thom

Ooo... Great thread. One thing got lost along the way though. Spencer, who seems generally accepting of drugs in the workplace and indeed thinks he did he best cooking on pot and would rather work with crackheads that alcoholics, is in direct disagreement with Bourdain, who gave a fairly definitive list as to why each class of drug users (from pot-heads to crack-heads) are not good things in a kitchen. The discussion moved on to the realm of the legal-beagles, but I'm intrigued: Is the board generally for or against the idea that 'drugs have always been in kitchens and always will be, and do not really have a negative impact (indeed are positive in terms of destressing and endurance)'? Cheers Thom

Holly, just a thought: Obviously in response to this thread people have rightfully mentioned such culinary delights as the Great British fry up, bacon butties, pies, fish and chips etc; but some of the actual venues recommended have been a bit high-brow and out of keeping with the culture and heritage of the food. The environment and atmosphere of classic British cafe food is almost as important as the food itself (to be honest some people would argue that the food was seldom top of the agenda in these places). I think eating the dishes in their traditional surroundings will tell you more about cheap British cuisine than a full breakfast with rare breed bacon and poncey sausages at a 5 star hotel. I suppose an analogy would be that if I wanted to experience classic burgers or hotdogs in NY I could thoretically get a better (better ingredients, better taste, better prep) post-modern version in a trendy restaurant (DB or Kobe beef burger anyone?), but I would rather have someone recommend to me the best place you can buy them off the street or in some back street joint for a couple of dollars. For this reason I urge you to have a look at www.classiccafes.co.uk, a wonderfully photographed guide to London's finest greasy spoons and transport cafes. Pick a couple and drop in for a giant mug of super-strong tea and some animal products in cholestrol on a plate. Makes me quite wistful for my childhood meals at the Border Cafe; braised steak and chips, jam rolly-poly and day-glow green Barr's cream soda. Cheers Thom

Mmmm... Manchester. Should you ever find yourself in glorious Mancunia with a hankering for good bread then by all means try Selfridges (which is fine in a Selfridgey sort of way), or visit the Jewish bakeries and delis of North Manchester, the patisseries of South Manchester, or bow down at the shrine of breadmaking, the incomparable Barbakan Polish bakers/deli in Chorlton which produces about thirty different breads daily (www.barbakan-deli.co.uk, but I think the site is down at the moment). Barbakan is well worth the trip to Chorlton all by itself, but there is also the Unicorn organic market neraby, as well as numerous other deli's, some great bars and the very good Palmiro Italian restaurant. Cheers Thom

Ohhh... Good thread. I've wanted to go to Tallinn for a while. A colleague from a nightclub mag I used to work on went several years ago and said it was fantastic. Sad though it is, I had decided several years ago that Tallinn would be my cooler-than -thou stag-do destination ('stag-do' as in close set of mates going for relaxed and happy drinking and eating along with some very mild debauchery rather then the full on 'strippers and shaving foam' style stag-do). Upshot is, I've kept my eye on media coverage since, and Tallinn seems to be a rising star amongst the people in the know. It has been trumpeted as being 'like Prague before the coach parties discovered it'. Small, friendly, compact and bustling. Prices are pretty cheap, and culture is top drawer. Entertainment, eating and drinking are all well served, and the old town is meant to be beautiful. Tallinn was flagged up in the Sunday Times property section a few months ago. Apparently property is a steal, and simple to buy. Beautiful Gothic mansions dot the countryside, and although they are dilapidated since communist rule they can be snapped up for £30-£40k (and five years ago the governement gave them away free if you promised to do them up!). Tallinn was also voted home of the worlds' most beautiful women (after an extensive tour of Eastern and Central Europe) by Maxim magazine (should such things matter), and one of GQ's 'Top 50 Things in the World' (whatever that means). Basically, I think if you have the chance to go then go. Oh, back to restaurants, we are on egullet after all. Bocca, (+372 641 2610) was voted number 15 in the '50 Best Restaurants in the World' feature that we carried in Restaurant magazine this year. It is described as a 'world-class Italian restaurant', and is decked out in a mixture of 'Nordic minimalism and New York cool' in a '500 year old warehouse'. Food includes goats cheese gratin, veal carpaccio, guinea fowl ravioli in tarrogan walnut and mushroom sauce, wild duck in muscatel sauce and pear boiled in red wine with Amaretto sauce. They also do an 'Earthquake' cocktail that includes gin, whiskey, absinthe and grenadine... Oh, final point. A friend told me that because of the extortinate alcohol prices in Scandinavia it is common practice for young Swedes and Norwegians to hop on a ferry across the water to Tallinn for a boozey weekend. A city as good as Tallinn stuffed with drunk good natured Scandinavian ladies sounds like the icing on the cake. Cheers Thom

Hmmm... None of the usual UK suspects seem to have posted here yet, I feel our London contingent would up the average a little. As far as I'm concerned for dinner I probably eat out three times a week, cook once a week (myself or my partner), takeaway once a week, and 'fend for myself'* twice a week. For lunches maybe 2 meals out and three sandwich style light-lunches during the week, and at the weekend one meal out, one late brunch. I think this is pretty typical of someone with a partner and no kids living in a city centre and having a job which involves some restaurant-based schmoozing. I have a feeling my rapidly slowing metabolism and impending fatherhood will necessitate some fairly radical changes to my eating habits, and probably not before time. Cheers Thom *Leftovers, quick fix snacky teas - salads, soups, baked spuds etc, sandwiches, maybe even a guilty convinience meal grabbed on the way home...

Holly, The journalist whose fish and chips article I read obviously cribbed the whole thing from this website: http://www.federationoffishfriers.co.uk/history.htm Tells you all you could ever need to know. Cheers Thom

Holly, Good for you, an appreciation of good low-end dining is an underrated thing. Fish and chips is a fine starting point. There is some debate about where fish and chips originated, but I recently read a very good potted history of the dish. From what I remember the two prime ingredients developed seperately, with chip shops predominant in the North and fried fish sellers in the South (as slight generalisation, but I think that's the right way round). History tells us that the first time these were combined was in Mossley, an area of Stalybridge (in the Eastern burbs of Manchester). There are many outstanding examples still around (there's a fantastic chippy just behind my office actually), but beware of some of the big names. Good food regulars such as the Magpie Cafe in Whitby could be accused of resting on their laurels... British breakfasts are a winner too. It is probably the British dish that I have cravings for (hangover-induced) the most. That said, I am struggling to think of a place that does it well. The best places (in terms of quality ingredients) tend to be the hotels, or possibly gastropubs/bars, but I think that kind of defeats the purpose. The ingredients and components of the dish are almost less important than the whole, and eating it in a greasy spoon cafe, (robust service, formica, ecelectic clientele) is part of the experience... As previously mentioned pie and mash/jellied ells and all that East-end malarky is another angle. The other thing is definitely pies and pastry. I always think the Cornish pasty story is interesting. I like the fact that pasties sometimes had savoury in one end, and sweet (pudding) in the other. I also love the idea that when the tin miners of Cornwall moved to the mines of South America (and Mexico) they took the pasty with them, and Mexican miners still eat spicy pasties to this day. Still pondering the 'hotdog' question. We do sausages fantastically, but the best nowadays tend to be at the mid-high end restaurants such as the White Hart in Saddleworth (home of the truly fantastic Saddleworth Sausage company). The 'grilled sausage in a bun' style places you see about now are a recent American influenced innovation. Will keep racking my brains, it's an interesting subject. Cheers Thom

Tarka, Absolutely! There are a couple of old threads on this, but if you are going to do the gastro-tourism thing properly you should stay a long weekend and eat in a different Michelin star restaurant for each of the three nights. Try The Merchant House, Hibiscus, and Mr Underhills, all within minutes walk from the Castle/Market Square/Town centre. Actually, did Mr Underhills retain it's star last time? Dinham Hall and the nearby Overton grange are also meant to be ok, though reports have been variable. Personally I also visit The Merchant House, but Hibiscus would be a close second. There are a couple of reviews on-site somewhere. Intermingle your food snobbery with some excellent pub grub at the Unicorn (next to the Merchant House), and have a good nosey around the top-drawer butchers around the main square. There are a few decent hotels about, but try staying in No 28, a delightfully chintzy/oldey-worldey B&B which is a mastrpiece of English eccentricity. Good breakfasts too. Cheers Thom

Darn it, I forgot to expand upon the 'Michael Winner' reference I made in the topic description. Curse my leaky memory... Basically there was a letter printed on the Michael Winner pages in the Sunday Times last week that stated that the Ludlow phenomenon was a ridiculous 'media invention', and the whole things was hugely over-rated with food at The Merchant House simply being 'ordinary'. Bizarre. They say it takes all-sorts, but if this is true then the letter writer is obviously one of the bobbly little aniseed flavoured jelly cakes that no-one likes. Cheers Thom

I went to Merchant House, had a wonderful meal, and feel like I should share my thoughts with you (especially Bapi). Trouble is, I just don't seem to have the mindset for remembering the minutia of any given dining experience, and even where I do my terribly limited vocabularly of techniques and ingredients invariably lets me down. I've always been a trier though, so below is a concise (if slightly patchy) round up of my experiences at the table of Mr Hill. You all know the Merchant House story? Lovely town, lovely restaurant, lovely people? Good-o, on with the specifics then: Amuse-Bouche were salmon with a quails egg on a little toasty thing. Yum, and as the slightly moist yolk scared my pregnant girlfiriend I got to eat hers to. Double yum. Breads courtesy of Anja were as good as ever. A granary with a crispy almost flaky crust and malty innards, and a white bread that was slightly sweet and almost cakey/briochey? For starters we both went for fish. I can't even remember what I had (see, I told you my memory sucked...) but it was white fish (possibly halibut?) in a very moreish cucumber and mustard sauce. Soph had red snapper in a red pepper sauce. The piquant snapper more than held it's own against the sauce - lovely balance. To be honest Shaun makes these sort of fish dishes look easy. They are not. Mains were better still. I had fillet steak with morels, English asparagus and assorted veg. It was quite a hunk of beef, medium rare, and the morels had created the most pungent gravy which almost had me licking the plate. Veg were simple and effective, and the Aspargus were excellent (so excellent I had to eat them all before touching the steak - yes, I'm a philistine). Soph had rack of lamb (the details escape me), but shamefacedly asked for it not be cooked pink (that pregnant thing again). Again the meat was delicious, and the dauphinoise potatos in particular were an absolute hit. Desserts may possibly have been the highpoint of the meal (and of course they are the domain of Anja rather than Shaun). I had a simply stunningly good Apricot tart, which had the sweetest fruit with perfect, perfect pastry. Possibly the best tart I have had, and that's saying something... Soph stuck lucky by requesting the Chocolate pithivier (20 minute delay) which again was staggeringly good. A delicate puff pastry case stuffed with melting chocolate-hazlenuty stuff. I can taste it even as I type... Good coffee, a decent well priced half bottle of Burgandy (I was in a white mood, regardless of the red meat) and possibly the best meal I have yet had at the Merchant House. It made the 2 - 2 1/2 hour drive each way from Manchester worth it with knobs on. Total cost (including a couple of bottles of water) was about £80, including service. As per usual the room was full (ie about 18 people), and all the diners were as verbally complimentray to Shaun as I was. He and I chatted a while post meal, and he passed on his regards to Andy (who he felt was robbed in the Glenfiddichs), assured an apologetic Sophie that lamb can take quite a bit of cooking whilst retaining it's flavour, and told me an interesting anecdote about Pete Postlethwaite. To people who have not been to the Merchant House, I say go quickly; to those who have, I say go again. Cheers Thom

Hmmm... Shurely some mistake. Have they not heard the common English phrase "London, the Manchester of the South"? I can't believe that even our most isolated users have not heard the phrases "New York, America's own little Manchester or "Rio, like Manchester with a beach"? Cheers Thom

Simon, Thank you for such kind words. In light on your continued (and slightly disturbing) insistence that I move 'closer' to you I would probably spend any raise on bonus on upgraded security at my current abode rather than buying a new one. Although I admit to being a shameless media-whore I did have to pass on the chance to appear on Richard and Judy. Luckily our esteemed Editor Chris Maillard stepped into the breach, see him squirm tomorrow at 5pm Cheers Thom

What an interesting thread. I was going to maintain a steely silence and rise above all the tawdry baiting, but Macrosan, you got me. A few of my quotes were edited or concertined, but let me explain my comments more fully. "Chefs have realised that because of lower cost of entry (in terms of property, staff, travel, rates) rather than slogging their guts out for someone else they can actually afford to open their own restaurant in the country and be their own boss. This doesn't mean their actual work lessens or becomes easier, but the attraction of 'pursuing your dream' is pretty strong for these guys." Something along those lines anyway. Just to have to say That Andy, Matthew and indeed Jay were model guests, looking stylish and sophisticated and entrancing the room with their sparkling conversation. That said, I was a little worried that Andy was becoming star struck when I noticed him sidling up to Thomas Keller whilst vibrating slightly and frothing at the mouth. Bless. Cheers Thom

Good effort LML! You beat me to the punch. If there was one person I thought would go for it it would be you. Have a pint of Marble Arch Brewery Chocolate Heavy instead. Cheers Thom

Simon, Very obedient. Thank you. All, 'Mancunium' or 'Mamucium' was the Roman name for what is now modern day Manchester. Loosely translated it means 'breast shaped hill', because that's what the site by the rivers Irwell and Medlock looked like (well kind of). No Boddington's for you. Cheers Thom

I've got the first half sorted, but annoyingly our continued success means the latter section may have to be a work of fiction. Stop the banter now, I have all sorts of high falutin' work I should be doing... Cheers Thom

A free pint of Boddingtons ('A taste of Manchester', owned by some faceless Belgian brewing conglomorate) for anyone with a rudimentary grasp of Latin who can explain the hypothetical novel title... Oh hang on. We're off topic... Apologies. Cheers Thom

'Budding Booker prize winner'? I'm touched that you even think of me in such a way, though obviously your words would carry more weight if you actually had any credability at all in the world of literature (see previous post). Of course if you called me 'A budding distributor of free newspapers outside tube stations' I may not be have been as pleased, but none the less would have had to accept that you were speaking from a position of some experience and expertise. Cheers Thom PS. If you don't like the novel 'The breast-shaped hill' (a historical bodice-ripper, set in romantic Roman Manchester) at least consider my latest non-fiction effort - 'Manchester, why Londoners all wished they lived there'.

Actually I noticed several typo's in Simon's post. It should have read: "To grim, Northern, pun-quoting Asians, who pretend to do something high powered in publishing in an ill-fated attempt to get any kind of lass whatsover." No need to thank me Simon, with your lumpy misshapen fingers I realise it's hard to eat, let alone type. Cheers Thom

That'll teach you to live in London then.

Interesting; a tough review Simon. Perhaps you ordered badly; of the 5 or 6 dishes we had at least 3 were good, and two were passable. Not top drawer by any means - as previously mentioned I found the positive fervour of some reviewers perplexing - but not so bad either for this type of place. In retrospect the pricing does seem steep. In my defense the exact amount of pounds and pence had previously passed me by as I manged to avoid putting my hand in my pocket on that particular day. The decor though actively angered me. True, it was as you say 'not unpleasant', but to be honest that sort of studied, contrived blandness is more likely to disgust and rile me than if they had rag-rolled the walls with excrement. Fair comment about the strange address - I walked up and down Charlotte St three times in a fit of bloody-midedness before giving up and phoning the restaurant. Equally accurate critique of the doorman, he was very, very cool indeed. The dishes I had sampled made me feel that I could enjoy a return visit to eat my way around the menu with a fair success rate. Based on your review, I struck freakishly lucky, and should quit whilst ahead. Cheers Thom

Yes, I went 3 or 4 weeks ago. I though the room was pretty dull really, kind of provincial brasserie/chain hotel restaurant. The food though was genuinely good and some dishes in particular stood out. Memory is hazy but the high points were the lambs kidneys, and a kind of vegetable terrine type thing. Lamb kebabs, squid and other dishes were good too. The tables weren't massive though, and we ended up with so many plates and bowls on the surface that at one point I dipped my bread into the water filled finger bowl rather than the oil, which amused my waitress if nothing else. Pricing seemed decent (though I didn't pay for this particular lunch) and I would definitely go back again. That said, I am a little nonplussed by some of the superlative strewn reviews I have read. Cheers Thom

But Bapi, you said you weren't married?! You are a 27 year old property millionaire and part time male model who does a lot of work for charity aren't you...? Good gried, if you can't believe people in internet chatrooms then where can you? Cheers Thom

Simon, No, no, no. I was a 'member' of a gym. That's very different from 'going' to a gym. Bapi, Samsi is pretty good. I think there was an earlier thread on here about them doing the 'naked sushi' thing too which may be another reason for you to visit. I have a good feeling about Wednesday - 1:2 to United. Cheers Thom

Sandra, Glad you had a good time, though a bit gutted that you came away with a good result. Don't event get me started on the referee... Pleased that Samsi was still good. I used to go a lot when I was a member of the gym next door, but haven't been for 12 months or so (to the restaurant; I stress I have merely moved gyms, not given up on retaining my svelte figure entriely). Matt and Phreds is good isn't it? And it's always fascinating to people watch the distinct Saturday night social herding as you move from the Gay Village to Piccadilly and on to the Northern Quarter. All humanity (and some inhumanity) represented within about 1/2 a mile... You must have been very, very desperate to go Arbuckles for breakfast. If you end up at Old Trafford again, I think there is a big transport cafe nearby where you will a truly authentic full English breakfast. It serves all the tran-European HGV drivers who end up at Trafford Industrial Park and is open a hangover-curing 24 hours. Come on the Saints! Cheers Thom