MaLO

Hello all, I will be visiting San Francisco for 6 nights in February. I have so far managed to make reservations at Michael Mina for lunch, Commonwealth and Frances for dinner. I am a little unsure about the Michael Mina reservation, service in the bar only; it seems quite expensive to not be sat in the restaurant. I did eat in Aqua a few years ago and the packed dining room was part of the fun. Has anyone been, is it worth the $ and is the bar a nice space to eat in? I am also struggling to decide between Coi and Benu for dinner. Does anyone have any thoughts? Reservations are available for both at the moment. Also does anyone know what the price is for the poularde in two services at Benu. I am open to suggestions and alternatives if there is somewhere else you recommend. Finally, for now, I am quite interested in Manresa or Meadowood. I have had a bit of a look and it seems very difficult to get to either place without a car or an overnight stay. Is it possible to use public transport / taxi etc to get to and from downtown San Francisco, and what would the likely cost be? Thanks

I booked a Friday lunch here a few weeks back – before the changes. We did contemplate not going. We decided to go. Glad we did. The food was good. We ate Breads as before. Very nice. Amuse of duck consommé and other ducky bits including a sliver of cured breast, liver mousse and tiny diced duck. The consommé was really very good, clear, glossy, slightly gelatinous and deeply flavourful. Very good. Starters Foie gras with chestnut veloute and chestnuts. Very similar to the smoked foie, parmesan veloute preparation. Nicely seared liver, caramelised, hot, but still firm. The chestnut veloute was a bit sharp, good, but a bit much towards the end. Scallops with pumpkin risotto was also nice. Three sliced scallops with a rich, tasty pool of risotto. Almost Milanese in appearance. Vivid, colourful and tasty. Mains Plaice with red wine and ricotta dumplings. They were described as ravioli but there was no pasta, gnocchi I would suggest, tasty if slightly doughy. There was also some pickled cabbage. Plaice, for me is a bit like Pollock; a bit rubbish. This was actually good. Presentation helped and the little I had was fine. I choose middlewhite pork. Seared then oak smoked fillet came with some fatty belly, baby artichokes, something porky breaded and fried and apple. If you like smoked stuff then it is great. If you don’t then you are buggered. I do, so I was happy enough. Pre dessert was earl grey panna cotta, lemon jelly topped with some thick foamy stuff. We took one of each dessert. Chocolate crème brulee, chestnut sponge, candied chestnuts and two very smooth quenelles of vanilla and chestnut ice cream. The second was a play on lemon meringue. Lemon parfait with soft meringue, crisp shards of meringue. A little lemon thyme rice pudding / risotto was slightly savoury but as a whole it was rather good. It was very good. For £23ish it is still well worth a look. There was a restaurant manager I had not seen on the couple of visits made when Aiden was chef. There will also be dinner on Saturdays when they re open in January.

Another I haven't eaten in but I think should get recognised is Adam Simmonds Danesfield House. Rated highly by GFG and The AA - possibly 2* standard if you compare with other establishments with such scores so 1* seems a reasonable bet. Incidently, I mention the gfg as I bought the app for ipod today - 59p compared to £15 for the book, bargain.

I wonder what Pierre Koffmann would make of a *? I know there was talk of non michelin food, but the one star rating is such a wide spectrum. Shaun Hill got one at the walnut tree - good ingredients treated with due respect and a sprinke of magic - could be a similar situation.

I had a decent lunch in the Aumbry, but I too doubt its worth a star just yet.

Here is the link David Goodfellow posted last time around - just incase anyone wants to know what last year brought about. http://servicesv2.webmichelin.com/frontnews/servlet/GetElement?elementCode=56905 I believe West Stoke House has closed - Chef going to the new angel / carved angel. There are a couple of other places closed / changed that will probalbly loose out too. I cant see why Simon Radley wont get a promotion - refined and high quality if very formal. Gauthier Soho could be worth a mention for a * or how about viajante (havent eaten there but sounds good). Abode Chester cant be a million miles off one either, but I would be suprised non the less. If GR or the Waterside were to be demoted who of the established two stars could step up?

We chanced a walk in today for lunch. We were looking for something nice to do - Baslow hall were doing rooms at £50, due to the weather, so I rang, they were really nice; and honest about the weather. The frost and fog in Derbyshire put me off. So we went shopping for a few bits in an Asian store in Liverpool, then headed towards the Thai shop near Prenton. Fraiche is only around the corner from Prenton, so we had nothing to loose dropping in. Lights on. Front of house staff. It looked promising. Fully booked. Bugger. Its a little over a year since my last visit. It was a bit like missing a penalty, you almost feel sure you will score, but then... the ball ends up in the stand! After a bit more retail therapy at the Thai shop we considered Thornton hall (ex chester grosvenor chef) or Thai in Hoylake but ended up trying the (new) collingwood (I will add more elsewhere). Close, but no cigar. Must try harder. Me, that is.

My preferred guide book is the GFG. Hardens is a bit like sugarvine or tripadvisor for my taste. Some good info at times, but without cross-referencing the places scoring well in the GFG or Michelin rated then I take it with a pinch of salt. I have only ever had one copy though. I might be a little more interested getting a free copy. I tend to find far more reliable advice on here!

The pub he is taking over used to be called the black horse - then got tarted up and a new name, the collingwood. Never been - I did look once for New Years Eve but it was one of those places that seemed to charge plenty of £, too much to be even close to value for money. I never heard anyone pass comment, positive or otherwise. I didn't go. A church green type place can only be a worthwhile addition to the options locally as long as the prices are pitched towards good pub food rather than "fancy" restaurant. Some of the church green prices are eye watering for a pub; some are pricey for a starred restaurant! I suppose if the Hillbark team stay and build on the start they have had and the new place is good then it’s a win win. I wonder how long the remaining Hillbark team will stay.

I did intend to include this: http://www.hot-dinners.com/Features/Articles/coming-soon-new-restaurants-opening-in-london Sorry!

I was having a look for Jason Athertons new place and found this. Heston's dinner - Jason's Social and if my lunch at La Rosetta in Rome is anything to go by, another good italian; and a lot more too.

The food does look bad but have a look here. It could be a different restaurant.

When I eat out, I like to eat things that require far more craft and labour than I can muster at home. As long as the flavours are packing plenty of punch, I much prefer food in the style of The Latymer and L’Enclume etc. Lots of little things suit me perfectly. The downside I suppose is that not every plate will be to everyone’s taste, but on the up side, if you don’t like something it is only a short wait for something else. I too ate at The Latymer recently (October) and thought it was very good. Over five days I ate at Apsleys, Le Gavroche, The Latymer and The Harrow. I would put The Latymer at the top of the list followed by Le Gavroche, Apsleys then the Harrow. The similarities between Le Gavroche and the Waterside are obvious, although I believe Le Gavroche is less expensive, £49ish for canapés, amuse, three large courses, with half a bottle of wine, water, coffee and petis fours. I paid £42 for two in the Latymer, which I consider extraordinary value and about £10 less than the cost for one person at the Waterside. Value for money is, for me, an important consideration. I did eat at The Waterside Inn about six years ago and ate the gourmand menu. It was ok, but I found the food, although luxurious, dull. The highlight was an exceptional piece of foie gras. The rest was not particularly memorable except that I sent back my bland soufflé. It came back because it was fine apparently. I was tempted to go back for lunch after FDE’s pics a while (see the waterside thread) back but never got around to it. Cooking everything sous vide can often be detrimental to the temperature, flavour and appearance of the item subjected to the process. I especially dislike the in the middle of nowhere doneness of fish. The technique is unlikely to disappear any time soon though, as it obviously allows a great deal control and consistency, good or bad. I suppose we will all have our favourites and value different elements to each meal personally. For my money The Ledbury offers the best combination of creativity, generosity, value and most of all, bloody tasty food.

The final place we visited on our little October break was the Michelin 1* and recently crowned AA restaurant of the year The Harrow at Little Bedwyn. Little Bedwyn is a small village in Wiltshire, a few miles from Marlborough. Looking at their website a direct train from London to Great Bedwyn takes an hour. It is a bit in the middle of nowhere though. We ordered the lunch Menu and also ordered a roast grouse to share from the full menu. The lunch menu is three no choice courses with an amuse, pre dessert and two 100ml glasses of wine included. We ate Amuse: Beetroot gazpacho with some smoked eel. I like beetroot and this was quite nice. Thickish and glossy with a little rich fish. A little too much vinegar sharpness after a few scoops but not bad. Starter: Red mullet fillets Nicoise style garnish. I don’t take notes as I go so don’t remember exactly what was on the plate but the little fillets were cooked nicely, hot and crisp skinned and the olives, anchovies and beans were all tasty good things. Mains: Roast Label Anglaise chicken. A smalish breast sliced in two with some mashed potato, a scattering of peas and some sautéed wild mushrooms and truffles. Quite a simple preparation with well established flavour combinations. Overall it was quite enjoyable. English truffle is something of a speciality of the restaurant. I was going to buy some but forgot. I think they do post them though. The extra course of grouse was one bird, one portion, split and plated for two, very good. It came roasted and skinless with a breast and leg with some game chips, sprouts, a little roasting jus and frothy bread sauce. The breast was quite nice, although a little of some remarkably tangy and nasty tasting offal had managed to find its way onto the plate. Once I got over the bitterness, which did take a moment, the rest of the breast disappeared quickly. The leg was a bit harder work and was quite tough. For me, it would have benefited from longer cooking – confit or a tiny pie perhaps. A little chewy but it was a wild bird. £26 on the alc menu so not bad pricewise but a bit of a mixed bag. Pre dessert I don’t recall totally but I think was a pannacotta with some honeycomb. (it was a month ago) Dessert was Bread and butter pudding with rum ice cream. One portion was scoffed happily but I didn’t like this much. It was all well made and looked nice on the plate, just not my thing. The starter and main each came with a selected glass of wine; I was driving so I only had a taste of each. The wine was fine. Interestingly the rose that came with the chicken was from Wales. Ancre hill estate if you are interested. Lunch costs £30. It is not bad value but would be much better if there was at least one choice per course. Other menu options include tasting at £50 + £20 for matched wines. Gourmet at £70 + £30 or £50 depending on the wine pairing. ALC £40 -£50 for three courses. Service was good, everyone was friendly confident. There were about ten or so people lunching on this particular Wednesday and the restaurant is small so there was a little gentle atmosphere. Worth a look if you are in the area.

Bolied eggs anyone?

We returned to the Hillbark for dinner last night. Canapés were the same as our first visit, although more refined in the case of the foie and pineapple and more of a mousse / puree of potato than a soup in the truffled potato pot. Very tasty. We did not order – we had what was referred to as the market menu. On our first visit this comprised of six courses with a wine pairing, tonight we received four courses with wine. We had no idea what we would be eating and I don’t recall being asked if we had any intolerances or dislikes. First course was a very good ravioli of lobster with lemongrass. It was garnished with tiny carrots and coriander, a tiny disk of gingerbread with some sphered citrus and quite a number of other bits. (The lighting was quite subdued so it was hard to figure out what everything was). The pasta was very nicely made, as thin as could be and the lobster had plenty of flavour. The sweet – sour - rich flavours all worked nicely. Visually impressive and very tasty. Next, a big lump of smoked foie gras with a separate pot of onion and parmesan soup. We had this on our first visit. It was prepared and served slightly differently this time. The first time the liquid was a frothy sabayon poured over the foie. I preferred the first preparation more. The smoked foie flavour was more distinct served separately, but the soups, and especially the onion flavours, were better balanced in the sabayon. In its own right it was a good dish, I just preferred the first version. Our main was chicken with figs and lemon. The chicken comprised of boned and roasted drumstick, compressed roasted thigh some slices of just cooked breast and a couple of cockscombs. It came with lemony gnocchi, slices and quenelles of fig, roasting juices and a citrusy dressing. Again a dish featuring sweet – sour flavours. The chicken was excellent. I particularly enjoyed the leg and compressed thigh. The offaly flavour of the comb both visually and flavour wise a good idea. The prep was good too, no sinew or flab remained. I was a little less keen on the skinless breast meat. Nosing through Aiden’s book after dinner, this dish features and suggests steaming the breast. It does create a different texture and was delicate but not as tasty as the other more meaty bits of the bird. It was also the only hot element a little on the cool side. It was another very complex plating, colours textures and flavours were vibrant, possibly a little sharper than I would have liked ideally. However, nothing but a little fig puree remained. It was also a proper sized main course. We got fewer courses, but those we got were larger. Dessert was the biggest improvement on our first visit. First time we had two, neither of which I was that keen on. This time a single dessert, but it was very good. It was a thinnish ball of chocolate containing passion fruit juice alongside some chocolate soil, thick foamy mocha and other chocolaty bits. The fruit neatly balancing the richness of the chocolate. It was good. We had coffee but no petit fours. Overall, another good meal. I didn’t pick up on the use of sour flavours so much on my first visit and they were, especially in the chicken dish, quite pronounced and possibly not to everyone’s taste. The breads were the same as before, although were improved in terms of texture and flavour. The subtle lighting was for me, a bit too dark. I didn’t lose sleep over it though. The dining room was much less busy but it was bonfire night. Service was quite smooth, but with so few diners it should be. The quirky music remains, it didn’t bother me, but I am sure there are plenty of people who would not be amused. I will give it another go at some point, but I think I will choose my own food or give the tasting menu a try.

The second image looks identical to the warm seafood salad I had. It was very pretty and tasted fine too. I do have some photos but knackered my upolading thing a long time ago, it thinks I have uploaded dozens of photos!

Michael Wignall at Pennyhill Park So day three of a nice little break down south saw us visit Pennyhill Park. The offer we took advantage of runs until the end of November and makes for as huge a bargain as you could hope for. The food was amazingly intricate and flavour packed. We ate Goats cheese with truffle on a filo type crisp – clear tomato jelly with carrot caviar and flying fish roe – Lemon marshmallow and some bready nibbles. Smoked salmon and red pepper cannelloni with lemon curd and micro salad. The bread selection was very good. Better than Apsleys and Le Gavroche. Starters Ballottine of marinated Foie gras, Iberico ham, Manchego, Autumn truffles, Sourdough crisp and Pedro Ximenes jelly. Calves sweetbread, Comte veil, Girolles, Sorrel, Confit onion tart fine, Jerusalem artichoke jus. An intermediate course of Salt cod croquette with samphire and other bits and bobs was an unexpected bonus. Mains Red mullet, Cassoulet of squid, Salsify, Globe artichokes, Clam veloute. Quail, Black pudding, Braised veal tongue, Chocroute, Trompettes de la morte, Salsify in red wine, Jeres jus. We shared some very good cheese. Pre Dessert was a Prune panna cotta with caramelised apple and muscovado sugar. We also shared a Delice of dark chocolate, Coffee Jelly, Mocha butter, Honeycombe, Pistachio cake. This was a very impressive lunch. The entire meal was picture perfect. Technique and flavours were remarkable. It was complex, although some may find the portion size a bit dainty. It really was amazingly good. The AA rating of four rosettes is a fairer reflection than its one Michelin star. It is among the best one star meals I have eaten and at £42 (for 2) a real bargain. Service was very good. Booze was a Vioginer from Argentina for £25. The list had decent options for reasonable money. 8 course tasting menu for lunch is £58 and featured many great sounding choices; lunch offers four choices per course and with the additional bits makes for a great couple of hours. Well worth a go.

Lunch at Le Gavroche It is more or less a year since my first and last visit to Le Gavroche. It costs £49.60 at lunch for three courses with wine, water and coffee. A bargain. I was unsure where to go on a Monday but I think I chose well. We ate Veal belly with herb risotto Mackerel with aubergine compote and parsley coulis Roast chicken breast with shallot jus and fondant potatoes. Possibly the best roast chicken I have eaten. Venison fillet with spinach and mashed potatoes and a remarkable bitter chocolate sauce. This came from the full menu but no supplement was charged. We shared cheeses and followed this with apple charlotte with calvados ice cream. In addition to the food ordered we also ate a duo of canapés one being celeriac remoulade in pastry and the other I can’t recall. There was also an amuse of rabbit terrine with some dressed leaves and petit fours to go with double espressos. The food was all very good. The portions were generous. The quality and flavours superb. Ws shared half a bottle of Vondeling from South Africa and half of Moulin A Vent. Service was great – Michel said hello to each table. A nice touch. I believe that they are fully booked until they close for Christmas holidays.

Sunday Lunch at Apsleys. We had a decent lunch on Sunday. Not quite as good as I was expecting but nice enough. We also ordered too much food. After looking at the Menu del giorno we decided that both main courses were too tempting, so the plan was that instead of the tasting menu we would order two lunches each, it proved to be a lot of food. We ate A trio of canapés – delicious borlotti bean and mint puree, truffled arancini and a savoury custard with tomato and olive. All good. We also tried most of the bread and it was fine. The olive oil was seriously tasty. Vegetables minestra. Lots of good vegetables and a very rich, tasty liquor. There were also some fine saffron gnocchi in the mix. There was enough for two bowls and it was good. Tagliolini cacio e pepe nero. This was excellent. Quite a simple preparation but the quality of the pasta was instantly apparent and the sauce had a fiery kick from the pepper. We both ordered the warm seafood salad. This was a riot of colour. The seafood included octopus, lobster, squid, and langoustine. It was livened up with the addition of mango and papaya. All good tasty stuff. Next up was Halibut papa al pomodoro and yellow peppers. The halibut came looking like a couple of triangles of white bread sandwich with a tomatoey stuffing. The stewed peppers were ok if a little dull. Better was the bitter crunch of puntarelle. I wasn’t that keen on this dish. The fish lacked the moisture larger fillets would have delivered. It is perhaps a way of using the less glamorous parts of the fish but I would rather have a lump of something less expensive. Partridge with red cabbage and crispy polenta was also a little disappointing. I think I saw someone wrap something in thinly rolled bread and fry it on Great British Menu and this was how the partridge breasts were treated with a rectangle of unintroduced ham (I think). This came with some broccoli and carrots and very nice fried polenta. The cabbage was good colour wise and offered a nice tang. There was also a nest of slick mashed potatoes, home to a trembling poached egg. The egg, I guess, was cooked at low temperature as it was barely cooked and not at all set. It was a little off putting really, a lot of sloppy egg white everywhere. As a whole it was a bit on the cool side and would have benefited from more meaty sauce. I did eat more or less everything though; it wasn’t great but by no means bad either. We gave desert a miss due to having overdone the savoury courses. The table nearest to us sent back mains twice. Not sure why but something wasn’t quite right. All in all it was a relaxing couple of hours in a nice dining room. The starters were in my view the star of the show, the mains lacked that sprinkle of magic that make for truly memorable dining. Service was excellent, once we had got our order sorted out. It did cause some confusion and a raised eyebrow or two. It is undeniably good value for money but I don’t think I will be rushing back with the number of other options available to those in the capital.

Had a very good lunch here yesterday. There is an offer on at the moment "ten good reasons" one lunch at £32 one for £10. Dont know if the offer runs past the end of october but if you can take advantage it is well worth a go. Fantasticly well crafted and very tasty food. Will add more another time.

When I was in London in August there were grouse at Borough market for £9 & £11 - Fortnum & Mason also had plenty, unsurprisingly, as they were priced at £29 (if I recall correctly)a bird.

I have toptable - opentable - relais chateaux - grand tables du monde - the aa b&b guide & yell is usefull for phone numbers and addresses. Wine-searcher.com is an decent place to get an idea about wine prices etc, if you have constant browsing, although not an app as far as I know. I dont have any paid food apps.

Took a spur of the moment trip to the lakes yesterday. We gave Northcote a call to see if they had any availability for lunch but no luck. So we pressed onwards, not really sure whether to head into North Yorkshire or the more familiar territory of the Lakes. After a bit of aimless pootling we decided to get our finger out and to give Gilpin Lodge another go. We arrived without reservations, it was a very nice day but there was no problem getting fed. We were seated on the terrace with about a dozen others enjoying the sunshine. We were offered an indoor table but after the dismal summer we have endured, any chance to enjoy an al fresco feed is not to be turned down. So we ate Canapés of nice olives, homemade crisps, cheese straws, nuts and crisp fired haddock risotto cubes. The crisps were a bit greasy but it was a nice start. A basket of good breads. I particularly enjoyed the onion ciabatta. I ordered Lakeland rarebit to start. It was a essentially a miniaturised breakfast stack of bacon, tomatoey chutney, a disc of toast and a cheesy rarebit topping, with a fried egg and some salad leaves on the side. A work of genius. The other starter we ordered was a delicate blue cheese soufflé. It came with a smattering of walnuts, grapes, fennel and shallots. It looked and tasted good. To follow we both ordered the whole lemon sole. It was simple as can be. Grilled golden and served with a little herb butter. A dish of boiled potatoes, beans, broccoli and mangetout were the accompaniment. It was a bit strange to see proper spuds and veg, strange, but no bad thing. No pudding. The couple I saw arriving at other tables looked good though. It was nice. I enjoyed it much more than my first visit. The food was fresh, simple and cooked well. Not much in the way of cutting edge technique but empty plates tell their own tale! Service was good too. We also found, quite by accident, Holbeck Ghyll. We stopped for coffee and great views from the terrace in the sunshine. We picked up a shoulder of salt marsh lamb in Booths, which is gently ticking over with herbs, a little honey and some stock on the hob right now. It was a good day.

Visited Berlin for a few days in August. We stayed at The Esplanade – not the most central but nice. First night we ventured out near the hotel and ended up settling on Amrit Schoneburg, a busy Indian place with outside seating. Not a good choice. Possibly the worst Indian food I have ever eaten. Everything had a taste of tomato soup and raw spice. Not a good start. I had booked lunch at Vau for Wednesday. After a bit of sightseeing we headed off to find the restaurant and give it the once over. The restaurant dining room looked nice and the kitchen team were busy prepping lunch. Went for a quick beer in Augustiner prior to lunch. This place sells some decent beer, and food. More of which later. Restaurant Vau – Lunch. Some decent focaccia and slices of malty granary bread came with butter and a herby cream thing. Amuse of cool lettuce soup with a crostini with prosciutto and a little fruit was ok if simple. We both took the foie gras crème brulee as starter based on the enthusiastic recommendation of two separate servers, one describing it as perfect. It was a slice of foie terrine topped with caramelised sugar and served with cherries and toasted brioche. It was ok. The terrine had an unusual flavour and texture, almost like it was blended with something meatier. The garnish was tasty enough but I expected something more complex. There is nothing wrong with simplicly, especially when you have the finest raw materials but this was not, in my view perfect, it was quite nice but too simple. For mains we chose cod and lamb. The lamb was the best dish of the day. It came as a couple of decent pieces of fillet, very flavoursome tortellini of the shoulder, aubergine caviar and trompettes. The cod was served with saffron potatoes, artichokes and a foamy bouillabaisse sauce. The cod was burnt. The skin blackened and the overcooked flesh clung to the charred skin. Not good. Much better was dessert. We ordered lemon and thyme soufflé for two. It came with boozy cherries and creamy lemony ice cream. The soufflé was prepared individually so I don’t know why it was advertised for two, but it was good. For a restaurant considered among the best in Berlin I was not impressed. After an afternoon wandering about the area around Brandenburg and the Tiergarten we went for some more beer in Augustiner. This place serves up Munich beers and huge portions of food. We ate an assortment of sausages with sauerkraut and mustards and a knuckle of pork with cabbage. It was all good stuff. The place was packed in the evenings and did good trade throughout the day. Worth a look if you like beer, sausages and such like. Restaurant Guy – Lunch. Breads came as slices of very good brown and less good white. Salmon with cucumber and horseradish cream was more or less a simple as it sounds but none the worse for it. The fish had good flavour and was just a little pink in the middle. Fennel soup with marinated halibut was very good. The soup had fine texture and flavour and the meaty fish was enjoyable. Mains were Char with Serrano and barley risotto with mushrooms. Another nice plate. The fish was cooked nicely, and went well with the garnish. I took the beef cheek with peas and tuna and a little fried polenta. The beef was tender and tasty. The peas with tuna was a little unusual but I didn’t leave any so can’t have been too bad. For dessert we had strawberry soup with vanilla sherbert and chocolate panna cotta. The soup had small strawberries, raspberries and blueberries added. The panna cotta was set quite firm, it would have been nicer a little less set. Large espressos and it came to €22 each. Nice wine by the glass added €5 / 6 per glass. Good value. No fireworks but good cooking in a nice place with good service and value for money. As it was raining we strolled around the corner to Lutter & Wegner and drank a couple of glasses of wine watching the soggy world go by. Later on we ate Kebabs and a plate of hot starters at Hasir, close to the hotel. It was quite good. First Floor Restaurant – Lunch. Canapés were veal tartar with truffle. Sturgeon with caviar. And a final item I can’t recall. These were quickly followed by a selection of about six or more breads, salted and unsalted butter and some carrot puree. An amuse of pigeon ragout with apple and celery root was rich and tasty. Very good. The menu at lunchtime had a slightly confusing price structure. It offered two courses for €28 up to four courses at €56. Individual dishes were priced between €22 – 48 and it also mentioned a tasting menu being available. As it transpired we could choose freely from the excellent menu and have four savoury courses for €56 then decide if we wanted more or dessert. This was no slimmed down lunch special menu. There were 15 savoury choices and four desserts and cheese available. We ordered Duo of king crab with mango Gateau of goose liver with peach Variation of beef with imperial caviar and black trompettes Quail crepinette with black garlic and beetroot Cheese crusted John Dory with salsa and tortilla chips Turbot with mussel pot au feu Stuffed etouffee pigeon shallot confit and sauce riche Fillet of veal with cafe de Paris butter and artichokes We passed on dessert in the end but did have coffee and petit fours. The food was excellent, the raw materials very good and the simple descriptions give no clue to the high level of technical skill, textures and flavours involved. Each plate was picture perfect and the flavours equally impressive. Easily the best food I ate in Berlin and probably the best one star meal I have had. The chef has an impressive cv and it shows. The only down side is that the wine list offers little for less than €50 and the cost of water was over €10. That said the service was good, a little over formal but they relaxed over time. The dining room is very formal, polished wood panelling, lots of silver and plenty of staff. They do also, strangely, have tinny piped music. Music aside it was really good. Other things we did included more beer and sausages in KaDaWe and Augustiner. We also had another lunch time kebab (very good and cheap chicken pitta thing) from a take away place near the Saturday market near Nollendorfplatz u-bhf.