The restaurants I've been to!

[Alexandria Profile]

Joan,

Sounds amazingly extraordinary especially the verrine.

Pleased to see you had a wonderful time ..

[jeral Profile]

Congrats to your business friends, Joanbunting, as for a small operation to stay in business at all is no mean feat here these days.

Glad their choice for celebrating was as good as their workmanship. Many food mini-plates to choose from (and booze of choice) makes that "dinatoire" sound like a "Must go again" place

[Joanbunting Profile]

The word dinatoire simply means - we learned eventually some years ago - that there would be substantial nibbles available so probably no need for dinner.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Didn’t make it to Coconut Tree in Oxford

Had a very nice and cheap Thai crispy pork stir fry at Sasi’s in the wonderful covered market. Genuinely recommended for good quick basic food. Two dishes + rice for I think £6.50 (I bought groceries too, essential Thai supplies for cooking from Baan). Help yourself to condiments, napkins (kitchen roll) and carafes of chilled water. Like being back in Bangkok, but without the monsoon or the diesel fumes.

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

That's sounds lovely, Sue. Excellent recommendation.
I find Oxford great for places to eat. We had a fantastic meal there with Elisa and her husband when they came over to visit their lifelong chum. The Parsonage.
And could have chosen to go to a few places easily.

Joan, just curious, what was the goats cheese marinated in please.

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

Won't be very long for us to catch a ferry to Bilbao and tour around Catalunya.
I don't get to restaurants very often, but do have a near full month of dining out when we are away. And am particularly looking forward to seeing my school chum in Pamplona.

Her husband cooks the best tortilla I've had, and that includes the first one that Ester made for me when I was 19.
His tortilla pan over the flame is larger than a wok (different shape), but he still turns it expertly.

My favourite restaurant dishes that I so look forward to are the steamed almejas at the Bahia.
And the pasta with chilli and garlic. At La Grotta.

And that one ice cream that I save myself for, somewhere just right.

[Joanbunting Profile]

Goats cheese was, and usually is, marinated in EVOO and sariette (summer savoury)

[Sakkarin Profile]

Didn’t make it to Coconut Tree in Oxford. Had a very nice and cheap Thai crispy pork stir fry at Sasi’s

I wish there was a Sasi's round the corner from me!

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I wish there was a Sasi's round the corner from me!

I did actually think of you when I was there, thought it would be right up your street (though sadly not geographically)

[jeral Profile]

Off to lunch tomorrow with my vegan friends but don't know where yet. They're off to Guernsey soon so any everyday recommendations (vegan or vegan friendly) I'll happily pass on to them.

Individual cheap and cheerful places do seem to be more the rage now whilst middle range (like Jamie's) with massive kitting-out costs are struggling. Maybe people are fed up of sameness, once a virtue, of mid-priced chains?

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I think people are eating out differently

People eat out more just to eat, using restaurants as an alternative to cooking, or as a convenience while not at home, or for a really casual meeting with friends, possibly even a regular weekly thing.

For that you want the cheap and cheerful, like Sasi's, or Uncle Nam's (local noodle bar) or the lesser chains like Ask or pizza places, or the local pub

A lot of people go out for Sunday lunch, rather than cooking it at home, usually to a pub with good food

Then people go out for a real treat, perhaps to one of Heston's or a place that's really quirky

It's the places in the middle, like Jamie's that are getting squeezed out

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Well the next time I go to the UK, I certainly won´t be eating at Jamie´s Italian.
I think the kid just spread himself too thin, and trusted his dubious-financial-expert BIL a bit too much.
I can´t for the life of me remember the proverb in English, but in Spanish it goes:
"El que mucho abarca, poco aprieta" ( he who grasps too much, squeezes too little)

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

JO opened a new place here, which was never successful.
Before you even got through the door there was a problem. The place did not take reservations.

It lasted a year.

Remember when his restaurants were yearly membership only? They bombed.

That coupled with the old problem, people who hire family members with no business acumen. Rambo did the same.

Reports are that you'd go there once, and that was it.
Good phrase KKA.

[Alexandria Profile]

Karakoolaide,

I agree with you 100% ..

We also have another saying: "He bit off more than he could chew" ..

Have a lovely weekend.

[Luca Profile]

I've been to some lovely restaurants both top notch and cheap and cheerful. I was recently in Greece, part work/part recuperation and went with friends and colleagues to a delightful restaurant on the beachfront called Xypolitos, near Athens in Artemis or also known as Loutsa. Packed with Greeks and their families. We feasted on crispy calamari, shrimps, octopus, taramasalata, hummus and delicious bread, wild mountain greens, olives and Ouzo had their place too. I recommend it. Totally fresh and great service.

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

Luca
Sounds like an absolute dream. And exactly what I would order. Welcome back, and I hope you are feeling on top of the world!

[Alexandria Profile]

Luca,

Sounds phenomenal.

We are grand fans of Greek
Mezze and Aegean / Mediterranean
Greek Regional Cuisines.

The restaurant sounds familiar !

We get over to Athens every 2 years
approx. We have dear Friends on the
island of Skiatos. We also spend several days in
Athens and Pelopponesse as well, where
a dear friend, produces some of the best Greek Evoo
and won Evoo World Challenges ..

Have a lovely weekend.

[Luca Profile]

Luca
Sounds like an absolute dream. And exactly what I would order. Welcome back, and I hope you are feeling on top of the world!

Thanks Gill. It was wonderful and I did a lot of hiking on Mt Pentelikon, ate huge amounts of healthy food, mountain tea and swam most evenings. I had been warned what to expect! I came back with a lot of superb EVOO, honey and enough mountain tea to last until next visit which may be to the Peloponesse area - Mani. I'm a lot stronger, thanks and getting my food mojo back at last! I even put on weight which is a relief.

Alexandra, What's the name of the EVOO please?

[karadekoolaid Profile]

"He bit off more than he could chew" .

THAT´S the phrase I was looking for!
Thanks, Member 461; I´ve forgotten my English. Too many years in Caracas!

[Pampy Profile]

KK - I thought that it translated to "Jack of all trades, master of none".