What are you eating and drinking tonight?

[Bruce Rioja]

For Bruce - and others in Harwood/Bradshaw - today I paid my first visit to Baron's, which describes itself as a champagne and wine boutique - just opposite Morrison's garage and close to Chae's Chips boutique...

It's really nice and non-pretentious... Had a chat with the owner, who is clearly a person with a mission, and, I thought, really knowledgeable... His policy is that he won't stock any wine 'brands' - Morrisons have mopped up that one, so there's no point. Instead he sources his wine from small, independent vineyards.

I like that idea. Had a good look around. I liked it very much. His Spanish selection looks really promising... Bought a Catalan wine that offered a blend of Garnacha Blanco and Viognier - which he said was a really rare blend, and I've certainly not seen it before and Viognier is perhaps my favourite white grape... Also a Portuguese red from Alentejo... I think a workers co-op (so I approve!). Both he recommended... So will report...

Won't get much under £8.00 here, my two were £18.30 - but for the special treat - this is a good place.

Oh - he's really proud of his champagne - he says it's from independents who won't sell their harvest to the big guys from Moet et al... And he has eight champagnes - 'Growers Champagnes' he calls them - cheaper than Moet and, he reckons, better...

His Burgundy shelf was great... Limited but good... Included Gevrey Chambertain, which is the wine served in heaven to those who didn't ever even think of sinning...

Good work, Pioneer.

[TANGODANCER]

His Burgundy shelf was great... Limited but good... Included Gevrey Chambertain, which is the wine served in heaven to those who didn't ever even think of sinning...

Ah well, guess it's Leibfraumilch for me then.

[William the White]

His Burgundy shelf was great... Limited but good... Included Gevrey Chambertain, which is the wine served in heaven to those who didn't ever even think of sinning...

Ah well, guess it's Leibfraumilch for me then.

Examine your conscience, sinner... You'll be lucky to get cold tea, no milk, no sugar... For you are barely a worm in the eyes of the Lord...

See... I know how to talk to Catholics...

[TANGODANCER]

His Burgundy shelf was great... Limited but good... Included Gevrey Chambertain, which is the wine served in heaven to those who didn't ever even think of sinning...

Ah well, guess it's Leibfraumilch for me then.

Examine your conscience, sinner... You'll be lucky to get cold tea, no milk, no sugar... For you are barely a worm in the eyes of the Lord...

See... I know how to talk to Catholics...

Ah, but, by your yardstick, since there is no heaven, what need then of conscience, or even wine?

[William the White]

His Burgundy shelf was great... Limited but good... Included Gevrey Chambertain, which is the wine served in heaven to those who didn't ever even think of sinning...

Ah well, guess it's Leibfraumilch for me then.

Examine your conscience, sinner... You'll be lucky to get cold tea, no milk, no sugar... For you are barely a worm in the eyes of the Lord...

See... I know how to talk to Catholics...

Ah, but, by your yardstick, since there is no heaven, what need then of conscience, or even wine?

Say what you like about Catholics - but dishing out free wine on Sunday is a good thing...

In that respect Christianity has the edge on Islam...

But neither beats thought...

[TANGODANCER]

His Burgundy shelf was great... Limited but good... Included Gevrey Chambertain, which is the wine served in heaven to those who didn't ever even think of sinning...

Ah well, guess it's Leibfraumilch for me then.

Examine your conscience, sinner... You'll be lucky to get cold tea, no milk, no sugar... For you are barely a worm in the eyes of the Lord...

See... I know how to talk to Catholics...

Ah, but, by your yardstick, since there is no heaven, what need then of conscience, or even wine?

Say what you like about Catholics - but dishing out free wine on Sunday is a good thing...

In that respect Christianity has the edge on Islam...

But neither beats thought...

"Indeed, indeed. Repentance oft before,
I swore, but was I sober when I swore?
And then, and then came spring, and rose in hand
My threadbare penitence, apieces tore"

[Prufrock]

And then I thought, f*ck it, I'm gonna die.

Or something. Details.

[TANGODANCER]

Don't know why, but this morning I started thinking back to first food "adventures". Back in the days of youth, after a night out, it was fish and chips or nothing. Restaurants were for the posh and they all closed early anyway.

And then came Bolton's first Chinese reataurant, The Tai-Tung, on Great Moor Street opposite the New Zealand Chief. Late opening and reasonable prices. We had no idea what to order even at the start so went for a No 47 or whatever, Chicken or Beef Chow Mein, half-rice, half Chips before we discovered the delights of black-beans and capsicum and crispy noodles and all that stuff. Never liked fried-rice, preferring boiled, but it was a whole new world and became a regular Friday night thing.

Then The Kismet arrived, next to Prestons on Bank Street, first Indian, and the need to order gallon jugs of water with Madras and Vindaloo, still with half rice/chips though. Then Chez Aristotle arrived on Churchgate with Greek cuisine, then House of Orchard (Chinese) over the arcade on Bradshawgate. Then the Italians...

What was your first departure from fish and chips after a few pints then?

[Bruce Rioja]

What about those burger trolley's, Tango. I never did see anyone working one of those that didn't have a dew drop on his nose!

Mine was a cheese and tomato pizza from Pizzaland. What ever happened to Pizzaland?

[TANGODANCER]

What about those burger trolley's, Tango. I never did see anyone working one of those that didn't have a dew drop on his nose!

Mine was a cheese and tomato pizza from Pizzaland. What ever happened to Pizzaland?

Must have been a generaltional thing cos you're right. I'm struggling to remember the name of the burger place that used to be on Newport Street?

[Burnden Paddock]

Mine was a cheese and tomato pizza from Pizzaland.

Snap. Followed by chocolate fudge cake and ice cream.

[William the White]

What about those burger trolley's, Tango. I never did see anyone working one of those that didn't have a dew drop on his nose!

Mine was a cheese and tomato pizza from Pizzaland. What ever happened to Pizzaland?

Stomach turned over at that memory - really... kind of you to remind us...

That restaurant next to Preston's has been just about everything, indian, chinese, italian... Was a pretty decent Italian ISTR... Why can nobody make a success of it?

[TANGODANCER]

That restaurant next to Preston's has been just about everything, indian, chinese, italian... Was a pretty decent Italian ISTR... Why can nobody make a success of it?

Possibly location and overheads W? Bank Street's a bit of a backwater. It's hidden away till you know it's there, and there's so much fast-food competition these days anyway..

[Bruce Rioja]

What about those burger trolley's, Tango. I never did see anyone working one of those that didn't have a dew drop on his nose!

Mine was a cheese and tomato pizza from Pizzaland. What ever happened to Pizzaland?

Stomach turned over at that memory - really... kind of you to remind us...

That restaurant next to Preston's has been just about everything, indian, chinese, italian... Was a pretty decent Italian ISTR... Why can nobody make a success of it?

You're welcome

Was a very decent Italian although I can't remember what it was called. It also had a tie-in with the pub up the top of Chapeltown Road just before the train bridge.

[Bijou Bob]

Burger trolleys....... I'd almost forgotten about those. They were all stored opposite the Nevada and on match days they got wheeled down to Burnden and all points between by hand, where some bloke in a filthy grey/white overall with nails fresh from degreasing the axle of a Bedford truck would slap a Westlers gristle burger (somewhere between spam and cardboard) between a 3 week old bap.

It's a wonder we didn't die in our thousands.

[TANGODANCER]

Burger trolleys....... I'd almost forgotten about those. They were all stored opposite the Nevada and on match days they got wheeled down to Burnden and all points between by hand, where some bloke in a filthy grey/white overall with nails fresh from degreasing the axle of a Bedford truck would slap a Westlers gristle burger (somewhere between spam and cardboard) between a 3 week old bap.

It's a wonder we didn't die in our thousands.

And plastic bottles of mustard and ketchup that looked like they been found on Raikes Lane tip. Ah, happy days with the silver ladies.

[William the White]

Burger trolleys....... I'd almost forgotten about those. They were all stored opposite the Nevada and on match days they got wheeled down to Burnden and all points between by hand, where some bloke in a filthy grey/white overall with nails fresh from degreasing the axle of a Bedford truck would slap a Westlers gristle burger (somewhere between spam and cardboard) between a 3 week old bap.

It's a wonder we didn't die in our thousands.

And plastic bottles of mustard and ketchup that looked like they been found on Raikes Lane tip. Ah, happy days with the silver ladies.

The terrifying thing is how little exaggeration there is here...

tubercolic spit on toast would have been healthier...

[Gooner Girl]

Banana hot cakes for breakfast today, simple and very tasty.

[Harry Genshaw]

Banana hot cakes for breakfast today, simple and very tasty.

You're up early on a Sunday aren't you?

Banana hot cakes sound good. How do you make em?

[TANGODANCER]

Just remembered the burgr place on Newport Street. Wimpy's. Seem a long time ago now.