How does one go about launching a new restaurant right now given that circumstances preclude you welcoming any customers into it? Imagine having done the work, refurb’ed the building, neatly segregated it from the related hotel, come up with a menu then finding that you can’t actually use any of it. Things may be starting…
This lockdown may have left us prone to introspection and reflection but as tempting as it is, this is no time to be looking back, something that people are rather too keen to do when talking about Walmgate Ale House and The Chopping Block York, its resident restaurant. Its previous incarnation as Meltons Too, sister…
One thing I didn’t expect to be doing too much of throughout lockdown was trying new places to eat, but the way this year has panned out has been far from expected to say the least. With the most restrictive part of the lockdown hopefully in the past, we can start to dare to make…
Shortly before restaurants were told to shut, this household came to a, shortsighted in retrospect, decision to skip one last meal at Skosh as a last hurrah. The nature of producing this site makes repeat visits to places I love logistically tricky, but Skosh is certainly worthy of repeat custom, so as lockdown tightened its…
The trickle of restaurants retooling their offering for enjoyment at home is gathering momentum by the day, with more and more people finding ways to deliver a good representation of their business in the domestic setting. It’s heartening to see some of York’s most cherished establishments start to open their (figurative) doors to customers. The…
What’s the best environment for a Sunday roast? A pub gives you ample opportunity to relax into the Sunday papers with a decent pint while coming to terms with the number of calories consumed; a restaurant can feel a touch formal for what should be one of the week’s most relaxing feasts; and the home…
What better way to take advantage of an unseasonably warm May than with a picnic? Traditionally though, in my experience at least, picnics are little more than ways of infecting your sun-warmed food with grass and sun cream in an inconvenient location that lacks toilet facilities. In the absence of a hospitality industry to manufacture…
When I started this site a good few years ago, I had little idea of the things it would lead me to end up doing. Between train journeys with celebrities, awards judging (and nominations come to think of it), organising events and eating out more than I could ever have hoped, it’s taken quite a…
What’s the best meal you’ve ever eaten in the confines of your own home? How much does the fine dining experience suffer from being transplanted into a domestic setting and losing the serving staff? How do your plating skills compare to highly regarded chefs? This lockdown is posing a lot of questions that I never…
It’s all too easy to fall into ordering too many takeaways at the moment. There’re plenty of local businesses who are both serving up delicious food and are deserving of support, but I’m craving variety of activity at the moment so I’m seeking out ways to enjoy food in different ways. With that mindset, I…