Welcome to The Picky Glutton blog!

I’m the Picky Glutton and I aim to review every restaurant I dine at. Whether it’s in my home town of London or farther afield, whether it serves up Michelin-starred haute cuisine or more humble, down to earth grub, if it’s a restaurant then I will tell you whether, in my considered opinion, it’s worth going to.

With so many places to eat, the last place you want to go is somewhere deeply disappointing or, perhaps even worse, somewhere forgettably mediocre and yawningly average. To help you out, each review will always finish with a firm recommendation either way and a rating out of a maximum of 5.

What are the ratings? In ascending order:

1. Insultingly bad.
2. Poor. Must try harder.
3. Adequate. Pleasing enough, but not particularly memorable or inventive. You’ll barely remember it a month from now.
4. Good. Not flawless, but good enough that I’ll be back.
5. Exceptional.

No rating system is perfect, but at least this one is easy to understand. What criteria is each restaurant judged on?

• Decor and ambience
• Service
• The Food
• Price/value

Different weightings will be applied to each category depending on the restaurant in question. For example, more emphasis will be placed on Decor and Service in a sparkling nouvelle cuisine restaurant than in a modest, neighbourhood brasserie or bistro.

I’ve grown up around restaurants all my life thanks to my catering-trade family and frequent business lunches at my day job. Nevertheless, I won’t always be embarking on this quest alone. I’ll be helped out by my frequent dining companions including, but not limited to, The Euro Hedgie, The Flame Haired Squelchie, The Lensman, The Jolly Giant, Wicket, The Bastard and The Prancing Hippy. They’ll make cameo appearances every now and again in my reviews.

I will need definitely their help when it comes to booze. For reasons which don’t need exploring at this juncture, I don’t drink alcohol. Although this means I’m well-placed to tell how over-priced a glass of coke is, I’ll need the help and opinion of a companion when it comes to the plonk. Unfortunately, such a companion may not always be present, so if you’re an alky you may sometimes be disappointed.

I will try to illustrate each review with an appropriate number of photos, tag each review with the right keywords/categories for easy searching and make repeat visits to see how well consistency has been maintained. Just as importantly, I hopes you’ll have just as much fun as I do.

Cheers,

TPG