap publicity? What next? A £100 Truffled Black Pudding rolled on the thighs of a nubile virgin.

Plutocrat, I forgot to mention that the Millbank is closed until 17th(ish) October as the chaps are off on their hols. Best to ring and check me thinks. I am sure you will have a good time when you do go. We could always take both our kids at the same time and make Joe's life a real misery Enjoy No 3 as well on your first night out. I am giving serious thought to a boy's Friday afternoon lunch in Leeds soon ( if I get permission from Mission Control that is ). From Gary M's eulogies in the past, I am sure you won't be dissapointed. Enjoy B

Last Saturday, we found ourselves pootling over to Ilkley for lunch with Gary M and Sarah at his kind invitation. Apparently, we were second choice companions. So having fobbed the little one off onto my mother for a whole night and day for the first time in 9 months, we set off for some enjoyable company, intelligent, adult conversation (well from Sarah anyway) and some excellent food. I have now idea why, but having only been to Ilkley once before, many moons ago- I was rather expecting the Box Tree to be somewhat out in the sticks and not, as it transpired, on the corner a street in the middle of town. The other thing I wasn’t expecting was what a beautiful building it is both on inside and out. The interior warrants a special mention, what with the intricately designed plasterwork on the ceilings, the beautiful stained glass windows, warm comfortable armchairs, and tasteful wallpaper, all lend themselves to creating an overall impression of subdued, but certainly not rarefied elegance. Gary indicated that some considerable work had been done to alter the interior and from what we saw it, it was money well invested. We joined Gary and Sarah in a glass of champagne whilst we perused the menu. All of us decided to go a la carte-“It’s toot faar t’ come t’ have thu Fixed Price menu” said Gary, which I can’t really argue with. I would just say that some canapés or nibbles would not have gone amiss with our champagne. A minor but not insignificant quibble when one considers the amount we spent on lunch that day. After a chat we were shown through the middle room, with a lovely roaring fire, into the larger of the two dining areas. I am afraid I can only deal with what dishes I had (and in part Rosie’s). And so to start I opted for a ballontine of wild salmon which came with a lobster and potato salad. It was very pleasant, the salmon was flavoursome and surrounded by pressing of fine herbs around the cylindrical ballontine. On reflection, it was far too safe a choice for me. I should have gone for the Artichoke veloute with a poached egg or Rosie’s choice of Foie Gras with a Gingerbread sponge. A generous two lobes of foie gras were precisely cooked, which melted effortlessly when eaten in conjunction with the light ginger sponge. A dish I have seen a variation of on the Waterside Inn menu before and so I was glad to taste how these two ingredients worked together. An excellent dish and one which I would have chosen if I had not decided upon the Poached Anjou squab, with a fondant potato and Foie Gras as my main course. This was a stellar dish and as I have indicated to Gary – probably in my top three dishes of the year. Tender, flavoursome poached breast meat, a classic and faultless, buttery fondant potato; both of which matched perfectly with the decadently rich foie gras. And to finish hidden away slightly were the crisped legs of the little beast for one to knaw on. A finger bowl provided to wash away one’s finger licking indiscretions. Marvellous stuff. I’ll give you three guesses – but you’ll need only one to decide upon whom in our party wanted an extra cheese course. Gary ordered two portions for us to share. Perfect gooey Epoisse, a Fourme d’ Ambert and spicy paprika based cheese linger in the memory, but perhaps Gary can fill in the others. Nicely served on black marble plates, with oatcakes and unusual bread, although I didn’t get a look at those as Sarah swallowed the lot from the portion we were sharing between us. Onto puddings- after a brief mix up over whether we were having four glasses or a half bottle of dessert wine. I tucked into a textbook Apricot Soufflé – served with a heavenly chocolate sauce. The edges were tinged golden brown and what lay beneath, was feather light and flawless. Simon Gueller is an undoubted talent and the environment they have created at historic The Box tree will see it continue to grow in stature, without doubt. A couple of minor niggles though- there were a couple of occasions when we were leaned across perhaps once too often at the table. And the Chardonnay we enjoyed with our first courses was poured a little to freely into our initial glasses. I would have preferred it to have been topped periodically to let the wine open up. Although, I was in competition with Gary to drink it as the er, girls were given the not unenviable task of driving us two distinguished gentleman back to our respective homes. In fact a rather unnerving moment was seeing Gary leap up to take the decanted wine out of the ice bucket It transpires it was indeed to let it open up and it was rather too cold. But for one second I thought he was going to drink it straight out of the decanter. We retired for coffees and teas to the lovely and cosy fireplace seats. I recall especially liking the way the Petit Fours are offered; in a large wooden box brought to the table, from which you select the ones you want. These are then placed with tongs onto a glass dish before you. I wisely left the Tobacco chocolate to Gary as the memory of the three hours trying to get the taste of a similar chocolate out of my mouth from the Fat Duck was foremost in my mind. I mentioned that in my now replete, soporific state, it would have been lovely to be just staying over somewhere locally. Oh, well maybe next time. A fabulous, if somewhat decadent, way to spend four hours on a Saturday lunchtime – highly and heartily recommended.

← Cheeky bastard Just wait till it happens to you and see what sort of tenuous excuses you come out with. Come to think of it, you did look rather relieved that Hugo didn't come with us to the Box Tree last Saturday.

Yes, absolutely- Joe the front of house chap at the Millbank, is always very personable and welcoming with our little one and Hugo especially likes their bread, which tends to keep him quiet. ( I want a free drink for that Joe! ). I think that most places are now becoming child friendly, even the higher end places. We took our little one to The Waterside in Bray and he did start squawking at one point. So I too had to take him outside to clam down, but the staff didn't bat an eyelid. He was just a little pissed off with being in his buggy- he was fine thirty seconds later stuffng his face with my lobster( little sod), when sat next to his mother on the banquette. I know it can be be a little worrying when they do make a bit of noise, but I don't really think that others mind quite as much as we as parents, think they do. He was with us at Anthony's a couple of weeks back and they- especially Olga - looked after him incredibly well. In fact, we were shamed into buying him a new high chair as the one at Anthony's was ten times better than one we had for him at home. Or you could do what I had to do with him when he was three months old at Hibiscus back in March. March the buggy around until he sound asleep and then run to the restaurant in the vain hope thjat he will stay asleep. Seem to work though, we manged to work our way through 8o% of the 9 course tasting menu before he awoke. But that does rather knacker one out. Having said that, we only tend to go out for lunch with him as I think it isn't always to fair to others escaping their own kids, to have to put up with other people's at dinner. But Lunch is fair game in my book. Oh and he had a minor paddy for 20 seconds at the Star too- but I had langoustines to eat and so it was my wife's turn to sort the nappy out on that occassion.

It's fairly well documented that I am a fan of the Waterside Inn, but I wouldn't be quite as dispariging about the Fat Duck. If you are looking for a very different food experience then go and enjoy. I certainly intend to go back at some point and it will challenge your perception of food. Although, I think you may be hard pressed to get a table at this juncture. If you do go to Bray. Make sure you pop in to Heston's pub- The Hind's Head Hotel- across the road for a look. We had an excellent lunch of potted rabbit and wonderful Lancashire Hotpot (with the traditional, although not often seen, addition of slivers of oyster) earlier this summer. I won't embarrass the greedy EG member who thought the portion size of the latter dish was a bit small.

Sounds like the Gueller's will be better off without her interference, doesn't it? And as luck would have it- we are lunching there tomorrow, at the behest of a certain pasty-faced one from over the border and his lovely missus. He doesn't know he is paying yet though.

You rude sod Scott. Bad thing 1: Broke my son's favourite toy in the morning. (Hence muderous looks from the first born. Bad thing 2: Backed the car into the wall outside the Millbank in haste to sate my hunger this lunch time. Good thing 1:Pigeon breast with a mint risotto. Nicely carmaleised, pink and slightly bloody, alongside came a toothsome, if a smidgen minty, risotto. Worked well together. Good thing 2: World class Fish and chips. The batter was- without wanting to eulogise about it too much - freakin fantastic. Golden, crunchy and crisped to perfection; encasing pearly white flakes of fish. Its so easy to get this dish wrong, but this was excellent. The batter is made using beer and yeast to give the lightness and crunchiness. Served with quenelles of tartare sauce and "yorkshire caviar"- i.e. mushy peas. Liked the fat chips served in a "Jenga" like tower too. The bintage ate Polenta and Pecorino Fritters served with a leek and walnut salad. Not my cup of tea( as it was vegetarian) but it was very pleasant. Followed by Halibut, with spinach, potatoes Anna, carmelised baby onions and a rich hollandaise, which brought the dish together. With two Amontillado Finos, two glasses of wine and a tea and coffee. The whole thing came to a very reasonable £50. Scott- The inspiration for the Foie Gras Brulee came from Jean Georges Vongerichten's restaurant-Jo Jo's in New York. Met the nice chap who recommended the Oxtail pie again, sat in his usual seat. Obviously the Millbank has its regulars which er, we now seem to be joining.

Shall do Scott. Possibly (read definitely, if I get my way) back there on Friday. Does c-s stand for what I think it does? Moby- I'd just stick to meals on wheels - Sir.

I think you'll find that was me Sir. And the price for such information will be only a modest pint Glad you enjoyed it so much, but don't worry about posting details of the menu- I am sure that Claude wont mind as most dishes are taken from the a la carte. We are back there in November, so I would appreciate some comments to whet my appetite. Incidentally, I know it's slightly out of season, or it will be by the time we get there- but if Claude and Claire are reading this -a word for you- Lobster please! Cheeky bugger that I am - well there is no harm in trying is there. Failing that, langoustines will be fine. Jon- where about is the new wine merchants you wrote of please?

Christ Gary - you need locking up mate. My second meal here and it was for me, despite the attendance of both Scott and Gary at the same table, and even better experience than last time. Loved the beetroot foam with fresh peas (as did our little horror) . Another favourite was the Lemon sole with that knockout ham hock ravioli. I had my taste of the famed risotto with the parmesan air. I enjoyed the squab and the quail dishes we tried- but possibly a little to similar in texture. I didn't mind that much though! Have to say my favourite was the malt with supremely sweet shrimps and razor clams - stunning stuff. Apologies for the sketchy details- it was a long day ! Lovely to see Yin and Sarah again. Tweedledum and Tweedledee I can live without BTW - I think Anthony may have some serious competition for the affections of Olga- our little man developed a major passion for her during our lunch.

after anthony's for tea? ← Well we did return to the Millbank but the day before the Anthony's 5 hour marathon on Saturday. When we arrived I settled down to a pint of the world class Timothy Taylor's Landlord - a king amongst beers; when er, some nibbles arrived in the form of some tasty olives. Very welcome, after my very minor whinge last week. I opted for the intriguing chicken croquette which came with a very light chorizo based oil, with shards of chorizo within it. I sometimes avoid chorizo on menus as the smokiness inherent in the sausage can over power- but not a bit of that in this dish. Rosie had the foiegras dish I had last week, as she enjoyed the atom like portion I generously allowed her. For mains I had Lamb served two ways with a most -pink loin accompanied by a shepherd's pie made from the shin. Actually, it was more like a piece of shin with lovely buttery mash on top. Rosie was recommeded to have the Oxtail and root vegetable pie by the friendly bloke in the bar happily tucking in to it. She was glad she did, it came with crunchy yet light pastry and beautifully tender meat. We finished with vanilla parfait between us in the garden in the glorious sunshine - whilst I drained the remnants of the Madfish Pinot Noir we had ordered. A quick chat with the yooful Joe ,the restaurant manager, and I soon realised he had read my garbled ramblings of last week. Well he didn't shoot me anyway - which is nice. Set me up very nicely for Anthony's the next day.

Well, Hallelujah- I am saved. I have found a little gem not fifteen short minutes from where we now live. The Millbank is set in a very pleasant rural spot on the side of a valley – with views overlooking the surrounding fields, down towards a mill. A perfect location to sit outside on a warm sunny day, like today, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case last Saturday. So to cheers our spirits in the fog, wind and rain we popped in for lunch. The interior is stylishly modern, with wooden floors, some banquette seating and aubergine coloured walls. Not what you would expect from looking at the exterior of the building. Three of us had a glass of champagne in the bar whilst the other in our party squealed and created until we stopped force feeding him the frankly risible excuse for cottage pie being served up to him in a jar. On reflection, being offered something to nibble on with the champagne wouldn’t have a gone a miss. But then I am naturally greedy. The missus started with Cumin Roast scallops, Warm Smoked trout and Sweet Potato Puree. Not a dish that appealed to me as I thought the eclectic ingredients wouldn’t marry well and cumin is a spice, that if left in the wrong hands, can be all too overpowering. My fears were not abated when the dish arrived, as the whole surface of the scallops were a deep brown colour and looked overdone. But I was wholly wrong, the scallops were very succulent and not overcooked and the use of the cumin judicious. A good dish and well enjoyed by Rosie. Our friend Sarah opted for the Black Bream, Basil Mash and Tomato and Lemon dressing- which came with some unannounced French beans. I didn’t try this (although offered some) but she thoroughly enjoyed this dish. I was intrigued by the sound of the Foie Gras brulee on brioche, Poached Cherries and Frisee salad. This was more like a disc of foie gras parfait sat on top of a piece of circular brioche. The brulee effect came from a delicate layer of crunch on top of the foie. It all tasted very satisfying – especially when eaten with the delicious poached cherries. My only slight criticism would be that the dish should perhaps be served a tad warmer. I would (and will) gladly have this dish again. Main courses were for the missus. Confit of Duck with White Beans puree, Spiced Bread and Apple Toastie, with Deep-Fried Sage. A knockout dish. All the ingredients combined fabulously well to provide a delicious mouthful as that’s all I got of my wife’s dish. Why the hell is it that your wife/ partner always chooses the best thing on the bloody menu? Sarah had the Goosnargh Chicken Breast, Fondant Potato with a Spring Onion and Mushroom Sauce. Very moist meat and a well presented dish. I opted for Roast Suckling pig with a Turnip Dauphinoise, Roast Carrot, with a Honey and Clove sauce. Very tender meat- lovely crackling and a revelation- I like turnips – especially when they are cooked this way. A quick mention of the saucing with our dishes. All of them were spot on, with depth of flavour and clarity without being whoringly cloying. A sure sign that you are in safe hands and a craft the chef –Glen Futter-no doubt learnt the importance of during his time in Nico Landenis’ kitchen. With this we drank an unusual Soave, in that it was rather rich and buttery, unlike the Soave I remember from the 1980’s. The wine list is nicely judged and I especially like the endearing “If you like these, you will love this” sections on each page, pointing you in other directions. To finish we had Banana Fritter with Banana and Rum Fool and a caramel sauce. Rich, sticky and moreish. The iced vanilla Parfait with Strawberries was well received too. The wife went for the selection of 3 French cheeses which ironically came in at 55 pence more than the 3 Yorkshire cheeses! A slice of Reblechon and Fourme d'Ambert along with a Goat’s cheese which escapes me. Very nice but they could have done with being taken out of the fridge a good half an hour before as the Reblechon was only just on the point of turning. A minor quibble as this is a very competent and friendly operation which is now owned by the chef Glen Futter and his business partner; the very personable and horribly youthful Restaurant manager. We will be sure to return very soon. (Er, may be even next weekend)

Woe is me. Eating here is the one thing I miss more than anything about having moved away from London. Have fun and say hello to Wasim from me. In fact, please ask him if he would courier some food for me? I badly need a seekh kebab/ dry meat fix.

An ancient sanskrit saying for you Moby. "Man with one pair of trousers to his name should shut the fook up" Thanks all, just about to book for Saturday. Found my 2004 Red Guide and yes- it has BG. CharlieO Will certainly report back next week. Yin- Weavers Shed was great when we dined there last year. Highly recommended.

Has anyone heard of/been to Millbank? We are thinking of lunching here this weekend, witha friend as its in quite a nearby picturesque spot. The chef is Glen Futter who is ex-of the Nico Landenis stable. Squaremeal lists it as having a Michelin star. Is that so (Gary/anyone)? Squaremeal review listed below. "Rural pub-feel meets contemporary style & modern European food at this Michelin-starred Pennine eaterie. Chef Glen Futter has done time at Chez Nico in London & is clearly a keen disciple of Nico Ladenis’ love of luxury, to which he adds his own global spin. Crab meat is moulded into a sausage & dressed with coconut, for instance, while roast suckling pig comes with coriander gnocchi & an Oriental sauce. For dessert, go for lemon tart with raspberry sorbet or the selection of Yorkshire cheeses, then chill out on the timber-decked terrace or lounge in the smoking room. Modern jazz & drinks every Sunday from 9pm. " Grateful for any info/reports. Ta

Whoops, we too seem to have done it again. Since we were leaving the South for pastures new in the North, we thought it would have one last splurge in Bray before we departed. And because we were justifying our trip by using the frankly ludicrous excuse of wanting to take the little eight-month horror along as well; to give him his first 3*star experience. We descended for lunch on a particularly warm day last month, and were shown through to one of the banquette seats for the first time. I admit we took Hugo’s ridiculously oversized- pushchair along but the staff as ever, were unfazed by this as we negotiated our way in to the bustling dining room. We started with two glasses of champagne and some fine canapés as we pondered the menu. We decided to go a la carte and so Rosie opted for Pan fried scallops with seaweed tartare, herb and marinated baby squid salad, and a saffron flavoured vinaigrette. Four plump scallops, beautifully caramelised- paired with a slightly sharp, but not unduly so, marinated salad. The seaweed gave just the vaguest little whisper of a flavour and was marginally beaten by the vinaigrette. For me it was Tronçonnettes de homard poêlées minute au Porto blanc (just for a change!). This was perfection to eat and a beautifully presented dish when served a la carte. I left not one molecule of the sauce on my plate. Rather more worryingly from a financial perspective – the little man loved the little slivers of lobster he was given. For our main courses, she decided on the Grilled tender rabbit fillets, served on a celeriac fondant, glazed chestnuts and armagnac sauce. A dish she had not had since our honeymoon, when, unfortunately, we were both suffering from the after effects of a bout of food poisoning, having stayed elsewhere the night before. Such memories were soon dissipated though by one of the Waterside Inn’s signature dishes. Unnervingly tender meat with a rich complex sauce and the sweetest of chestnuts. I opted for Medallion of farmed veal under a parmesan and sage crust, grilled mushroom caps and glazed carrots, served with a sauce made from white wine, wine vinegar and fresh herbs. Served, as requested, with a perfect pink hue. The medallion was much bigger than I expected, but oh lordy, it was like cutting through ice cream with a hot blade. I did find the parmesan crust marginally rich towards the very end of the dish, but I was delighted to have tried this dish as it was excellent For dessert - Soufflé chaud aux framboises (Warm raspberry soufflé) was just gorgeous. A little hole is made in the top of the soufflé into which a delicate raspberry sauce is poured in. It was as feather light as you would expect it to be. When we last lunched and dined here last August- the missus was pregnant and so had to forgo the cheese course, which she always relishes here. Not so this time. The staff were, yet again spot on and very gracious, as we were rather worried about taking the little one along. One of them even offered to take him into the kitchen to meet Chef. No, not to cook him up, but to give us time to finish our meal. We also finished with tea outside, overlooking the Thames with the infant now peacefully asleep, having enjoyed a wonderful meal. But Scott, it must have been a very good lunch Sir, for you to have seen Punts before you. I don’t think they have any on that part of the river.

Then i must be going when they've just re-opened. Going on 17th for lunch ← Which blithering numpty invited you?

That made my day. Sorry I have not been in contact- been off-line for a while. Agreed, a return match is in order. Send me your e-mail by PM please and we'll get cracking organising something.

Having met the venerable Thom (and some other reprobate from over the border) at Piccolino earlier this year. I can concur - it's a decent enough buzzy Italian that does what it says on the tin. We actually ended up at Mr Thomas's Chop House (after Marshall threw a hissy fit about lunching at a new venue called Panacea ; too glam for him apparently ) quite rightly though as we had fine oysters and Sirloin steak. I seem to remember Gary being pleasantly suprised that the "artistic" squiggles that decorated his plate of Corned beef hash, was not some rarified balsamic reduction -but just plain old HP sauce.

My better half's mother lives Suffolk so we tend to venture out quite a lot when we are down there. East Anglia seems to be getting better and better each year for food aitha wealth of places worth trying in Suffolk and Norfolk. I am afraid Essex is slightly lagging behind, but it's not too far to carry on up the A12 to Suffolk. As Jeremy writes, the White Hart in Nayland is fantatsic and quite ludicrously good value for money for the quality of cooking by Carl Shillingford. A great favourite of ours. I gave serious thought about moving to Nayland because of this place when I still worked in London, and when we were considering moving out. Have a look here. The food at the Angel in nearby Stoke-by-Nayland used to be very good but was just average when we stayed and dined there during the August bank holiday last year. In fact we spent more time at the Crown which was very popular indeed. Also in the vicinity are Le Talbooth and the slightly cheaper Milsoms, which are owned by the same family. Can't vouch for the food here, but they have been on our to do list for some time. A short drive further up the A12 will take you to another great favourite of ours - The Crown and Castle in Orford, which I have posted about many times before. fabulous food in lovely surroundings in a perfect little village by the sea. The bar area has been recently refurbished and they now do a rather natty line of sherries; which compliment the the Brindisa nibbles they now serve. As luck would have it we are off to Suffolk tomorrow, so it looks like a meal out is in order. If you need anymore and are looking to go slightly further from Colchester- just shout.

Lucy I agree. Adam is your man- he helped me enormously when I was organisisng a stag do about three years back. You can find the thread by searching for Oxford - Food and Drink. I would do a link to it but my PC won't let paste a link from another EG thread at the moment. As I say- it's three years old but there may be something that helps.

Keep up Bapi ← Well, I was being subtle Scott. But I know that you spell and understand the meaning of the word to be stubble. Not that you can grow any