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Hey big spender

Posted at 11:45AM, 30 January 2009 by Christine Hayes - Editor, olive magazine

If you've dipped into olive magazine recently you might have come across the Pro vs Punter restaurant review, where a critic and an olive reader compare notes on a restaurant they've separately visited.

One of our regular critics is MasterChef judge Gregg Wallace. His brief is simple: order whatever's most appealing and write about it. At least, that's how it's worked up to now.

In this month's olive, the cheeky vegman visits new London restaurant Bob Bob Ricard and as usual, goes for whatever winks at him on the menu. This time, it's caviar and champagne and his bill comes to a stonking £222.19. "Not credit-crunch food, is it?", he says. Well quite.

Open quotationIt's a hefty amount to spend on dinner at any time, but right now it feels crazy ape bonkersClose quotation

£222.19 would buy six weeks' worth of meals for £35 and is more than £80 more than the punter's bill. It's a hefty amount to spend on dinner at any time, but right now it feels crazy ape bonkers.

I like Gregg's reviews. They are funny, honest, and give a good sense of the food and atmosphere, as well as a little look-see into Gregg's World. Unlike some critics who seem to revel in finding fault, he always tries to have a good time, and usually does. Ok, that might be helped by the fact that he's often recognised by staff, seeing as his mug is on tv most nights and his veg business supplies the restaurant trade, but that's exactly the point: Gregg provides the colour, and the punter tells us what we, the average diner, can expect from the same place.

But in these belt-tightening times, is it a bit irrelevant to order the most expensive thing on the menu? Should we curb Gregg's spending, limit him to house wine and an overall budget of fifty quid? Send him to cheap and cheerful places, new Mexican takeaways , Thai cafes and the like?

Or do you think that he should represent the shameless bon vivant that, given half the chance, we'd all like to be?

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Comments

  • Binder photo Aedara
    30 January 2009, 12:46PM

    Aedara

    Open QuoteExpensive restaurants are a luxury in the same way as a nice holiday and just because there is a credit crunch it doesn't mean that no one is going to go to one and spend a small fortune it just means its a bigger luxury than it was before. We all take a little bit of pleasure in reading about or looking at things we really can't afford like a teenage boy ogling a ferarri and so I don't think the credit crunch should really effect it, most people couldn't afford to eat at these places before and they still can't its just that if they do want to for a special occasion the occasion might have to be just that little bit specialer.

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  • Binder photo irish foodie
    30 January 2009, 1:12PM

    irish foodie

    Open QuoteI live in a remote area where all the restaurants are both expensive and rubbish - so I mainly use olive to help me cook restaurant-standard food at home. However when I do travel and eat out I am not in the market for high-end restaurants - and most enjoy when olive provides me with good restaurants and gastro-pubs I can afford to actually go to. In these credit crunch times I think it would be really useful to put the brilliant Greg on a budget - for his sake as much as ours and when the good times roll again - by all means let him eat cavier. Right now it seems a bit, well, much....even for him!

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  • Binder photo Girl Flower
    30 January 2009, 4:52PM

    Girl Flower

    Open QuoteI think there should be a budget or something as I dont read the reviews to kill a bit of time, I read them to see where I might actually go and eat. He should go to cheaper places and a wider mixture would be good of varying types and budgets maybe. I do think buying champagne and cavier at a time like this is in bad taste, come on Greg we are all cutting back on expenses, can you not do the same?

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  • Binder photo Caity
    31 January 2009, 4:19PM

    Caity

    Open QuoteI enjoy Gregg's reviews and recently used one on a restaurant he'd been to to pick where to celebrate my engagement. Despite the fact the the "punter" normally states that they eat out quite frequently, these are high end resteraunts and should be reviewed as such. There should be a seperate feature for cheaper restaurants and Gregg should be allowed to carry on giving us opinions on fine dining.

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  • Binder photo motherhen
    1 February 2009, 3:29PM

    motherhen

    Open QuoteThere needs to be a mix. Good food doesn't necessarily have to come from high end restaurants. Sure it is nice to hear about the food etc at these places but perhaps feature quality local restaurants that serve excellent local food and celebrate what most people have on there doorstep (but may not have realised).

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  • Binder photo Samantha
    1 February 2009, 6:39PM

    Samantha

    Open QuoteThe pro v's punter should be varied to a certain extent, but I have no issues with the majority of the reviews being for 'high end' dining as it's on these ocassions that it's most important to make the right choice of where to go and spend your hard earned cash. An idea for more 'average bill' recommendations is for readers to recommend these on an ongoing basis with a brief description and a rating. Olive could change the areas covered in each issue so we get more of an idea of places to visit countrywide.

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  • Binder photo christine
    2 February 2009, 10:22AM

    christine

    Open QuoteSamantha, great idea. Readers can recommend their favourite great-value restaurants by emailing oliveletters@bbc.com or on our facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/olive-magazine/56665736536?ref=ts

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  • Binder photo Trudi
    2 February 2009, 4:09PM

    Trudi

    Open QuoteIt's right that Olive continue to review the best restaurants. Local gems where you can dine out for £20 are well known to all of us and passed frequently between friends but when looking further afield you're more likely to want more help and guidance. If you're cutting down on big splurges you value good advice even more. Keep up the great work Greg!

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  • Binder photo Jules
    3 February 2009, 12:29PM

    Jules

    Open QuoteThe Pro V Punter is one of my Olive fav's as I like to see what the Pro thinks of a place v Joe Bloggs. I think it's a good idea to review expensive places so if you save up and go for a treat you have an idea of somewhere to go, image you went paid a fortune and it was cr*p? The only thing I'd like to see change is the London Bubble - there are good high end resturants in other areas. Olive covers enough Cheap eats in other features.

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  • Binder photo christine
    3 February 2009, 1:16PM

    christine

    Open QuoteJules, the reason we feature so many London restaurants in the pro v punter slot is because it focuses on new places, and the majority of major openings are in the capital. However, we have featured Fifteen at Watergate Bay in Cornwall, Purnell's in Birmingham, The Thatch in Thame and Jamie's Italian in Oxford, plus Oki-name (Fat Boy Slim's place) in Brighton - last year, 5 out of 12 issues featured restaurants outside London. We'd love to review more so fingers crossed there will be some new talent to visit this year, but imagine that some openings may be on hold in these gloomy times.

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  • Binder photo Tim
    4 February 2009, 9:06PM

    Tim

    Open Quoteits appropriate, when he reviewed a fish and chip take away shop, in one magasine, it wasn't right. The descriptions, decor and ideas it creates for reviewers are generally high end restaurants. Theres a good wetherspoons near me but I don't want to read about someone eating there.

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  • Binder photo clerkenwell kid
    5 February 2009, 12:20PM

    clerkenwell kid

    Open Quoteas far as bbr goes - the great thing is you can go mad if you want to or have a great but inexpensive lunch - wha' the problem with that!

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  • Binder photo LucindaDunne
    12 February 2009, 11:18AM

    LucindaDunne

    Open QuoteI, personally, think it was a bit obscene for the current climate. I don't really appreciate Gregg going to high end restaurants, on what is, effectively my money, as Olive is a BBC magazine. I am sure he has plenty of money of his own that he could spend on luxuries like caviar if he wanted to. I also don't like the high end dining concept, most people don't have silly amounts of money to throw around for one meal, why can't the reviews be for more reasonably priced restaurants?

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  • Binder photo christine
    13 February 2009, 11:52AM

    christine

    Open QuoteLucinda, just to reassure you that olive is part of BBC Magazines which is owned by the BBC and our profits are returned to the BBC for the benefit of the licence-fee payer. There is a cap on what olive pays towards Gregg's bill for this feature and if he chooses to spend more than this (as he did on this occasion) it's at his own expense. Point taken re high end dining - lots of good value restaurants in this issue, as recommended by chefs who like a bargain, and there will be plenty of other cheap eats highlighted in the coming months.

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  • Binder photo NeilH
    20 February 2009, 5:19PM

    NeilH

    Open QuoteNever mind the cost, I'm more concerned that a man who is clearly obese is being encouraged to gorge himself with rich restaurant food. As if it's not enough that we have to watch him forcing ridiculously large mouthfuls into his gaping maw every night of the week on Masterchef, loyal Olive readers get to read about his attempts to eat himself into an early grave too! Come on Olive, use your restaurant budget to have the poor man's stomach stapled instead. It's the only humane thing to do.

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