What's the best restaurant meal you've ever had?

Spud-u-like, Aldershot.

The tuna mayo and lemon topped spud was a masterstroke.

Seven course taster menu at The Three Chimneys on Skye. Closely followed by the breakfast they served the next morning. For a one-off bank-raping blow-out, I can’t recommend a stay there highly enough.

I found L’enclume hugely disappointing.

Best meal I ever had was at the sea grill sitting outside in manhattan in summer with my dad, eating, drinking and bullshitting. Fantastic skyscraper views and beautiful people, even if the bill came to $800 for two.

My favourite in london is pied a terre on charlotte street. Expensive, but incredible food, good wine, good service and a fantastic atmosphere.

allthepies – Member

Spud-u-like, Aldershot.

The tuna mayo and lemon topped spud was a masterstroke.

😆

I’ve tried said establishment (many many years ago) and was never disappointed.

I think it is difficult to name a “best restaurant meal” as every time I’ve gone out for a meal the occasion has been different for some reason or another, however….

I had a fantastic meal in The Nant Tiffyn Cider Mill a few years back after a group of us had a particularly wet and cold day out on the Brecon Beacons, the food was tradition British fare and the wine and ale flowed. Sadly, the food wasn’t quite so good on my last few visits.
I had a wonderful meal in the cellar of a house on a hill just outside Barjac, only locals knew about it and you had to knock on the front door and ask the owners if they would mind opening the restaurant for you in a day or two (you had to order your dishes there and then too). They agreed to open up for the four of us and the dining room was converted from the cellar, the food was wonderful and the quirkiness of the place just added to the whole experience.
I was a little underwhelmed with the food at The Cliff but the setting is lovely.

Hameau Albert 1er restaurant in Chamonix. Michelin 2* these days.

We went there on our honeymoon, and didn’t realise just how exclusive (read : expensive) it was going to be. Pierre Carrier, the head chef at the time, spotted our evident discomfort – I was going to walk out when I saw the price of the wine list – and proceeded to recommend some amazing food, an excellent wine (“I think this will work better than the house wine, which is all you’ll pay for”), some cheese to die for (“you NEED to know about Alpine cheeses – let me educate you”), and a dessert the like of which I’ve never had before or since.

He charged us £60 (admittedly twenty years ago) when the wine alone cost that. Just seemed happy that we were a honeymooning couple who knew nothing about French cuisine, and he was delighted to be our guide.

It was a tiny place at the time, with “just” a single Michelin star, and it’s grown in size and stature in the last two decades. I’ve eaten there several times since, but I still remember the first visit.

A close second – I took my team to La Manoir aux Quat’Saisons for a Christmas dinner a few years back. After somehow making our way through (I think) seven courses, we were all suitably blissed out. Glorious, just glorious, and being able to wander round the garden between courses is a nice touch.

Fat Duck – a real disappointment. Blumenthal’s a genuinely talented chef, but for all of the cleverness, some of the food didn’t appeal (mustard ice cream is every bit as crap as it sounds), and I didn’t hugely enjoy it. I’d certainly not go back there – £350 for the two of us, and we really weren’t trying.

Le Gavroche – truly memorable, loved it. Possibly the best service I’ve ever had at a restaurant, and stunning food. A point off because I had to wear a jacket, however.

There’s a little curry spot near Shudehill in Manchester that never fails to disappoint – 3 curries and rice for £3.99, though I never get the penny change…

The Rice and Three in Bolton is an absolute cracker:

http://ricenthree.co.uk/about.html

You can keep your pickled partridge du fromage au pain au cocklebleu.

You can keep your pickled partridge du fromage au pain au cocklebleu.

True enough. The Balti Hut in Rayner’s Lane is another all-time favourite, and I’ve yet to spend more than a tenner a head there. Been going for 15 years, yet to be disappointed. The loos are a bit grim, mind you.

In a gazebo type thing in what looked like someone’s back garden in Colombo.
The Lobsters were AWESOME.

Had a fantastic taster menu in Galvin at Windows (in that London place)
Each course had it’s own wine – Bollinger (’84?) was like liquid gold.

I was surprised it was so good as i’ve always thought expsnive wine/champagne was just something people ponce on about.

second best meal was probably beach BBQ in Bali south coast
It’s a Sunday tradition and I guess is their equivalent of a Sunday roast – loads of families there.
Shrimps the size of lobsters. We had to move our table as the tide was coming in and getting our feet wet.

/stomach rumbling

A restaurant in Honfleur, France.

Fat Duck – a real disappointment

I figured FD would be a really overpriced gimmick so went to The Waterside Inn for lunch when in Bray for a wedding at Monkey Island in Sept. Did not disappoint! Tremendous food/service and not at an insane price.

Best I’ve had, though, is at Guy Savoy in Paris – absolutely stunning! And with a wine list about a foot thick 😯

Mind you Bobby’s in Leicester does the best masala dosas on the planet for a mere fiver…

I’ve been to a few pricey places on expenses and they’ve been OK but really the place I like best is L’ancolie in Peisey Nancroix nothing pretentious just honest french grub and delicious, nice view too.

In the UK I’m always on the hunt for a bargain so Lahore Kharai, Mirch Masala, Culture grub and places like that are where I like to go.

Sod paying 80 quid a head for a small and not all that brilliant meal because a penguin serves it, cheap, fresh,ethnic tucker is always a winner.

Attempting a Weston-Super-Mare to Eastbourne coast to coast, I came over the West Mendips in cold and pouring rain and arrived in Bath like a frozen drowned rat. Decided I needed a treat.

The only restaurant in town was a decent Italian and the food was good but the most remarkable thing was the port that I had.

I asked for a glass of “Cockburn’s ’76”.

This turned out to be a miss-print. What I got was the ’67.

It cost me £14 for the glass, but was worth every penny. Tasted like liquid silk…

Any of many meals at one of the nameless seafood restaurants on the outlying islands of Hong Kong, most notably Lamma and the Po Toi islands, after having sailed there in a flotilla of mates’ boats. Pointing at the fish, crabs and lobsters you want to eat as they swim about in tanks. And proper sized prawns being scooped out of buckets by the fistful. Cooked to perfection and served on formica topped tables, sat on fold-up stools. These are memories from over 20 years ago but my tummy is rumbling thinking about it!

There are 3 that spring to mind, is no particular order.

1st is Purnells in Brum, had the taster food and wine menu and it was INCREDIBLE, brilliant food with all kinds of little touches, great wine and we left after 4 hours feeling full and a little tipsy.

2nd is a tiny trattoria near Termini in Rome. It looked like someones front room but we had the most amazing home cooked food and even the wine was good.

And finally is the legend that Fergburger in Queenstown, great burgers, open all hours.

I got married In New York and had a meal at LeCirque beside the New York Palace , I knew nothing about the place but by all accounts It is in the top 5 In Manhattan.
It was very pricey and I’ll probably never eat In a place like that again but was well worth It.

fish vegs and chicken grilled in a pizza oven in vis one of the croatian islands

la gavroche nuff said from other posters
the converted monastery on lake annecy at the end of a holiday where i had some leftover money so had 3 nights there…awesome food/wine out on the terrace
the turkish in forfar run by a grumpy turkish guy….great nosh!

fish vegs and chicken grilled in a pizza oven in vis one of the croatian islands

la gavroche nuff said from other posters
the converted monastery on lake annecy at the end of a holiday where i had some leftover money so had 3 nights there…awesome food/wine out on the terrace
the turkish in forfar run by a grumpy turkish guy….great nosh!

Dim sum in one of the Manchester chinese restaurants. Three hours of good company and a constant supply of delicious food.

The missus and I tend to head for St John’s Smithfield if we’ve got a reason for a posh meal. Yet to be disappointed.

The Walnut Tree near Abergavenny – very good indeed.

But the 2 places I’d go for “last supper” options?

The AQR hotel (Hotel Le Lutin) in Luchon. Russ the chef’s duck a l’orange, or the pigs cheeks please. Goats cheese tart for starters and chocolate mousse for pud, and as much of that bread as I can wedge inside me.

Or the best meal I’ve ever had? Christmas dinner maybe 6 years ago at my girlfriend’s parents. Roaring log fire in an ancient farmhouse, champagne and cheesy nibbles to start with, then smoked salmon, then a fantastic goose with all the trimmings inc the best roasties ever (and the g/f does damn good ones herself), xmas pud, then another hour or so polishing off assorted sticky treats along with a bottle of very fine port. Simply top notch. Makes restaurants look a little bit pointless.

Swankiest – Gordon Ramsay at Claridges (when it had a star – Mark Sergeant was head chef). 22 of us in one of the art deco private dining rooms. Bill came to £13,500….

Thirteen and a half grand for a poxy dinner 😯

Are you mad?

Ever – A tiny tibetean cafe in Macleod Ganj in India

UK – The French Pantry in Ludlow

I’m not really a foodie with sophisticated tastes so my best meals are as much about the company i’m with as the food.

Like the take away burrito eaten at the Hotel du Vin with Scarlett Johansson. To be honest the burrito wasn’t anything remarkable I just wanted to name drop (and hopefully mislead people into thinking it was a post coital snack) 😀

About 15 years ago I used to spend time in Edinburgh on business and often went to a little scruffy place in Hanover St called the Patio, run by an Italian guy Mimmo and his Scottish wife.

He used to go to Leith docks every day and bring back crawfish and scallops which he cooked in a way I’ve never found beaten.

Depends what you mean by ‘best’. Are you talking value for money or quality? (or both)
The Crannog in Ft William always stays in my mind as quality & reasonable value.
Bistro 21 in Durham is quality but not IMO good value.
The Ship in Aldborough, North Yorks is decent quality & good value.
The Viva Goan, The Fishermans Cove, & The Inferno, in Candolim, Goa are probably what I’d call the ‘best’ I’ve been to. (bit far to travel for a curry though!)

Another vote for Purnell’s. Serious cooking with some clever touches and service that wasn’t too over-the-top-Michelin-star-creepy. As a keen cook I’m a big fan of Glynn’s cooking and his approach to food and it was cool to hear the man’s voice each time the kitchen door was opened. Not sure if he still does, but at the time he was still cooking at the restaurant every day.

The Hardwick in South Wales is worth a visit too. Superb food and relaxed service. Love the ‘what pub food would be like if cooked by one of the best chefs in the UK’ concept and the fact that (marketing aside) Steven Terry consciously walked away from the Michelin world to cook ‘simple’ food.

More ‘everyday’ in style and price is the The Pheasant at Keyston just off the A14 near Thrapston. Was best British restaurant in the F-word a couple years back and going there about every other month since have never had a disappointing course. IMHO a similar style and very, VERY close to the level of the food at the Hardwick.

Also a new place recently opened in Peterborough. Clarke’s has a chef that can REALLY cook – the food is close to stunning – but for me is obviously trying just a bit too hard to be the first starred restaurant in this city.

slainte 😀 rob

20 years ago did a foodie binge in Sydney and Melbourne – Berowra waters and Stephanie’s stood out.

Do less of this here. La Manoir Aux QS is great. And a special recommendation for Apicius in Cranbrook, Kent. Our closest Michelin starred restaurant – The Curlew – is less good…

But for all round brilliant meals, the starred restaurant I miss the most is Chez Nous – which used to be in Plymouth.

Like the take away burrito eaten at the Hotel du Vin with Scarlett Johansson. To be honest the burrito wasn’t anything remarkable I just wanted to name drop (and hopefully mislead people into thinking it was a post coital snack)

Omar- your going to have to elaborate on this one you jammy dog you!!!

I seem to find that the higher the price then the less I seem to enjoy the food and the experience. Been to a number of Michelin starred restaurants in London and they were all unmemorable and one or two (French ones) were really poor.

I didn’t fair much better in New York, when I lived there, always found the standard top places too snooty and the food didn’t seem particularly special.

I had a favorite neighborhood restaurant in the west village called Indigo, where I always used to have the confit of duck, followed by the hanger steak and chocolate torte. Well priced, good service and they didn’t call me Sir.

The Quay in Vancouver is another favorite of mine. There was a spell when I used to travel there a lot on business and if I was traveling alone I would eat there every single night.

Back home. I have fond memories of Ma Goa in Putney (Goan food), and I ate at Quantas in Chiswick a few weeks ago and that was the best food I had eaten at home for a long time.

The mad Thai woman at Simply Thai in Teddington does simple wonderful Thai food. Those from the Twickenham, Teddington. Kingston area will know exactly what I mean.

More of a cheese burger kind of bloke, but 2 star Gidleigh Park in Devon is always memorable. I think they filmed celebrity master chef there this year apparently.

http://www.windlestraw.co.uk/

i stayed here once on a visit to the glentress the food was just awesome totally blown away by it.

I’ve been to a few places and had some great food, but there’s one place I’ve been to twice that, to me, cooks the best food I’ve ever tasted, my favourite.

It in a small village called Wansford just off the A1 a few miles north of Peterborough. It’s called Fiddlesticks and they cook British food. Proper classic British food, simply served but done so, so well.

I think Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester was probably the best

We used to do quite a few shows at the Dorchester and at lunchtime we’d still get the full silver service treatment at our crew table backset. The food was always good.

Like alot of posters Ive found the smaller,local restaurants to be the best. I think this can be true anywhere in the world.

3 way tie for best ever food.

Portimao, Algarve. Walking along the seafront and came to a little harbour. There was a make-shift dining room and a bbq fired up. Little fishing boats were coming in and handing over their catch. Lots of sardines, king prawns and squid.
10 sardines or 10 huge prawns for a quid. Just bbq’d and drizzled with a bit lemon juice. The freshes seafood Ive ever eaten. I dont think it gets any better TBH.

Pattaya, Thailand. Beachfront restaurant, Green Chicken curry and a bowl of sticky rice and a bottle of Singha. The best curry I’ve ever eaten. Fiery and zingy with lime.

Lagos, Algarve. Again in Portugal. Small restaurant just off one of the paths to the beach. A foot long lemon sole grilled with lemon butter and a side of baby potatoes drenched in parsley butter.

Its all about the freshness of the ingredients. Simple, honest and delicious.

Im starving now! Cheese on toast it is!

I enjoyed every second at the Fat Duck, and felt it was worth every penny. A few close friends and I were all turning 30 so we splurged on lunch – probably the better time to go because it was a nice relaxed 5 hours or so. Food was wonderful, matching wines were great too, it may be pot luck which dishes you get on each day but I loved all of the ones we had. Service was the best I’ve had anywhere too.

Not cheap (especially with cheese, port, and coffees) but a better thing to spend money on than things like XTR bits, IMO.

Another disappointed Fat Duck’er here (though bumped into Richard Corrigan as I was leaving), the Hardwick was much better than I thought, and the private treatment (ohh err) by Angela Hartnett before she left the Connaught was out of this world.

Probably the best ‘experience’ was Purnells for my birthday a few months ago, but the best food outright was the seafood in the Foveran on Orkney – or friday noodles in TryThai in wrexham 😛

I won a champagne dinner for two at the Dorchester in a raffle at the Big Bang Ball in the mid 80s. The bill, which I didn’t pay,
was £175 and the food was sublime.

I once had a very average meal at The Ivy in Santa Monica, Los Angeles. Didn’t know we were in The Ivy until I got the bill with the Restaurant name on it. We’d just landed, was jet lagged and wandered into a Resturant nearest to the hotel.

Maybe the Fat Duck is love/hate place then. I thought it was a level up from any another restaurant I’ve eaten in, the wine matching is brilliant as well.

You have to admire the skill though (spoiler to anyone who’s going):

http://thepleasuremonger.wordpress.com/2011/06/26/the-fat-duck-get-a-table-or-die-trying/%5B/url%5D

Sorry to bring the tone down but stoner’s

I can still conjure up the sublime taste of his bath chaps

made me giggle
sounds like something from a Gay fetish Video . 😆