R. Richard
Literotica Guru
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2003
- Posts
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I hope you Brits will forgive me but sardine on toast sorbet and bacon and egg ice cream remind me of an ill fated visit I made to Fast Eddie's Taco And Sushi Palace in Palmdale, CA. Comment?
[size]British restaurant declared best in world[/size]
LONDON (AFP) - A British restaurant emerged as the best in the world in an annual list that also revealed Britain -- a country often laughed at for its poor food -- is home to the largest number of top eateries.
The Fat Duck, in a village in Berkshire, west of London, won the coveted title of top dining spot at The World's 50 Best Restaurant's 2005 awards on Monday night, which also featured 13 other restaurants in Britain alone.
Critics, however, argued that the annual list -- compiled by the magazine Restaurant and chosen by more than 500 chefs and experts -- was more of a guide on good places to eat rather than the best the world has to offer.
Comprising entries from mainly developed countries, France had eight restaurants inside the top 50, while the United States only had six.
Asia was notably lacking in representation at the awards in London, with just one restaurant in Hong Kong, called Felix, coming in at number 49.
Owned by chef Heston Blumenthal, The Fat Duck in Bray wowed the judges with original dishes such as sardine on toast sorbet and bacon and egg ice cream.
"It's a complete package of enjoyment I am after," said Blumenthal, whose scientific approach to creating new flavours has seen him dubbed the guru of "molecular gastronomy", according to The Guardian newspaper.
"If I discover something new and get a sense of excitement about it, I want to pass it on to the customer in the dining room," he was quoted as saying by the daily.
"It is like when you see an incredible view or drink a great bottle of wine -- the experience is heightened if you share it with someone else."
The restaurant, which offers three extensive menus ranging in price from 37.50 pounds (71 dollars, 55 euros) for lunch to 97.50 pounds, snatched the top slot from The French Laundry in California, pushing it into third place.
Second in line was Spain's El Bulli, while fourth and fifth went to Tetsuya's in Sydney and Gordon Ramsay in London.
Ella Johnston, the editor of Restaurant magazine, said the public's growing enthusiasm for food drove Britain's dynamic restaurant scene -- which has moved far away from the stereotypical, bland image of meat-and-two-veg in the past.
"British chefs used to just go abroad to the US and France," she was quoted as saying in The Guardian.
"Now, with people becoming more adventurous eaters and with more money in London and the surrounding areas, they know they will have an audience for great food," she said.
Jay Rayner, a food critic in the weekly Observer newspaper, however, argued that the list was an unfair reflection of the world's dining industry.
"By no stretch of the imagination are 14 of the world's best restaurants in the UK," he said in the Observer's sister Guardian newspaper.
While agreeing that The Fat Duck deserved its number one rating and other eateries were tasty, Rayner said: "The list is a collection of 50 good restaurants, some of which deserve to be there, some of which don't.
Johnston agreed that the list could be seen as "Angloscentric", but she denied that it was biased as it had been chosen by an international panel that included prominent figures such as the Chinese chef Ken Hom.
[size]British restaurant declared best in world[/size]
LONDON (AFP) - A British restaurant emerged as the best in the world in an annual list that also revealed Britain -- a country often laughed at for its poor food -- is home to the largest number of top eateries.
The Fat Duck, in a village in Berkshire, west of London, won the coveted title of top dining spot at The World's 50 Best Restaurant's 2005 awards on Monday night, which also featured 13 other restaurants in Britain alone.
Critics, however, argued that the annual list -- compiled by the magazine Restaurant and chosen by more than 500 chefs and experts -- was more of a guide on good places to eat rather than the best the world has to offer.
Comprising entries from mainly developed countries, France had eight restaurants inside the top 50, while the United States only had six.
Asia was notably lacking in representation at the awards in London, with just one restaurant in Hong Kong, called Felix, coming in at number 49.
Owned by chef Heston Blumenthal, The Fat Duck in Bray wowed the judges with original dishes such as sardine on toast sorbet and bacon and egg ice cream.
"It's a complete package of enjoyment I am after," said Blumenthal, whose scientific approach to creating new flavours has seen him dubbed the guru of "molecular gastronomy", according to The Guardian newspaper.
"If I discover something new and get a sense of excitement about it, I want to pass it on to the customer in the dining room," he was quoted as saying by the daily.
"It is like when you see an incredible view or drink a great bottle of wine -- the experience is heightened if you share it with someone else."
The restaurant, which offers three extensive menus ranging in price from 37.50 pounds (71 dollars, 55 euros) for lunch to 97.50 pounds, snatched the top slot from The French Laundry in California, pushing it into third place.
Second in line was Spain's El Bulli, while fourth and fifth went to Tetsuya's in Sydney and Gordon Ramsay in London.
Ella Johnston, the editor of Restaurant magazine, said the public's growing enthusiasm for food drove Britain's dynamic restaurant scene -- which has moved far away from the stereotypical, bland image of meat-and-two-veg in the past.
"British chefs used to just go abroad to the US and France," she was quoted as saying in The Guardian.
"Now, with people becoming more adventurous eaters and with more money in London and the surrounding areas, they know they will have an audience for great food," she said.
Jay Rayner, a food critic in the weekly Observer newspaper, however, argued that the list was an unfair reflection of the world's dining industry.
"By no stretch of the imagination are 14 of the world's best restaurants in the UK," he said in the Observer's sister Guardian newspaper.
While agreeing that The Fat Duck deserved its number one rating and other eateries were tasty, Rayner said: "The list is a collection of 50 good restaurants, some of which deserve to be there, some of which don't.
Johnston agreed that the list could be seen as "Angloscentric", but she denied that it was biased as it had been chosen by an international panel that included prominent figures such as the Chinese chef Ken Hom.
. For those of you not brave enough to take th plunge, haggis tastes like a very dry, slightly spicy fried beef mince and when I ate it, was served with a spicy tomato sauce.
