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Rather than baulk at the length and dictatorial bent of tasting menus or the inherent unpredictability and lack of control of small-plate formats, those diners still insisting both on wide choice and a three-course format should consider the behind-the-scenes impact of the choice and structure they see as non-negotiable, says restaurateur Tom Fahey.
Tasting menu? A la carte? Bit of both? How do we offer choice without waste? How do we reassure the accountant but also stay creative? How do we keep kitchen and front of house teams enthusiastic, and the experience fresh enough for guests to want to return?
This felt like the hill on which tasting menus ought to die. The pace of it was agonisingly, pole-axingly slow. The meal took three very elongated hours and we still hadn't sighted the finish-line. There’s a point at which you just can't keep sitting there, waiting for what feels like half an hour between each twiddly bit and each couple ...
Local and seasonal might be food’s biggest buzzwords but there are few restaurants that cleave so dogmatically to cooking from the land around it as Crocadon.
Rethinking the scoring system for The Good Food Guide was no small undertaking; it’s a bold move to unpick something so established. But with the fresh eyes of new ownership and the move to a fully digital platform came a healthy questioning of the 1-10 scoring system that had been in place since 1998.
Wild garlic is swathing woodland in vivid green, and lambs are starting to bleat and bounce round fields. Catkins jiggle like said lambs’ tails, and birdsong ripples through longer days. Officially, spring is here – but it’s deceptive as this week’s arctic blast has proven. New-season British-grown veg is a way off being ready, and chefs are having to dig ...
As our Local Gem category grows, so the number of bakeries in the Guide rises. Here are some of the wonderful inclusions. Some have cafes alongside, some will simply sell you loaves and cakes, some offer delivery or subscriptions so that you need never be without a perfect loaf.
So, how was dry January for you? Did you count down the days and hours to midnight of the 31st, or did you find it a brightening start to the year? Maybe – dare we say – you’ve seamlessly continued the habit into February, and discovered new favourite restaurants that serve cracking alternatives to wine, beer and spirits.
Michel Bourdin, who has sadly died at the age of 80, arrived at The Connaught in 1975 and spent 26 years in charge of the kitchens. He did a remarkable job reworking classic principles and maintaining a grandeur in the cuisine to match the hotel’s Edwardian splendour. Here you could eat the spectacular chartreuse de gibiers à l’ancienne made in ...
A longstanding contributor to the Guide takes us to Bury Market and a Turkish café worth making a beeline for.
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