Grace Dents' bugbear is obscure opening hours. Mine is the lack of a menu on the website, or a menu with no prices, or worse, a link to Instagram where the menu is on a story that disappears in 3 seconds.
2nd bugbear; William Sitwell, and anyone who uses the word think as in 'think pre-breakfast dip in a calm ocean'. Don't tell me what to think!
So many restaurant websites are bad, it very odd. It's been like it for years and years but the new 'too cool for school' ones with the bare minimum of info are just infuriating.
I'm sure I've been guilty of using 'think' in the past but I'm trying to avoid it. It's such a hack thing to do.
Borscht & Tears still alive & even more amazing, getting a good review. They were one of the 1st restaurants I remember as a teenager when Going Out to Eat was becoming a thing.
Jay Rayner. Not sure if there is a version of the cult Italian programme '4 Ristoranti' in the UK, but the ex Leeds Uni man could play the Alessandro Borghese role to perfection.
Borghese invites each restaurant owner in a smallish town, in rotation, to offer a meal at their restaurant. At the end of each meal, points are awarded by the other 3 owners and Borghese adds his input. Once completed all the owners are put in a minivan and are driven around said smallish town as they nervously criticise each other. Then the minivan stops outside the winning restaurant. The relief for the winner is palpable. The rest wish they never took part in the programme!
Dexys, Julie’s and Borscht & tears! My 20s in west London are coming flooding back.
Grace Dents' bugbear is obscure opening hours. Mine is the lack of a menu on the website, or a menu with no prices, or worse, a link to Instagram where the menu is on a story that disappears in 3 seconds.
2nd bugbear; William Sitwell, and anyone who uses the word think as in 'think pre-breakfast dip in a calm ocean'. Don't tell me what to think!
So many restaurant websites are bad, it very odd. It's been like it for years and years but the new 'too cool for school' ones with the bare minimum of info are just infuriating.
I'm sure I've been guilty of using 'think' in the past but I'm trying to avoid it. It's such a hack thing to do.
Well done Andy, lead the way!
Borscht & Tears still alive & even more amazing, getting a good review. They were one of the 1st restaurants I remember as a teenager when Going Out to Eat was becoming a thing.
Absolutely bizarre choice for a national newspaper review column.
Jay Rayner. Not sure if there is a version of the cult Italian programme '4 Ristoranti' in the UK, but the ex Leeds Uni man could play the Alessandro Borghese role to perfection.
https://video.sky.it/skyuno/4-ristoranti/video/alessandro-borghese-4-ristoranti-roma-quartiere-pigneto-810862
He's like Jay's brother from an Italian mother! We don't have a version of that show. What's the premise?
His mother is German-American actress Barbara Bouchet. His father was an Italian film producer from Naples.
Borghese invites each restaurant owner in a smallish town, in rotation, to offer a meal at their restaurant. At the end of each meal, points are awarded by the other 3 owners and Borghese adds his input. Once completed all the owners are put in a minivan and are driven around said smallish town as they nervously criticise each other. Then the minivan stops outside the winning restaurant. The relief for the winner is palpable. The rest wish they never took part in the programme!
Sounds brutal.