colombo

As far as I know you don't have to book weeks in advance unlike some other places in London - we booked the table (for 8) the day before. Though I guess if it's first on your list, better to be safe and book a week or so in advance (esp for a thurs/fri).

Went to St John last night for dinner: Shared Welsh Rarebit for starters (as we were late getting to the table) - I have had this several times before and it is consistently excellent; slightly burnt at the edges and wonderfully gooey towards the middle. Grey Partridge & Jerusalem Artichoke: Smaller and served rarer than other partridge dishes I have had, but the meat was more flavoursome and gamey. Quite fiddly to eat though and not the choice if you are particularly hungry. Haven't had Jerusalem Artichoke in ages - lovely nutty, smoky taste reminded me to try to cook it myself sometime. Other had: Mallard & Radishes (which was very rare, by all accounts delicious, and what I wish I had gone for in hindsight), Roast Lamb & Mint Sauce(large portion of rare lamb served on it own plus mintsauce on the side), Fennel & Berkswell (cheese) and Smoked Eel, Beetroot and Horseradish (apparently excellent too). Side dish of Sprout Tops was unexpectedly good. Treacle Tart with Jersey Cream: As rich as it sounds, but pretty good all the same. Perhaps the tart could have been a little lighter, but I did finish it all (and half of my wife's Eccles Cake & Lancashire Cheese!) Others had: Eccles Cake & Lancashire Cheese (unbeatable), Rhubarb Trifle, and Stem Ginger Ice Cream - all of which were throughly enjoyed. House wines (Viognier and Grenache/Merlot) were both fine, and I thought a notch above most other restaurants' house wines. Service was friendly, knowledgeable and discreet - as usual. £45 per head - not inexpensive, but reasonable for the quality of the ingredients, cooking and surrounding restaurants. p.s. If you get the chance, I would heartily recommend the feasting option - the Crispy Pig Skin, Radishes, Langoustines, Foie Gras, Suckling Pig (14 people), Eccles Cake and Lancashire Cheese and Summer Pudding we had last year was a meal not to be forgotten…

I will be visiting NYC at the end of February and my current plan is to dine at Babbo on Fri night, Kittichai on Sat night and WD-50 on Sun night. However, from reading some of the posts here, it sounds pretty difficult to get reservations at Babbo - presumably even more so on a Fri night? Do you think I would be better off trying for WD-50 on Fri night and Babbo on Sun night? (My other alternative is to try for a table at Blue Hill on Friday night if I fail to get in to Babbo - it seems to get good reviews here and friends have recommended it.) thanks

I agree that Borough Market on Sat morning is a must. St John is not cheap, but I've never had a bad meal there and it is quite unusual (if you like offal). You should also try a meal at a "gastropub" - often relatively inexpensive and better food than several London "restaurants" -the Eagle, Coach & Horses, the Princess, the Well, the White Swan are a few that come to mind (nr the city). Faulkners is a great chippy - not far from Liverpool St Station. Boisdale is the only Scottish restaurant I know of (but I haven't eaten there) Indian food - High end (price-wise): Cinnamon Club (better than Tamarind, Zaika etc); high/mid - Café Spice Namaste; mid - Madhu's (in Southall) ; low - Lahore Kebab house. You should also decent Sri-Lankan food in Tooting, Rayner's Lane and East Ham. Other recommendations - Moro (Spanish), dimsum at Yauatcha or Royal China, J Sheekey (sister to celeb-spotting restaurant The Ivy; very good fish but not cheap)