The Lake District is bloody glorious. It’s without doubt the most beautiful corner of England (and I’ve been to all the corners) and more and more it’s also got plenty of fantastic places to eat. But food aside, you need to get up into the fells. You can head up onto mighty Helvellyn or Scafell …
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about dining experiences, and how must expectation feeds into your enjoyment of a meal. I’ll be honest: I went to Core with so much buzz and hype about Clare Smyth’s restaurant having passed before my eyes that I was perhaps doomed to go “meh?” when I was treated …
I’m very seldom in a steak restaurant. As I’ve noted before, most times for me the interesting thing about a plate of food – certainly if I’m going to throw £20+ at it – is the chef’s choice of flavours and textures, how they balance, how they pop and how they’re presented. Whereas a steak …
I wonder to what extent labelling a dish “Winning dish on Great British Menu” skews the punters to order it? I’m willing to bet that a lot more of them fly out of the kitchen than the other mains or starters they’re sharing the menu with. And chef Aktar Islaam has two “winner on GBM” …
This little restaurant in a tucked-away corner of Cirencester is really hard to pin down. Is it fine dining or casual? Is it modern or trad Spanish? Is it brilliant value or a bit confused? Is it tapas or tasting menu? I’m not sure I can answer all these questions, but Tierra and Mar is …