Confession

Hi and Welcome to my first post on this blog:

Eating Out In Yorkshire

I hope you stay with me and find the post useful and enjoyable because I have a confession to make: This blog is for me a personal indulgence. It may by some be considered a crusade even, though that would be more incidental than intentional.


I'm a Yorkshireman Who Enjoys Food

There, I've said it. What a Yorkshireman is expected to say is that he 'likes his grub'. And his drink. Drink as in b o o z e.

I enjoy food. I enjoy cooking, although my repertoire is limited. I do however have plans to expand the present limitations of my culinary skills.

An indulgence because I get so annoyed and frustrated spending money on a 'meal out' and wishing afterwards that I hadn't. But when a restaurant provides good food, with good service - including duration of delivery and attitude - and a congenial atmosphere together with value-for-money, then I will happily applaud it.

After all, it IS their profession. When those same people buy a car they expect good service in exchange for their money. Same with buying clothes. Same with eating out. I simply expect value for money. And not be disappointed...again!

Another Confession

I don't like the usual definition of 'healthy food'. It smacks of a kind of fanatical attitude to food. In my mind I only consider 'food' to be healthy. If it isn't then I consider it unacceptable as in 'junk-food'.

There is one category between these two and that is what I call Entertainment Food. More later.

So:

1. Food

2. Entertainment Food

3. Junk Food

4. Dangerous Food


You'll notice that I slipped in a 4th category: Dangerous Food.

That's because even real food can be dangerous if: 1) It is stale, 2) out-of-date, 3) moldy, therefore poisonous. Junk food is dangerous, but it's effects are more medium to long term whereas poisons act relatively quickly.


Enjoying Eating-Out

In this blog I will attempt to concentrate on the more enjoyable aspects of eating-out but where it is unavoidable I will not ignore the less palatable(!) aspects either.

I have no formal training in any aspect of food except a couple of years as a commis chef in the kitchen of a large hotel chain.

Other than that it's my own cooking mainly for myself and my lovely wife, the Lady J.


Mother's Home Cookin'

As with most people, my first contact with food was through my mother. She had been a cook professionally and a freelance confectioner.

This was fortunate for my sister and myself as children as we benefited from having the most fantastic and original birthday cakes as well as Christmas and Easter cakes. Easter was particularly welcome as we delighted in her own 'homemade' chocolate Easter Eggs, beautifully decorated with piped-icing and filled with surprising goodies, including one year, a football match ticket. Nothing to compare anywhere in shops. Unmatchable! Lucky us :o)

Mother also made a mean fruit cake. Honestly, I have never tasted better since in well over half a century. I have tried. My intention is to take her recipe to try and emulate it myself. I'll report back when I do. Promise!

Incidentally, Fruit Cake comes under Entertainment Food. Which means that it isn't harmful in the short term to our the body, but shouldn't be indulged in too much. Just like any entertainment. In other words, it's a treat. An occasional 'goody'.


The Main Thrust

The main reason though for the blog is to report on our experiences of eating out. This will mainly cover Yorkshire - the largest county in England - because this is where we live. It doesn't exclude other places we might travel to both in England and abroad. All will be 'grist to the mill'.

I'm going to wrap this first blog up now and will prepare the first actual Eating-Out report for the 2nd blog which we enjoyed in the beautiful village of Hovingham, 35 miles or so north east of where we live here in Leeds.

Till then,


Carl
Your Companion in Food