CheGuevara

So I managed to make it over to the Ledbury last night, and before i give my views on our meal I must say that this crisis seems to be hitting hard - i booked only a few hours before, and of the 65 covers there were no more than 30. Granted it's a Tuesday night, but nonetheless... We had the tasting menu (two of us) with a glass of St. Aubin to start which was excellent, at 11.40 each so it should. Followed by a Vosne Romanee 2001 from Engel - pricey at £62 as is the rest of the wine list, which i generally found quite lacking. There was only one red Bordeaux under £60. I'll begin with our spend as to me value for money is how i judge a place. The total came out to £235. The evening was very pleasant, the service good throughout. Were you to ask me later in the week and i would not remember half of the dishes - by this afternoon i had to go to the website to remember all of them. There is a mackerel dish with avocado which stands out, purely on the quality of the sourcing and cooking. Fantastically cooked fish, barely cooked inside with a lovely crispy skin (i cringed later on while my neighbour at the table next to us removed it). A very well conceived dish was the beetroot cooked in salt and marjoram, where it failed was in the detail; a poor balsamic reduction added tableside which to me ruins the concept of the dish. My personal feelings on balsamic vinegar are aggressively negative; it should be all but banned from the kitchen. Belive me i say this with an open mind: not only was the sauce poor, why add that level of flavour to a dish which centres around the purity of a vegetable? One could go further with this and question the use of a sweet sauce on a sweet vegetable. The foie gras was a terrible let-down. I remember my comments well: it's enjoyable because it's foie gras. Litlle cubes of fresh mango with a terrine of foie gras? Amateurish combination which is poorly executed; reminds me of American fusion cooking. Foie gras won't handle an sharp and acidic fruit like mango when served fresh and cold - possibly processed mango would work. Three dishes contained basil, possibly one more - two of them as a major ingredient. A bit much for my linking in a tasting menu. The final dish was a chcolate pudding served with a basil ice cream, both on their own were good; however albeit very small i was "empalagado" as we say in Spanish by the end. Terrible combination as the basil ice cream was not able to ease the dense chocolate; for ma a classic example of poor attempt at clever out of the ordinary parings which come far short of traditional practices - a great cream in any myriad of forms would have been far superior. It needs reiterating - we had a lovely time and a very good meal of a high standard. I walked out of the Ledbury a very happy human. But, but, but, nothing i tried (except for the mackerel) was remotely inspiring, certainly nothing blew my mind. For £120 a head and all the fuss, under normal scrutiny i would expect much much more. -che

will be posting on the main Ledbury thread.

i enjoyed your review - very much looking forward to it as it seems consistently good.

....Sorted...off to the Ledbury after reading great reviews here. -che

i've never been to his brussels shop - i was meant to go for the 10th anniversary with him but alas i was away that week-end. my brother went and apparently said the shop is wonderful. if you like lamb - try some breast of lamb - on the bbq cooked very slowly or in the oven, also cooked slowly. only salt... -che

pacojet does not make ice-cream...it is pure marketing crap from the manufacturer. you cann find used professional ice-cream machines for around £2-2,500 which make an excellent product. in that price range you'll be looking for a 2 to 2 1/2 litre capacity table top machine. Lusso an other machines which are geared for restaurants are not the same as professional machines. -che

by far the best meat in the UK is butchered by Jack O'Shea - a great friend of mine, but nonetheless I speak purely with my taste buds here. I'm from Argentina and we have without a doubt some of the finest meat in the world - I have been eating meat from Jack for almost a year now and it is without a doubt the best meat i have had outside of Argentina. You can get in in his shop in knightsbridge or through our website. All the steaks on the bone are superb, as is the bavette and onglet. -che

best for me are given the selection of quality french wines... www.bbr.com www.corneyandbarrow.com

we import eggs directly from France given our customer base and their demands! they are excellent, and very fresh. for local eggs your best bet is a farmers market as mentioned in a reply above.

I can certainly vouch for their turkeys, they are superb.

would have to concur that La Famiglia is one of the most genuine Italians in London - given it is one of the first it is a bit of an institution which says a lot about the overall quality of the food and experience. assaggi is another option. -che

must add this to my list of restaurants to visit sometime soon. what is the size of the place? -che

Parc aux Cerfs 50, Rue Vavin 75006, Tel : 01 43 54 87 83, is open on Sundays (at least it was last time I checked) and not too far from Rue du Bac. I tried calling to see what their August schedule is, but they're not answering at the moment (and no info on the recording about closing) ← thanks will give it a try and see if i can get through. do you (or anyone else) know La Fontaine de Mars? It is open on Sundays and should not be too much of a walk from Rue du Bac...

any ideas for the same combination - will actually be a couple, sunday dinner, beginning of August - but this time around the 7th (rue du bac)? thanks!

i'm off in a few weeks for the festival and would like any recent suggestions on dinner for saturday evening. so far oloroso and kitchin seem interesting; however neither convinces me wholeheartedly. what i do like about kitchin (from the menu) is the lean towards scottish produce...any true edinburgh instiutions which are worht a visit? there will be 6/7 of us and we want to have one good dinner that week-end. thanks! -che

years ago - roughly 1998/9 three of us were in Paris for a few days and we booked ourselves into Taillevent at last minute. the father of one of my friends was a regular there - after champagne, a fantastic meal, the best cheese cart ever, superb wines, cognac and cigars...i decided to invite them - $900. to this day it is the most expensive dinner invitation and the one with not an ounce of regret for what i spent. looking back over the years i realise i would today feel happy having spent twice that much...everything about that evening was sensational. -che

that's odd. the stands are free, they do not pay anything to exhibit. there are (high) penalties for running out of food and other conditions, and they pay 40% royalty on sales. it still adds up, with staff as you say and preparation etc. but the high prices to exhibit amount to precisely £0.00 ← not quite true - I was on a stand that was a non-restaurant stand and the cost was £2,000 for the privilege of being there. You are correct that the restaurants don't pay for their stands, but they do have to pay for the designing and fitting out of the stand and then they have to have 850 dishes for each service or they get a big old fine, so all in all, it can be pretty pricey for them! ← from customres of ours that have attended in the past - the take is excellent. they work their ass off though...it is a hell of a commitment. -che

if you want to really be practical - since it is summer, hot food you can do without all the time. my plan would be simple: so hot and/or proper food when you go out. at home since you'll have a firdge i would stock up on the following: pates, cornichons, anchovies, tuna, smoked mackrel, horseradish, butter, lemon, capers, mustard, tabasco, etc....then i would buy excellent bread, wine, and loads of cheese...along with any of: smoked salmon, charcuterie, roast beef, maybe some tomatoes, good yoghurts and fruit. guaranteed you'll eat better than when you go out! -che

Went to the Riddle & Finn two weeks ago for Sunday lunch after a very very long night. My first time there. Two of us shared a few dishes - lobster which was excellent, crab cakes which were very good but not great, salt & pepper squid was stellar - incredibly fresh and tender, possibly something else which i don't remember. unfortunately no wine was had due to the profuse amounts still in my system from saturday evening. By far the best meal i've had in Brighton/Hove - i highly reccommend it. Last week-end went to the revamped and now renamed Santiago - when a place which says it is now trying to served "better food" than previously and then serves you white parbaked baguette for bread........ Food OK - but barely so. Due South next door is much better. -che

we have a very good "basic" extra virgin olive oil which we sourced especially for some of our restaurant customers - it comes in 5ltr tins and we sell it retail for £23 - comes to £4.60/ltr. -che edit: it is called "Il Podere"

← what is the point of this??? -che

river cafe had a similar fate with fire in the kitchen...

that was one of the first thoughts when i read the list - as much as i adore st. john, it is ludicrous to see it at 16. following on some previous posts: for all the fanfare surrounding this yearly list and the huge marketing event it has become for San Pellegrino, it is no surprise readers feel it lacks seriousness. -che

I am glad you like the pizza. I have sent you a pm. It is important to note that these are unique ovens and there are only two families that makes the authentic pizza oven and many others bad imitators. It would not normally be suitable for the home baker, it is a bit like someone buying a Formula 1 car to drive around the city... Ciao ← with the only difference that my garden is like a racetrack...

i must say that i wholeheartedly disagree with Carolyn although i do understand why she feels this way. It really is a matter of expectations, as with most things we appreciate or not in life. I would wonder why if you decide to go to the Anchor & Hope where you know they dont take reservations, do you leave your name and head off to a different pub - twice. It is just that, a pub that serves good food. You go there to drink and eat what is available, which "ensures" the food is fresh. Otherwise, book a table at a restaurant. -che