GBM 2009

[david goodfellow]

Tonights was a bit frustrating. It was the equivilent of watching someone make a bowl of cereal. Clare Smyth is head chef of a 3 star restaurant and I really want to see what she can do but the nature of the programme stifles that. At least it gives a few recipe ideas.

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I totally agree, the only way to sample her food is an expensive trip to Royal Hospital Road.

Must admit though, its not been on my to visit list, but then again The Fat Duck was'n't either, but thats fast approaching now.

Going to buy some trotters, bet there cheap as chips, and bags of flavour.

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Probably about a £ each David

Is it really her food at RHR?

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Cheaper than a Ham Hock from Morrisons at £1.49 then,

Makes a fantastic Emeril Lagasse recipe, lentil soup.

Take your point Ms Lizzy

Probably her interpretation?

Bet there are others on here who can answer that better than I

Anybody?

[CalumC]

Ohh i would have absolutely ploughed both of those, really could have gone for them.

Also, is it me or does clare come across a lot more cheery than previously put across by word of mouth.

[RDB]

Ohh i would have absolutely ploughed both of those, really could have gone for them.

Also, is it me or does clare come across a lot more cheery than previously put across by word of mouth.

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Yeah I was expecting her to be a real 'bitch', however she seemed quite pleasant, and was very positive with her feedback , and receptive towards Dickie Corrigan's opinions on the Crubeens. She seems very meticulous and precise in her style.

Her accent is just bizarre though nothing like Danny Millar's 'Norn Iron' brogue.

Often wondered why Michael Deane never opted to be a contestant??

[RedRum]

I thought that lobster dish was divine, but it a Gordo dish, he did it on telly in the F word when he was using farmed caviar. Corrigan is a tit though... so annoying...

Edited April 22, 2009 by RedRum (log)

[david goodfellow]

I thought that lobster dish was divine, but it a Gordo dish, he did it on telly in the F word when he was using farmed caviar. Corrigan is a tit though... so annoying...

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Bet that Sea Trout and crab was the dogs goolies, taste wise, needs refining of course.

Had a Sea trout from virtually out of the water on to the plate, and that was divine, best fish I've ever eaten.

[olicollett]

I thought that lobster dish was divine, but it a Gordo dish, he did it on telly in the F word when he was using farmed caviar. Corrigan is a tit though... so annoying...

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Bet that Sea Trout and crab was the dogs goolies, taste wise, needs refining of course.

Had a Sea trout from virtually out of the water on to the plate, and that was divine, best fish I've ever eaten.

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I'd have preferred the sea trout - I'm just not a massive lobster fan though.

Having said that, from what I've seen so far I'd rather Clare goes through to make a change to the way the judges have gone so far.

Oh and if the judges on friday say anything along the lines of "oh, well I didn't expect that" when they find out who's menu is who's, I might have to track them down and slap them.

[david goodfellow]

I thought that lobster dish was divine, but it a Gordo dish, he did it on telly in the F word when he was using farmed caviar. Corrigan is a tit though... so annoying...

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Bet that Sea Trout and crab was the dogs goolies, taste wise, needs refining of course.

Had a Sea trout from virtually out of the water on to the plate, and that was divine, best fish I've ever eaten.

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I'd have preferred the sea trout - I'm just not a massive lobster fan though.

Having said that, from what I've seen so far I'd rather Clare goes through to make a change to the way the judges have gone so far.

Oh and if the judges on friday say anything along the lines of "oh, well I didn't expect that" when they find out who's menu is who's, I might have to track them down and slap them.

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They did the same trick when Atul Kotchhar was appearing, I mean come on per-leese

Interested to see what Oliver Peyton is attired in .

Does he wear those jackets for some kind of bet?

[david goodfellow]

I liked this episode.

Beauty and the beast perhaps as Corrigan said, about sums it up.

But Dannys gutsy flavors really appeal to me personally

WE all know Clare's lamb is cooked to perfection, but would fifteen stone of hunky serviceman/woman appreciate its dainty rareness?

Still a lot is in the tasting.

"Guys make sure your garnish is f-ck-n hot"

Sound familiar?

She's no pussycat in her kitchen

Control freak?

Don't you dare touch those pans Danny, she'll take your balls off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edited April 22, 2009 by david goodfellow (log)

[Ross Boyce]

I liked this episode.

Beauty and the beast perhaps as Corrigan said, about sums it up.

But Dannys gutsy flavors really appeal to me personally

WE all know Clare's lamb is cooked to perfection, but would fifteen stone of hunky serviceman/woman appreciate its dainty rareness?

Still a lot is in the tasting.

"Guys make sure your garnish is f-ck-n hot"

Sound familiar?

She's no pussycat in her kitchen

Control freak?

Don't you dare touch those pans Danny, she'll take your balls off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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I especially enjoyed her derision of Danny's choice of cooking the shin Sous Vide; obviously this was filmed some time ago but there's a serendipitous irony in the Head Chef of Restaurant Gordon Ramsay decrying what she calls "boil in the bag" within a week of GRH's production kitchen being outed...

[olicollett]

I liked this episode.

Beauty and the beast perhaps as Corrigan said, about sums it up.

But Dannys gutsy flavors really appeal to me personally

WE all know Clare's lamb is cooked to perfection, but would fifteen stone of hunky serviceman/woman appreciate its dainty rareness?

Still a lot is in the tasting.

"Guys make sure your garnish is f-ck-n hot"

Sound familiar?

She's no pussycat in her kitchen

Control freak?

Don't you dare touch those pans Danny, she'll take your balls off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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I thought it was great too - I don't know why rare lamb should be a problem to anyone to be honest, unless it's poor lamb or they are funny about it?

Danny has really impressed me - he seems to have a real natural talent, but at the same time he strikes me as the kind of chef who's never going to be very consistent because he's so disorganised. I really don't know how he's going to manage for the final.

Oh - that sous-vide shin, was it just me or did that water bath look very hot?? Didn't look to me like your average 65C for 2 day job but then they do only have a few hours i guess. Also, from what Clare was saying it sounded like they didn't use sous-vide at RHR, seems to me a bit odd for a restaurant like that to dismiss such techniques.

[cachan]

I think it's a bit generous to say that Clare Smyth is a 3* chef. She is indeed in charge of the kitchen, but it's not her name above the door and it's not her restaurant, and probably one / two other persons construct the menu / recipes with her, and supervise / review her work. It's not her who obtained the 3* in the first place. Whenever she leaves and sets up her own restaurant then she'll be judged properly, as has happened with Mr Wareing.

[olicollett]

I think it's a bit generous to say that Clare Smyth is a 3* chef.  She is indeed in charge of the kitchen, but it's not her name above the door and it's not her restaurant, and probably one / two other persons construct the menu / recipes with her, and supervise / review her work.  It's not her who obtained the 3* in the first place.  Whenever she leaves and sets up her own restaurant then she'll be judged properly, as has happened with Mr Wareing.

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I've been trying to work out how the Ramsay empire works.

Clare's the head chef, then Mark Askew is the executive chef and then Ramsay is Chef Patron.

What input does the chef patron have?

[david goodfellow]

I think it's a bit generous to say that Clare Smyth is a 3* chef.  She is indeed in charge of the kitchen, but it's not her name above the door and it's not her restaurant, and probably one / two other persons construct the menu / recipes with her, and supervise / review her work.  It's not her who obtained the 3* in the first place.  Whenever she leaves and sets up her own restaurant then she'll be judged properly, as has happened with Mr Wareing.

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Valid point indeed, I assume your referring to Mark Askew, and of course the great man himself

Anybody else?

Is she leaving?????????????????

[cachan]

I remember when news of Clare Smyth's appointment first came out, she was interviewed somewhere about her and Angela Hartnett. She said that they should not be compared as she was a 3* chef and AH was a 1* chef, this was grossly disrespectful to AH as AH had already been a head chef for much longer at her own restaurant with her own menu, whilst CS was in charge of delivering other persons' menu.

If you are served the Langoustine Raviolo at GR RHR now, this is GR's recipe, derived from MPW's recipe, it will not be CS's recipe.

[Matthew Grant]

I'm sure I heard her describe herslef as "one of the best chefs in the world" earlier in the week.

Personally whenever I've been stuck in the sun for a couple of weeks surrounded by sand ( slightly different for the servicemen I know ) if I start craving anything it isn't fine dining. The first thing I might reach for would be something like good old fashioned fish and chips or a decent pie. Actually something not far away from Danny's cooking though at the same time I recognise that the "3 star meal" (open to debate) is a higher level of cooking.

[PhilD]

I'm sure I heard her describe herslef as "one of the best chefs in the world" earlier in the week.   

Personally whenever I've been stuck in the sun for a couple of weeks surrounded by sand ( slightly different for the servicemen I know ) if I start craving anything it isn't fine dining. The first thing I might reach for would be something like good old fashioned fish and chips or a decent pie. Actually something not far away from Danny's cooking though at the same time I recognise that the "3 star meal" (open to debate) is a higher level of cooking.

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OK my first meal may be beer, more beer and then a decent curry. But isn't it meant to be a celebration meal not simply a taste of home, or food I missed most whilst I was away. The "art" of the competition is to combine the two concepts....I suspect it lies somewhere in-between this weeks contestants.

That said I think I would be equally happy to eat both meals (minus Danny's dessert) but I think Claire's may impress my Mum more, which would make me happy. I believe the competition is for service personnel and their families... a happy significant other is also a key consideration (wow that is a PC sentence).

[olicollett]

I'm sure I heard her describe herslef as "one of the best chefs in the world" earlier in the week.   

Personally whenever I've been stuck in the sun for a couple of weeks surrounded by sand ( slightly different for the servicemen I know ) if I start craving anything it isn't fine dining. The first thing I might reach for would be something like good old fashioned fish and chips or a decent pie. Actually something not far away from Danny's cooking though at the same time I recognise that the "3 star meal" (open to debate) is a higher level of cooking.

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OK my first meal may be beer, more beer and then a decent curry. But isn't it meant to be a celebration meal not simply a taste of home, or food I missed most whilst I was away. The "art" of the competition is to combine the two concepts....I suspect it lies somewhere in-between this weeks contestants.

That said I think I would be equally happy to eat both meals (minus Danny's dessert) but I think Claire's may impress my Mum more, which would make me happy. I believe the competition is for service personnel and their families... a happy significant other is also a key consideration (wow that is a PC sentence).

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Quite agree, Phil.

There's a lot to be said for good, hearty food, but at the same time, if you go too far down that route you end up just presenting them with something their mum's could have prepared for them at home.

I think the person who's got the closest so far in this series to achieving the right balance was Glynn Purnell in the first series.

Looking forward to tonight's just to see who they pick and how Danny gets on!

[Gary Marshall]

I'm sure I heard her describe herslef as "one of the best chefs in the world" earlier in the week.   

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i think it was the irritating voice over that came out with that to be fair.

think she's come across quite well, i'm enjoying the precision of her style, sure danny's tastes just fine but it's not exactly technique driven is it!

[PhilD]

I'm sure I heard her describe herslef as "one of the best chefs in the world" earlier in the week.   

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i think it was the irritating voice over that came out with that to be fair.

think she's come across quite well, i'm enjoying the precision of her style, sure danny's tastes just fine but it's not exactly technique driven is it!

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Watching Danny this week is a bit like watching slow motion car crash, each day he seems to lose it a bit more, hopefully he will bring it together tonight to make it a close competition.

[david goodfellow]

I'm sure I heard her describe herslef as "one of the best chefs in the world" earlier in the week.   

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i think it was the irritating voice over that came out with that to be fair.

think she's come across quite well, i'm enjoying the precision of her style, sure danny's tastes just fine but it's not exactly technique driven is it!

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Watching Danny this week is a bit like watching slow motion car crash, each day he seems to lose it a bit more, hopefully he will bring it together tonight to make it a close competition.

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I hope so too.

Was that tears job, last nights programme, or a preview of tonights?

I'm really looking forward to what refinement he has made.

And the winner is????????????????????

[david goodfellow]

Oh, my giddy aunt!

Or in the real world.

"For f-cks sake what happened"

Get that Danny whats his name on the phone.

I need a new chef

Consider--- Flavour, Flavour, Flavour

Like --------Location, Location, Location

its a proven winner

And was'n't it tense?

Great result

Oh that jacket Oliver, somebody's stiffed you for £500 for that.

You could have the bespoke menu at Sat Bains ( for 2 including wine and service) for that, lol

Sorry Sat.

Think I'm going to get p'ssd tonight.

Edited April 24, 2009 by david goodfellow (log)

[nikkib]

who won?

[david goodfellow]

who won?

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Simplicity!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dan the Man.

[genuineness]

great win for Danny and well deserved especially as he is cooking his own food and not making use of someone elses recipes. I swear his whole timing and presentation issues were part of his ploy of getting Clare to drop her guard.

[PhilD]

who won?

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Simplicity!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dan the Man.

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Andy Hayler has some good comments on his blog - I liked: "I am guessing that the commis chefs in Clare's kitchen kept their heads down the Monday after the results came out."