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martinwa

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Posts posted by martinwa

  1. """"Bigger question, I guess, is: what are the REPRESENTATIVE meals that a traveler should try in each of these countries (ie: England, Scotland and Wales)? I'm not asking that they all be vegan (my husband's not, so he can indulge)...and I rather suspect that a majority of them will be meat based (ie: Haggis, fish n' chips n' stuff...though the chips I can have...) From what I've seen of Wales and lamb dishes, I'll probably be completely out of luck there."'"""

    Oh dear, is that what you think food in the UK is all about? There's more of this kind of stuff in a recent thread about Ireland.

    To get an idea of the sort of cooking the UK is producing check out the BBC show Great British Menu. It's not entirely representative of course and you'll probably find the large amounts of flesh on show repulsive but it's the reality and not the picture book haggis and kilts version of the UK most visitors are in search of.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/search/?q=gre...Find+Programmes

    And you might find this useful.

    http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/s...2268171,00.html

  2. Gone years ago. It's now the Thai Elephant and I've never been. We've got the Thai Pin on our side of the river and frankly Richmond in the 25 years I've lived here has been a culinary desert, nothing but chains and franchises. I suppose it's the rent.

    But we've now got Petersham Nurseries, Brula, La Buvette, Kew Grill, The Glasshouse, Bacco and a few more within a mile of each other so I guess we'll survive.

    No decent Chinese though.

  3. A friend of my parents, who would spend extended periods in London alone for her historical research, described how to get respect as a woman dining alone:

    She went to the local Italian restaurant in Hampsted where she had a flat and with her meal, ordered a very good bottle of wine that she consumed in its entirety.

    end quote......

    That's a tactic I employ often in the states especially L.A. where more than a glass of wine with an entire meal is considered good reason to call the A.A. I was at lunch with a woman there recently and ordered a glass of something white with my starter salad. When my pasta arrived I asked for a glass of chianti. Appalled, she remarked "I've never seen anyone change wines before!". Yes, she needs to get out more.

    As far as reading matter goes, the script option can work for or against. In L.A. you're likely to be offered sexual favours under the table from the waiter if you can get him a part. In New York, a polite enquiry as to the nature of the project followed by little more attention than is normal, which in New York can be very little for the solo diner. In London, utter disdain and the nagging worry that on leaving you might be dragged down an alley off Wardour Street and get your head kicked in for being a pretentious twat. Stick to the Sun.

    I love solo counter dining. I had a great lunch recently in Borough Market at that oyster place Mr Something's sitting at the counter, eating various cooked and raw oysters with a pint of Guinness and a chance to watch the kitchen in action. No reading material required.

  4. http://uktv.co.uk/food/search

    These should keep you busy for a while.

    But really, why would you need more than a chopped shallot a knob of butter and a large glug of muscadet?

    Soften the shallot in the butter, throw in the moules and the wine, put the lid on and don't open it for 4 or 5 mins. Throw away any that don't open and chuck in a handful of chopped flat leaf parsley. If you want you could add cream to the winey juices. Eat with a large hunk of crusty bread and the rest of the wine. Bon appetit.

  5. and then have biscotti served with the creme brulee.

    Not exactly criminal negligence when the coeliac can clearly see it's a biscotti though. It's not as if they've hidden a load of breadcrumbs under the salad leaves.

    No, but bloody awful service.

    And I'm sure such a thing could never happen at The Modern. :wink:

  6. We arrived at 8:30 (me two VERY swift pints to the good after having watched United spank Newcastle 6:0) and were seated in the comfortable bar with a couple of Pilsner Urquells for us blokes and a Mint Fizz (Elderflower, mint, apple, soda) for the girls.

    Thom, great review, can't wait to try it next time I'm home and I'm delighted to see the Manc tradition of getting ever so slightly rat arsed before ordering lives on.

    Come on the Reds.

    M.

  7. The non participation of the major supermarkets was disgraceful. They're the people responsible for driving costs down.

    What was the figure quoted by the farmer, 20p per bird? How can that be possible?

    Put 50p on a packet of fags, a pint of beer, bottle of wine, litre of gas and we'll simply take it as one of life's little hiccups and continue as before.

    The comment made earlier about production going abroad though is an important one. Supermarket buyers are not in business to support British farming.

    Still no response from any pro's out there. Maybe they're all in the middle of service.

  8. Apologies in advance to those of you who are already using better quality produce.

    As an enthusiastic home cook and eater outer I'm somewhat bemused at the total silence this site has maintained following Hugh F W and Jamie Oliver's TV shows about the battery chicken and egg industries.

    Now I know I can't expect to be eating free range corn fed organic in every restaurant in the land and certainly but what are Gulleteer's opinions?

    How many of you are committed to change up to more acceptable meat products, or have you already?

    Is the cost factor involved just too prohibitive or will the customer appreciate that any improvement in animal welfare and thereby the quality of the food on the plate must involve additional cost? Many of the people involved during the week seemed to be of the opinion that even an extra 50p on the price of a supermarket chicken would be prohibitive.

  9. The best food in Manchester has always been Chinese. I grew up there and the favourites were The Yang Sing and The Kwok Man. I haven't lived there for 25 years but on a visit just before Christmas was delighted to see The Yang Sing still there and packed. And there's Red Chilli a Sichuan on Portland Street. Always fab.

    I was taken to The Grill On The Alley. Not exactly mod Brit but crispy calamari and fine steaks were had by all. Good wine list.

    Juniper in Altrincham might be pushing the half hour limit but it's right up your mod brit street and you can get there on the tram which is always fun.

    The Lowry Hotel. Haven't eaten there myself yet. Expensive steel and glass tower is a bit off putting for me.

  10. I think it can be left until the edit, with celebs especially they know the game and are happy to be filmed doing alternates.

    The producer wont/cant decide until reviewing the footage later and so it is wise to leave options as open as possible. This is not complicated production; it's hand held cameras and simple lighting so the set ups are very easy. Unlike say feature films where each shot takes at least an hour to set up and so must be decided in advance.

    As I say above, video tape is cheap so it makes sense to cover all bases

    S

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