patrick

my first thoughts suggest that when it comes to a restaurant that is considered not to be following a classical and generally proven repetoire then Michelin will hold out a little longer to ensure that the restaurant can prove itself and is not just a fad or a trend follower. I am suprised the Box Tree received a star so soon after opening, even though it may warrant one! Aikens and Wareing must be hopping mad! I am shocked that Aikens did not get a second star as he shows highly original techniques and presentation. Is Wareing stuck one 1 star by being a by-product of Ramsay or appearing that way?

Thanks Gary. The website seems particularly impressive for an independant restaurant! The "forum" idea sounds very original, and "The Journey" section gives a brief and interesting nod to the amount of the work involved in setting up the restaurant. I wonder if they have the Freehold on the place?

Gary In reply to your question on the "Confessions- 3 last restaurants" thread... Prior to my visit i had heard and read great things about the experience "offered" by dining at Anthonys, and i arrived with great expectations. However, on the night of my visit i don't think i was in the right frame of mind to fully appreciate everything that the place has to offer. this is why i did not make a full post on the forum. I found some aspects of the meal truly brilliant, but these were mainly the "extras" such as the bread loaf, the parmesan butter, and the gingerbread milk. This is not to say i did not enjoy the red mullet or the risotto though! The yeasty/pine nut veloute completely passed me by, as did a peach and nectarine mousse, and several other dishes did not provide the wow factor. I also found that the dining layout did nothing to aid my enjoyment of the evening. The service and personnel were faultless though. I still regard Anthonys to be a very good restaurant despite this. I shall definetly return and i never judge on one visit. It was just that something did not click for me on that evening. Briefly regarding Tom Aikens... I found my dining experience at Tom Aikens to be the most stimulating in culinary terms since eating at The Fat Duck. Every plate challenged the senses and provoked debate around the table. I found it inspiring, refreshing and individual. To answer your question...Tom Aikens wins on this occasion, but i'm happy to be proved otherwise in the future.

1) Anthonys 2) Tom Aikens 3) Winteringham Fields

Yes, I believe culinary bear is right to theorise that getting one star tends to be more about the food, whereas the second and third star awards take into account each and every aspect of the basis, as well as the level of cuisine. Saying that, Michelin seem to be quite keen on making sure the business is viable before awarding a first star. As Andy says, there are many criteria that a restaurant must meet to achieve the second and third stars, but originality, determination to source the best produce and the ability not to follow the crowd are paramount, as is the all important CONSISTENCY. I expect Anthonys to get one star in January, and Tom Aikens to get the second star.

or perhaps... "it is well worth experiencing this temple to gastronomy."

Although i haven't eaten at Lucas Carton for a few years, i can definetly reccommend it based on past experience of eating and working there. The food and wine marriages are a must and take dishes to a new dimension! I can personally vouch for the vanilla lobster, any foie gras dish, the red mullet in salt crust, Canard Apicius, chocolate coulant, poached quince with Tokaji, and peppermint meringue with liquorice ice cream. The decor is grand, in the art nouveau style with plenty of marjorelle wood and mirrors. Service is or at least was very professional and there was an army of chef de rang and commis waiters. The wine list is one of Senderens great passions and there are some fantastic options. I believe they still offer a number of dishes served in two parts with two different complimenting wines or champagne. As for value and price...it was and still is extremely expensive...probably around 300 - 400 euros pp. The lunch menu which i think is 76 euros is definetly well worth it. The website www.lucascarton.com is also worth a look. It would be interesting to know how Lucas Carton is fairing after about 20 years in the same site. IMO...definetly a gastronomique temple to experience

Howard, You are quite correct about the service and numbers of waiting staff! On my visit, thay made several mistakes at our table and there was a marked difference between the standards of the senior staff and the more junior staff. IMO, the service definetly holds the place back. Also, i agree about the premiums on the wines. We were offered an "aperitif" of Taittinger Rose 1996 which turned out to be 50 euros a glass. There again, i guess to their "regular" clientele its a drop in the ocean! La Reserve is on my list for next time! Patrick

Gary I was working in St Jean Cap Ferrat. There is a more detailed account of my travels on the France board under Cap Ferrat and Beaulieu, but basically i can recommend the following... Gastronomique Chevre d'Or ( Eze Village) between Nice and Monaco Good but slightly less serious Le Provencal (St Jean Cap Ferrat) Mere Germaine ( Villefranche-sur-mer) Grand Hotel du Cap Ferrat Patrick

Gary, Yes, you are quite correct, Germain is still overseeing with Robert very much assisting in all areas. After returning from my two month stint in France, my gf and I went for lunch today at Winteringham..again a superb meal and service. Briefly, we ate as follows.... Rillettes of duck and pistachio with orange jelly ~ Veloute of palm heart with duck confit and cajun spices and Fig tart with goats cheese ice cream and rocket ~ Coq au Vin, Pommes Mousseline and Rib eye of aged beef, purple potato gnocchi, bone marrow tempura, mushroom minestrone ~ Cheese ~ Lemon curd malt bread and butter pudding and Chocolate and honeycomb marquise Chassagne Montrachet 1999 tbc, but i believe they have just been voted 4th equal best restaurant in the world alongside El Bulli. Marc Veyrat was top! RHR was second

A quick trip back to the UK, so a quick update... I have eaten at a variety of places so far, including: African Queen (Beaulieu Port) La Mere Germaine (Villefranche) La Chevre d'Or (Eze Village) Cafe de Paris (Monte Carlo) La Voile d'Or (St Jean Cap Ferrat) Grand Hotel du Cap Ferrat Top of my list by a long way is the Chevre d'Or. The setting is breathtaking, the views unsurpassed and the food some of the best i have eaten! http://www.chevredor.com We arrived at 8pm and enjoyed a coupe of 1996 Tattinger Rose with selection of canapes including 3 croutes with langouste, avoacdo and langoustine, and beetroot with white radish toppings...all very delicate, very fresh and a perfect match for the champagne. We both chose the Menu Degustation and it comprised the following: Salad of local "forgotten" tomatoes with buffalo mozzarella, basil and olive oil ~ Pave of foie gras with crisp nougatine, chilled melon, blossoms and a shot glass of Muscat wine, diced melon and chilled melon meringue. Grissini ~ Blue lobster in a bouillion with Thai basil, croutes with green lemon butter ~ Line caught sole paupiette with shitake mushrooms, crevette ravioli, rao rum and croutes with lobster coral butter ~ Saddle, cutlet and sweetbread of lamb perfumed with orange. Served with fennel and saffron puree, etuvee of fennel and onion, jus roti ~ Cheese including Banon, Reblochon, St Nectaire, various Crottin and others that escape my memory ~ Shot glass of vanilla ice cream with chilled red fruit "marmalade" and financier ~ Napoleon of wild strawberries and basil, with basil and lemon sorbet, basil and lemon mousse ~ Petit fours including aniseed Madeleine, strawberry crisp, rhubarbe and vanilla puree, strawberry shot, chocolates We drank a Clix Sancerre 1996, glasses of St. Emillion 2000, more Tattinger 1996, glasses of a sauternes 1998 which the name evades me. The bill came to a shade under 500euros. Other than to say it was a truly superb meal, with food almost technically perfect and excellent service conducted with good humour, i think its best to enjoy this place as a suprise! Of the other restaurants, The African Queen was busy as usual and the food was good despite people saying otherwise. It knows its market and delivered each time we went there. La Mere Germaine has been in Villefranche harbour since 1938 and with terrace dining offers a perfect spot to enjoy good food and people watch! Highlights of that meal include a warm lobster salad with herbs, and turbot with potato scales. Dissapointment was the desserts, of which a strawberry and pistachio sabayon contained about 3 strawberries, and crepes "drowned" in Rum. La Voile d'Or may have seen its day and seems stuck in a distant decade, but the food was still pretty good. Of note, our party enjoyed a black and white truffle salad with Granny Smith apple, and langoustine with crispy parmesan and herbs. Service was disjointed and slow. The Grand Hotel has undergone some major renovation and extension recently, and is still heaving with a great mix of people. The car park is still full of Lambo's, Ferrari's, Rolls Royces etc. Inside, or rather outside, we dined on the terrace and were restricted to a set menu. No highlights unfortunately, extremely slow service! Moving away from eating out, i found the quality of fruit and vegetables dip off during the first 2 weeks of August. As i left at the weekend the quality seemed to be returning. The fish however remains excellent, although how much is local at this time of year is questionable. The prices shocked me at first, generally being double that of London prices...lobsters and Langouste at around 100euros /kg. L'Entecote and Equateur in Beaulieu-sur-mer have been excellent for fine foods, meat and poultry. La Nature offers a good range of organic produce, also in Beaulieu. If anybody is visiting the area, i reccommend Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild in Cap Ferrat, the Zoo in Cap Ferrat, Eze Village as places to stop off at. As reported in the Uk press, is does seem relatively quiet around the Nice to Monaco area, but only in the more touristy areas and beaches. The restaurants at the top end have mostly been full from what i have seen. Anyway, back to the sunshine for another 10 days!

A brief report on location... arrived last Thursday and have subsequently been very busy (18hour days)! my shopping time has been limited and restricted to early morning trips. The market in Bealieu has produced excellent veg, fruit and fish ( highlights include St.Pierre, tiny Rouget and Langouste. After developing a rapport with the stall holders the better produce has been forthcoming. i hope to get off to Nice early next week. No time for eating out as yet, but La Reserve menu still looks good! our garden produces very sweet kumquats, lemons and bananas, so expect some online photos soon. Anyway, i'm off to Entrecote for the weekends veau, poulet de bresse, foie gras and Charolaise beef...is it me, or does everything taste better in France?

According to Caterer, Anda closed on 19th June with the loss of 12 chefs jobs. Apparently, the restaurant failed to bring in enough customers.

John, yes, i have walked some of that path around Cap Ferrat. It is indeed rough and unmarked but with great scenery, especially near the lighthouse! And i agree about that friendly man with his dog!!...could be my boss Jonathan, thank you for that info. I shall try and get to Le Moulin de Mougins during my stay.

I shall be cooking at a private villa in St Jean Cap Ferrat for the next two months. Although i have made a couple of brief visits to the area before, i am seeking recommendations on places to shop for quality local produce. I will have the use of a car, but i would prefer to only travel short distances as my time will be limited. Also, apart from La Reserve, Louis XV and Moulin de Mougins can anybody suggest some local quality places to dine? Many thanks

Moby, Winteringham Fields is in North Lincolnshire and has been open for about 20 years. It is run by Annie Schwab MBE and Germain Schwab. Germain has been ever present at the stove since the place opened. If my memory serves me correctly, i think they received their second star in 1999. They also have 5 AA rosettes and 9/10 GFG. As you will see from the website it is a restaurant with rooms, so perfect for a short weeekend away. I have been there a number of times. The Head Chef is Robert Thompson who happens to be my brother. he has worked there for nearly 3 years after working with myself for 3 years.

A trip to Winteringham Fields on Saturday produced a extremely memorable experience. This was our first trip here since September 2003 so we were looking forward to our meal following various personnel changes. Here is my hopefully unbiased and honest review... We arrived with the usual warm, friendly greeting and were shown to one of small lounges to peruse the menu. An appetiser duly followed which comprised of a shot glass with cauliflower puree, dice of codfish and cuttlefish, light chicken jelly and herb float. This was the perfect start and combined very well with our champagne. After choosing our menu we were seated in the dining room and offered excellent bread...a farmhouse and a white plait...both with a light crisp crust and soft middle. The second appetiser was a slice of home cured Bressola with celeriac, tomato and carrot, finished with shavings of parmiggano and tomato chutney. This had the right amount of acidity to set the palate racing and had all the textures and flavours you would expect. My partner began with a Asparagus charlotte with lemon rind butter sauce which was very light and full of asparagus flavour and zesty lemon. I had chosen a rabbit salad with tagiatelle, tomato, fresh peas and garden herbs. This was one of the best dishes i have ever eaten...the rabbit was shot locally and cooked to perfection ( nicley pink, rested, perfectly sliced) and had a real gamey taste. In turn the peas, tomato and the light stock with it set the meat off very well. The dish was finished with a friture of rabbit with added texture. I can't remember eating a dish so slowly savouring each mouthful! Following our starters we both had seared scallop with peach and lemon verbena in a light crab sauce. A fat, juicy scallop that was well carmelised sat upon wafer thin slices of poached peach, which in turn rested on flaked white crab meat. These elements were all combined in a lemon verbena scented sauce and the dish finished with a peach crisp. I had thought that the dish maybe too sweet but in fact the ingredients combined perfectly on the palate, set off well by the crab. Next, the main course... i sampled the Roast neck of lamb with its suet Pudding and swiss chard. The meat was cooked beautifully pink, the suet pudding had the lightest, crispest suet pastry and the farce was well seasoned with sage. A few cardoon stalks, artichokes and cherry tomatoes finished the dish. This was an excellent lunchtime dish..full of flavour, light, colourful and plenty of texture. My partner had a tartlette filled with onion marmalade and topped with garden vegetables. The sauce was from artichokes and truffles and the tart was topped with carrot crisps. Again, another excellent dish and a good choice for any vegetarians! Cheese followed and of note we sampled an excellent Corsican cheese in rosemary, chilli and juniper. For dessert, my partner had the mango creme brulee with sweet wine granite and pecan toasts. The brulee was of the correct temperature and consistency and the mango dice came through very well. The granite provided a nice refreshing touch to the dish. I had the chilled apricot soup with poached meringue...not a new concept but very well executed in this instance. It was served in a large very shallow bowl with poached apricot slices and various blossons and petals. The soup itself was very light but still full of flavour...another tremendous lunchtime dessert. As for wine we had a Trig point Shiraz 2002 which was excellent...and good value at £22. Coffee followed, along with a tour of the kitchens and wine shop etc. The bill came to £131. All in all, this was a superb dining experience. The service was smooth, informative and timed very well. The ambience was good if a little hushed in the dining room. The cuisine was almost faultless and comparable to other 3 star restaurants i have dined in. Annie and Germain and all the staff have created an ultimate dining experience! IMHO Winteringham deserves the third star, so time will tell.

Claudia Roden - The Food of Italy (region by region). This is relatively basic but gives a good overview to each region, detailing its history, culinary roots and traditional regional dishes. Also included is brief details on each regions grapes and wines.

Bux, I am suprised to learn of these allegations concerning numbers of inspectors. Whilst it is obvious that not every restaurant and hotel listed will be visited annually, the public and industry have every right to believe that there are sufficient inspectors to ensure consistency at the highest level. After working at a 3 star restaurant in Paris, i was certainely given the impression that inspections are very regular at that level. Likewise, during conversation with a highly placed individual at a British 3 star restaurant, i was also led to believe that there may be anything upto 20 visits between the 2 and 3 star status. Derek Brown says there are about 100 inspectors across Europe and that the allegations are sad. I agree! In my own experience, i have always found the guide very informative and the recipients of stars all very worthy. Maybe it is a case of sour grapes from Pascal Remy or maybe there is some truth in his allegations and comments....i believe the former at present.

Bux Yes, this is the address... thanks...and thank you for the info on Les Pages Jaune

Oscubic, Great to hear your staging at Lucas Carton. I was a stagiare at Lucas Carton in 1998 and i believe a number of the staff from '98 are still in the kitchen. M. Senderens kitchen is a fantastic learning ground and they will rotate you around the sections regularly. I worked on the Amuse-bouche, garnish, hot starters, meat, pastry and bread/chocolate sections during my time there. I agree about the staff meal..it certainly made the difference when you are working 16 hour days. The cdp's and sous chefs are defienetly strict but they were all well travelled and i learnt alot from them. As for shoving, shouting etc..well..i got it in the first few weeks, but nothing unreasonable. Once the senior chefs have noticed your work and willing attitude everything should settle down. I did find though that the chef, sous chefs will push talented juniors hard, but this will be rewarded. If you can mange to eat in the dining room, then i strongly recommend it. On the last night of my stage i ate at Lucas Carton and was treated to many extra courses..the food is stunning and the recommended wines are mind blowing! I'm sure you have found Alain Senderens to be extremely passionate about his work..i found him a true inspiration...dishes such as Canard Apicius and Homard a'la vanille are still fresh in my memory! During my time there i was fortunate to be sent on various errands, including visiting the Maison d'izreal close to Chatelat...if you can, pop down for a visit..they stock some fantastic spices, herbs and exotic aromatic/seasonings. I will try to find the exact address, but i'm sure other board members will know of it too. Good luck with your stage..i would be very interested to hear of the dishes you have been preparing and how the stage is going.

new to board so here goes on losing my egullet virginity!! I'm sure Michelin would tell you that 3 star standard in the UK and France should be comparble! Having eaten at RHR on a number of occasions, as well as Arpege, Pierre Gaganaire, Lucas Carton and Guy Savoy (any questions on these i will be happy to answer), i would say in my personal opinion that RHR holds its stars fairly. Taking into account the different styles and approaches to cuisine and service, i have been impressed on every visit to RHR! The service and ambience is top notch, and while the whole menu may not be ground breaking (certain elements certainly have been), nobody can argue with the invention, execution and consistency. Dishes such as the ravioli of lobster and langoustines and the sea bass in various guises are truly great, and equal to many dishes i've experienced in France. This said..a meal at Pierre Gagnaire or Arpege is unique and i would recommend a trip there to anyone! (save up first) I agree with Matthew and Paul that RHR is better than Petrus! I personally think by a long way, but it will be interesting to see what happens with the move to The Berkely, and as to how much time the chef spends in the kitchen!!