Matthew Grant

I'm not suggesting that being there is anything wrong with being unfashionable, I was curious as I haven't read decent reviews of it for a long time and the general consensus is that it should have lost its 3rd star long ago. A friend went earlier this year and described it as like being in a theme park.

I was at Belevedere as well and thought it OK, not exceptional but it was just about the only place open in La Morra so if you are staying there it's not a bad option.

Ameiden, you are the first person in about 20 years to have Paul Bocuse listed as a favourite restuarant

I recall this term in the UK back in the 70's/early 80's, I can't remember hearing it for years.

Without meaning to offend anybody I had an appalling meal at Da Renzo in November, the sanils wth leeks were completely lacking in any sort of seasoning which may have helped them a litttle. They actually forgot my main course of the Pork dish but I didn't complain because after seeing my Girlfriends appalling beef in Barolo I thought I had got off lightly. The sauce had been reduced to the consistency of marmite and tasted not dis-similar. By the end of the dish the sauce was set enough that you needed to slice it with a knife. They were fortunate that my GF had a stinking cold otherwise I'm pretty certain she wouldn't have got past the first mouthful before sending it back. One area they excelled was desserts, I forgot the exact details. Overall the most disappointing meal of the trip. La Libera produced a little more cheer especially with its beautiful lamb. Della Posta stood out, head and shoulders above anywhere else we ate. An amuse of tomato and porcini was great, Onion stuffed with cheese and sausage was probably the best dish of the trip IMO. A pasta of rabbit and porcini probably the best pasta dish. Main courses of stuffed quail and shoulder of lamb were beautifully caramelised and had a great woody taste presumably roasted in a wood fired oven although I couldn't confirm this. The cheese cart looked extremely good but unfortunately I thought the cheese a bit of a let down in relation to some other places. The pannacotta was incredible, barely holding its shape, it took some will power not to order another. Another pleasing element at Della Posta was to finally get some variation on the menu, virtually everywhere serves the same dishes - maybe I don't get it but I found so much of the eating in Piedmont disappointing, not necessarily because of poor cooking but simply because it felt monotonous, the same dishes rehashed at almost every restaurant. One recommendation I would make is for Il Laghetta in La Morra - great pizzas tucked away down a dark path next to a lake. Super.

It changes pretty regularly, Will is always happy to help, the beauty being that you can order a carafe and if you aren't satisfied swiftly move onto something else - exactly what I plan to do later this week

I haven't any problem with it all except perhaps the ceiling could be a little higher but it really doesn't bother me that much.

My other half hates the room with a vengeance, she enjoyed the meal though. I'm going to send her to a hypnotist in an effort to convince her that the room is nice and deserving of another meal in the new year

So, I suspect, does Lord Michael Lewis, he is sorely missed. I think you and he may have got on well

That would seem right, they have misspelt it on the menu.

Zoticus, are you actually Lord Michael Lewis?

He came out to our table towards the end of the meal and spent a lot of time talking about ingredients, as you say a very nice guy. What really impressed me was the amount of time he had spent cooking at a private members club but he still had the ability to come out and change his style of cooking to meet the high standards that the Greenhouse has. He'll have no trouble at all holding the one star, and is a possible shout for two although I think Michelin may want to see him in control for a little longer to demonstrate some stability.

Where did they say they would "never" put prices up? What about the seating times?

A very good meal at The Greenhouse last night, thought long and hard about the Truffle menu but I've eaten a mass of them already this year so decided to stick with the ALC at £60 for 3 courses. Scottish Langoustines with coco bean and lemon puree, calamari and chorizo carried a £5 supplement, something I am happy to pay provided the Langoustines are good. They were, delicately cooked with just the tail remaining of the shell so the meat was easily removed. The calamari was as tender as it comes although they was a slight temperature variation between the 3 pieces but this didn't necessarily detract. A couple of thin slices of chorizo added a good salty element to the dish with coco de pampol beans providing textural variation and the lemon puree a nice lift although there was a hint of bitterness to the puree, perhaps from a little too much pith? The dish was finished with Thai sweet basil which again added another interesting note. Despite a relatively large amount of ingredients the dish came together very well, overall a good dish. Unicinatum truffle risotto, 'beurre noisette' and truffle coulis was as it read, a generous portion of good autumn truffles shaved atop the risotto and the plate spread with truffle coulis. A nice classic feel to it compared to the Langoustine, the earthy autumn truffle giving me a hopeful feeling for the coming black truffle season. Aubrac Veal chop came with more autumn truffle and a selection of heirloom beetroots and carrots. This was outstanding, the quality of veal was the best I can remember in the UK since eating at Nico and I probably don't remember that too accurately. the quality of ingredients really shone in this dish, beautiful beets and carrots sliced and quartered offering a nice autumnal mix(I can't believe I'm saying that in December) of colours and combining well with the truffle Roasted Brill on the bone, grated gumbawa, prawn and chorizo Thai rice. I only tasted a small piece of the brill which was a very good piece of fish, an oriental style oil/sauce with a strong smell of lemongrass/kaffir lime leaves (?). Thai rice was a stylish fried rice served in a separate bowl with chorizo and prawn. Overall a strong Asian influence to the dish which worked well but might upset some with a more classical palate, the gumbawa was apparently an Asian lime although I am unable to find reference to it. One small point was the flavoured breadcrumbs which I tasted briefly and was unfortunate enough to hit upon a chilli seed which temporarily destroyed my tastebuds, Rachel didn't find the problem again so I'm guessing it was stray one but something to watch out for. I finished with a selection of cheeses, the standout cheese being a Vacherin, Saint Marcellin and 3 year old Bernard Antony Comte. A Colsten Basset Stilton was perhaps a little past it's best and probably something I should have recognised as it was down to the last piece. Carpaccio of pineapple with cereal was the other halves dessert which I didn't get to taste. Petit fours were very good, lovely warm madelaines and another warm chocolate miniature tart stood out along with excellent cinnamon flavoured marshmallow. I believe we were also comped a small selection of pots which I believe were part of the tasting menu, lychees chopped up with small mint leaves and another pot of chocolate and hazlenut (?) were great. Overall an excellent meal, the best I have eaten in London this year, quality ingredients were apparent throughout, the Aubrac veal was superb and sourced directly from France, interestingly the beef was from Limousin, you may have expected the supply to be the other way around. Another thing very apparent to me was the influence of Michel Bras, the Asian touches and presentation were very reminiscent of his style, I believe that Antonin Bonnet at one point spent 3 years there. Definitely a place to keep an eye on and solidly holding onto the star earned by his predecessor and hopefully taking it to the next level, it is certainly within reach.

Ate for the first time at Bentley's last night and thought it very nice. Quite homely cooking but well executed. Shellfish cocktail came with pieces of Lobster, a couple of different prawns a decent amount of crab meat and a solitary Langoustine still in the shell. All served with a Marie Rose sauce, everything very nice and fresh except the Langoustine which seemed a little overcooked. Another starter of Linguine and Lobster was declared too rich with cream. I chose the fish pie for main course hoping that it wouldn't be like those frozen Findus ones I relate to from my childhood (not that I ever ate one). It didn't disappoint, large pieces of fish (Haddock and Salmon I believe) and prawns swathed in a creamy sauce and smooth mash nicely browned under the grill and dressed (at their suggestion ) with a light Tabasco sauce, Fish and chips was a lovely piece of haddock in a good beer batter, I thought the chips were a little disappointing but nobody else seemed to notice and the mushy peas were a good side strong with garlic. I didn't taste a further main of Lincolnshire Gratin with Baked Cod but the recipient had no complaints. I finished of with Oyster stout rarebit which was a nice change but as Rachel said "that's not a dessert". The others had plums soaked in brandy with custard. This was delicious, cinnamon flavoured custard and nicely alcoholic plums. Overall very nice, with service, aperitifs and two bottles of Gavi di Gavi (I forget the producer) it came to a touch under £250 for 4 of us which we all though was pretty reasonable.

Funny enough it grew on me as well although by the end of last nights show I was convinced that I was watching a chef make a dish that wasn't bolognese. Last night he went on about the taste memory thing, this is surely a completely different thing from seeking perfection.

Cook the sausage meat seperately - I do mine in a loaf tin, nice and brown on top and you get nice thick slices

Arbutus The Sportsman (Seasalter) The River Cafe

Or Percy Pepper for that matter

Agree about crab, unfortunately picking a fresh crab is a relatively laborious process otherwise it would surely be far more popular.

I thought the Roast Chicken episode was the best one so far. The slow coking method is pretty well documented but I thought it was presented well and explained the process in a way that most people would have been able to cook. Serieux, I'm curious why you think nobody "in their right mind" would want to cook a chicken like that, I presume you have never tried slow roasting a chicken?

I vaguely remember reading an article or talking to HB about starting with cold oil. If I remember correctly it was dismissed as there were a lot of variables to control e.g. starting temperature of the oil and potatoes and the speed at which the oil heated up

I imagine it'll be a lot smaller than a properly produced foie gras, not as fatty either.

Smashing lunch at Moro on Friday. Started with an excellent plate of Joselito Iberico, on the tapas menu it is listed as "Joselito Jamon Iberico '99", Can it really be that old or is it just an old menu? It certainly tasted a touch above the stuff I often buy from Brindisa (who also supply here), a slightly sweeter taste perhaps? Aubergine Salad with chilli, mint and Labneh was three thick slices of aubergine grilled with chilli and mint on top and served with great creamy textured Labneh with a pleasant acidity. Charcoal grilled squid with harissa could have perhaps been charred a little more but the lack of fierce heat seemed to aid its texture and it remained tender throughout eating. The harissa had a decent amount of chilli heat and a great smoky flavour, superb. Roast chicken fattee with chickpea pilav, parsley, walnuts, pomegranate and yoghurt was another great dish, the rice being particularly good with plenty of dark chicken meat. Wood roasted brill with prawns, saffron rice and alioli again hit all the right spots, an excellent piece of Brill taking on the flavour from the oven well, the small prawns came as part of the excellent rice which showed a suitably light touch with the saffron, and good alioli although I would have preferred a little more garlic. Chocolate and Apricot tart was a little disappointing, I'm rarely a fan of chocolate and fruit together and this was no exception, I'm not sure why the accompanying yoghurt was required either. With a couple of glasses of cava, a Massaya Silver Selection '03, and a Sanfir Crianza , Bodegas Casa del Venta del Moro '02 the bill came to around £135 and, refreshingly, service (which was good) wasn't included. A return visit is needed sooner rather than later, I'm not sure why I had left it so long since the last time!

That is a stellar crew, what a shame for those back in England who were eating in the London based Ramsay establishments at the same time. I don't expect chefs to be in the kitchen all the time but sending virtually all your head chefs to New York could be interpreted as showing disdain for the UK customer.