RDB

It really does get a meal of to a good start when the canapes are exciting. This year I had some amazing canapes at L'enclume, Sat Bains and Le Bristol Paris, sorry can't recall them all. The connecting feature being there were at least four different canapes presented, with varying tastes and textures, and great visual appeal. I was very dissapointed at Hibiscus were we received a basket of choux pastry which was meant to be taste of varying flavours such as smoked garlic and cheese. Unfortunately it tasted of dry choux pastry. Special mention to canapes done with simplicity are Northcote Manor's slice of sausage roll, with a spread of English mustard under the pastry, absolutely top class!!!

Mmmm, yeah not holding out much hope for a gourmet weekend but still! have you tried Michael Deanes the 1 michelin star? ← We've never been able to get into Deane's. It's always booked up. One positive development - Ian Rankin has opened a little place in Belfast airport which actually does really nice soups/sandwiches, etc. I do think Rankin should be knighted for services to the people of Northern Ireland. ← My God are you saying the world famous Scottish crime writer is responsible for improving the palates of the Northern Irish, no wonder they are a little funny about what they eat. I remember dining at the short lived michelin starred 'The Oriel' in Gilford and being served massive side orders of potatoes and veg. I asked about this and was informed that the 'locals' were not happy with the portion sizes and most people lived by the rule that if you belly is not filled at the end of the meal (irregardless of taste etc) it is not a good meal. I know its a little distance away from Belfast, by I have been hearing good reports about this place. manor park

..................chicken and banana! Reminds me of when I went to a version of KFC in Dublin as a teenager and ordered a dish called 'chicken maryland', which of course was bread coated chicken with bread coated bananas and pineapples. Absolutely tramautising experience when you are unaware that a greasy banana lay in wait instead of a piece of chicken. I can definitely relate to Gordon's repulsion.

I met these chaps at a NW food fair in earlier this year, but sadly forgot to order from them. Will do so soon thanks to this prompt. Cheers ← No probs Bapi hope you enjoy their extensive bounty, let me know what you think.

My thoughts entirely!! After all that. I found it funny when he was doing the aerated chocolate in the aeration chamber (or whatever it is called) he stated, 'obviously people are not going to have this at home so we have to think of a way round that.....'. Now I thought he was going to say 'nip out to your local 24 hour garage and pick up an aero'. Oh no, he pulls out a dyson, space bag and hollowed out plastic container a la Blue Peter. Absolutely classic !!!

I have managed to source all my food from this fantastic co-operative. For those living in the North West I can not reccomend this enough. The produce is definitely top notch, and that which is sourced abroad is via artisan producers. They periodically do the most delicious rose veal. I notice it has recently been nominated for the BBC4 farm and food awards. northern harvest

Well that's him told. Noticed a letter in -- of all places -- the mailbag bit of Winner's Dinners in the Sunday Times (link). Says the Fat Duck hasn't changed its menu in three years, and is at risk of becoming "no more than a theme park". Interesting observation, I thought. ← .....and to take the analogy further, the degustation menu is the main ride in the theme park exciting with unexpected twists and turns, once experienced however, it loses its magic thereafter. When I dined there this year I loved it but could not help but think you could actually set one of these restaurants up in every major city. A Fat Duck chain. I suppose there is a limit to how long a menu can stay the same, ok it is a winning formula, but it does not intice me to return again. I like restaurants and chefs to evolve, albeit sausage and mash is evolution, only in a retrospective manner. Closer to home I have had the tasting menu in Juniper on about five different occassions, once even in the space of two weeks. I have never received the same dish twice, and Paul Kitching is whipping up 15-20 dishes. Now that is one hell of a theme park, ok some rides are not as good as they may sound or as good at the last one, but it keeps the adrenaline and surprise factor alive time after time.

My first post, and what better way to start than a dividing issue. I was a little dissapointed by the programme to be honest, I found it pretty much like any cookery show, albeit with less dishes cooked than normal. I suppose in the back of my mind I was thinking do I really want to see a 3 star innovative and talented chef cooking sausage and mash? Not really, endless TV chefs serve that purpose. I suppose I do not want to see Snail Porridge et al. I would like to have seen new advances, new techniques, dishes to make me go wow and I want to try that. When I first seen Heston on 'Full on Food' I thought he came across as quite wooden and not as entertaining as I hoped. I think he has improved a great deal was a lot more interesting. Will I continue to watch. Of course I will. I will unfortunately watch anything to do with food good or bad. I have been forcibly removed from a few supermarkets on a number of occassions for staring at the Rotisserie thinking its 'Good Food Live'.