Jon Tseng

You're two bets are Bray or the Heathrow Express train into Paddington and something round Mayfair. Bray the obvious choice is Fat Duck. I hear booking has got more of an arse nowadays but you've probably got a decent shot at securing a weekday lunchtime slot but may struggle for dinner. Otherwise the Waterside Inn which is well bookable. Mayfair the standards aren't quite as good. Gavroche your best bet. Alternatives: The Square, Claridges, Connaught (Frenchy/Ital), Locatelli (Italian) Budget shouldn't be an issue ta J

Doesn't Guy Savoy have a signature artichoke soup? J

Good points. I'm in two minds on the lentil dish. On the one hand you could say its quite retro eighties cuisine grand-mere etc (cf robuchons book had a dish of hot foie gras with lentil cream I think). On the other hand if you saw it today it would actually still be quite novel as EVERYONE - SERVES - HOT - FOIE- GRAS - WITH - BLOODY - FRUIT nowadays (with honourable exception of bjorn van der whathisfaceandisheeveninhiskitchennowadays who does it with coffee and amaretto foam) A agree the Canteen book is a keeper (but different from WH). Ironically - given how you don't like books which just rehash the basics - I always liked it for the excellent appendix with list of basic sauces, garnishes, preparations etc which provided a lot of good basic building blocks to mix and match! J

yes i noticed that one too this morning. it seems nowadays "head chef" is very much like the old "sous chef" role (though do you normally have two sous or one?) i assume however given bjorn is still in his young and hungry stage he'll be in the kitchen most of the time. give it a couple of years and a couple of stars and maybe that will change J

I've had the demi of quail from the tapas menu. Its one leg and one breast with a smear of mash on the side topped with large (but thin) slices of summer truffle. Perfectly well cooked but little sign of the advertised foie gras stuffing (maybe it melted away) My overall take on Atelier is lovely food, but you're never going to get remotely well fed unless you have far more money than sense J

FYI John Campbell from Vineyard at Stockcross also says in his book he does stocks low and slo overnite. Tried it and it works fine - actually a much lower hassle way of doing it as don't need to vamp over the pot constantly skimming etc Mark if you like the Roux book on Sauce you should try the James Petersons one. After all these years still one of the most insightful books I've read on this particular topic. White Heat the style and layout and the macho "this is a dish for butch men not girls" etc comments were outdated almost before it was published. I agree the recipes still stand up well however. They have a welcome light touch. J

No Parlour drop in anytime during they day no need to book. They are closed Sundays. If you're about at lunch also consider trying the set lunch at the Lecture Room upstairs. Its thirty something quid and is a great way to try Pierre Gagnaire's style of food at a bargain basement price ta J

Sure I've had this discussion before by the bottom line is that London is poorly served on the Patisserie front, but there are some gems out there. My selection in order of preferece: PREMIER LEAGUE: Sketch: IMHO still best pat in London despite horrendous dumbing down of room. Some of the cakes such as the Florence (not currently on at mo) or Cardinal are a marvel. Macarons best in London and half the price of Laduree. William Curley: Always founds his Pat a little too old school and less exciting that Sketch. Also lacks some of the delicacy sometimes. Nonetheless top-notch stuff and gratifying choice of chocolates and other goodies also available. Paul Young: Islington chocolatier also has some killer sable pastry work going into his tarts and other goodies. Pity he remains wedded to the cocoa bean - he has background in more general Pat too. Laduree: Runs Sketch close on the cake front. The macarons I would not recommend - horrible overpriced and slightly flat compared to Sketch. The Ispahan too is thuggish and a shadow of Hermes version from Paris. The ?hazelnut millefeuille is a marvel though. CHAMPIONSHIP: Yauatcha: Far Eastern attempts at Western pat in a nutshell: Looks fantastic, tastes like cardboard. I have always been disappointed by the cakes from this place. The macarons too lack flavour. They could do so much better. Did I say the stuff looks nice though? Maison Du Choc: Haven't had their cakes but their box of chocolate macarons pleasantly surprised me. Konditor and Cook: Not strictly patiesserie but fantastic selection of reasonable priced slices and cakes - real old school "tuck shop" stuff. The millionaires shortbread highly recommended. Wolesley: Haven't had the cakes but if the rest of shop is anything to go by should be more than worthy. Formerly under the aegis of Claire Clark, ex-Bluebird and now uber-patissier at some joint called the French Laundrette or something just along from Lake Tahoe. Macaron: My claim to fame is I wuz the first person to ever buy a cake from this place (was rambling by randomly the day they opened so popped in for champagne, free macs and cake). Good for its location (ie south of the river) but never going to set the world on fire. Macarons are too dry. Cakes consistently underperform (and why do they use those nasty plastic cases for their rum babas - it just looks cheap). Time Out recently awarded them some gong for cake shop of the year - a mistake, IMHO. But as I said, good for the area. Minamoto Kitcheon: I may have the spelling wrong, but this is the kooky Jap place next door to Maison du Choc on picadilly. Some kind of internationalist chain (have also found them in a basement in Singapore, bizarrely). The gear is exquisitely presented and the jellies and candied yuzu are quite winsome. Unfortunately their forte is bizarre japanese concoctions made with bean paste, which are definitely an acquired taste. Unique, however. RUMBELOWS LEAGUE: Paul: A franchise which has nothing to do with the French operations. Cakes are serviceable and fine at a pinch. Pat Val: Bog standard cake. Maison Berteaux: Soho standard. Pat Val but with fewer branches. That should keep you busy ta J

My vote is a no Wayback I had a chance to use a good copper/steel lined saute pan for a summer. I didn't find heat dsitribution performance that much better than the thick Al pan I was using. And the disadvantage was that it was very heavy. The advantages were that it heated up/cooled down quicker than the Al pan (which was very thick) and that as it had a metal handle could put it directly in oven. Overall didn't think advantages outweighted hassle of hefting it around. Versus a good cast iron pan all of the above would also apply, apart from cast iron doesn't have the problem of taking so long to heat up/cool down. Now versus stainless steel maybe the better thermal properties will be noticeable. but so will the price. J edit: batterie de cuisine is a bit like hockey skates right? having better hockey skates won't make you a better player. becoming a better player will make you a better player!

Yes, quite true, but I think what really hurt East@West was having the resto stuffed away upstairs. Cocoon just never seems to have settled... seems to reinvent itself every couple of years (maybe thats just endemic of big west end venues though - viz mezzo or sugar reef) Wonder if the second floor thing had any effect on Sutton Arms? Lolas - you're right it did have a good run (the main prob was when they shipped Hywel whathisface in and tried the haute thing for a bit - Morfudd I'm sure will know more). I just feel that its always had a much lower profile in the area than the space deserves - it just isn't that visible from the street. As well as Assagi I'd note Morgan M seems to break all the rules in terms of being miles away in the middle of nowhere in a place where u /definitely/ wldnt leave ur car unattended. maybe its the lack of local competition (for selfsame reasons). J

yes, the list of categories - as I said two years ago! - always a bit random. feels like a selection of zagat "top tens" rather than a meaningful survey of the scene. interest the press coverage (think it was evening standard) of the TO awards was bitching on about how there were not mich stars among the winners. well if you look at the selection you'll realise thats a self-fulfilling prophecy - there isn't a single category (with exception of Best New - wheres noisette?) where a mich star restaurant would qualify for consideration. seems a bit wierd of the awards to disenfranchise the entire haute end of the london market! still think the guide itself is the bees knees tho ta J

probably quite true... the old "its better to go to a hungry ** than a complacent ***" syndrome. While we're busy giving it a kicking though, we shouldn't forget what a classy operation The Square has been over the years though, and all the talented chefs who have come out of its kichens. I've always grouped it in that category of classy, long-lived joints (e.g. gavroche, chez b) which have made a virtue of *not* resting on its laurels. Write it off at your peril! J

agree on the portion sizing the tortellini on the tasting menu isn't a touch on the lasagne on the alc which its a riff off of - I think its something to do with the small size, and how that affect relative proportion of the ingredients ta J

Just a note that Addendum are now advertising 30% of the a la carte (see website here) - posters for it all over the escalators in Bank tube. Unsure if this is a good thing or bad thing. Obviously chance to get good quality nosh on the cheap (I note Addendum also got a spiffing write-up in the latest Time Out London 2007 guide)... but maybe a worrying sign they can't fill the tables! Worth a look. I suspect Tom Ilic's piggy cuisine is better suited as the long winter nights close in. J PS on a related note only realised today that Tom Ilic is nephew of Peter Ilic of Le Mercury, Little Bay "how the f**k do they do edible food so f**king cheap" fame...

Very true. Cursed restaurant sites in London (off top of my head): - Cocoon (the one on Regents St) - Pengellys/Noisette - Lolas - Franklins Kennington - Royal China Club on Baker St - East@West / Atelier You will note that the majority of these have 2nd floor dining room (Cocoon, Noisette, Lolas, Atelier). Other common themes: large capacity versus local competitors (Cocoon, Lolas), stuck down a road off of the main drag (East@West, Franklins). J

One thing to consider: the prices would probably have to double...

My view is good (*+) rather than great (**+). I am also worried the location (but in terms of decor and accessability) is going to kill them. Interesting have been to both Noisette and Greenhouse in last month and, although I note they are very different dining experiences (Greenhouse more upmarket with a wine list that can cause fatal injury when wielded by expert hands), overall I think I preferred Greenhouse. J

Picked up my copy. As ever shows perceptiveness and insight, especially in all the nooks and crannies of London dining. I find in general that their views on particular restaurants coincide with a lot of my own experiences. The one exception is Cafes where I disagree with their judgements, particularly on Macaron, Yauatcha and Sketch Parlour. In general though I'd say best dining guide to London by quite a long way. With reference to above rant about early restaurant reviews, it's interesting to note their review of Yakitoria, which they note was slated by critics during its teething troubles but has in their experienced has now bedded down nicely. The other thing I noticed is that there is a clear beef with the corporate tone of Gordon Ramsay Restaurant Holdings running through some of the reviews, and the feature on bookings policies. Unfortunately I suspect I am beginning to agree with them on this one... J Edit: although no entry for board favourites Angel Mangal OR New Tayyabbs this year (don't think AM was in last year either)

typical! just when i launch a rant about the masch rushing into review fashionable restaurants too early she holds fire on the fashionablest opening in town for three weeks! J

Oi Bapi when r u going to get them to emigrate to London so we can finally get our hands on some of this fg glace

Oh I completely agree, as I said earlier the full price argument is a very compelling one. And of course if you are one of the punters who comes in during the bedding down period (lets say the first month) and gets shoddy service it is absolutely of benefit to the reader that service disruptions are pointed out. But the distinction I make is in my second proposition: i.e. That for those customers fortunate to come after the first month, once opening kinks are ironed out the review is not representative. Do some simple maths - assuming no. of customers in first month is half the ongoing monthly average, then 96% of the customers who visit the restaurant in the first year won't experience the problems. Now lets assume the review has a shelf life of one year (i.e. the shelf life of an average food guide). That means for 96% of the users, the review is not applicable. So absolutely, from the point of view of the 4% who pass through the restos door in the first month (and I was one of them!) an early review is perfectly applicable. And desirable. It's just I prefer reviews with a shelf life of a year rather than a month. Obviously this isn't a point of view everyone shares. As I said at the beginning the twin arguments a) charge full whack get full flak and b) a discerning critic can see thru the opening crap are powerful ones. I just think its an debate that could be completely obviated... If only (like fools) critics didn't rush in. But to get back to my initial point, anyone unlucky enough to be stuck south of the river do give Franklin's a try, and let us know how you feel. I for one am pretty happy to see it. cheers J PS and speaking of annnual guides, I assume Time Out Food Guide 07 is due anytime now. Anyone seen it yet?

With that budget (if thats all in with booze) your only shot is a cheapo set lunch. Most of the gordon ramsay joints in hotels do lunches sat and sun. if you're after the name factor Gordon Ramsay at Claridges is probably your best bet. veggie stuff should be easily arrangeable. let them know beforehand. J

Which is precisely my point... What's the point of giving a rating based on an early-doors experience which you admit yourself real customers are unlikely to receive??? It doesn't help the "real customers" It doesn't help the restaurant It doesn't help the critic look less of the prat I can only guess it helps the bean counters on the paper who want the commercial kudos of being "first thru the door" "Hi I've just reviewed a car. It wasn't actually been finished yet - they haven't finished fitting out the interior so the seats were really uncomfortable. Because the seats are really uncomfortable the measly one-star rating reflects the experience we had. I got the feeling that, with more real customers and once the seats are fitted and its given time to get into gear it'll be really good. But I'm going to review it half finished anyway cos I'm the biggest critic in town, I know best and I wanna be first to get in print." QED J

I think everyone believes in soft openings, readers will be able to discern them by the concessionary prices. I don't think readers are being done a disservice as long full prices are charged. ← Yes this is the counter-argument - well if they're charging full price they deserve everything they get. The other counter-argument is that the well-seasoned restaurant critic (no pun intended) will understand if a resto is in its infancy and take account for this. My view however is this: 1) It is a simple statement of fact that a restaurant's service and processes will improve as it beds down. 2) Therefore the customer experience in the intial few weeks is simply not representative of what the majority of customers (i.e. those who go in the next 11 months of opening rather than the first one month) would receive. 3) Therefore while a restaurant may b "fair game" as soon as prices start up at full whack, surely if you really cared about your readers they would be much better served if the review reflected the experience they were likely to get - ie a view of the operation once things had bedded down. Or to restate it in a simpler fashion: Resto starts up. Service chaotic in first week. Critic slams restaurant in first week. Service improves later but its too late as poor initial reviews mean buzz never starts out. Resto closes six months later. Owners money, livelihood and dreams down pan. Of course its a matter of debate, but does it really hurt that much to wait a few weeks (as I note Jay often seems to do). I have the simpleminded view that doing right by your customers is better than being first past the post. J

well u could always tag on the crispy fried squids at golden palace too...