As an New Yorker transplanted to London, I often wondered about this too. After eight months, I think I have finally come up with a system:

1. Do not bother tipping a bartender in a pub. They don't expect it, don't understand your reason for doing it, and it will not change your service. It's not like New York. They will not remember you, care if you tipped well or not, or otherwise have an influence on your evening.

2. If you are having a meal in a pub, ask yourself this question: Did I have to go to the bar to order, pay before I received my food, and carry my food back to my table? If the answer is yes, you do not need to tip. This is fairly typical pub service.

3. If you are having a meal in a pub and you are brought a menu, do not have to get your own food, and need to ask for the check at the end of the meal, yes... you should tip. (The standard here is less than in the States, so 10% is fine and more than that would be appreciate for good service.)

In case you change your mind, you might want to have a look at this website organized by neighborhood. I'd throw in Fortnum and Mason as a suggestion as well.

http://www.afternoon-tea-london.co.uk...

Hmmm... it's a little bit of a vacuum over there. Mostly hotels and not-great restaurants. You might have an ok higher end pub meal at the Marquis Cornwallis on Marchmont st. Ciao Bella does a good Italian on Lamb's Conduit st. For a gastropub, nearest one I can think of is the Lady Ottoline on Northington St. Kind of depends on exactly where you are staying in terms of how close these would be.

If you are actually close to the museum, think about searching restaurants in Fitzrovia (the next neighborhood over to the west.) British Museum / Russell Square area is not great for dining options in my opinion.

Well, the last few places I can think of that were majorly disappointing were Stone House (Guilford,) Allegre (Madison,) Chowder Pot (Branford,) and Dock and Dine (Old Saybrook.)

Places I have really liked have been more casual... The Place (Guilford,) pizza at Stony Creek Market (Branford,) Captain Scott's (New London,) and I guess Lenny & Joe's falls kind of in the middle for me.

So you can see a pattern here... it's not that I am impossible to please or need super high end treatment, I think I just haven't found good suggestions for an evening restaurant with proper service. All of the feedback so far has been great, and I will look into those places.

I am going to redirect this post in a more positive way, as I will be back up in the Branford/Guilford/Madison area in about 3 weeks. My new post will be more specific and not negative.

-----
Lenny & Joe's
Westbrook, CT, Westbrook, CT

Stony Creek Market
178 Thimble Island Rd, Branford, CT 06405

OK, hey...I'm not trying to insult the whole region. I had a bunch of lousy meals in a row at places that were recommended to me as top quality (including the Stone House in Guilford, which was incredibly disappointing.)

I'm not only interested in seafood, or water views, but since I spend a considerable amount of time each summer in what is basically the middle of the state shoreline (as I posted above, roughly between NH and NL,) I'm trying to figure out where the good restaurants are. I'm kind of done with asking for local recommendations, because they inevitably send me to the nearest "big name" restaurant, which is always some version of an amateur chef preparing barely warmed over frozen food, near the marina.

I want to know where the chowhounds eat. I have already taken notes on the postings above. I'm sorry if my original post came across as snooty or something, but I was really pissed off having spent $100 on another terrible meal with bad service. I know there have to be better places than the ones I am pointed to.

I like to do lunch casually, and I have sought out and found some great places. I am not too precious for picnic tables or fried food.... in fact, I love that stuff. But when it turns to evening, I want a nice, refined restaurant that has servers who know what they are doing and a chef who actually cooks.

Please don't read this as insulting. I'm not that guy. Maybe I'm irritated but my intention is not to be negative about the region.

Well, it doesn't have to be upscale necessarily... just something that isn't a lobster roll joint with picnic tables (of which I have found several great ones!) and isn't a rip-off fried seafood place. Had dinner at Dock and Dine in Old Saybrook last night on the recommendation of a local resident, and it was honestly one of the worst meals I have had in a long time. I had the same experience last summer at a couple of restaurants in Guilford. I don't need a shore view, just a real restaurant that isn't going to serve me microwaved broccoli next to frozen cod for $25.

You are right... I have never been to any of those places. This is why I am asking. Pretty much every town I have visited, I've asked locals for a quality places, and I always get sent to some lousy seafood joint that charges NYC prices for microwaved food. I need to find REAL restaurants, not just tourist traps!

OK, fair enough. Let's narrow it down to the shore towns between New Haven and New London. Based on my experience, sitting down for a nice seafood meal anywhere in Guilford, Madison, Branford, Old Saybrook, etc is a miserable time. Frozen junk barely microwaved for $25. Can this really be true all along the shoreline? I mean, I'm sure Greenwich has some nice restaurants, and I know this area is on the sound and not the ocean, but man have I had some bad meals over the last couple summers.

I'm seriously asking.... have been to some wonderful smaller places, but when it comes to sit-down service I feel like the options are terrible.

First of all, you should not be worried about paying anyone's tab, bar or otherwise. It might be a little inconvenient for some guests to not know if it's a sit-down dinner or cocktail party, but that's not your problem. They are free to ask you.

It's hard to wrangle a large group, especially if everyone has their own ideas about how to pay. You are merely asking them to come to the party. Could you be more explicit? Maybe. But do not feel like you have to pay for dinner, or rounds of drinks. After the "surprise," your friends should be buying drinks for you.

I agree. Many years ago I worked for a restaurant that accepted a similar offer. Accepting the coupon ahead of time is really to make sure everyone involved understands what's what. Some of the offers, for example, restrict the diner's choices to certain menu items. It's basically to make sure there are no misunderstandings, not to cut portion sizes.

Thank you! I had thought of Murray's but didn't know if they had soup. Is Lobster Place the seafood vendor a couple doors down from Murray's?

-----
The Lobster Place
252 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014

Can anyone help me think of a good place I could stop by for soup on the way home? Could be a restaurant, take-out joint, sidewalk vendor.... whatever. I want to bring soup home for my wife and I tonight, but don't want anything from a can. Will be making my way home from Chelsea through the West Village.

It's worth a trip, but not for the food. The sandwiches are ok, but the atmosphere is unique. You don't find many restaurants like this anymore.

Not too far off Atlantic is Kif, in Fort Greene. They are a Moroccan restaurant if memory serves. Haven't been in a long time, but enjoyed the few meals I had there.

I would recommend Saul, Chestnut or Grocery. All very nice, small restaurants where you will get a great meal and not be rushed or crowded.

In my experience, the service at Frankie's is not appropriate for a birthday dinner or someone who is 9 months pregnant. When my wife was that far along in her pregnancy, we ended up valuing space and attentiveness A LOT on the few occasions we went out.

Prime Meats is a good suggestion, but you may have to wait quite a long time... your husband might love it but it might be uncomfortable for you. Depends on what time you go, I guess.

-----
Chestnut
271 Smith St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

Prime Meats
465 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

A really good episode. I didn't care at all for the quickfire (seriously, what can you really expect them to make from those ingredients?) except for one thing that was new: the chefs had no idea how much time they had. That was an interesting twist that got lost in the lousy nature of the challenge.

I would love to see more challenges like that. How would the chefs organize themselves if they had to prepare a proper dish not knowing if they had 5 minutes or 20?

Anyone interested in composing one of these ourselves? I could draw a basic neighborhood map and we could all add to it. I'd post a pdf and update with everyone's comments.

Maybe it's a New York thing. Flashing a big tip up front means you are trying to impress your date, or imply to the bartender you're a big shot. I don't think bartenders here are much influenced by that. they'll take your money, it just doesn't guarantee anything.

Or maybe New York bartenders are just jaded and too cool for a big tip.

I don't know... unless you are at a really crowded bar or open-bar event, where lots of people are clamoring for attention, a huge tip up front isn't really going to mean anything. Most of the bartenders I know are suspicious of customers who overtip for the first round.

From my experience, getting better service is a mix of a better than average tip, being polite, and being regular. A bartender will remember a big tip, but unless you return consistently they won't build a profile of you in their head.

I don't have any strong objections to her, I meant more when you think of the contestants as a whole. At the beginning I could have pictured a finale without Jen Carroll. Or Dale T. Or Richard. But the possibility of NONE of those chefs going through? I guess that's why they call it a competition.

I get the fact that they judge each dish on its own merits every week, but maybe Bravo should reconsider this format? The star system seemed to kind of work on TCM (even though that was only within an episode, not week to week.)

I understand the arguments against it being totally point based (some chefs would be mathematically eliminated early on.) But are we really looking at the possibility of Mike Isabella, Tiffany and Antonia being the final three on TC All-Stars? That just doesn't seem right to me.

A third option might be the Picnic House in Prospect Park. There is a longer list of approved caterers, so you would have more options. Setting is not exactly the same as the boathouse, but is still very nice.

I remember when it was still a general / art supply store. This rant is kind of perfect for what Dumbo has become.

Actually, this was one of the few episodes where I thought the IC really did deserve to win. Cooper seemed a bit muddled and unsure of himself. There have been plenty of other episodes where I really thought the challenger should win, and was disappointed that they seem to always give it to the IC. I like Forgione, I think he's good on the show.

Thanks to all. I think I'll try Murray's before braving Eataly. I appreciate your suggestions!

-----
Eataly
200 5th Ave, New York, NY 10010

Is there really a Calabrian Pork Store in the Bronx? Is that its actual name? I know Brooklyn pretty well and parts of Queens, but I don't get up to the Bronx all that often.

Does anyone know where I can buy Nduja in the city? I recently ate at A Voce (on Madison) and their Baccala comes in a lobster broth with a nduja vinaigrette. The bartender there paired it for me with a German white, which at first I thought was odd, but in the end the sweetness of the wine paired perfectly with the heat of the sausage.

I would never have thought to use nduja with fish, but the dish was so good I want to play around with it at home. I suppose I could try Eataly.... any other suggestions?

-----
A Voce
41 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10010

Eataly
200 5th Ave, New York, NY 10010

When you say "grab some breakfast" I assume you don't mean a restaurant. I would think Choice in Clinton Hill is probably the best (though not the cheapest.) There's a decent diner on DeKalb up near Pratt (Mike's? Tony's? Someone on this board will know.)

That's another place that can be really good or really frustrating, depending on when you go. The food is pretty good, not great. The service is.... let's just say French. I really like their skirt steak with potato gratin.

Give it a try on an off hour.... if you go on Friday night it's a little bit much. But it's worth a try in general.