Ramsay orders seasonal-only menus...

[Sair33]

BBC NEWS | UK | Ramsay orders seasonal-only menu

Great! ... in principle, I really would love to know that all fruit and vegetables I ate in restaurants was seasonal and hadn't travelled halfway across the world... but practically, it's just a nonsense.
I think he's mad to be talking seriously about this! A law to be passed by parliament??
What would be classed as a restaurant? McDonalds? So would they have to remove tomatoes from Big Mac's in the winter because they're not seasonal?
I really do agree that we should try to reduce food miles, but I don't think this is the right way to go about it... not yet anyway.

[Koolpc]

As usual, more rubbish from Ramseys gob! Just goes to show what planet he is living on!

[Sair33]

He's right about Delia though...

[Ferral]

Interesting but not practical really. Also agree with the comments on Delia, but at the same time a busy lifestyle doesn't give you an hour in the kitchen after a hard days work. You simply just want to get in, eat and then put your feet up.

[pollaxe]

Just what this country needs: more legislation.

[Bleak]

I work in a hotel and our restaurant is doing just this, serving in season food. Our Chef makes a point of telling the guests where all the food is from if they ask about it.

[Sair33]

Originally Posted by Bleak

I work in a hotel and our restaurant is doing just this, serving in season food. Our Chef makes a point of telling the guests where all the food is from if they ask about it.

Which is fantastic, and I would far rather eat in a restaurant that advertised local / seasonal food than one that doesn't (even if it cost a little more), and hopefully, that is the way things will be going in the future, but to fine restaurants for not doing it, when it would be virtually impossible to enforce just seems ridiculous. There are too many if's and but's to make it work.
I think it would be better to educate people more into why local / seasonal is better for them and the environment so that restaurants then feel obliged to serve local / seasonal food and lose business if they don't.

[Sair33]

Originally Posted by Ferral

Also agree with the comments on Delia, but at the same time a busy lifestyle doesn't give you an hour in the kitchen after a hard days work. You simply just want to get in, eat and then put your feet up.

I agree, but why use frozen / preprepared ingredients to make something complicated that takes ages? She made custard the other day using Bird's Custard Powder. Fine... but then she added eggs, milk etc etc... so why not just make custard from scratch if you're going to faff around with all that? Or buy the fresh readymade custard in the first place? (Jamie Oliver does!)
Just show people how to make simple, fast food using fresh ingredients.
I won't go on or I'll be here all day!!!

[MD]

next time those who think its a bad idea go to the supermarket to get some food take a look at where most of the fruit and veg comes from.

It's pretty disgusting...to see the amount of food coming fromt he other side of the world just because its cheaper than here.

I do totally agree with the proposal, but its not without difficulties i grant you that.

Puts it all in perspective when on the flight to CeBIT this year each of the HEXUS staff members added 23KG of carbon pollution to the planet EACH WAY.

Beleive it or not though we took a plane which was one of the lightest on pollution - HEXUS, doing its bit for the planet on more than one level

[kalniel]

Originally Posted by Bleak

I work in a hotel and our restaurant is doing just this, serving in season food. Our Chef makes a point of telling the guests where all the food is from if they ask about it.

That's cool, but a shame the guests have to ask about the food. I'm always terrified about asking anything in advance about the food Where a restaurant/hotel makes that kind of information clearly visible they get much more of my custom

[Lucio]

Whilst I agree that we should try and get more locally grown food on our plates, I don't think this is the way to go about it. What's wrong with taking the money that'd have to be spent on enforcement of this rule, and then going "so, here's a big cash incentive if you can stick to these guidelines" and here's a nice shiny "Home Grown Menu" logo you can display to draw the punters in.

It'd leave resteraunts alone that have to rely on produce flown in from overseas (for example Chinese resteraunts, don't think we'd have much luck growing bamboo and rice in the UK) but give larger chains a reason to go alone with it.