A Spanish Sabatical

Buena tarde mis gambas condimentadas sabrosas y blandas!

O, to be back upon the shores of this green and pleasant land we call Home! All I can say, is that since the Balearic's and Spain adopted the Euro as currency, they have had only one objective......to screw the British out of whatever cash they have brought with them. Then charge 0.83 cents to the British Pound when you have to withdraw money from one of their 'convenient' Banque Marcs'!

The bus driver seemed to think the Monte Carlo rally had moved to the quiet resort of Camp de Mar. I have never in my short existence, seen driving such as this! On a road wide enough to accommodate a VW Beetle, he managed to manoeuvre a two storey bus through the streets of Palma Nova and Magaluf narrowly missing hundreds of party-goers, pine trees and road signs. He managed all this at a minimum speed of 40 MPH and was forced to reverse only when he reached the numerous Strip Joints which were located on the second floor, on a junction and had glass frontage so that rear views were available to him self and any passengers on the left-hand side of the vehicle......So can we all 'give it up' for the Nigel Mansell of the Bus World. Thank you!

Once acclimatised to the heat, bugs and cost of living we ventured into a Supermarket where you begin your delightful journey at the start of the smoked, cured and cooked meats section?? Bloody why, its not Germany! We do not go around wolfing down schnitzel yelling "Mine lieder hosen est fallen doune!". We certainly don't have a liking for World Domination either. Every German I encountered abroad seemed to be promoting a car manufacturer, wore ridiculously over-sized shorts and sported a moustache Mussolini would be proud of.

Another thing on holiday, if you have teenage children, please, for the love of Cliff Richard, do not let them wear the new fashion accessory that has hit the streets as fashion jewelery. I can put up with almost every Chav-tastic abomination; Dolphin tattoos that appear to have been drawn by a 2 year old using old felt-tip pens , lip and belly button piercings, tattered Baseball Caps and T-shirts with pointless slogans. Although, things have now taken a seriously bad road... Rosary beads!

For the love of Mother Theresa, have some respect! If you ain't gonna use them, then don't wear them. My Wife asked a young colleague if he was Catholic the other day when she had noticed he was wearing a light mahogany-coloured set of Rosary. He replied 'Oh these......I got seven pairs, I'm not Catholic, it's just that my Dad makes them in Prison. Looks good, don't they?'. Imbecile.

Now, to the Food. It was as you would expect from most standardised restaurants. Catering for all and sundry is really the only way to describe it. Mass produced Chicken Curries, Omlettes and Lasagnas. Basic grub for the undiscerning diner. throw into the mix the usual suspects of Paella and Chateaubriand (only ever for two people), Sangria with more fruit than an orchard, the 'free' bread rolls with either aioli or green olives and olive oil and the obligatory sweet liquor with your bill and you have a Culinary experience equivalent of eating at McDonald's or your local Pub.

Why do most restaurants serve this food when people should be experiencing with different flavours and cultural dishes not available in their home town? When I am away from my comfort zone of French/British Cuisine, I want to experiment not gulp down Pizza or Spaghetti Bolognase. Leave the Chicken Goujons to the Schools, let's starting enjoying something new.

So, to sum up my 'relaxing' holiday. Damn expensive, crap food, painful mosquito bites, bloody Germans, 'speed' restaurants and to hot. We are going to Wales next year!

Now....the News. Major kudos to Chef Marcus Wareing for escaping the clutches of Ramsey Holdings and venturing out into the big, wide world to take on The Berkley. The acclaimed restaurant which holds 2 Michelin Stars has recently been described by one critic as "the best restaurant in London" and is apparently "as good as it gets". Personally, I don't think it will be to long before that 2 Star restaurant will hit 3 Stars, the highest accolade any Chef can expect to attain.

In regards to the blog, things have been moving slowly, even slower with the website......but progress will resume shortly. I have been working on a future competition on the FoodBuzz network which has been taking up most of my spare time and energy. As I'm sure you have noticed, I have succumbed to the ever popular 'advertising' of another website on my main page. All I can say for that is "Sorry", if you get a chance, visit the FoodBuzz site. It's not as bad as it seems.

Meanwhile, life moves on and I will be back soon as the Winter season approaches and time will become readily available.

Until then......

Le Chef Grincheux