Le Gavroche

I can say without a doubt that Le Gavroche was the best meal I've had for a long long time. Now if only I can afford to eat here more often. This is the restaurant of Michel Roux Jr, son of the famous Michel Roux. I have to say he has carried on the tradition very well.

Food

I thought it was a great touch that the guys and the ladies get a different menu. The ladies’ menu actually don’t have any prices printed on it. You get a choice of the degustation or the a la carte. In this case, we decided to go a la carte.

To start, there was a selection of bread. We tried the sourdough, country, white baguette, with the best being the sourdough. The bread though, compared to the rest of the meal, is pretty boring, it’s good but not great.

I also decided that it would be wrong of me not to drink, so I ordered some GL Vin Blanc (£5) as a token gesture, and also because it’s one of the cheapest things on the menu, considering our bottle of Evian was £4 and the water they served us at the bar was another £4.

For entrees, we chose Artichoke filled with Foie Gras, truffles and chicken mousse (£36.80), which didn’t sound like it was going to be that great, who knew artichoke goes with foie gras afterall, but it was absolutely wonderful, the artichoke was actually quite mellow, allowing the foie gras and truffle to enhance the dish. Words really can’t describe how wonderful this is. The Langoustines and snails glazed in a light hollandaise sauce, flavoured with basque pepper and parsley (£24.90) was again magnificent, the sauce was out of this world, the langoustines excellent.

I couldn’t wait for main course, and they didn’t disappoint either. The theatre show that preceded the mains, the aroma as the plates were placed before us, and the savouring of every last bite. The Red Mullet and Beef Marrow Toast, Red Wine and Shallot Sauce (£28.60) was one of the cheapest mains on the menu, and I ordered it as I wanted to see what seafood was like at the top level. I can say that it didn’t disappoint at all, so fish CAN be good here, if you are willing to pay for it. The Roast rib of French veal, creamed morel mushroom sauce and mashed potatoes (£40.80), on the other hand, was one of the most expensive, but it was worth it. This is seriously the best piece of meat I have ever had. It was meltingly soft, melt in the mouth, with a wonderfully scented sauce. I am sure I had more fat in the mashed potatoes than is good for me, but boy it was good. I was really tempted to lick the sauce off the plate, and I am sure I am not the only one.

After that, I had high expectations for desserts, especially since I saw the Hot Passionfruit soufflé with White Chocolate Ice-Cream (£26.80) on the menu. I have been hankering for sensational soufflé since the time from Claudes. Sweet and tart, with a lovely foam topping. Poke a hole in the middle and pour in that sensational ice-cream, which is a big call for someone who doesn’t like white chocolate, as the sweetness of white chocolate in this case is needed for the passionfruit. Slokky was greedy, and ordered the Degustation chocolate (£28.90) - White and Milk Chocolate Mousse with Kirsch Soaked Cherries, Bitter Chocolate Sorbet and Chocolate Crème Brulee. The best of the 3 was definitely the crème brulee, like eating pour dark chocolate but more smooth and creamy. I loved the chocolate mousse too, but according to Slokky it was too alcoholic.

Dessert also came with a small plate of Petit Fours, which included almond tuile, almond cake, chocolate brownie…I was very satisfied after this (in fact, way before this), but Slokky wanted to see if Cappuccino (£6.40) at the most expensive restaurant we’ve ever eaten at would be any good…It was certainly the most expensive cappuccino I would ever care to drink, but at least it was good – with the exception of that foam…which was more like the food foam fad than any coffee foam. Since the coffee was so expensive, we made sure we ate a lot of the nougat that was served in a neat wooden box to accompany the coffee. As a result, I was REALLY FULL when I walked out.

Rating - 9.5

Atmosphere

Could it get more exclusive than this? I don’t know. When we arrived, we were lead to a sitting room, where we were given menus to pursue and drinks. We are then lead downstairs where we are seated in plush green banquette seating. The dining room was filled to capacity on this Wednesday night

Everyone dining there seem loaded and act that way too. Big pompous guys with their wire thin girlfriends, all wearing a slinky slip of a dress. It doesn’t look like any of them have to work for a living. There are also table of loud guys in suits. I definitely feel out of place.

Rating - 2

Service

All the waiters are either French or have to speak it anyway. There’s a big show of serving you. Everything is done on a serving table and covered with a silver tray. A lot of the guests are obviously regulars as they were laughing and joking like old friends with the Maitre D', Silvano Giraldin. I felt, like Hambleton Hall, everything is a bit stiff upper lip, but I guess that’s what the clientele expect.

Rating - 4

C-factor

I can’t believe we spent this much money on a meal, and this place wasn’t even 3 stars! Yes, I felt totally wowed and had a great time…As always, I didn’t like the fact that we paid £8 for water, but when you think that an entrée costs around £30, I guess it’s not too great a percentage. It’s just that when you think about it, I could have gone on a weekend away and still have change…those regulars must be loaded!

Rating - 0

Brownie Points - 15.5

Info

43 Upper Brook St
London
W1K 7QR
Phone+44 (0) 20 7408 0881
Website

Hambleton Hall

Michelin star rated country England.

Food

I don’t know if it was because we arrived so early, but we actually got some canapés while we were waiting in the sitting room. Not outstanding, they included goats cheese puff ball, shrimp toast, salmon sandwich, but not bad for while we were waiting.

We decided on the £65 set menu. Our meal proper started with an amuse bouche of Tarragon foam, which really told me what the rest of the meal was going to be like. Each course was presented like art on a plate, and the taste did not disappoint either, although there was a fondness for that trend of making everything into foam. It was all very fussy and structured.

The meal proper consisted of:

• Assiette of Tomato - had tomato foam, tomato terrain with olive and basil, tomato soup with dried tomato, and tomato tart with goats cheese. My favourite was the tart. Great pastry and goats cheese!!
• Mosaic of Chicken, Foie Gras & Veal Sweetbreads with Apple & Blackberry Compote - definitely the highlight. It looked spectacular, and the foie gras really tied this dish together.
• Pan-Fried Fish with Dried Tomato Sauce - ok seafood, superb sauce
• Beef with Potato and Tomato Cubes - nice and succulent
• Assiette of Hambleton’s Desserts - we had passionfruit soufflé (quite nice), toffee with raspberry sorbet and brandy cream (creamy), chocolate tuile with mango sorbet (very sinful), apple slice with apple sorbet (very tart but refreshing), Custard Tart (can't remember!), Champagne jelly (extremely alcoholic, good quality champagne), orange mousse with popping lollies (really really fun, it keeps popping in your mouth, and tasty too!)
• Coffee & Tea - The only disappointment for the night really. A "cappuccino" is white coffee with foam on top, and lemon ginger tea turned out to be water infused with a piece of ginger. Needless to say, both were better left alone.
• Petits Fours - Pistachio macaroon, white chocolate with raspberry, chocolate truffle, passionfruit macaroon, liquorice chocolate, white chocolate and dark chocolate, all very nicely executed, if a bit sweet.

Rating - 8

Atmosphere

Hambleton Hall is an exclusive estate, set on …. You certainly feel special and exclusive, although we were no way dressed up for it, in our travel clothes and muddy shoes. We arrived much earlier than anticipated, as the traffic was good and Slokky was speeding the whole way. We were able to come and shelter from the cold in a very inviting room with a real fireplace and lots of reading material. We enjoyed a drink and relaxed on the comfy chairs while we waited for our table. We actually ordered in the comfort of this room, and were presented with some canapés (which I don’t think anyone else got).

After they were ready, we were called into a small salon room – decked out in gold and red motif, with only 4 tables. White tablecloth, fine china, silver trays for everything, and plush red chairs were standard. Everything is of the hush hush English stiff upper lip variety, so we really felt like we didn’t belong. In fact, every time I laughed I felt I was being rude.

Rating - 3

Service

For a long time we had 2 waiters all to ourselves, so one waiter each to deliver our dishes at the same time. The waiters have obviously been trained to the highest level, and they cater to all your needs, like one of the people sitting behind us actually wanted his steak cooked well instead of medium as advised (I still don’t understand why people come to Michelin starred restaurant and want their steaks murdered…but that’s another story).

The head waiter was extremely efficient and friendly, and the sommelier pretty good too, but I chose not to have any wine on this occasion as I was nursing a cold. There was a lot of wait staff for the number of diners.

Rating - 5

C-factor

Yes, it is expensive, but you are paying for the experience. For the amount of wait staff that served us, the effort that went into the execution, and the prices of the UK, the price is right on. And service charge is already factored into the price and not an added extra, so you don’t get any surprises at the end. They actually charge you a reasonable price for water too!

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 17

Info

Hambleton Hall
Hambleton, Oakham
LE15 8TH
Phone +44 (0) 1572 756 991
Website

Taste of India

We were planning to eat at the pie and mash shop, but when we got there, found it had been replaced by a new and shiny GBK. Never fear, the sign next door claimed to have an All you can Eat buffet with 12 different items, all for £4.95.

Food

The food is definitely British Indian. As expected, the 12 “items” weren’t really all that grand, with chutney and rice counted as 2 items. Here’s what was on offer:

• salad - boring lettuce.
• tandoori chicken - best meat dish of the day. Tender chicken pieces with a slight tinge of tandoori.
• peas and potatoes - slightly gravy like.
• curried chicken - very sweet, chicken was hard
• chickpea stew - stock standard, not much taste
• vegetable curry - best overall dish. This actually had real spicing and was very tasty.
• fried pumpkin parcel - if this was fresh it would be quite wonderful, but this was bain-marie fried stuff, so not nice at all.
• naan - again, very hard due to spending time in the bain-marie.
• rice - at least they got this right.

I also ordered a sweet lassi, which was pale, watery and didn’t taste like it had any spicing added to it at all.

Rating - 4.5

Atmosphere

This was situated in Greenwich afterall, but it actually got quite busy. It’s quite a small, intimate space, with tablecloth and cutlery. It’s certainly not your rough and ready Indian joint.

Rating - 1.5

Service

The wait staff were not very helpful. They were probably surprised that such a large group of people actually wanted to eat there on a Monday lunch. They couldn’t put a table together for us, so we had to do it ourselves. Our drinks were slow, and they didn’t really explain anything to us at all.

Rating - 2

C-factor

£4.95 buffet lunch, we ended up footing £8 p.p. and really didn’t eat that much. Most people had one full plate and I had 2 half plates, that was the extent. You can’t really pile up on Indian anyhow.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 9

Info

43 Greenwich Church St
London
SE10 9BL
Phone +44 (0) 20 8858 2668

The Minories

I walk past The Minories on a daily basis, and each time, I get tempted by the sign that advertises 2 meals for £7.95. For January though, they put up a new sign, for January only, get 2 meals for £6.95, normally £7.95, I took it as a sign.

Food

To get the £6.95 deal, you have to order from a limited menu. I thought they would skim, but surprisingly, all the things on this menu are also on their normal menu. Out of the 8 choices, we decided on:

• BBQ chicken melt - the chicken breast tastes the same as always, but the BBQ sauce coating was pleasing and it was not dry.
• prawn risotto - surprisingly tasty. Usually risottos are overcooked, but this was done just so, and the prawns were very juicy and generous!
• chicken Caesar salad - since there were an odd number, it was cheaper to order an extra dish than to order this on the menu, so we got a salad to share. This was probably the worst dish of the night. The salad was too drenched in sauce and the chicken a bit dry, but they did make good croutons!

And of course, seeing we were at a pub, we had to order beer! The white wheat beer was recommended to me, but it tasted more like a soft drink or a cider, very sweet, and not something I would normally like on a cold wintery evening

Rating - 7

Atmosphere

The entrance looks rough and rugged, and the “beer garden” is better left as it is, but on the inside, it’s a cosy and welcoming pub. Booths, stools are present. You can watch TV if you like, or find one of the hidden corners to cozy up. So, a pub catering for all, which actually makes it quite crowded on this Wednesday night.

Rating - 2

Service

The food was a bit slow, and they got totally confused with what orders were associated with what number (or the cute wine bottle tags they use). The waiter was charming though, coming to make sure we were alright and saying thank you to us when we left. It was a juggle trying to fit all our plates and sauces on the table though, as there wasn’t much room so the five of us had to sit at a table for 4.

Rating - 3

C-factor

Cheap, even if we didn’t save that extra £1! Much better value than the Goodman’s Field deal.

Rating - 2

Brownie Points - 14

Info

64-73 The Minories
London
EC3N 1JL
Phone+44 (0) 20 7702 1658

Yo! Sushi St Pauls 2

I know I know, back again so soon, but hey, they had another deal on and I did want to try some of the other stuff on the menu.

Food

There was no restriction on the colour of the plate this time, but we couldn’t order anything off the menu, so had to get whatever came off the conveyor belt. The problem with that though, was there was a long lull where I didn’t want anything from the belt at all, so I chose something I didn’t like to fill the gap, but then when I was getting full, all these things I wanted to try came along, so I was REALLY full afterwards.

Purple

• Chicken Katsu – Crispy fried chicken in Japanese bread crumbs, with a fruity sauce - I grabbed this fresh off the belt, so it was quite nice, for fried chicken anyway.
• Takoyaki – Crunchy fried octopus balls with a fruity katsu sauce, Japanese mayonnaise, red ginger and dried tuna flakes
  - again, hot off the melt. You can’t really mess up takoyaki, as long as it’s hot, the sauce does the rest.
• Mochi – glutinous rice cake - I never had desserts last time I was here, and these are actually one of the things that work very well on a sushi train. These were like…umm, normal mochi!
• Dorayaki – Japanese pancake with custard filling and raspberry sauce - the favourite snacks of dori-mon, and these were really beautiful, the custard goes so well with the pancakes, the best dish of the day.

Orange

• Yo! Roll – Salmon, avocado, masago (fish roe) and mayonnaise
  - quite fresh. They do their salmon rolls well, but a bit too much mayo for my liking.
• Crayfish & Cucumber Futomaki – crayfish, cucumber and rocket - sounds much better than it was, more like bits of crabsticks, not nice at all. This was the one I had after waiting for ages for something to come along.

Pink

• Hairy Prawns – prawns wrapped in kadaifi pastry with wasabi mayonnaise - average, frozen prawns, and half warm fried stuff do not go well together, but I blame myself for choosing this.

Blue

• Salmon – finely sliced salmon with wasabi - really just to you’re your stomach, the salmon is not particularly tasty, nor is the rice.
• Octopus – cooked octopus with a nori band - not fresh, so not good.

Rating - 5

Atmosphere

Slightly less people this time, and slightly less noisy, but it still ceases to amaze me why this place is so popular.

Rating - 1.5

Service

Hit and miss. It was the same people serving as last time. They always seemed hurried, sometimes the service is great, other times really slow. I suppose they are at least trying and not standing around.

Rating - 2.5

C-factor

My bill ended up being £11.50, so it was not too bad. I don’t think I will ever eat here at full price though.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 10

Info

Condor House
5-14 St Pauls Church Yard
London
EC4M 8AY
Phone +44 (0) 20 7248 8726
Website

Fine Burger Co

Since you can’t avoid the chain stores, I figured this was as good a place as any to get some fast food.

Food

It’s another one of those places that does the gourmet burger thing. We had the Greek Lamb & Feta (£6.95) - Feta cheese, sun-dried tomato relish, pesto, oregano, tzatziki, mayo, onion, lettuce & beef tomato, which was quite nice. Succulent lamb, nice wet filling, which can’t be said for the Swiss Mushroom (£6.95) - Emmental Cheese, grilled field mushrooms, mayo, onion, lettuce & beef tomato, which sounded so promising, but the reality was it was very dry.

I think the best thing was the Peanut Butter & Banana Milkshake (£3.45), which I am sure is really bad for you, that’s why it tastes so good 

Rating - 6

Atmosphere

White is the colour theme. It’s like high class fast food, cool design, if not so functional. I liked the tomato shaped sauce holders in all different colours though. Most of the people were there catching up as a group, before going off to the cinemas.

Rating - 2

Service

Hey, it’s like McDonalds, you order at the counter, pay, wait, and then pick up your order. You clean up after yourself afterwards, easy and straightforward, I like it.

Rating - 3

C-factor

Very expensive for what you get really, but at least it was eatable.

Rating - 0

Brownie Points - 11

Info

1st floor, O2 Centre,
255 Finchley Road
London
NW3 6LU
Phone+44 (0) 20 7433 0700
Website

The Chancery

The Chancery is the sister restaurant to The Clerkenwell, so if our last experience was anything to go by, we were in for a good time.

Food

Generally, the food was well presented and the flavours worked well together. We started off with some cheese sticks, which were very cheesy but not very crunchy. A small basket of wholegrain and sun-dried tomato bread (average) were provided as well.

An amuse-bouche of parsnip veloute relied a little too much on salt for its flavour, the natural sweetness of the parsnip is masked somehow, but at least it’s not foam!

Before too long, our entrees proper arrived. Crisp fillet of red mullet, beetroot carpaccio, quails egg salad, shallot and caper dressing looked wonderful on the plate, and I was very pleased with the way the skin of the mullet had been rendered crisp. The mullet too, had a wonderful flavour and firm flesh. The eggs were done until the yolk has just set, I would have liked mine a bit more runny so it would run into the wonderful beetroot carpaccio. The Assiette of rabbit served three ways was mostly well done. The best of the three was the rabbit terrain, retaining the gamey flavour of the rabbit. The rabbit soup didn’t taste like rabbit at all, and was a bit boring. The rissole was a little too rough made with rabbit meat, but had a nice crunchy flavour that worked well with the fig jam.

My main of Line-caught sea bass, spider crab and crushed new potatoes in a shellfish bouillabaisse sauce was let down by the quality of the fish, which was mushy. The bouillabaisse sauce was wonderful, a smattering of clams and mussels completed the picture. The potato disc didn’t really go with the dish though. Slokky’s Cannon of lamb with a turmeric crust, celeriac puree, baby turnips and thyme jus was a better choice. The lamb was juicy, the sauce reduced very well. The accompaniment married well with the sauce.

After our plates were hastily snatched away, we were given pre-dessert of apricot and Armagnac jelly. It didn’t quite cleanse the palate but was an excellent dessert in itself, the sweetness of the apricot nicely balancing the slight bitterness of the jelly. I was very pleased with my Prune custard tart, with elderflower and rose scented sabayon. The shell was of excellent pastry, the filling is a mixture of custard and prunes. I had never had this combination before, and it worked very well. One alcoholic prune added to the mix. I really like the sabayon, it really brings out the prune flavour. Slokky’s Caramelised apple tart tatin, vanilla ice cream was pretty boring. I found it had too much caramelisation, so it was over-whelming the apples and the pastry.

I was very full after this, but since Coffee and petit fours were included in the price, Slokky decided to test drive their cappuccino, which was, as expected, terrible. I had long ago written off ever having good coffees, so got some peppermint tea, which I could see, was from a Twining teabag. Petit fours weren’t that exciting, consisting of brownie and marshmallow, and tasted like brownie and marshmallow.

Rating - 6.5

Atmosphere

It’s quite an intimate space, with only room for around 50 diners, plus a bar area located in the basement level. On the night we were there, there was a large group filling the back room. The front room was empty when we dined at 7pm, although it did gradually start to fill from about 8pm. They chose to stick us in the worst table in the whole restaurant though ,smack bang in the middle of the walkway, when we could have sat at one of the empty tables.

Décor wise, it is very dark, with only tiny tealight candles providing a light source. Otherwise, it’s the same old wooden tables and high back chairs.

Rating - 1

Service

I had read on Toptable that people were complaining that the service was slow. Maybe they were trying too hard to counter that, but I could only describe the service as fast. As soon as I put down my fork, the waiter whisked my plate away. They also removed the bread plates while we were in the middle of eating. We felt like we were really being rushed, but as they started to get more busy, the service slowed down considerably, since they only had 2 waiters servicing the whole restaurant.

The male waiter was charming (probably an Italian), but I asked for the menu and the bill, of which he didn’t deliver, so it was all looks and no substance. The lady did better, being polite, but not really putting in the extra care or anticipating our needs.

Rating - 1.5

C-factor

We got 50% discount off the normal £34 for 3 courses + coffee and petit fours + all the extras, so great value for London.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 10

Info

9 Cursitor St
London
EC4A 1LL
Phone+44 (0) 20 7831 4000
Website

Wagamama Canary Wharf

Since Wagamama is so popular in the UK, I thought maybe they are actually better than its Australian counterpart. Boy, was I wrong. I guess because the UK have no good Asian places to eat, relatively speaking, Wagamama is considered good.

Food

I was going to get the ramen to see if it’s done better here (apparently it’s not), but I decided to go for something that’s not on the Aussie menu, so I ordered the kai sen gohan (£9.75) - wok-fried tiger prawns, squid, seabass and Japanese fishcake stir-fried with bok choi, red and spring onion in a thickened oyster, fresh garlic and wine sauce served with japanese-style-rice. It certainly sounds much better than it looks, and it certainly looks much better than it tastes, which basically means, it tasted like crap. The seafood had no flavour, there was very little of it, and the sauce was so one dimensional. It was poured over the rice, taking it soggy. If the sauce was better then it would be ok, but this sauce actually made the sauce taste worst.

Rating - 2

Atmosphere

Well, at least the formula works. The furnishing, the little shelf for your bag, the rude waiters, they were all there. I can’t believe we actually had to wait for a table on a Monday lunchtime!

Rating - 1.5

Service

Well, they can speak English, but boy they were rude. They rattled off a bunch of meals that had already sold out (amazing!), and then we were ignored. They didn’t deliver cutlery that was missing from our table, so we had to steal it from another place setting. They didn’t explain how the whole Wagamama concept worked either, which was disappointing, as I usually look forward to saying, yes, I know about your stupid number on place mat system.

Rating - 2

C-factor

I can’t believe people pay to eat here. The price is the same as all the other chain stores, and at least they have eatable food.

Rating - 0

Brownie Points - 5.5

Info

Jubilee Place
45 Bank Street
London
E14 5NY
Phone +44 (0) 20 7516 9009
Website

Bib Gourmade 2008 - UK

ENGLAND

Aldeburgh	The Lighthouse
Alderley Edge	The Wizard
Barnes	Ma Cuisine
Barnes	The Brown Dog
Battersea	The Butcher & Grill
Bayswater & Maida Vale	L’Accento
Bayswater & Maida Vale	Trenta
Beverley/South Dalton	The Pipe & Glass Inn
Birmingham	Pascal’s
Blackpool/Thornton	Twelve
Boroughbridge	thediningroom
Bray-on-Thames	The Hinds Head
Bray-on-Thames	The Royal Oak
Brighton and Hove	Ginger Pig
Brighton and Hove	Terre à Terre
Brighton and Hove	The Real Eating Company
Burnham Market	The Hoste Arms
Bury	The Waggon
Cambridge	22 Chesterton Road
Cambridge/Little Wilbraham	The Hole in the Wall
Camden	Salt Yard
Canterbury/Lower Hardres	The Granville
Castle Cary/South Cadbury	The Camelot
Chipping Campden/Paxford	Churchill Arms
Chipping Norton	The Masons Arms
Clerkenwell	Comptoir Gascon
Danehill	Coach & Horses
Durham	Bistro 21
Exeter/Rockbeare	Jack in the Green Inn
Guernsey/St Saviour	The Pavilion
Haddenham	Green Dragon
Hammersmith	Agni
Hastings & St Leonards	St. Clements
Hemel Hempstead	Restaurant 65
Hunstanton/Ringstead	The Gin Trap Inn
Hurley	Black Boys Inn
Hutton Magna	The Oak Tree Inn
Islington	Metrogusto
Itteringham	The Walpole Arms
Jersey/Gorey	Village Bistro
Jersey/Green Island	Green Island
Kenilworth	Simply Simpsons
Kensington	Malabar
Kew	Ma Cuisine
Knaresborough/Ferrensby	The General Tarleton Inn
Lambeth	Upstairs
Leeds	Anthony’s at Flannels
Leeds	Brasserie Forty Four
Lewisham	Chapter Two
Limehouse	The Narrow
Manchester	Palmiro
Manchester/Didsbury	Café Jem&I
Masham	Vennell’s
Matlock/Birchover	The Druid Inn
Mayfair	Via Condotti
Melton Mowbray/Stathern	Red Lion Inn
Millbrook/Freathy	The View
Mistley	The Mistley Thorn
Newcastle upon Tyne	Amer’s
Norwich	1 Up at the Mad Moose Arms
Norwich/Stoke Holy Cross	Wildebeest Arms
Oldham	The White Hart Inn
Orford	The Trinity (at Crown and Castle Hotel)
Oxford/Stanton St John	The Talkhouse
Oxford/Toot Baldon	Mole Inn
Padstow	Rick Stein’s Café
Preston	Inside Out
Preston	Winkleigh Square Chop House
Regents Park & Marylebone	Galvin
Reigate	The Westerly
Ribchester	The White Bull
Ross-on-Wye	The Lough Pool at Sellack
Royal Leamington Spa	Oscar’s
Royal TunbridgeWells/Speldhurst	George & Dragon
Rushlake Green	Stone House
Saxmundham	The Bell
Sheffield	Artisan
Shepherd’s Bush	The Havelock Tavern
Skipton/Hetton	The Angel Inn
Soho	Benja
Southport	Warehouse Brasserie
Southwark	The Anchor and Hope
Sowerby Bridge	The Millbank
St Albans	Sukiyaki
St James’s	Al Duca
St James’s	Brasserie Roux
Stamford	Jim’s Yard
Stanton	The Leaping Hare
Stokenchurch/Radnage	The Three Horseshoes Inn
Stow-on-the Wold	The Old Butchers
Strand & Covent Garden	Great Queen Street
Stratford-upon-Avon	Malbec
Sudbury	Hitchcock’s
Summercourt	Viners
Sutton-on-the-Forest	Rose & Crown
Tetbury	The Gumstool Inn
Tooting	Kastoori
Twickenham	Brula Bistrot
Twickenham	Ma Cuisine
Twickenham	Tangawizi
Tynemouth	Sidney’s
Ullingswick	Three Crowns Inn
Wells	The Old Spot
West Malling	The Swan
Westfield	The Wild Mushroom
Whitechapel	Cafe Spice Namaste
Witney/Leafield	The Navy Oak
York	J. Baker’s

SCOTLAND

Crieff	The Bank
Edinburgh	Atrium
Edinburgh	Duck’s at Le Marche Noir
Killin/Ardeonaig	The Restaurant
Kintyre/Kilberry	The Kilberry Inn
North Queensferry	The Wee Restaurant
Sorn	The Sorn Inn
Strathyre	Creagan House

WALES

Abergavenny	The Hardwick
Newport	The Chandlery

NORTHERN IRELAND

Belfast	Cayenne
Holywood	Fontana
Warrenpoint	Restaurant 23

Al Faisals

We were expecting the Balti Triangle to be a bit like Brick Lane, but bigger, as it is a triangle and not a lane afterall, but the reality was that there are only a few shops, spaced quite sparsely apart. We settled on Al Faisals as it was very crowded on this Saturday night.

Food

We had plenty of time to pursue the menu while we waited for a table. There’s a mix of old “British Indian” and new dishes we haven’t seen before. As soon as we sat down, some Poppadoms with 5 sauces were delivered. I looked across the table, and they seemed to have more than us, but our shares were more than adequate. We mixed and matched the different flavours. We ordered the Shikarey Ghosht (£7.95) – lamb cooked in the traditional hunters way of cooking with a wonderful blend of wild spices, which was very nice. The meat was not as tender as I expected, the sauce had some zing to it. The Daal of the Day (£5.95) – yellow split chickpeas cooked with tomatoes, garlic, ginger and a mixture of spices- garnished with fresh coriander, I am wondering if they actually change the daal every day, but the one we got was very smoky and thick, quite like eating a paste or something. Of course, we had to have our lassi to wash it down. You can actually order Jug of Mango Lassi (£6), which is much better value. They give you these cute tilted glasses too. The lassi is sweet and thick, unlike the pale watery ones I’ve tasted.

Rating - 7

Atmosphere

This place was totally unexpected. I thought the Balti triangle would be filled with little dingy shops, but this place was huge, 2 levels of open space filled with tables. The space was bright and quite modern, in the manner of Lahore really. There were lots and lots of people, family, friends, all manner of nationalities and all having a good time. You can watch the chef in the big open kitchen, and a corner of the room is devoted to the drinks and dessert counter where 2 staff get a workout preparing everything for the horde.

Rating - 2

Service

The service was great to begin with. We were seated in the lounge area while a table was prepared for us. We were given menus to look over so we could order when we sat down. Before too long, we were seated and the poppadoms delivered. Orders were taken promptly but the water was not delivered. Never fear, the various other waiters who kept coming by to ask if everything was alright delivered it. It was charming to begin with, but when they kept asking you, it just gets annoying.

They were also very keen to clear our plate, so it was like almost as soon as you put down your cutlery, they swoop on you to take away everything. I had to ask twice for them not to take away our poppadoms. The second time, they said they would fill up the tray with poppadoms again – which was totally unnecessary as we were too full to eat anymore than one ones that were leftover an we didn’t want to waste food. Nothing we could do about that. I wonder why, as the hall was full of people and the waiters were always kept busy. Maybe they are just enthusiastic.

Rating - 3

C-factor

It’s not the cheapest meal you can have. By London standard the prices are pretty good for the serving size and quality though.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 13

Info

136 – 140 Stoney Lane
Sparkbrook
Birmingham
B12 8AQ
Phone +44 (0) 12 1449 5695
Website

Michelin Stars 2007- UK

3 stars:

LONDON

• Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, London

ENGLAND

• The Fat Duck, Bray, Berkshire
• The Waterside Inn, Bray, Berkshire

2 stars:

LONDON

• The Capital hotel, Knightsbridge
• Le Gavroche, Mayfair
• Pétrus, Berkeley hotel, Knightsbridge
• Pied á Terre, Bloomsbury
• The Square, Mayfair

ENGLAND

• Le Champignon Sauvage, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
• Gidleigh Park, Chagford, Devon
• Hibiscus, Ludlow, Shropshire
• Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons, Great Milton, Oxfordshire
• Midsummer House, Cambridge
• The Vineyard at Stockcross, Newbury, Berkshire

SCOTLAND

• Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles, Auchterarder, Perthshire

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

• Patrick Guilbaud, Dublin

1 star:

LONDON

• 1 Lombard Street, City of London
• Amaya, Belgravia
• Angela Hartnett at The Connaught, Mayfair
• Arbutus, Soho
• Assagi, Notting Hill
• L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Strand/Covent Garden
• Aubergine, Chelsea
• Benares, Mayfair
• Chez Bruce, Wandsworth
• Club Gascon, West Smithfield
• L’Escargot, Soho
• Foliage, Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park hotel, Knightsbridge
• The Glasshouse, Kew Village
• Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s, Mayfair
• The Greenhouse, Mayfair
• Hakkasan, Bloomsbury
• The Ledbury, Notting Hill
• Locanda Locatelli, Marylebone
• Maze, London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square, Mayfair
• Mirabelle, Curzon Street, Mayfair
• Nahm, Halkin hotel, Chelsea
• Nobu, Metropolitan hotel, Mayfair
• Nobu Berkeley, Mayfair
• La Noisette, Chelsea
• Orrery, Marylebone
• Rasoi Vineet Bhatia, Chelsea
• Rhodes Twenty Four, Tower 42, City of London
• Richard Corrigan at Lindsay House, Soho
• River Café, Hammersmith
• Roussillon, Pimlico
• The Savoy Grill, Savoy hotel, The Strand
• Sketch (The Lecture Room), Mayfair
• Tamarind, Mayfair
• Tom Aikens, Chelsea
• Umu, Mayfair
• Yauatcha, Soho
• Zafferano, Knightsbridge

ENGLAND

• 5 North Street, Winchcombe, Gloucestershire
• 36 on the Quay, Emsworth, Hampshire
• The Abbey, Penzance, Cornwall
• Apicius, Cranbrook, Kent
• Arkle, Chester Grosvenor hotel, Chester, Cheshire
• Bath Priory Hotel and Restaurant, Bath, Somerset
• Bohemia, St Helier, Jersey
• Box Tree, Ilkley, West Yorkshire
• Burlington Restaurant, Devonshire Arms, Bolton Abbey, Yorkshire
• The Castle hotel, Taunton, Somerset
• Christophe, Fermain Valley hotel, Fermain Bay, Guernsey
• Drake’s, Ripley, Surrey
• Drakes on the Pond, Abinger Hammer, Surrey
• The Elephant, Torquay, Devon
• L’Enclume, Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria
• Fischer’s, Baslow Hall, Derbyshire
• The Goose, Britwell Salome, Oxon
• The George, Yarmouth, Isle of Wight
• Gilpin Lodge, Windermere, Cumbria
• Gravetye Manor, East Grinstead, Surrey
• The Greyhound, Stockbridge, Hampshire
• Hambleton Hall, Oakham, Rutland
• The Hand and Flowers, Marlow, Buckinghamshire
• The Hare, Hungerford, Berkshire
• The Harrow at Little Bedwyn, Marlborough, Wiltshire
• Harry’s Place, Grantham, Lincolnshire
• Holbeck Ghyll country house hotel, Windermere, Cumbria
• Jessica’s, Birmingham
• JSW, Petersfield, Hampshire
• Juniper, Altrincham, Greater Manchester
• Lucknam Park country house hotel, Colerne, near Bath, Wiltshire
• Mallory Court country house hotel, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
• The Masons Arms, South Molton, Devon
• Morston Hall, Blakeney, Norfolk
• Mr Underhill’s at Dinham Weir, Ludlow, Shropshire
• Nathan Outlaw, Fowey, Cornwall
• The New Angel, Dartmouth, Devon
• Northcote Manor, Blackburn, Lancashire
• Ocean at the Atlantic hotel, La Pulente, St Brelade, Jersey
• Ockenden Manor, Cuckfield, West Sussex
• Old Vicarage, Ridgeway, near Sheffield, South Yorkshire
• The Olive Branch, Clipsham, Rutland
• L’Ortolan, Shinfield, near Reading, Berkshire
• Le Poissin at Whitley Ridge, Brockenhurst, Hampshire
• Read’s, Faversham, Kent
• Restaurant Sat Bains, Nottingham
• Ripley’s, Padstow, Cornwall
• Seaham Hall, Seaham, Durham
• Sharrow Bay Country House hotel, Ullswater, Cumbria
• Simpsons, Birmingham
• The Sportsman, Whitstable/Seasalter, Kent
• Stagg Inn, Kington, Herefordshire
• The Star Inn, Harome, Helmsley, North Yorkshire
• The Trouble House Inn, Tetbury, Gloucestershire
• Tean, Scilly Isle/St Martin’s, Cornwall
• Waldo’s, Cliveden, Taplow, Berkshire
• The West House, Biddenden, Kent
• West Stoke House, Chichester/West Stoke, West Sussex
• Whatley Manor, Malmesbury, Wiltshire
• Winteringham Fields, Winteringham, North Lincolnshire
• Yorke Arms, Pateley Bridge, North Yorkshire

SCOTLAND

• Braidwoods, Dalry, North Ayrshire
• Glenapp Castle, Ballantrae, South Ayrshire
• Inverlochy Castle, Fort William, Highlands
• The Kitchin, Edinburgh
• Knockinaam Lodge, Portpatrick, Dumfries & Galloway
• Martin Wishart, Edinburgh
• Number One, Balmoral hotel, Edinburgh
• Summer Isles Hotel, Achiltibuie, Highlands

WALES

• The Crown at Whitebrook, Monmouth
• Plas Bodegroes, Pwllheli, Gwynedd

NORTHERN IRELAND

• Restaurant Michael Deane, Belfast

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

• Chapter One, Dublin
• L’Ecrivain, Dublin
• Thornton’s, Fitzwilliam hotel, Dublin

The Age GFG 2008

Two Hats:

• Attica - Ripponlea
• Becco - Melbourne
• Botanical - South Yarra
• Cafe di Stasio - St Kilda
• Circa, the Prince - St Kilda
• Donovans - St Kilda
• Ezard - Melbourne
• Flower Drum - Melbourne
• Grossi Florentino - Melbourne
• Interlude - Fitzroy
• Matteo's - Fitzroy
• Pearl Restaurant + Bar - Richmond
• The Press Club - Melbourne
• Rockpool Bar and Grill - Southbank
• Stokehouse Downstairs - St Kilda
• Taxi - Melbourne
• Three One Two - Carlton
• Vue de Monde - Melbourne

One Hat:

• Abla's -Carlton
• The Argo - South Yarra
• Bacash - South Yarra
• the brasserie by Philippe Mouchel - Southbank
• Cecconi's Cantina - Melbourne
• Cicciolina - St Kilda
• Comme Kitchen - Melbourne
• The Court House Hotel - North Melbourne
• Da Noi - South Yarra
• David's - Prahran
• Delizia Cucina - Seddon
• Fenix - Richmond
• France-Soir - South Yarra
• Gingerboy - Melbourne
• The Graham - Port Melbourne
• The Grand Hotel Dining Room - Richmond
• Hotel Lincoln - Carlton
• Idea Fine Food & Wine - Melbourne
• Il Bacaro Cucina e Bar - Melbourne
• Kenzan - Melbourne
• Koots - Kooyong
• Ladro - Fitzroy
• Longrain Melbourne - Melbourne
• L'Oustal - Albert Park
• Maisonette - Essendon
• Maris - Malvern
• Melbourne Wine Room - St Kilda
• Middle Brighton Baths - Brighton
• Mirka at Tolarno Hotel - St Kilda
• MoVida Bar De Tapas - Melbourne
• Ocha - Kew
• Oyster Little Bourke - Melbourne
• Punch Lane - Melbourne
• Red Emperor - Southbank
• Shira Nui - Glen Waverley
• Shoya Japanese Restaurant - Melbourne
• Tempura Hajime - South Melbourne
• Verge - Melbourne
• Yu-U - Melbourne

Good Food Guide

2009

• Sydney
• Melbourne

2008

• Sydney
• Melbourne

2007

• Sydney
• Melbourne

2006

• Sydney

Michelin Stars and Bib Gourmande

Michelin Stars

2008

• Netherlands
• UK

2007

• Netherlands
• UK

Bib Gourmande

2008

• Netherlands
• UK

2007

• Netherlands
• UK

Michelin Stars 2008 - Netherlands

3 stars:

Zwolle	De Librije
Sluis	Oud Sluis

2 stars:

Amsterdam	Ron Blaauw
Castricum	Apicius
Giethoorn	De Lindenhof
Haarlem	De Bokkedoorns
Kruiningen	Inter Scaldes
Maastricht	Beluga
Ubachsberg	De Leuf
Vaassen	De Leest
Amsterdam	Ciel Bleu
Rotterdam	De Zwethheul

1 star:

Aalst	De Fuik
Bennekom	Het Koetshuis
Blokzijl	Hof van Sonoy
Blokzijl	Kaatje bij de Sluis
Borculo	De Stenen Tafel
Breda	Wolfslaar
Breskens	De Kromme Watergang
Drachten	Koriander
Driebergen-Rijsenburg	Lai Sin
Eindhoven	Avant-Garde Van Groeninge
Eindhoven	De Karpendonkse Hoeve
Etten-Leur	De Zwaan
Gorinchem	Solo
Groningen	Herberg Onder de Linden
Groningen	Muller
Haarlem	Chapeau!
Haarlem	Cheval Blanc
Haarlem	t Brouwerskolkje
Hardenberg	De Bokkepruik
Harderwijk	Basiliek
Heelsum	De Kromme Dissel
Heeze	Boreas
Houten	Kasteel Heemstede
Leens	Schathoes Verhildersum
Loenen	Tante Koosje
Maarssen	Auguste
Maasbracht	Da Vinci
Maastricht	Au Coin des Bons Enfants
Maastricht	Chateau Neercanne
Maastricht	Toine Hermsen
Maastricht	Tout a fait
Malden	Le Marron
Noordeloos	De Gieser Wildeman
Noordwijk aan Zee	Latour
Nuenen	De Lindenhof
Nuth	In De'n Dillegaard
Ootmarsum	De Wanne
Oss	Cordial
Rijsoord	Hermitage
Rotterdam	Amarone
Santpoort	De Vrienden van Jacob
Schoorl	Merlet
s-hertogenbosch	Chalet Royal
Utrecht	Karel V
Venlo	Aubergine
Venlo	Valuas
Vreeland	De Nederlanden
Waalre	De Treeswijkhoeve
Wateringen	t Raethuys
Weert	Bretelli
Well	Brienen aan de Maas
Wilhelminadorp	Katseveer
Wolphaartsdijk	t Veerhuis
Yerseke	Nolet-Het Reymerswale
Zuidlaren	De Vlindertuin
Zutphen	t Schulten Hues
Amsterdam	La Rive
Amsterdam	Vermeer
Amsterdam	Yamazato
Den Haag	Calla's
Den Haag	Le Cirque
Den Haag	Paul van Waarden
Den Haag	Savelberg
Den Haag	Seinpost
Rotterdam	La Vilette
Rotterdam	Parkheuvel