Avengers Assemble

L to R - Tim Hayward, Jancis Robinson, Jay Rayner. Marina O'Loughlin

No, this isn't the latest blockbuster from Marvel Films nor, sadly, does it feature Diana Rigg. It's the tongue in cheek description for the the line up of food writers assembled in the Financial Times Weekend Magazine. As a result of the controversial sale of The Observer by The Guardian newspaper group, a number of its top journalists have jumped ship. Among these is Jay Rayner, one of Britain's best restaurant reviewers, well known to readers of this blog. He is joined by former Guardian and Sunday Times reviewer Marina O'Loughlin. They are teaming up with FT regulars, food writer Tim Hayward and wine expert Jancis Robinson.

This, it must be said, is quite an impressive quadrumvirate. For followers of Rayner, however, there is a problem. For reasons known only to themselves (and one cannot rule out stupidity) The Guardian and The Observer make their copy available free online. Yes, each piece comes with a begging bowl, but a flinthearted blog editor has always found that easy to resist.

So you want to enjoy our foodie superheroes? The FT Weekend will set you back a whopping £5.10, and will probably contain much that is of no interest to you. Well, fret not. A monthly subscription of £4.99 will allow you to access eight articles a day including Jay's column at the weekend. There is a 30 day free introductory offer to which I've signed up. What I don't know is how your other seven pieces will be selected. We'll just have to wait and see.

I've enjoyed what I've read thus far. Jay started with a review of Rules, probably London's oldest restaurant, dating back to 1740. But what caught my fancy was a suggested list of rules for restaurants, proposed by the Avengers then opened to critical scrutiny by a panel of other critics. Some of these reflect matters which we've discussed previously in this column. For example-

Avoid any restaurant with a tasting menu of more than seven courses - Jay Rayner

And, he adds, one of these had better be the bread. I wrote about this last year. I'll say no more.

It's OK to lie and say you have eaten at a restaurant before to avoid having the concept explained - Marina O'Loughlin

Interesting. It's only a matter of time before my resistance to screaming at the can I explain the concept? question crumbles. Concept? Really not hard. I order food; you bring food; I eat food; you clear up; I pay. There are VERY few exceptions. Heston at The Fat Duck comes to mind, but no other restaurant has ever allocated to me my personal story teller. I don't want to be rude at the outset to a staff member who is just doing as he or she has been told. This white lie is one way out. What does the team think?

Your dining companion should have a say in what you order - Tim Hayward

More food for thought. Of course we have the modern day service à la russe to blame for that being a problem in the first place. By that I mean the practice of everyone ordering an individual dish which is delivered to them. Before that we had service à la française, where all the dishes were either in the middle of the table or on a sideboard, with everyone able to choose a selection. That is the way food is served in most eastern countries. For me it's terribly sad that in the UK the Russian style  seems to be the norm, even in Indian or Chinese or Thai places.

When I'm on Tom Eats! business, I need to be able to sample everything that is on offer. Most of my fellow TE! diners are happy with that. Indeed, many of my best pals were sharers long before the column started. But it's not for everyone. One brother in law is totally possessive of his own plate. When wearing my critic's hat, I gently try to encourage everyone to order different things, and I do hold back and order last to try to avoid duplication. (As a result I never ever get the lobster or the prawns.) L, bless her cotton socks, does go along with this if we're eating on duty; however, her idea of a special treat is to get her very own plate and finish it all by herself.

So what about Sharing Plates places? I like them very much, but there are a number of potential pitfalls. That is one of the reasons why Jay Rayner counsels against going to such restaurants with more than one person. Not sure I agree with him, but table space is certainly a factor. Another one is the kitchen itself. If you know it's a table for two, why send out a plate with an odd number of things on it?

Another gripe which one occasionally encounters is the sheer arrogance of some chefs. Small plates, one is generally told, come out as and when they are ready. OK, not having to have everything hot at the pass simultaneously is a relief for them, but most meals, even small plates ones, have some sort of structure. This is doubly so in these places with confusing menus comprising small and larger plates. A little bit of

putting the brain in gear would be welcome. On one occasion, the first dish to hit my table was a plate of chips. Yes, it was in Glasgow.

The FT article contained a total of 19 rules followed by much entertaining debate. There is also a very useful page by Jancis Robinson with great tips on ordering wine.  Click here for the link to sign up.