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I'll be taking my small family to Paris for a week(2 adults 1 three year old). We can't afford to eat in restuarants much so I'd be really grateful if anyone could reccomend a) somewhere family friendly for a good, inexpensive lunch, and b) somewhere to buy good bread, cold meats, cheeses and food to eat at home. (we're renting a small studio in the 5th arondissement) Many thanks, Nick

Oops! sorry, yes in London. We're in north west London but can travel medium distances. We will time limited so we coan't go too far out.

I'd really like to take my wife out for a nice breakfast on Valentines day. She loves pancakes and pattisseries and pork based based breakast options, but onlyif they're from free-range pigs (recent convert from veggie-dom). Does anyone have any good reccomendations?

1.The Cote d'Or Bouchee circa 1995 was always first choice sugar rush when perusing newsagents. However that was before the many changes that have rendered it an insult to some very happy memories(thicker, sweeter chocolate coating; smaller overall size; change of praline recipe and so on). 2.Topic bars are fantastic, so they get the number two slot. 3.Jaffa cakes. Leaving aside where they fit on the taxonomy of biscuits, it is very unfortunately very easy (for me)to eat a whole packet in one go. Dangerous stuff.

My favourite always takes me back to the first time someone made it for me, at a place I learnt several things about food. Sausage(preferably rather garlicky and pesto on toasted and buttered ciabatta.

My vote goes to Fernandez and Wells. They have a a cafe and sandwich shop/deli /wine bar round the corner from each other on Beak st and Lexington st in Soho. The coffee is as good as Flat white - one of the owners used to manage monmouth - and the pain chocolat and selection of cakes is better. It's also slightly more spacious, has lovely sanwiches and nice wine by the glass in the evening.

In the end we chose the tea palace because of their long interesting tea menu, because they were happy to provide a gluten free afternoon tea for my dad and because the Time Out guide gave them a red star. The teas were very good, nice range although they brewed it for you so you didn;t get a second or third infusion. The place itself was nice, it was quite relaxed but still with starched tablecloths and plush carpet the piped music was unobtrusive but not to my taste. The edible bit of the tea came in a nice stand but we weren't over impressed with the contents. The finger sandwiches were good but a little under-filled. The scones went down a treat but the cakes, although not unpleasant, weren't special. Service was nice and friendly too. I enjoyed myself but I wouldn't go back unless someone else was paying. I also looked at teasmith which sounded very nice but very small. I read this blog about it and it might be the one i check out next.

I was wondering if someone could reccomend somewhere to go for really good tea in London. I am a recent convert to tea after trying 1st and 2nd flush darjeeling in India last year. The big hotels look quite nice, but I'd like to try a few different teas and I'm not sure how their prices for afternoon tea works. Also I've always peered through the window of that place in soho created by the guy who did hakkasan and wondered what it would be like. One problem is that my dad has coeliac disease and can't eat ANY gluten which makes eating out a bit complicated. Ideally I would like to go somewhere quite special to try a range of top teas and eat some small-ish delicious things to go with them. Can anyone help?

mmm! some good suggestions - I'd not thought of tapas and I've always wanted to go to Moro but been a wary of teh prices. The japanese suggestion reminded me of Ryo on Brewer st which does a lovely heart warming bowl of soup - any other cheap and good Japanese? Any good Turkish places you guy's reccomend?

I'm a student living in london looking for places to eat that are cheap - not £20-25 cheap but under a fiver/ under a tenner cheap. I'll put a couple of my discoveries in to get the ball rolling. Rasa Express - I think all outlets of the Rasa chain do the £3-4 lunchbox which is fantastic value keralan food, there's also a dedicated outlet on the Euston Rd right by Warren St station (they're all bright pink, you can't miss them) Gabby's nr Leicester Square - some of the food can be a bit hit or miss but the felafel are some of the best in London much tastier (imo) than Maoz on Old Compton St - decent felafels, freshly fried and with as much of the various salads that you can pile inot your pitta. Houmous is rubbish though, nad the chips are rarely how they should be. North Sea Fish and Chips - nr Marchmont St - In the evening they sell crispy chips and a tasty home made fish cake. Fryer's Delight in Holborn - Chips fried in lard for a different taste mmmm. ICCO on Goodge st - Admittedly not gourmet pizza but ony £3- 5 and much better than pizza hut etc. Bagels from brick lane - mmm salt beef! Schwarma from Edgware Rd - my favourite is Helen's - it's a tiny little place only open after 8pm that knocks the socks off any schwarma served at Ranoush Juice up the road. I'm not a vegetarian and willing to travel for a good, cheap meal but I study in Bloomsbury so the centre so any there would be good. Nick

Hi Ted, Checkout the forums at Indiamike and Indiatree both in the food section and in the areas you're going to be travelling. There's lots of interesting and useful info and if you can't find exactly what you're after then they're pretty friendly and I'm sure someone will have some ideas. Nick

I'm joining the discussion a little late but I'm also a big fan of the porotta and after a bit of searching I found this lady's blog with a full recipe with pictures. I haven't tried as I don't have access to a kitchen at the moment but I'm looking forward to giving it a go!