Nice restaurant in London for a family?

tombrr · 24 Oct 2013 at 14:18

Hatter The Mad said:
One of the food capitals of the world and you suggest a ****** American chain restaurant

There's nothing wrong with chain restaurants...

The food might not be exactly up to Michelin standards but you will probably more than likely have a fun time there, especially with kids.

ttaskmaster · 24 Oct 2013 at 14:30

Hatter The Mad said:
One of the food capitals of the world and you suggest a ****** American chain restaurant

Ludlow is supposedly the food capital of the UK.

Hatter The Mad · 24 Oct 2013 at 21:24

tombrr said:
There's nothing wrong with chain restaurants...

The food might not be exactly up to Michelin standards but you will probably more than likely have a fun time there, especially with kids.

I think you missed my " ****** " before the phrase "American chain restaurant"

oli collett · 24 Oct 2013 at 22:03

pitchfork said:
I hate London, for food, it's full people who do "fashionable cuisine". I can't stand that, if I know I'm dining with a bunch of those *****s it ruins the vibe.

There's some good restaurants but often you'll be paying for the name instead of the food or the skill of the kitchen staff.

What absolute twaddle. Have you ever actually eaten out there?

ttaskmaster said:
Ludlow is supposedly the food capital of the UK.

"supposedly"

Really? The food capital? it's got the quality, diversity etc. that London has to offer?

pitchfork · 25 Oct 2013 at 08:02

oli collett said:
What absolute twaddle. Have you ever actually eaten out there?

Yes, quite a lot, it seems every time I travel to London for something to do with work I get taken to a restaurant full of *******s.

randomshenans · 25 Oct 2013 at 08:02

London is defo up there as the best city I've ever been to for food. I don't think pitch actually goes anywhere.

pitchfork · 25 Oct 2013 at 08:10

randomshenans said:
London is defo up there as the best city I've ever been to for food. I don't think pitch actually goes anywhere.

France, northern italy, southern italy in it's own way. Beligum and the Netherlands also are surpisingly good destinations.

England, we have some good restaurants, but what is in the city, it's pretentious, it's overpriced and it's completely faceless. It's food for people who have never cooked a day in their life yet consider themselves an authority. The food isn't bad but the atmosphere of the restaurant and standard of decor is often poor, and they overcharge wildly.

randomshenans · 25 Oct 2013 at 08:35

I completely disagree with every part of that. London has such a wide variety of cuisines you could simply have something new from a new country everyday. More than that, if you're only finding places like that, you're looking in the wrong places.

Moreover, the standard of the decor in a vast majority of foreign cities is a lot worse. Coming from someone who lives in France I can say this for a fact. The staff in foreign places I've had much more varience in the quality of service and the cuisines are always a lot more limited. Yea, you can get French done well...well I get Alsace French, which is totally different. You don't get tapas, good italian, indian, or a good chinese.

oli collett · 28 Oct 2013 at 08:57

pitchfork said:
France, northern italy, southern italy in it's own way. Beligum and the Netherlands also are surpisingly good destinations.

England, we have some good restaurants, but what is in the city, it's pretentious, it's overpriced and it's completely faceless. It's food for people who have never cooked a day in their life yet consider themselves an authority. The food isn't bad but the atmosphere of the restaurant and standard of decor is often poor, and they overcharge wildly.

London is not overpriced. The only city you could really compare it with in Europe is Paris, and Paris is definitely not cheaper than London.

And there is nowhere in Europe that offers the diversity of London, or indeed an area like Soho

ttaskmaster · 29 Oct 2013 at 12:38

oli collett said:
Really? The food capital? it's got the quality, diversity etc. that London has to offer?

Food capital of the UK - yes, really...
London has, what... French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Korean, Spanish, Mexican, Phillipine, Argentinian, American, South African, Mediteranian, Greek, Turkish, Portuguese, Russian, Persian, Indian, Nepalese... the list goes on. It's a very diverse mix of international foods, so London is a good candidate for a World Capital... but for food representative of the UK it is pretty naff.

Ludlow is almost completely British cuisine, much of it being locally produced and ranges from basic pub to at least one Michelin starred restautant (that I personally know of), along with a notable chef college. They have a few takeaways like everywhere else, of course, but the sheer number of British-centric restaurants and farm shops, plus the food festivals are why people call it the food capital of the UK.