Sunday 26 June 2011

Cosy Club Taunton

Not that cosy actually, few soft furnishings, slight warehouse feel makes it more clattery and noisy. But it's popular and a nice way of using an old building in Corporation St. in Taunton. There's a long bar with plenty of space in front so it doubles really as a bar/restaurant. The floor below street level includes a private hire room - very nice. Food; it was a quick lunch. Panini was slightly overdone, cod was quite poor - slightly leathery, there's much better elsewhere. The chicken and chorizo salad was excellent, although the saute spuds came with their skins on. Worth a revisit but you need to consider the occasion. It's too noisy for an effective business lunch as you wont hear the delicate price negotiations of your client (possibly a good thing?). It's not really a romantic food destination either. It's more along the lines of busy atmosphere, with food on the side. It's open all day every day which adds to the transient feel.

Friday 3 June 2011

Bath and West Show

The gripes about whether the Bath and West Show (I know I suppose I need to put Royal in front of that) - ok the RBWS, has any 'farming' feel have been going on as long as I can remember. I think it's a side issue. Yes, there are fewer agricultural machinery suppliers but these have been replaced over the years by the huge array of food and artisans. Perhaps really this is better for agricultural marketing - the end-user or consumer is king, if farmers need to choose a new combine, then there are better ways of doing it. Artisan bread for example, well marketed, provides the demand for their wheat. In this way, the countryside is perhaps more inclusive.