Gordon Ramsay’s critique of the Pheasant questioned by critic

Gordon Ramsay’s ability to spot a good restaurant is called into question by the Daily Telegraph’s restaurant critic, Jasper Gerard, in his Saturday review of the Pheasant in Keyston, Cambridgeshire.

While the food at the gastropub had been portrayed on The F Word during Ramsay’s search for the best local restaurant in the UK as accomplished and delicious, Gerard is served a baffling starter and chewy duck.  He also finds the décor unloved and “rubbish” and the service unwelcoming.

“Chefs look down on critics because we can't cook, but this experience confirms that chefs can't critique,” he says.

An uninspiring looking restaurant – Faanoos - on a suburban street in west London results in a surprisingly good experience for Matthew Norman of the Guardian.

“Early in the decade though it may be for long-term predictions, I can't imagine the next 10 years producing a more pleasingly curious or curiously pleasing meal than the one at Faanoos,” he declares, having enjoyed a lavish selection of Persian dishes at ridiculously low prices.

In complete contrast, Jay Rayner of the Observer is convinced that his meal at the Criterion, London W1 will probably be his worst of 2010.

Now owned by a group of entrepreneurs from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, the Criterion serves Rayner a shot glass of tangerine liquid which makes him wince, scorched roast venison, overcooked sea bass and langoustine which had not been rid of its intestines.

“It is common for me to describe food as crap, but rarely has this been so literally the case,” he says.

Martin Ivens heads out to the Pearson’s Arms in Whitstable, Kent for the Sunday Times and enjoys friendly, hospitable service and locally sourced pub food.

He says the bill of £160 is well priced and is keen to return to a venue where the quaint, but warm interior, was “a cheerful tonic”.

For this review in full and more, see What’s on the menu? To book a table, see Caterer Eats Out. Visit Guide Girl for the latest gossip from the fine dining world.


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By Janet Harmer


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