MobyP

How are Ramsay and Wareing going to react? Surely this was theiir raison d'etre - how will they rationalize this sort of response? Ramsay wants to be Ducasse and Brazier. Wareing wants to be Ramsay.

Zaika lost their star. L'Enclume got theirs. Nothing more for Petrus, Aikens, or Ramsay. [Edit to add: and I'm not sure whether to be surprised that New Angel got their first star as well - surely a casual dining experience if ever there was one.]

Where?

Postcode - welcome to eGullet.

1 hour 12 minutes to go....

Any news on Aikens?

I'm not an expert on this, but I always supposed it had to do firstly with the proportionality of liquids, and secondly for the ability of the alcohol to be burned off, rather than be diluted. In sauce making, for instance, you often add a few tablespoons of vinegar (white, red) which you then reduce to nothing, keeping something of the aromatics, without too much of the acidity. The same goes for the use of brandy, armagnac, etc - keeping the flavour, whilst being rid of the larger amounts of alcohol. With braising, I imagine that reducing a bottle of wine down to (say) half a cup first gets rid of the alcohol, then the water, leaving the sugars and flavour components. Having reduced it down to this concentrate, you're then in the position to control the liquid content via the addition of water or stock. must run. more later.

I think that would be a fantastic diary to read. Perhaps also, if you wanted, something that other people could contribute ideas to.

Child labour laws not too bad in Brighton then? I'm going to make the choice for my son very clear - "it's three dozen tortellini, or I'm sending you down the mines, my lad!"

Yes but will we get to see Andy Flesh bouncing along the brighton shores??? I shall have to cancel the rest of my week, clearly.

I think you shoud go for a copy of Boris A's cooker!

Have we discussed the best method to get a crispy finished result? I find, given the uneven shape of the legs, that if I saute them, I only get parts which are crispy. And I'm reluctant to cook them in too hot an oven, because I don't want to ruin the fine texture of the flesh. What is the preference round these parts?

That's a very serious and, as far as I can tell, completely original approach. I'll try it soon.

Chufi - that was a great idea. I'm going to try that one myself - as I always have some peas around, and otherwise have to wait until March or April for the first good favas. I've tried rolling it by hand a couple of times - and failed horribly. The problem is that (a) you have to be INCREDIBLY profficient - it's not like rolling pie dough, because of all of the gluten making it elastic, and (b) there's actually a trick to rolling the dough, and stretching it with your hands - in two directions - simultaneously! You can find a diagram of the method in the older Marcella Hazan books. It is very difficult to do it evenly - hence your pasta being slightly chewy. The dough is cooking at different rates. Really, you have to be a Northern Italian Grandmother to even contemplate that sort of skill level. Once you've done it 20 or 30 times, you might just do it to your satisfaction (well, it would take me that long at any rate). As to flour types, I find - as Sam I think mentions - that unless you have some skill in controlling it, using harder durum wheat tend to make the pasta a bit gummy. Rolling the Typo '00' dough thinly, and cooking it only for 1-3 minutes, depending on how long it's been hanging around, gives a smoother mouth feel, with a little bite to it. What's changed for me, with experience, is that I now roll the pasta thinner, and cook it for less, than I did for the first year of my pasta making. The problem is that most of the pre-made 'fresh' raviolis (blechblechblech) and tagliatelles, papardelles etc that you buy in shops are made with a substantially thicker dough than you would want. This is purely to make them sturdier in order to stand up to the industrial process. Don't do it!

Made sweeter by the waiting. Lovely review misses.

Man - they look great.... (Homer gurgling sound)

If you're cutting by hand - i.e. folding up and slicing - then it usually takes 15-30 mins to take on that leathery feel. Otherwise it tends to stick together. The two other issues are developing the gluten, and resting. I have a kitchen aid, and it's pretty useless at kneading dough for quantities under a pound of flour (450g) - and even then, it often gets caught up in the paddle, and is still almost always easier to do by hand in a large bowl, or on a flat surface. In the kitchen aid, or on a surface, you should knead the dough for at least 8 minutes. I heard that Batali - doing a huge amount of dough at a time - did it for up to an hour. If you're interested, I did an eGCI course here, though with a recipe more suited to ravioli. For basic pasta, the simplest ratio is 100g flour (a little under 1 cup) to 1 large egg. I find that this is approximately enough for one good eater. The resting is important because it gives the grains of flour time to expand as they absorb the moisture. Also, I'm told, it allows the gluten to develop further. I usually leave it for between 1-3 hours, wrapped, in the fridge.

Typical that you would think I was writing about YOU! Of course I meant another Suzie entirely who also just happens to hate the facist oppressors that are supermarkets. Will coincidences never end? Hallie - it's the large Tescos by Earl's Court - I think it's on the Talgarth Road. Tescos is undoubtably the worst bread of any supermarket in the history of this world and many others - so imagine my surprise to find it selling La Brea?

Complete bloody miracle that it is, I was strolling through Tescos this morning (Yes, sorry Suzi), and there's a La Brea stand by the baking department. For those who don't know - La Brea Bakery was started by Nancy Silverton (sp?) in Los Angeles, specializing in hand made old fashion style breads. This quickly became known as the best bread in California. She apparently sold the name/recipes to a corporation, which is evidently how it found its way to Tescos (opposite you Fi). Bought a sourdough stick, and it seems like the real thing. The selection this morning seemed limited, but I'll be checking back (yes, sorry Suzi). Their ciubatta and sourdough boule, in LA, were among my favourites. [Edit - oops]

I don't think it's the people of this board. I know that I've expressed the paper plate and plastic spoon preference - and I think Jon Tseng is of the torn t-shirt and skates school of things - but I think most are on your side of the fence.

Bapi - a new baby? Congratulations! Mine's on the way in March, and I'm already wondering if I'll ever eat again.

Chris, welcome to London. We around these parts often get accused (by the Spanish, French, and Americans at last count, but really, we're not fussy, we'll take abuse from anyone) - for reasons unknown to me - of making insupportable pronouncements about the quality of London dining. The simple truth is, although there's very good food to be had, we're simply not on the same level - for differing reasons - as New York or Paris. We simply don't have the same relationship to food as those places. Our culinary culture is an emerging one. Our low end dining doesn't come close to being as extensive and interesting as New York. Our high end - I believe - isn't anywhere near being on the same level as Paris. Our mid and lower mid-range is growing more interesting - gastro pubs etc. Our upper-mid-range has some very qualified and talented hard-workers - Chez Bruce, Putney Bridge (I'll take their word for it, haven't had it myself), Thyme etc, but you can have a miss every now and then, despite the hits. I haven't found a great brasserie yet, but I live in hope. I've had a couple of great plates at Racine, but it's not on the same level as an institution as Balthasar. For the most part, the high end tries too hard, and beyond it's ability. You can still have a superb meal at Ramsay, but it will never be in the same league as a meal at L'Ambroisie, or Gagnaire (two opposites, of course). Aikens you should try for yourself. At least he's doing something different. The first meal I loved, the second felt obscure. Aubergine, Petrus, The Square - well, they leave you with the sense of having spent a fair sum for some luxury ingredients moderately to well prepared - but to what end? Which is to say, the answer is in the question. If you have to ask it, then it's unanswerable. There's some very good low and mid-range Asian food, but my sense still is of the best of it being up North. I've had better Chinese food here than I've ever had in New York - but of course its regionality is different, and so a different approach as well.

Ok, I'm learning as I go. General info so far... I'd forgotten about the famous 6 star Eugénie Brazier. I wonder if she was still cooking/teaching when Pacaud was there, or whether her son was in charge. I hadn't heard before about Peyrot, described (here) as one of the founders of Nouvelle cuisine. Apparently he also had 3 stars, and I found a listing for the restaurant still being open. Has anyone been there recently?

Thanks, Bux. I should have fun running those through the google translator. Do we know anything, contextually, about those three restaurants: La Mère Brazier, La Méditerranée and Vivarois, their chefs, their styles of cuisine, their history?

I had this dish, and spoke to Wylie about it afterward. He failed to mention the chemistry, but said they had pureed the shrimp, and then showed me the piping bag and nozzle with 5 or 6 holes in the end. Apparently (unless I'm mistaken) they pipe the puree through the holes directly into boiling water.