Had lunch today with John Torode (sorry, can't resist a bit of name dropping) at his Smiths of Smithfield restaurant.
Only one major faux pas. I ordered the wild mushroom risotto which was probably a mistake seeing as the guy's so famous for his beef. He immediately wanted to know if I was a vegetarian!
Today's menu included a 10oz Shorthorn rump (aged 24 days), a 10oz Longhorn sirloin (also aged 24 days) and a 10oz South Devon sirloin (aged 23 days). One really nice touch is that they explain on the menu where the meat comes from - and thank the suppliers.
The puds were exquisite: I went for the spiced quince and ginger bread, with honey ice cream.
I'll tell you more about him next week, but he's a great bloke - even if wouldn't be drawn on who will win Masterchef (obviously they finished filming a while ago). The final goes out on tv the week after next.
I got the chance to meet him because he's taking up a farming-related role; I'm sworn to secrecy for the time being, but will give you the full low-down next week.
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