Juniper, 21 The Downs, Altrincham, WA14 2QD

The Michelin star'd Juniper in Altrincham really made me wish I'd brought a pen and notebook as there's no way I'm going to do justice to their own descriptions of the wildly inventive, but exquisitely balanced food on display. I was pretty sure that there was nothing I was going to eat this month that would match the astonishing, and sometimes perturbing, food at Manresa in Saratoga but Paul Kitching’s Juniper at least matched it in invention and execution, if not in scale.

The meal included three "proper" courses and both an amuse and a pre-dessert as well. The mini-courses were wildest of all: a shot of a bean "juice" to start and a cornflake, milk and Loveheart micro-dessert. From the regular courses a chorizo and mushroom starter was layered to spectacular, revelatory effect and the trio of desserts simply made you wish it had been a sextet (a winter trifle was particularly good). The main course of venison, a special, was served in a rather narrow, deep bowl that demanded a surgeon's skill to cut the meat and extract it for eating. The reward was significant though: the meat perfectly cooked (medium, to my preference) and accompanied by wisps of vegetables, intense foams and, bizarrely, a small slice of chocolate tart.

At £200 (before tip) for a meal for four, with a nice Sancerre, Juniper is a bargain of the highest order. And on top of the stunning food is engaging and very friendly, conversational, service that takes the edge of the experimental dishes and provides a bridge to access this amazing food.

Straight into my all time top tables. I can't wait to get back there.

Incognico 117 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8AD

I admit it: Incognico isn't my favourite London restaurant, but it is probably my most frequently visited in the ~£100+ (meal for 2) price range. Why? Location has a lot to do with it of course -- it's at the epicentre of where I do business in town and easy to find for guests. But there's also the simple fact that while the service can be wildly variable the food has never disappointed. It was raining when we arrived and the front of the restaurant showed not a single table free. Drat! Luckily the back room hadn't started to fill yet so we were first in there. Salt cod with aioli (£9.50) was a comforting treat after a frankly lousy journey into town (a "passenger incident" cancelled all trains on the Central line) and Roast sea bass (£15.50) was an elegant main. We also hurtled through two baskets of quality bread, a result of missing lunch. Dessert of chocolate mouse was unusually presented in a soup-bowl and a bit too much powdered sugar was sprinkled on for me.

Cocktails included absolutely excellent margherita's -- better than I was expecting really.

Overall still a very reliable and rewarding evening out.

Barburrito, Picadilly Gardens, Manchester vs Balazo, Haight St, San Francisco

vs.

Apparently award-winning, Barburitto is part of a complex of "worker's-lunch" places that's sprung up around Manchester's renovated Picadilly Gardens.

Taqueria el Balazo is a San Francisco institution. I ate there first over a decade ago and even if I was a local I doubt I'd be bored with it by now.

Lunch at Barburitto was £5.75 ($11.50) for a small burrito with horrid, pastly corn chips and a fountain soda. Lunch at Balazo was $6.95 for a Carne Asada burrito with rice, beans and fresh salsa. Served with chips and cabbage salad, a fountain soda was $1.65 extra.

What is there to say? In terms of taste Balazo handed Barburrito it's donkey ass. Barburrito's combination of a salsa that even in it's spiciest offering was anemic and lousy, hard tortilla chips as a side were damning, even if the buritto itself was just about ok, if understuffed.

Balazo's portions are a work of art: just enough. And the flavours are the kind you come back for, as is the spiffy "folk-art" decor.

A knockout to Balazo.

Olympus Fish & Chip Restaurant 37-39 Great Moor Street Bolton Lancashire BL1 1SW

Locals tell me that the Olympus Fish & Chip Restaurant used to be just a small take-away with a dining room for a handful of covers. Well, the take away is still there, and looks good value, but it's now next to a giant dining room that was pretty much packed when I visited on a Thursday lunch time.

Fish and chips are close to the ideal for me. A well proportioned fillet, no skin; enough chips but enough that they still represent a side rather than the main stock of the meal, classic mushy peas without the addition of mint or other flavourings. Service was swift - you order at a counter but an army of servers are around the room, making sure that the (mostly retired, I'm guessing) clients are happy.

Recommended, at less than £8 a head.

Ramsay wins two Michelin stars in NY

Well, despite a humdrum reception from the increasingly less trustworthy Frank Bruni Gordon Ramsay must be doing something right at his "new" restaurant in New York, since he has just been awarded two Michelin stars for the Manhattan based "the London" restaurant.

Hopefully this will take the attention away from the reports of staff rows and frivolous lawsuits and onto the food, where it belongs.

Will it equal sales? Well, The Michelin Guide is only in its third year in the US, but it's cachet is well known there. The award brings Ramsay's "firmament" of Michelin stars to 11.