jennahan

What about Tom Aiken or Le Cercle (both in Chelsea)? Tom Aikens fits the bill for imaginative and innovative food. Le Cercle is French style tapas which can be really great.

Greenwich has a couple places: Cheeseboard (for cheese, obviously) 26 Royal Hill Greenwich SE10 8RT Tel: 020 8305 0401 There is also a great gourmet deli on Nelson Road, but I can't remembert the name (sorry) The Waitrose in Canary Wharf is fantastic. It has a terrific wine department (with an Inner Celler for fine wines). You can even buy your bottle, and drink it in the wine area bar/cafe. It also has a Moshi Moshi Sushi in the store, in case you get peckish for sushi while doing your shopping. Next to Canary Wharf (but you have to get up early) is the Billingsgate Market...for super fresh fish, obviously.

Wow, where I can I get one of those? Reading the "Contended Baby Book" by Gina Ford, and sticking to her schedule. It works.

Frm a reasonable perspective without any sort of biases contributing to policies: 1) restaurants should have to right to dissallow kids 2) if they do not have a policy, it should be the right of diners to bring children 3) if kids act up in an unreasonable way, restaurants should be allowed to ask the family to leave. Beyond this, it is up to the parents to judge whether or not their kids can handle the experience. Browsing the 14+ pages of this thread, it struck me that the disagreements are based on whether people think parents are capable of making this judgement. The tricky thing is that, much as we'd all like to dictate how parents should raise their kids, we can't. Discussing parenting styles is kind of like talking about peoples religions or political beliefs...everyone thinks they are right and those who don't agree are deluded/missing the point. My defense of allowing kids into nice restaurants is flawed in that it is based on my biases. I have probably been the cause of ruining several eGulleters dinners in the past by the mere presence a pram parked next to my table at a nice restaurant in New York or, very rarely, London. Why was Baby was there? In NYC, I find it unreasonable (on the babysitter, that is) to shell out $100 for him/her to sit in a dark hotel room for 3 hours (baby has been on a schedule from birth, and is like clockwork - slept 7pm to 7am since he was 3 months old and irrespective of time zone). In London, it would only be at lunch and usually because I was out earlier with Baby (Again, his schedule has him sleeping from noon to 2pm. ) For the evening, I feed him as normal at 5, bath him, and put him in his pram (which fully reclines) with teddy and blanket. At nice restaurants, the dim lights and quiet atmosphere ensure that he remains sleeping (never wakes up except when we push the pram to leave). Actually, it has only been in more casual places that he gets disturbed (noise or bright lights). He is only 20 months, and I will stop bringing him once he stays up later, quits his midday nap, or is more aware. On another note, I do take Baby out to lunch occasionally. There are never the "family" restaurants mentioned (along the lines of ChiChis, Fridays, McDonalds, Olive Garden, Pizza Huts), nor are they temples of Haute Cuisine...they are your moderate to nice, good quality restaurants (Lupa, Artisanal, Balthazar, etc). First, I personally find the food revolting at the chains. I cook 80% of Baby's, and only use quality ingredients and don't dumb down recipies. I want Baby to grow up knowing how food is supposed to taste like, and to experience the world of flavors which is available. Going out for a meal IS special, and why should food one has outside the home be of worse quality than chez vous, and in an atmosphere more suitable to a circus than having a meal? I usually order one meal, and we share. And no, I don't order fish fingers, burgers, fries, chicken nuggets or the like. He loves osso bucco, polenta, veg sushi rolls, galettes, parmesan cheese (eats hunks of it!), and I love watching him eat (isn't part of the joy of food sharing it and giving pleasure to others?). He handles himself pretty well at restaurants (so far), but maybe because he's used to them by now, and I know how to avoid his tantrum triggers. If he makes a mess, I clean it up (always bring tons of wipes and an extra bag). If he were to get upset, I would get the bill and leave. If he was a PITA, I wouldn't bring him. Again, just parental judgement. No, he isn't ready for the tasting menu at Per Se, and probably won't be for many years. But, i assure you, I will take him when he is ready, and I'll probably enjoy the experience of him eating more than he will.

Ginger tea/ginger ale for nausea Coca Cola (regular) also for nausea salt and vinegar potato chips and coca cola (regular) for bad diarrhea (doesn't help the diarrhea, but replaces all of the minerals you lose in having diarrhea) Kimchee gigae for a cold (chili, garlic, and ginger have been proven to have natural antibiotic properties) Copious amounts of coffee to keep me "regular" Crushed linseeds for shiny hair (and soft skin)

I've walked past the Millenium Hotel a gazillion times...even used their loo, but strangely never have been tempted to try MJU. I guess because the room itself didn't look too appealing, and it always seemed pretty empty. However, oragamicrane's positive reviews have made me put it on my list of places to try (not the top of the list, but definitely upper middle part of the list). I agree that Asia de Cuba is all about style over content. Funny, I've been there three times and have always liked the meals, but can never recollect anything I've eaten there. I do always remember the atronomical bills we ring up (primarily due to alchol! I always remember what we drank though!). I agree that it's a great first-date place, but maybe too loud for a romantic date. In terms of fusion cuisine, I think there are 3 types: a) Western with a dash of Eastern b) Eastern with a dash of Western c) a happy medium I've, by the way, never had c. A and B, yes. I think fusion is great if the spirit of the dominant cuisine exists, but enhanced by aspects of the secondary cuisine. I think fusion fails when done clumsily. I think that fusion is actually very difficult to do well because the chef has to master 2 different types of cuisine, not just one. Anyways, just my opinion.

It's pretty sad that this is a problem which gets raised over and over again, but doesn't seem to result in any change. Perhaps it is is because of some of things which have been mentioned (i.e., people just raising their hands up and saying , oh well, can't do anything about it). I have been very choosy about chicken that I personally buy to cook at home, but I didn't even think about the many chickeny things I purchase outside (i.e., takeaways, chain restaurants of the Nando's type). I did make a decision to avoid ordering chicken, except at good restaurants. Sad, chicken has now become a luxury dish.

Not sure if the top 2 are available in the states, but I know Teuscher has stores in the US: Green & Black's Organic Dark Chocolate Hazelnut and Currents Rococo's Earl Grey flavored dark chocolate Teuscher's cocoa truffles (does this count?)

I was revolted, and freaked out, watching this show last week. Part of me was smugly saying.."Oh, I don't have to worry about this because I only shop at Waitrose, and buy mostly organic"...but do I? They targeted Tesco, Sainsbury, Morrisons, and ASDA but not Waitrose. How can I be certain that buy buying the Organic chicken at Watirose, I would be not be buying something which had been intensively farmed? Oh I know, buy from a butcher, or from a farm, and I do as often as possible. However, for convenience sake, it is often easier just to do all of my shopping once, at one place. Oh gosh, just one more thing to feel guilty about now!

Ummm, I guess most of us are guilty of somewhat judging people on their tastes (consciously or subconsciously). I guess judging people on their food preferences is equivalent to judging people on their other lifestyle choices. We usually extrapolate from this fact to making a judgement on other aspects of themselves. The problem jusding on food taste is that food taste is often dependant on socioeconomic status, particularly in the US. I'm not even talking about high-end things like foie-gras, caviar, etc. In most of the US, the Olive Garden is the most decent "Italian" food to be readily found (hey, in Pittsburgh, my home-town, it was voted Best Italian Restaurant as recently as last year!). In order to have tasted really well-cooked Italian food in the US, one has to either a) live in a certain place, b) have the money to go to a good Italian restaurant or visit Italy, c) come from a family which understands what good Italian food is. If this girl likes the Olive Garden because it is the best "Italian" food she has tasted, well that's fine. If she has been exposed to what Italian food is supposed to be like, well that's a bit different. If she refuses to try any Italian which is not Olive Garden, that is a bigger issue. I had a lovely ex BF who was great, but despite growing up in an educated household which was open-minded and traveled extensively, his food taste was abysmal (thought food could be "too good"). The problem for me was not his taste in food, but his unenthusiastic response to food. I guess it represented to me a lack of adventure, unwillingness to change, and a smug contentedness with life as he knw it. Translation in my head...small-minded, potential for a really boring life, not very ambitious (not necessarity career wise, but in terms of what he wanted out of life). Loved him, but I knew that he wasn't my life partner, and his food taste solidified this opinion. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I wouldn't condem her for the OG thing until I got to know her a bit better.

Does anyone know what the equivalent in grams is for the peanut butter? I have a translation from cups to grams for everything else. Thanks!

Yes please! I'd love to see you in Canary Wharf. You are right about the sugar thing, although it seems to be at all hours....Krispy Kreme does really brisk business here. Someone mentioned lager ice-lollies, how about Guinness (?my spelling is really bad) ice-cream? I actually have had this before at a fantastic ice-cream place in Boston (I think the name was Christina's). They also did a great green tea (creamy one) and the best coconut ice cream. In the meantime, I'll have to make a trip up to Islington...

What is wrong with our Vietnamese and Laotian restaurants, the best outside of Southeast Asia, and our North African restaurants? Not to mention Lebanese food? Do they count for nothing? What other ethnic restaurants should we have in order to be labeled "acceptable" in the field of non-French restaurants? Well, things have changed a bit, in France, since the Middle Ages (I'm saying "the Middle Ages" because we have written proof that we already knew about couscous in the 16th century). ← I was just remarking on the reason this topic was started, not making an accusation...I do apologize profusely if you belive that I was insulting the French! In terms of the latter part of the quote, I was refering to observations made in a book called "Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong" written in 2002 by 2 serious journalists about France TODAY.

I've been thinking about some of the points raised in this thread about the generalization that the French don't seem to embrace "non-French" food as witnessed by the lack of good-quality restaurants of other non-French cuisines. Perhaps the reason why the French aren't as enthusiastic about world cuisine is due to the fact that most French identify themselves first with the region they were born in or their families are from. As such, and due to the entrenchment and codification of local cuisines throughout France, eating food from another region would be an experience likened to eating food from another country. (Kind of like travel to another region in France for a Frenchman/woman is equivalent to travelling abroad for many non-French). For an Angevin, going to a Nicoise or Lyonnaise restaurant IS eating "ethnic". Maybe this is the reason for the slow uptake of food outside France, particularly those cuisines from places which were not even ex-colonies.

So true. The most chauvinistic Frenchman, the most bloated with national pride, will gladly feast on nems, phat thai, fajitas, colombo, and particularly couscous (a national dish), as long as they're good. There is simply no correlation between his bigotry and his culinary tastes. Yes, isn't it so? ← Really? This has not been my experience in the small town (5000 people) near Angers where my in-laws live. Not a non-Angevin restaurant for miles (actually, never seen one). I'm Korean American and am a decent cook of many different cuisines, and I try to cook for my in-laws when they come and visit, and they consider my Italian dishes "exotic"(hello...pesto is exotic?!?) and are not enthusiastic about eating foods which are unfamiliar. I remember going by a market where they sold aubergine and my MIL turned to me and said she didn't know how to cook it. My in-laws don't seem to be unique in there region-centric, and absolute uninterest (bordering on suspicion) of foods which are not familar.

I'm glad that someone here can report back on Nathalie. I'm frequently in the area (passed by the place many times) and also read about them in Harper's Magazine Restaurant Guide (of all places), which said only positive things. I'll definitely try this place soon.

Oh I definitely agree that it isn't a clafouti, I just wanted to know if anyone has tried this recipe and if it TASTES like clafouti.

jennahan, I don't know when you visited (and far be it from me to guess anyone's age, least of all online), but by chance was it prepared by Alfredo (of the venerable story with the gold utensils for the dish, said to've been confiscated by the Fascisti)? ← I was there in the summer of 2002, and no, Alfredo himself didn't serve the dish to us...don't thnk he's still alive. However, the waiter who did the mixing did so quite skillfully. He placed the hot plasta in the shallow dish where the butter, cheese and cream were already placed. He tossed the pasta into this mixture using what looked to be 2 ordinary forks, but done very quickly and with much aplomb.

found it.. L'Epicerie Ouvert 7 jours sur 7 (Sauf dimanche midi) accueil jusqu'à minuit. 30, rue Montorgueil 75001 Paris Réservation 01 40 28 49 78

My sympathies...but don't you think that such an attitude is very Korean? I mean this zenophobic, superior, "you are not really Korean because you don't act/look/dress/live like us" attitude. I dealt with this first when I visited Korea at the age of 9, and later at university where I was politely held at arm's length by the "true" Koreans. Sad, but a cultural fact.

I just thought I'd add a recommendation for a restaurant which my husband loves (drags me and anyone else he can with him!) located on rue Montorgueil called L'Epicerie. He discovered this place when he was on a work stint back in 1997, and goes each time he's in Paris. Don't know why it's called Epicerie when the food is not very spicy. It's a homey, not-pretentious restaurant close to Les Halles with consistently good food. I've never seen anyone resembling a tourist there, and it's always full of localsl. My husband always orders their meat gratin dishes with a side of pommes salardaise, and I usually order a fish dish. We've never left dissapointed. If my memory serves me correctly, they are open on Sunday. I'll have to track down the number somehow (it's never been in any guide, to my limited knowledge) or food guides.

Patricia Wells' "Food Lover's Guide to Paris" (Fourth Edition) has a recipe for Fondant aux poires Le Cameleon which I have made many times. I have had many people ask me if it was a clafouti. I couldn't answer because the only clafouti I have had was baked by an aunt of my husband in Brittany...and it was not much different from a far Breton. Are any of you familiar with this recipe, and do you think that I could replace the pears with cherries (I promise I won't call it a clafouti), and is this cake similar in taste to a clafouti? PS: I'd replace the rum with kirsch, and +/- ground almonds

Question...shouldn't one ask for a biscotto and not for a biscotti (which, if I recall, is the pleural form)?

I have had this dish at the restaurant where it was created...Alfredo's in Rome. It is indeed fresh pasta (a thinner version of tagliatelle) tossed at the table with fresh parmesan, butter, and cream (just a bit). It was delicious and not heavy at all. I have to say, I have never had a comperable version anywhere else. My experience in the US is 1) the pasta is too heavy, 2) the sauce is too rich and cloying.

There a several chains I'd try anything at here in the UK : 1. Nando's - excellent South African chicken chain (I believe they are coming to the states soon). They have rotisserie chicken which they baste in peri peri sauce and then put on the grill after you order. Great spicy fries, and scrummy portugese pastries. We go quite frequently as my husband is addicted. 2. Itsu - a decent conveyer belt sushi place 3. Zizi - a wood-oven pizza and pasta place 4. Carluccio's Cafe - I'm here at least once a week (they are really child friendly). italian deli/cafe/restaurant with much better than average food. In the States: 1. Figs in Boston (fig and prosciutto pizza!) 2. Starbucks (OK, I'm a sucker for their frappuccinos) 3. Panera Bread - pretty reliable sandwich, soup, and salad place