Such theatrical dishes are inclined not to live up to their billing - but not in this case. But the filling was superb - not the standardised mousse of nondescript crustacea, but a really meaty affair packed with the sweet flesh taken from the tails of the little squatties.Marie was having a Faberge-esque time with Blunos' celebrated signature dish: a scrambled duck egg put back in its shell, topped with Sevruga caviare and served with blinis and a glass of iced lemon-grass vodka. My only disappointment was that the starter I craved, red mullet with a caviare butter sauce, was not available. I felt like fish, so went by default for squat lobster tortellini with a lobster and cream sauce - just a touch reluctantly as pasta somehow seemed an unadventurous option in a restaurant like this. "A cunning ruse," my Mum observed, "to make you wait so long for something they know will instantly make you forgive them."This was a knockout preface to a meal in which, almost for the first time I can remember when dining in a party of four, all of us liked everything we ordered. They came with croutons topped with a blob of rouille into which had been mixed (according to some unlikely but, as it turned out, inspired whim of the chef) little pieces of potato.
The dining-room, though small, is sumptuous, as if the Blunos are in rehearsal for country-house life. It may be scaled down grandeur, but it could hardly be more comfortable - which is just as well, because we had a pretty long wait for the first of our dishes. I struggled not to ruin my careful preparation by overdosing on bread, and eventually Dad took the inscription on the menu quite literally, and went out to the street to smoke "with consideration for other guests". Which meant, of course, that our amuse-gueules arrived at once.My first taste of Blunos' food for seven years, and the other's first ever, was pretty sensational: little coffee cups filled with an intense fish soup. Seven years on, I'm itching to get back, and not least because I hear that its days may be numbered: chef Martin Blunos and his wife Sian are looking to move, and reincarnate Lettonie in the country.The next day ...
Within five minutes the skin changed colour and began to blacken and burn. They will drive us to the suburb of Bristol called Stoke Bishop, where we will all have dinner in a small restaurant called Lettonie, tucked into an unprepossessing row of shops between the vet and the launderette.I last went to Lettonie in 1990, to review it for Punch, and had some of the most sophisticated and brilliantly executed food I have ever tasted. It's 4pm, and so far today I've had two apples for breakfast, and a bowl of whole earth organic cornflakes, with semi-skimmed milk, about half an hour ago - delicious, but will they keep me going until dinner at eight?Why the build up? Because Marie and I are due to get the 6.15 from Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads, where we will be met by my parents. But I know what I'm talking about - I'm writing this review before visiting the restaurant that is to be its subject.
What do you eat? An apple? A banana? A jam sandwich? You decide it's too risky, and you'll hold out for 8.30. But just before you leave you realise that you really are too famished. Before you know it you've scoffed seven packets of Hob Nobs and you're groaning on the floor, begging your partner to cancel the booking.Am I exaggerating? Maybe a little. How, much, for example, do you eat? You want to arrive hungry, but not starving: if you're too hungry, you will crave un- adorned carbohydrate, and probably find the idea of meat and rich sauces something of a turn off. On the other hand, a late decision to take a light bite for purposes of pacing could be fatal.
Imagine, come seven o'clock, you're bordering on too peckish for optimum palate performance. I am talking about the problem of what to do when you are anticipating a particularly fantastic eating experience. There is an issue which I suspect preoccupies many of us who love good food, though I fear the confession of it may be seen as a justifiable cause for sneering Never mind Some people out there will understand. To accompany meat dishes or to serve as a cold soup thin the yoghurt with a little water to get the consistency you require, or chill it with a few ice cubes.BOOK OFFERClassic Turkish Cookery by Ghillie Basan with photographs by Jonathan Basan contains all the above recipes and covers every area of Turkish cuisine. Tauris & Co Ltd to: I B Tauris & Co Ltd, Victoria House, Bloomsbury Square, London WC1B 4DZ..