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no 3 york place


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I’ve been frequenting no3 (or guellers as it was originally known) since inception about 3 years ago, and been through the trials and tribualations of winning and losing a star, going bust and the eponymous head chef simon gueller leaving. Since then Maitre d denis le franc and Chef martel smith have worjed very hard to build the business up from its shaky start.

most recently I’ve been enjoying their set lunch but when maitred/sommelier denis mentioned the a la carte was changing into winter mode I did what I’d been threatening to do for ages and booked wifey and I in for a Saturday night.

Herein is the main problem why I don’t patronise the place as much as I’d like, as from my home it’s a 25 min taxi ride to York station, then a 30 min train ride to leeds, luckily the restaurant is but a stroll from the station.

On arrival it struck me just how much more convivial the restaurant is at night, during the day its white interior, minimal art and dark leather banquettes can look a little cold, but at night with the lights down it looked great, and I’d forgotten how glamorous leeds had become on a evening, most diners were very well turned out and I felt a little underdressed not being in head to toe gucci!

I was also pleased to see seemingly the tipple of choice for the leeds glitteratti, was the house champagne, pol roger white foil nv, although a selection including vintage and vintage rose are also offered by the glass along with a short cocktail list that also proved popular.

We were happy to have a coupe whilst reading the menu in the small bar area, I of course being very sad had already checked the menu out on the internet and was pretty sure of my choices!

After choosing we were shown to our booth and an amuse of pumpkin veloute and fresh bread quickly arrived.

Starters for me were a very large roast escalope of foie gras, tarte tatin of endive, orange sauce I had a glass of goldlackerl beerenauslese willi opitz 99 with this. It was all well timed in terms of cooking and the orange sauce which came as very reduced blobs dotted around the plate were an interesting idea that cut through the richness. Unfortunately the FG was just a bit too big which left me momentarily over powered, next time it think I’ll have the terrine,my original internet choice but I was just being greedy at the time of ordering! Sarah had the salad of wood pigeon, smoked bacon, pine nuts, wild mushrooms & sherry vinegar this was not as expected it was not really a salad more just the breasts with the other ingredients, salad element just a little ball of frisee. Pigeon was nice but not a great dish.

Main courses both made up for this though I had roast saddle of venison, pumpkin fondant, creamed savoy cabbage, chocolate sauce. This was excellent, the saddle was nice and rare cut & into three cylinders almost the same size as the pumpkin and the sauce was dark, glossy and rich. Being a greedy git and having had them before, I also had a side order of pomme puree. I’ve not had joel robuchon’s but these are in a similar vein, lots of butter and cream held together with a bit of potato! Sarah’s roast partridge, fricasse of parsnips and chestnuts, seared foie gras, jus of redcurrants was also a success, and again came with a very generous slab of foie.

To accompany this we had, not unsurprisingly, a bottle of 97 Ch Musar. (£32.50). I was worried that they may have run out as they were down to their last bottle on my last lunchtime trip but they’d re-stocked and denis is also awaiting a delivery of the just-a-bit-better 96 vintage.

A shared cheese platter followed, they have a list of approx 20 english/french cheeses and we made a selection of about 8, accompanied by proper ‘beurre echelle’ walnut bread and chutney.

Two comped desert wines arrived shortly before the dishes themselves, a tart tatin, cinamon ice cream, caramel sauce I love the chef martel’s tarte tatins and this traditional apple version was perfect, ice cream was a bit too cinamony for my taste though. Sarah had mille-feuille of red fruits, kirsch sabayon, iced crème chiboust which she enjoyed greatly and I thought very nice though red berries don’t usually do it for me.

Coffee and petit fours finished and by this time it was 11pm (we arrived about 8.15pm) and we had a brief thought about rushing for the 11.07 train but decided to wait, although the next train was until 12.12am, as I fancied a calvados to help it all digest!. However Denis joined us and although I did mumble about buying him a drink he proceeded to his fridge and we shared the (substantial) remains of a very good 95 pol roger rose, which was greatfully received, and i forgot about the calvados!

After a pleasant chat we eventually left at midnight to run to the station, not a good idea with half a foie floating around the old bloodstream and despite severe taxi issue at york station managed to get home at 1.45am, a long but very enjoyable evening.

gary

www.no3yorkplace.co.uk

A la carte Menu

(Updated 29.09.03)

Lunch & Dinner Monday-Friday

Dinner on Saturday

Smoked Haddock Soup

£ 4.95

Terrine of Rabbit, Foie Gras, Savoy Cabbage & Trompette Mushrooms, Pickled Onions, Horseradish Cream, Toasted Brioche

£ 7.95

Salad of Roast Wood Pigeon, Smoked Bacon, Pine Nuts, Wild Mushrooms & Sherry Vinegar

£ 8.95

Ravioli of Duck Confit, Sweet Potato Purée, Sweet & Sour sauce

£ 6.95

Pithivier of Goats Cheese, Red Onion Marmalade

£ 7.95

Roast Sea Scallops,

Tomato Risotto, Aged Cabernet Sauvignon Vinegar

£ 13.95

Roast Escalope of Foie Gras, Tarte Tatin of Endive, Orange Syrup

£ 12.95

********

Steamed Escalope of Sea Bass Farci, Creamed Spinach, Crispy Pasta, Tomato Butter Sauce

£ 15.95

Poached Fillet of Halibut, Caramelised Endive, Young Asparagus, Onion Ravioli, Beurre à l’Orange

£ 13.95

Roast Fillet of Turbot with Braised Oxtail, Root Vegetables, New Potatoes, Sauce Lie-de-Vin

£ 18.95

Pan Fried Fillet of Beef with Bourguignon Garnish,

Celeriac Purée, Red Wine Sauce

£ 17.95

Roast Saddle of Venison, Pumpkin Fondant, Creamed Savoy Cabbage, Chocolate Sauce

£ 15.95

Braised Pig’s Trotter stuffed with Veal Sweetbreads & Black Pudding,

Pomme Purée, Essence of Morels

£ 16.95

Pot Roast Corn Fed Chicken, Fresh Noodles, Asparagus, Trompette Mushrooms, Tarragon Velouté

£ 12.95

Roast Partridge, Fricassée of Parsnips & Chestnuts, Seared Foie Gras, Jus of Redcurrants

£ 16.95

Side Order: Panaché de Légumes or Pomme Purée £ 3.95

********

Ginger Crème Brûlée, Caramelised Pear, Lime Sorbet, Pear & Ginger Syrup £ 6.95

Prune & Armagnac Soufflé, Chocolate Sauce, Prune & Armagnac Ice Cream £ 6.95

Mille-Feuille of Red Fruits, Kirsch Sabayon, Iced Crème Chiboust £ 6.95

Trio of Chocolate £ 6.95

Tarte Tatin of Apples, Cinnamon Ice Cream, Caramel Sauce £ 6.95

Assiette of Desserts

£ 12.95

Selection of English & French Farmhouse Cheeses

£ 7.95

********

All prices include VAT 10% service charge will be added to your bill!

Smokers are quite welcome to use the bar area during food service!

Many Thanks!

Edited by Gary Marshall (log)

you don't win friends with salad

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Thanks Gary,

My wife goes there for lunch quite a bit, but I simply haven't had the chance.

We are going for dinner next month though. I think Martel has massive potential and the Yorkies had better use it or lose it.

Did you notice any possible car parking nearby, perhaps in the street at night?

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hi steve

to my mind that lack of parking is a big drawback to this site versus the old rascasse site.

i walk past york place and the streets parallel every lunchtime and you'd be shocked how many cars are broken into in broad daylight, its opportunistic phone theft etc, people pop into offices and think it'll be ok but it's not.

I mentioned this to denis if we could park safely (and if sarah would drive!) then we'd go more often. He said, even at night if you don't leave anything in the car at all it'll be ok, he used to leave his car outside all the time. The street is quite busy at night.

other option would be the station car park but i'm not sure if its not something ludicrous like £14 a day there, might be cheaper for a few hours but not sure.

you don't win friends with salad

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  • 1 month later...

That's a great review at the top. Are you planing to go back? And if so, could we get a report if you do?

And do you know- did they steam the partridge, or roast it?

Cheers.

"Gimme a pig's foot, and a bottle of beer..." Bessie Smith

Flickr Food

"111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321" Bruce Frigard 'Winesonoma' - RIP

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I went a couple of months ago now and have been meaning to write up my meal ever since. I was very impressed by the whole experience. Its a smart modern room with a reasonable sized bar area, a row of cozy booths along the right hand side and a more formal seating area to the left, thereby covering all the bases from the younger crowd, to couples to business trade.

Star of the show is without doubt maitre'd Denis Lefrancq, an exceptional talent in my opinion. I had a number of meals around the country the week I ate at York Place and, although I seem to hit a lucky streak on my travels in terms of both food and service, Lefrancq's relaxed professionalism really sticks in my mind.

It was a quiet night, but nevertheless he had a mixed bag of clients to contend with and I was impressed by his individual approach to each table, greeting regulars or leaving couples deep in conversation to their own own devices . I am possibly guilty of taking up a little too much of his time as I was in the mood to chat that night (I was dining alone) and Lefrancq was more than happy to talk about the food and wine, the business in general and his former chef Simon Gueller.

Lefranq's background is 2 Michelin star and he moves around the dining room with the sort of confidence and precision you find at the highest levels. His affable nature however ensures that the atmosphere remains informal.

Martel Smith's food is also very good indeed. A starter of quail breasts with celeriac remoulade was presented as a sliced ballotine of the meat wrapped in ham and a tower of the mustardy vegetable. A main course of pigs trotter with pomme puree was generously proportioned, the nicely gelatinous casing stuffed with delicious sweetbreads and black pudding. An assiette of desserts simply defeated me and would be best enjoyed by two people. It did however demonstrate that there is an assured hand in the pastry section. Time has passed and I made no notes, but a souffle, possibly caramel, was a highlight.

Lefranq is also responsible for the restaurants wine list which is notable for te number of reasonably priced bottles. Overall a really enjoyable dinner and I would recommend that if you are visiting Leeds for any reason, that you give York Place a try.

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That's a great review at the top. Are you planing to go back? And if so, could we get a report if you do?

And do you know- did they steam the partridge, or roast it?

Cheers.

moby,

the partridge is steamed, it's quite a delicate dish and a few customers have complained its not hot enough but mine was fine. The inspiration is from joel robuchons atelier.

as for return vists i tend to go most fridays for a swift lunch and chat with denis, but will be back soon to give the alc a full work out.

cheers

gary

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  • 1 month later...

Another fine dinner at no3 last night, i've been several times since my last write up but usually on a work basis or just for a quick set lunch but last night was a no-holds barred assault on the a la carte with my cheffy mate adrian and a certain A Lynes from brighton who was working in leeds.

After a few 1664 liveners in all bar one (the best pub chain i find ;) ) we made our way to no3 for 7.30pm. after the usual warm welcome from denis we got straight onto business with a glass each of the pol roger '95 vintage which was very good but i think i could have settled with the NV for half the price (£7).

We spent a while debating the menus , there is a menu degustation but as the alc had just been revised it seemed churlish not to.

amuse taken in the bar was a potato and pancetta veloute.

starters were: pour moi homemade black pud, seared FG, fried quails egg, crushed new pots and calvados jus. Well in my book anything with a fried egg on it can't be bad so that went down well and had a decent slab of FG. Ade had seared sea scallos with wild mushroom risotto and white truffle cream, this was 4 big scallops sliced in half arranged on the risotto and went down well. Andy had the mille-feuille of red mullet & aubergine, sun dried tomato sauce which looked very impressive fish interweaved with dried slices of aubergine. We had a very good new zealand riesling with this that worked well with all the courses.

we asked split a couple of fish courses between 3 of us, we went for the fillet of brill poached in red wine, pomme puree, buttered spinach & salsify. Denis is very skilled at ego massage, he said that at first martel had refused to do it as he couldn't split the fish and keep the presentation, denis said it's for gary marshall so he said Ok but it might not look too good! What we actually got was 3 full portions but lovely fella that he is, denis scrubbed them off the bill :D To match this we had an interesting slightly chilled red pic st loup at denis' suggestion.

Feeling a little full but nevertheless ploughing on we got stuck into the mains, me and ade had honey roast squab pigeon, pithivier of foie gras, pomme parisienne, jus of winter truffle, which was excellent and andy had the roast saddle of venison, creamed savoy cabbage , fricassee of japanese artichokes, turnip fondant raspberry vinegar & port sauce. With this we had the ubiquitous ch musar, which became a bit hard going, i think i may have drank a bit too much of this over the years now :D .

originally we had planned cheese and desert but could face it, indeed we only managed a single assiette between us but it was packed creme brullee, souffles, pyramid, fondants-the works. We had a desert wine of denis' that escapes me.

somehow the evening had disappeared and after coffee and brandy we made our way home at about 12.30pm. 5 hours is about right for a dinner methinks.

the bill should have been more but denis scribbled a few things out and charged us a very reasonable £295 all in.

a great place that's finally hitting its stride now, highly recommended if you are in leeds.

you don't win friends with salad

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With this we had the ubiquitous ch musar, which became a bit hard going, i think i may have drank a bit too much of this over the years now  :D .

What ???? :shock:

I have asked them to pop a couple of bottles away for us both at Hibiscus in March. I trust you will have rediscovered you taste for it by then. :wink:

Good review, but blimey - 5 hours !! :wacko:

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Fantastic review. Made me incredibly jealous.

black pud, seared FG, fried quails egg, crushed new pots and calvados jus.

Though this is what I'll be dreaming of tonight.

"Gimme a pig's foot, and a bottle of beer..." Bessie Smith

Flickr Food

"111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321" Bruce Frigard 'Winesonoma' - RIP

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With this we had the ubiquitous ch musar, which became a bit hard going, i think i may have drank a bit too much of this over the years now  :D .

What ???? :shock:

I have asked them to pop a couple of bottles away for us both at Hibiscus in March. I trust you will have rediscovered you taste for it by then. :wink:

Good review, but blimey - 5 hours !! :wacko:

don't worry i still finished it :biggrin:

the time really did fly, one minute it was 7.45, next time i looked at my watch it was 11pm!

ps i hope you're not expecting early nights on our ludlow trip are you?!

you don't win friends with salad

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Gary - how difficult is it to get a reservation? After reading your review, I might try to make it up on the 6th of feb weekend.

"Gimme a pig's foot, and a bottle of beer..." Bessie Smith

Flickr Food

"111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321" Bruce Frigard 'Winesonoma' - RIP

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ps i hope you're not expecting early nights on our ludlow trip are you?!

Oh Sweet Lord, save me from Beelzebub's progeny. :raz:

I have informed the Ludlow's local hospital to have the Crash team on standy by for me and George Best's transplant specialist on standy for you :cool:

Gary, where is three York Place, in relation to the Station? Rosie's friend is up on there business at least once a week at the moment, and I was going to reccomend it to her.

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moby: weekends do fill up quite rapidly now, ask for denis and feel free to tell him i recommended you go. (soon i'll be just like michael winner!).

If you need to stay denis i think has a deal with a local boutique hotel at good rates (quebecs townhouse, very, very nice) otherwise there's plenty of accom in the town centre, let me know if you get stuck.

bapi: i've not looked at the map but it's literally 5 mins walk, left out of the station down wellington street, right up east parade (i think, first main road) then left into york place.

cheers

gary

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A couple of comments to add to Gary's report: the white wine was "Riesling Crossroads Estate (Hawke's Bay New Zealand)" and was a delicious, mouthwatering and juicy sort of wine. The Pic St Loup was Domaine de l’Hortus and was another special bottle.

Although 5 hours is a long time for a meal, we did spend as good hour of that just chatting to Denis at the end. We also had drinks in the bar before hand so there was no sense of the evening dragging or waiting for food or drinks to be topped up.

I noticed a step-change in Martel Smiths food from my previous visit. Its seems more focused, more tightly concieved and executed. Although Denis and Martel appear to be in two minds about not getting a Michelin star this year (on the one hand it might be bad for business, on the other it would be nice to have the recognition) my personal opinion is that Tuesday nights meal was strong one star.

As previously noted, service is some of the best I have encountered in the UK and the wine list is full of interesting bottles at very reasonable prices (a good example is the Pol Roger Cuvee Winston Churchill, on sale in Harvey Nichols in Leeds for £85.00, on the 3 York Place list for £95.00).

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  • 2 weeks later...

Enjoyed another fine meal earlier this week, with some Bourgogne Rouge Domaine de l'Arlot going down equally well with Roast Fillet of Beef, Choux Farci of Braised Beef Shin, Shallot Purée, Red Wine Sauce and a good selection of British and French cheeses including a fantatic coleeney from Tipperary.

A glass of 10 year old Maury echoed the flavours of cherry and maple syrup served with the yoghurt sorbet pre dessert, and some Pacherenc Du Vic Bilh Chateau d'Aydie Moelleux 2000 (a nicely balanced dessert wine from Madiran) finished off the evening very nicely indeed.

No 3 York Place is I think a true gastronomic restaurant. There is always something interesting happening on the plate and in the glass and Denis and his team are more than willing to share their knowledge to help you enjoy and appreciate the experience even more. Denis appears never to be resting on his laurels and is his own harshest critic, which can only be good for his customers.

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pleased to hear of another successful visit, far more enjoyable than my trip to the smoke and french course which deprived me from joining you.

In london (the don) i did have the same wine, domaine d'arlot though they had confused the issue by spelling it phonetically d'arlaud.

i of course gained brownie points but, unfortunately not a free bottle, by pointing out their error :biggrin:

I did have lunch at number 3 last tuesday, a great red mullet, tomato risotto and pesto starter followed by a pork fillet (cooked pink) on creamed savoy cabbage, celeriac puree and an elegant red wine sauce. Well worth £15.95.

cheers

gary

Edited by Gary Marshall (log)

you don't win friends with salad

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another pleasant trip to no3 today,

A cold wintery day in leeds, coupled with a boring day at work and wife driving home, saw me skidding through the welcoming doorway this lunchtime.

place was a bit quieter than usual but staff seemed glad of a chance to catch up after an unexpectedly hectic jan/feb.

i went for menu du jour and had a warm salad of goats cheese, honey and thyme which came as two discs of cheese with thyme on thin toasts (i mean thin- 2-3 mils thick).

and for main a confit duck leg on savoy cabbage, smoked bacon, pomme pureee jus of thyme. This was excellent, a giant leg nice and caramelised on the outside but moist and tender within, the quenelle of mash again spot on and a decent sauce.

2 glasses of the house riesling and a couple of house syrahs (domaine du pigolet) rounded off a very pleasant lunchtime.

cheers

gary

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  • 3 weeks later...

New menu at No3, which i think is about the best i can remember, and i'm in next tuesday luch for a feast :biggrin:

Velouté of Leek & Potato, Smoked Haddock Ravioli, Poached Quail’s Egg

£ 4.95

Terrine of Corn Fed Chicken, New Potatoes, Foie Gras & Parma Ham, Pickled Vegetables, Aged Red Wine Vinegar

£ 8.95

Poached Oysters with Fresh Noodles, Cucumber, Avruga Caviar, Sweet & Sour sauce

£ 10.95

Risotto of Plum Tomatoes, Goat’s Cheese Cromesquis, Tapenade & Balsamic Vinegar

£ 7.95

Ballotine of Foie Gras in Sauterne Jelly, Celeriac Remoulade, Truffle Vinaigrette, Toasted Brioche

£ 11.95

Caramelised Galette of Sea Scallops with Endive Tarte Tatin, Red Pepper Vinaigrette

£ 13.95

Carpaccio of Tuna, Niçoise Garnish

£8.95

********

Steamed fillet of Sea Bass Farci, New Potatoes, Asparagus, Basil Cream £ 19.95

Fillet of Whitby Cod Roasted with Curry, Caramelised Salsify, Buttered Baby Spinach, Carrot Purée, Confit Garlic, Curry Cream £ 13.95

Roast Ballotine of Salmon & Sea Scallops, Fricassée of Peas & Baby Onions, Baby Leeks with Ginger, Sweet & Sour Sauce £15.95

Roast Fillet of Beef, Seared Foie Gras, Cèpe Mushrooms, Celeriac Purée, Red Wine Sauce £ 18.95

Roast Rump of Lamb, Brochette of Lamb Sweetbreads, Crushed New Potatoes, Fricassée of Young Vegetables, Jus of Thyme £ 14.95

Pork “Three Ways”

Belly Braised with Spices, Roast Fillet & Braised Trotter filled with Black Pudding & Ham Hock, Pomme Purée, Spinach, Honey & Clove Sauce £ 16.95

Roast Fillet of Veal, Wild Mushroom Risotto, Parsley Purée, White Truffle Cream, Essence of Morels £ 20.95

Roast Breasts of Duckling, Ravioli of Confit Leg, Buttered Savoy Cabbage, Pomme Fondant, Maple Syrup & Blueberry Sauce £ 19.95

Side Order: Panaché de Légumes or Pomme Purée £ 3.95

********

Banana Three Ways (Hot Banana Soufflé, Crème caramel & Iced Parfait)£ 6.95

Hot Rhubarb Soufflé with Ginger Ice Cream £ 6.95

Sablé of Spiced Quince, Honey Cream, Sauterne Sabayon & Red Fruits £ 6.95

Cadeau of Dark Chocolate & Orange, Blood Orange Sorbet £ 6.95

Pyramid of Passion Fruit Sorbet & Nougat Glacé £ 6.95

Assiette of Desserts

£ 12.95

Selection of English & French Farmhouse Cheeses

£ 7.95

********

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  • 3 weeks later...

well the lunch i had planned didn't happen but i made amends with a client lunch today.

I thought the recent menu (see last post) looked great and I was not disappointed.

We started with a bottle of pol roger as it’s nearly my birthday and little excuse was needed.

At the table we had a button mushroom veloute I think which was fine along with the usual choice of white/brown homemade bread.

Ever since I saw the menu the curried cod stood out as a dish I’d really like, so I split that as a starter with a colleague. And had the ‘pork 3 ways’ as a main.

The cod was a decent chunk of cod with a salty skin, salsify and a fantastic curry cream sauce, if only chippy’s served this !

We had a tokay pinot gris 98 with this which made a change and was perfectly good.

My main pork was fillet, stuffed trotter and braised pork belly, it was all good, and would satisfy any piggy aficionado . It was served with pommes puree which is always a treat at no3.

With the mains a domaine d’arlot ‘clos du chapeau’ ‘98 did the trick.

I slipped in a maury mas amiel desert wine to accompany my pineapple tarte tatin (with happy birthday written on the plate!)

Coffee and petit fours finished us off and remarkably, I’m back in the office, I must try harder next year!

you don't win friends with salad

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We started with a bottle of pol roger as it’s nearly my birthday and little excuse was needed.

Is this the most unsubtle post ever to grace the Boards of Egullet? :biggrin:

Go on then - Happy Birthday you old Tart :raz:

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