What are you eating and drinking tonight?

[Bruce Rioja]

Anyway, it was lamb shank with minted gravy and Maris Piper mash. I hate lamb fat, the fecking stuff makes me wretch, so I have to be careful to remove it all. A former colleague of mine, a Turkish guy, would only ever buy lamb if there was basically as much fat on it as there was meat. Is that a cultural thing or an individual one?

[Prufrock]

I shoved a Waitrose crispy fried duck in the oven for 40 mins the other day. Only I'd turned on the grill rather than the oven. That was a smell and a half!

[Lord Kangana]

Anyway, it was lamb shank with minted gravy and Maris Piper mash. I hate lamb fat, the fecking stuff makes me wretch, so I have to be careful to remove it all. A former colleague of mine, a Turkish guy, would only ever buy lamb if there was basically as much fat on it as there was meat. Is that a cultural thing or an individual one?

You need to drink good quality Reserva or Gran Reserva Rioja with slow cooked fatty lamb. Then you'll love it!

Anyway, as a rule of thumb, "where there's fat there's flavour" with all meats (game aside, but sometimes, with high Grouse, that can taste like someone's just had a shit in your mouth, so it's a bit of an acquired taste).

You just have to cook it slow and low. So for example a rib-eye steak, which has that wonderful piece of fat through it, is best put in a water bath to warm it through and soften the fat off, before a quick flash fry to give it colour (hence flavour). If you just fry it you can end up either with tough fat or overcooked meat. Conversely, it's why a mate of mine refers to Fillet Steak as cotton wool steak. Not a chef's cut!

[Worthy4England]

^^ Great advice LK. And just in time. It's not as if any cooking's actually started yet.

[Lord Kangana]

I'm hoping he'll get to cook again in this lifetime!

[Bruce Rioja]

Anyway, it was lamb shank with minted gravy and Maris Piper mash. I hate lamb fat, the fecking stuff makes me wretch, so I have to be careful to remove it all. A former colleague of mine, a Turkish guy, would only ever buy lamb if there was basically as much fat on it as there was meat. Is that a cultural thing or an individual one?

You need to drink good quality Reserva or Gran Reserva Rioja with slow cooked fatty lamb. Then you'll love it!

Anyway, as a rule of thumb, "where there's fat there's flavour" with all meats (game aside, but sometimes, with high Grouse, that can taste like someone's just had a shit in your mouth, so it's a bit of an acquired taste).

You just have to cook it slow and low. So for example a rib-eye steak, which has that wonderful piece of fat through it, is best put in a water bath to warm it through and soften the fat off, before a quick flash fry to give it colour (hence flavour). If you just fry it you can end up either with tough fat or overcooked meat. Conversely, it's why a mate of mine refers to Fillet Steak as cotton wool steak. Not a chef's cut!

Sorry, mate. Yes, I get that the meat needs the fat initially to cook the meat through properly, tastefully and tenderly, it's just the residual stuff that I struggle with. Perhaps I should've explained that more clearly.

[BWFC_Insane]

Anyway, it was lamb shank with minted gravy and Maris Piper mash. I hate lamb fat, the fecking stuff makes me wretch, so I have to be careful to remove it all. A former colleague of mine, a Turkish guy, would only ever buy lamb if there was basically as much fat on it as there was meat. Is that a cultural thing or an individual one?

You need to drink good quality Reserva or Gran Reserva Rioja with slow cooked fatty lamb. Then you'll love it!

Anyway, as a rule of thumb, "where there's fat there's flavour" with all meats (game aside, but sometimes, with high Grouse, that can taste like someone's just had a shit in your mouth, so it's a bit of an acquired taste).

You just have to cook it slow and low. So for example a rib-eye steak, which has that wonderful piece of fat through it, is best put in a water bath to warm it through and soften the fat off, before a quick flash fry to give it colour (hence flavour). If you just fry it you can end up either with tough fat or overcooked meat. Conversely, it's why a mate of mine refers to Fillet Steak as cotton wool steak. Not a chef's cut!

What if I don't have a water bath? With thick rib eyes, I usually fry first then stick the pan in the oven for a bit. I'd like a water bath but just always thought I'd not use it all that much!

[Lord Kangana]

Just put it somewhere warm then! All it requires is for it warm slowly.

We use water baths because we're cooking for more than a couple, occasionally.

[jonnycooper]

What a delight!! I stuck a whole corn fed chicken in the slow cooker this morning(never tried this before).It has been on low all day and is absolutely delicious! Think I've found my way of cooking full chickens in future. Yum Yum.. Shallots and whole carrots in the pot,then chicken stuck on top of them!

[Gary the Enfield]

Now before you say ''Serves you right for living in 'that London' I've already told myself.

Yesterday we went for a long walk round the backstreets and byways of London around Mayfair and Park Lane. After a lovely walk we went into a Turkish Restaurant near the Saudi Arabian Embassy and had a very pleasant Mezze type starter followed by a lovely Lamb Tagine.

All fine. My problem is with the bill. I was charged 3 x £1.50 'cover' charges on top of the meal. When I queried what the cover charge was for they said it was for the location. Is that common anywhere else? I don't remember being charged a cover charge at the Savoy or the Oxo Tower Restaurant. This was a backstreet Turkish in Mayfair!

Anyone else encountered this?

[Burnden Paddock]

I was looking the other day at the menu of a London restaurant, for a visit that I will be making next month. At the bottom it stated 'a mandatory cover charge of 10% will be added to the bill on all items'. This was a chain rather than a backstreet place, but its a bloody cheek when you're already paying for your food and drink and are then asked to fork out 10% on top.

Is this the new 'optional service charge' which you are made to feel guilty if you don't pay? They can feck off, cos I won't be going there, the cheeky barstewards!!

[Gary the Enfield]

I was looking the other day at the menu of a London restaurant, for a visit that I will be making next month. At the bottom it stated 'a mandatory cover charge of 10% will be added to the bill on all items'. This was a chain rather than a backstreet place, but its a bloody cheek when you're already paying for your food and drink and are then asked to fork out 10% on top.

Is this the new 'optional service charge' which you are made to feel guilty if you don't pay? They can feck off, cos I won't be going there, the cheeky barstewards!!

The 12.5% service charge was extra too. Thing is there was no mention of a cover charge on the menu or anywhere else. And the f***ing place was empty!

[boltonboris]

We had Sunday lunch at the Marriott in Worsley a couple of weeks back - there were £15 of us, so the bill was pretty sizeable.. It's a buffet thing where you get your own grub..

12.5% service tax on the bill, the wankers

[Bijou Bob]

I always leave a 10% + tip unless the service or food has been shite, but I've taken to asking the table staff if they actually get their tips. Apparently, Jamie Cockerney Winker takes a percentage of his staff's tips and some places the staff just get a small percentage. Years ago, Tiggi's in town were notorious for giving their staff Feck all, the tips went in the till as extra profit.

[Bruce Rioja]

Mentioned this place a couple of months ago but tomorrow we're off to Quill on King Street for mi bezzy's Mrs's birthday lunch. Really looking forward to it. Hotly tipped to be Manchester's first recipient of a Michelin star.

Taster menu example here: http://quillmcr.co.uk/restaurant/tasting-menu/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Lord Kangana]

I always leave a 10% + tip unless the service or food has been shite, but I've taken to asking the table staff if they actually get their tips. Apparently, Jamie Cockerney Winker takes a percentage of his staff's tips and some places the staff just get a small percentage. Years ago, Tiggi's in town were notorious for giving their staff Feck all, the tips went in the till as extra profit.

The tips are used by many a shitcunt as a way of covering when people complain and don't pay/complain and pay a bit, people scarper without paying, or someone cocks up the bill and undercharges. Which on the surface seems reasonable, but it's actually a collective punishment, so punishes the innocent and the guilty without prejudice..

And yes, plenty just withhold tips from their staff.

[Burnden Paddock]

Mentioned this place a couple of months ago but tomorrow we're off to Quill on King Street for mi bezzy's Mrs's birthday lunch. Really looking forward to it. Hotly tipped to be Manchester's first recipient of a Michelin star.

Taster menu example here: http://quillmcr.co.uk/restaurant/tasting-menu/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Eh? I'm struggling to find the 'All you can eat' option.

[Little Green Man]

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle ... jay-rayner" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[malcd1]

I spent two nights in Vilnius, Lithuania earlier this week. Pleasantly surprised with the old town and they had some very nice restaurants. The second night I was taken to Saint Germain by one of my customers. I absolutely little gem of a restaurant that I would never had found if I wasn't taken there.

I chose a scallop bruschetta for starter and 'beef steak' for the main course. Both fantastic and washed down with two bottles of a 2010 Banfi Brunello di Montalcino, a lovely Italian red. The food was reasonably priced but I was glad I wasn't paying the bill with the wine at 64 Euro's a pop.

Highly recommended if you find yourselves in Vilnius but you will need to book as it gets very busy.

[Burnden Paddock]

Whacked the ingredients for the 3 bean vegetarian chilli into the slow cooker at 7.30am and arrived home at 5pm to a fantastic aroma. Two bowls later and i'm bloody stuffed! Went down a treat with Mrs & Miss BP too!