nimzo

This is major news in Bray and probably needed 3 meetings of the Parish Council to get the go-ahead for a change of sign. A menu change would need far more and would then meet several objections, not least from the member who complained about not being able to get a pint and some crisps like he could in the days of the Ringers.

In Barcelona I would put Cinc Centits right at the top of my list both in terms of service and quality of food. Go for the Omakase menu and trust Jordi. I have had poor experiences at Alkimia, Hisop and Commerc but all due to appalling service rather than quality of food. Out of town I really enjoy Mas Pau just outside Figueres, good restaurant, comfortable accomodation and very good pricing.It is also handy for Bulli if you get lucky.

An interesting dinner at Hisop on Monday evening. Great welcome and quick to come with aperitifs, water and really excellent nut and olive breads.The room was busy without being completely full.My wife started with baby squid with white truffles whilst I went with prawns, both excellent although I think she got the best deal with the squid. She followed with turbot and black beans in a butifarra sauce whilst I had foie gras with a quince paste.I strayed off the spanish wines as they listed a Grosset riesling at a bargain price.Unfortunately, having ordered the wine it was unavailable and was replaced by one 3 years younger and more expensive. Until this point it has been excellent but then things suddenly fell apart. I ordered a poached pear with basil, my wife a chocolate fondant with orange, My pear arrived with a pool of lovely basil sauce and we waited for the chocolate. In the meantime a waiter dumped a tray of dirty plates, glasses and cigar butts opposite so that the basil was obliterated by the bitter cigars. I asked after a couple of minutes if it could be removed and just got "un momento ".10 minutes later still no dessert for my wife, cigars and crockery still there and no staff in the dining room at all. Eventually the chocolate fondant appeared and looked like somebody had taken a hammer to it. It was present with the immortal line" It is all broken but tastes OK".25 minutes on and still can't get the cigars and crockery removed despite there only being 6 customers left and the waiting staff being empty handed. I was about to lend them a hand when finally it was taken.I asked why it had taken so long and was told."We have a very small kitchen and a small dishwasher, we have to leave dirty things in the restaurant".I asked about the delay with the dessert and whether anybody could at least be bothered to apologise for the state of it and the reply was "Look, sometimes things don't come out".Finally I asked what time the chef had left and unsurprisingly it had been right between the main course and dessert.My lasting impression will be of an excellent chef whose front of house staff couldn't care less once he is out of the building

Borrow the dog and take a trip down around the Bucks/Berks border. The English ones are fairly small compared to their European cousins but they smell just as good and you can harvest plenty provided you beat the crowds of Italian guys on Saturday mornings.

The English harvest has been stunning this year, get out with the dog on Sunday and have a good hunt. Maybe they just taste better for being home-grown. grivan used to supply Perigords but i am going back a few years now, they may be worth a try.

Thanks very much.I tried Moo and Raco d'en Freixa last night and they both now close on Sundays but the rest sound great. I have been promising myself a trip to Gaig for ages so now sounds like a good time try.

Can anybody recommend somewhere in BCN which is open on Subdays.I have tried all the usual suspects without luck but there must be somewhere.

If you are in the UK you can grow them at home by ordering from Marshalls in the Spring. They are not very hardy but I have grown them OK here in Berkshire for the last couple of years and it certainly works out cheaper than buying them.

I got an immediate no for a request anytime in May or August.First time I have failed to get one and wrote shortlyafter midnight on the opening day.

One of my favourite stories relates to when I was sommelier at a very famous restaurant. A very well dressed couple of gentlemen entered, sat an reoused the list of almost 1000 bins ranging from the regular everyday to Margaux 82, Henri Jayer and classic champages such as Krug 89 , LP cuvee Alexandre, and some great Salon. After a few minutes one of them called me over and asked why we didn't have any expensive wines. I told him that we stored the in a special cellar nearby and that I could fetch one if he so desired. He asked me to recommend one and gived hid order of main course I suggested a Palmer 61. He consulted his pocket guide fron his jacket pocket, mutteres sometheing avout legendary and said 'yes, wonderful.' I ran home , fished a bottle out from my own cellar . ran back and negotiated a price, around 750 pounds I seen to remember, It had to be enough to qualify as expensive of course, They enjoyed every last drop

Desconz, the name the old story I know relates to a supposed Dutch soldier called Pieter Semens but as Pedro and Jancis Robinson confirm , this has been destroyed by viticulturists and by DNA. A widely held belief is that the best PXs are not necessarily those which benefit from the longest time in solers. The optimum age being 30-40 years. The best I have tried include the Osborne rare soleras, the Williams and Humbert PXs including some of the wines from the 1920s and 30s released onto the market a few years ago and the Domecq wines. On a daily basis I think the Byass Noe is outstanding as a heavier style and of course the Lustau wines as lighter style but for me the best ever are those bottled by Byass for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in 1952 and are still cropping up at auction for around 8 punds a bottle.Whether they have become drier than the modern bottlings due to age or whether the syle in those days was simply lighter I don't know. but they have stunning balance.

No reply here either but it has taken up to 4 weeks in the past and has always worked out OK in the endso am not panicking yet, just get a bit twitchy when opening my mail in the morning.

Try Jo Grilli in Australia for a great Cab/Merlot amarone style. retails in the UK for around $30 and worth every penny in my opinion.

I lived in an Vizcaya town in the 80s where ETA was strongly supported and it was considered normal to pay a tax in addition to closing down the shops and offices at ETa's request as a mark of respect. I can't imagine many restaurants escaped the charges.

I have just checked 8 May on atrapalo.com and they gave 36 hotels at 4* and at a discount and over 120 in all categories, give it a try.

With regard to the addition of macerated fruit , I have been playing a bit lately and found the following to be worth the expense of the alcohol. Lexia raisins soaked in Australian liquer muscat Stem ginger and sultanas soaked in Stones Ginger wine with a splash of whisky The latter goes well in a lighter style fruit cake but with an emphasis on the ginger rather than the fruitiness

Although the tasting menu may not have changed much on paper , it does in fact change in a subtle way on a very regular basis. The changes may be simply small refinements but taken as a whole over the entire menu they do their work on the palate. Don't believe everything you read on the menu, suck it and see!

I agree with the others, try somewhere really central like the Colon and get a 25 minute taxi ride to the airport.It is one of the few cities I would recommend this but access to the airport is so easy in BCN.I would also recommend something like atrapalo.com to book a hotel, they have never failed me and offer great reductions.

The US market for Australian wines does seem to be Parkerised to some degree and seems to focus on the huge shirazes. I couldn't agree more about the liquer muscats and tokays, especially Chambers.I wonder where Mick Morris sourced his original old wines??. Don't forget the whites like Clare rieslings from Grosset or some of the rarer wines from Mount Mary for example or chardonnay from the likes of Leeuwin and Howard Park. In Western Australia and possibly a touch subtle for RP, how about Cabs from Cullen or Gralyn, the latter being a relatively undiscovered gem . A final thought, anyone tried the Cape Mentelle Zin from Western Australia. Not much of it about but worth a try. What i love about Australian wines is the diversity , from the massive reds to pinots from Bass Phillip and from Nicholson River chardonnay to the lightest sauvignon blanc. Throw in the stickies and there is something for everyone

Howard Ripley certainly deserves more recognition for his list but if you are an Australia lover then Vin du Van offer a brilliant mail order service and the best catalogue anywhere but then it depends on your sense of humour. i would go with Yapp for Rhones and always stick with Farr for Bordeaux. Straker Chadwick in Abergavenny are the bestauctioneers for me with everything from Latour 61 to VDP in their catalogues and again their live sale is interesting enough and funny enough to make the trip to Wales.

Take a trip out to Hacienda Benazuza ,about 20 minutes by cab, where the menu reads like El Bulli's greatest hits.They have a good website which should give you an idea of the place.

From what I remember the prices on the list on the website are out of date and you could add a few pounds to every bottle. The value is very much to be found in the wines of south-west France and the Languedoc, an area which Heston knows very well, and I would be tempted to look here for a choice of a couple of bottles which won't break the bank such as a Mas Jullien or a Grange des Peres.There is a great selection of Condrieu to suit all pockets and the Cotat Sancerres are beautiful wines in my opinion, especially if there is any of the special cuvee left. The real value in comparitive terms is in the cult Napa cabernets which are on strict allcation but which are sold at a relatively low price on the proviso that they are not sold to customers unopened and are consumed on the premises.That said, a bottle of Harlan is still hugely expensive but the Turley zinfandels are great given their retail prices in the UK and USA.

Given the cost of buying at least 2 different bottles to match the courses of the tasting menu together with a dessert wine I would say that the matching wines are a good choice although I doubt their total value would actually reach 50 pounds individually. The sommelier is excellent and always has an interesting choice of wines in the match and usually wines which are lesser known. if dining in a larger group it is easy to choose from the list but for 2 customers, go with the matching wines and don't forget the great sherry list although a fino is often served as the first wine anyway.

I'll put it down to being the last night before the annual holiday, the kitchen was obviously very talented but completely let down by the service.I'll try again in a few months but when holiday time is so valuable it is asking a lot to volunteer for bad service in a city with so many great places to eat.

It is true that not every day can be a Bulli day but things are looking much brighter with Cinc Sentits on the horizon. We went the night after Bulli so mentally i was prepared to come away disappointed after the fireworks of the previous night but nothing could be further from the truth.beautifully decorated, well-spaced tables and met and seated with enthusiasm. We chose the Omikase menu which was 8 courses plus amuses and petit fours for 50 euros wih matching wines for an extra 15.The menu would be a complete surprise but would contain elements from the gastronomico if we wanted. From the wonderful shot of maple syrup, cava sabayon and maldon salt to the cherry compote with mascarpone mousse everthing was perfect. Highlights were perhaps the best piece of beef I have ever eaten, the torchon of foie gras with violet marmalade, the duck breast with caramelized pineapple and honey-eucalyptus syrup and the kalamansi cream . The wines ranged from a glass of Moet to start to an orange wine from Huelva with the dessert and took us through Somontano, Malaga, Ribera del Duero and Germany, 7 in total in good tasting samples. I was going to say that I can't wait to go back but I did just that for dessert and a glass of wine the following night after a poor meal at Alkimia. My suggestion is that you make Cinc Sentits a priority when in Barcelona, the attention to detail is superb, the waiters and the kitchen look happy and the food is a bargain. well done Jordi !.