Thread: Eating out

Best kebabs in London: Mangal, on Arcola Street, Hackney. The staff barely speak english, it's cramped, smoky & has a very limited menu... but is absolutely delicious. Oh, & it's insanely cheap.

South Asian: New Tayyab, Fieldgate St, Whitechapel. Pakistani Punjabi, very meat-centric, utterly like the standard 'indian' (in fact Bangladeshi) curry fare: more like a cross between Indian and Lebanese. Lamb chops & quail both excellent, naan bread preferable to 72 virgins...

both the above BYOB, which is nice...

The Czech & Slovak National House, Mill Hill Lane, West Hampstead: roast duck & dumplings excellent, as is carp around Christmastime. Smoked pork knuckle (honestly!) is v good, slathered in Czech mustard and washed down with a good tankard of Gambrinus, watched by the massive photos of a)the Pope b)Vaclav Havel c)The Queen d)Winston Churchill that are all over the walls... full of yummy au paires on their evening off, too...


Oxford: Le Petit Blanc, Walton St. Yer classic French, v good indeed. The wine list is great fun.

Al Shami, a Lebanese place in Jericho, Oxford. I've heard it get mixed reviews, but every time i've been there, i've been astounded by the quality & variety of the food, far better than any other Lebanese i've tried. they also sell Chateau Musar at a very reasonable price..

Oh, and Addis, an Ethiopian place on Caledonian Rd, Kings X. Get the Addis platter first time, though the best curry is called (weirdly) Derek Tibbs. Everything eaten off spongy, citrus flatbread in place of cutlery.
My mouth waters everytime i think of the place... though the waitresses are infuriatingly shit, i ought to warn you.

Evelyn Waugh thought very highly of Ethiopian food...

Originally Posted by caubeen

Rose & Thistle in Rockbourne, Hants., especially at lunchtime. Best moules marinieres outside Normandy.

Plumber Manor, Dorset. Not cheap, but a really magnificent "restaurant with bedrooms" for an over-stay if you haven't got a driver. Quite superb food & wine. Spent my wedding night there!

Horseshoe Inn, Ebbesbourne Wake, just west of Salisbury. The very best of English pub cuisine, with extremely well-kept ales. Lovely atmosphere.

The Buck's Head, Dundrum, Co. Down. Magnificent food, mind-boggling wine-list, fine service, all at modest prices. Worthy of Michelin attention, IMHO.

And just about any restaurant in Ludlow. Arguably the food capital of the UK outside London.

Concur on Ludlow - a cruise through the market on a Saturday, taking in a fantastic 'proper' butchers and the speciality beer emporium made the party reluctant to go out for a meal that evening. Great place to get your faggots!

For the SE, there's a new and just superb Indian/Asian in Bishops Stortford- I forget the name but it's in the Riverside development.

The Tickell Arms, Whittlesford, nr. Cambridge - great pity Kim Tickell is no longer with us, but a very fine restaurant nevertheless.

The Butley Orford Oysterage, Orford, Suffolk - Unique. Sea-foodies dream of a place like this. Just get them to bring you the hor's d'oeuvres platter again and again. Well-kept Adnam's ales across the road in the King's head.

Can anyone recommend a good restaurant in Ypres for a group of ladies on a Saturday night please

Try The Square just off Berkley square. Two Michelin Stars, does 10 coures tasting menu with a different wine for each course and is divine. Budget for about £140 a head, money well spent though.

Originally Posted by Civvy_Shot

Originally Posted by caubeen

Rose & Thistle in Rockbourne, Hants., especially at lunchtime. Best moules marinieres outside Normandy.

Plumber Manor, Dorset. Not cheap, but a really magnificent "restaurant with bedrooms" for an over-stay if you haven't got a driver. Quite superb food & wine. Spent my wedding night there!

Horseshoe Inn, Ebbesbourne Wake, just west of Salisbury. The very best of English pub cuisine, with extremely well-kept ales. Lovely atmosphere.

The Buck's Head, Dundrum, Co. Down. Magnificent food, mind-boggling wine-list, fine service, all at modest prices. Worthy of Michelin attention, IMHO.

And just about any restaurant in Ludlow. Arguably the food capital of the UK outside London.

Concur on Ludlow - a cruise through the market on a Saturday, taking in a fantastic 'proper' butchers and the speciality beer emporium made the party reluctant to go out for a meal that evening. Great place to get your faggots!

For the SE, there's a new and just superb Indian/Asian in Bishops Stortford- I forget the name but it's in the Riverside development.

Cruising for faggots. Hmmmm.

For London

The Pepper Tree an outstanding and very cheap thai resturant in Clapham just by Clapham Common Tube. Long bench Tables and the best Pad Thai that I have ever tasted. You cannot book but rarely need to queue for more than 30 minutes and the queuing is half the fun.

Pommegranates - Pimlico a different kettle of fish entirely. Great food in a subterranean resturant with an eccentric owner. More expensive £259 for 4 with a bottle and drinks but a wonderful evening.

The Blue Elephant Fulham way Outstanding thai resturant which makes you feel you are in the rain forest - bridges and streams with carp in. great for that romantic bit. £100 for 2

Warminster area

The Bath arms - Crockerton Great food good value. The sticky beef is a triumph.

The Angel - Upton Scudamore. Again great food at good prices. Love everything

Check out "Milk and Honey" in Soho. Brilliant little place with an amazing atmosphere. It's pretty well hidden (on purpose) so you need to phone to make a reservation and find out how to get in (the door is disguised, I walked past it 3 times while I was looking for the place and did'nt see it). Great food, great drinks, great service, reasonable prices.

Number on the website: http://www.mlkhny.com/london/

J.

Originally Posted by Civvy_Shot

Concur on Ludlow - a cruise through the market on a Saturday, taking in a fantastic 'proper' butchers and the speciality beer emporium made the party reluctant to go out for a meal that evening. Great place to get your faggots!

An update on Ludlow: after visiting the market, the restaurants etc etc, it's worth going to the Ludlow Food Centre at Bromfield, a village a couple of miles north west of Ludlow on the A49. Fantastic local meat and produce, including cheese, bread, booze and so on, much of it sourced off the Earl of Plymouth's estate. There's also a really excellent gastro-pub, the Clive Arms, which has rooms to stay in which tend to be cheaper than Ludlow itself. Check it out.

I'm biased because I live in Bromfield when not in London but I don't have shares in the place, honest!

L'Enclume in Cartmel, Cumbria.

Simon Rogan makes Heston B look conventional!

I had a wonderful supper in Arras on Saturday night in a pirate themed restaurant in Place des Heroes - thoroughly recommend it :D

Mammounia, Curzon Street

Very nice is somehwat pricey Morroccan Food, slightly nervy around large groups of Algerians though.

Just round the corner (sort of) in St James you'll find Dukes hotel for the best (Vodka) Martini's in London.

Somewhat further afield, The Queen's Head in Dogmersfield, Near Fleet, does possibly the best Sunday Lunch in a 50 mile radius.

The Box wood cafe at the Berkeley in knightsbridge, great food and wine and you do not have to re mortgage dinner for 2 came in under a £100 and she loved it!!

and have got to say The Balti House in Keighley!!!!

Originally Posted by exnorthener

The Box wood cafe at the Berkeley in knightsbridge, great food and wine and you do not have to re mortgage dinner for 2 came in under a £100 and she loved it!!

and have got to say The Balti House in Keighley!!!!

Seconded on the Boxwood, one of Gordon Ramsey's reataurants. You can eat for under £100 for two (less if you go for two courses and a couple of glasses of wine) or you can really splash out if you feel the need. The cocktails are bloody pricey though.

We went there for the Current Mrs Bat_Crab's Christmas do last year and I indulged myself with the least PC meal ever: a Veal and Fois Gras burger!