Spice and Curry – Indian Restaurants & Groceries

Is there a connection between the Michelin Guide (for restaurants) and the Michelin tyre company?

André Michelin published the first edition of the guide to help drivers maintain their cars, find decent lodging, and eat well while touring France. It included addresses of gasoline distributors, garages, tire stockists, and information on fuel prices, changing tires and repairing automobiles.

The guide was distributed freely from 1900 until 1920. The Michelin brothers introduced the charge to establish more credibility after a pile of guides were found propping up at a garage workbench. The guide introduced the star in 1926 to note good cooking; two and three stars were added in the early 1930s. The cover of the guide was originally blue, but since 1931 has been red.

The guide awards one to three stars to a small number of restaurants of outstanding quality. Stars are awarded sparingly; for instance, in the UK and Ireland 2004 guide, out of 5,500 entries, there are 98 with one star ("a very good restaurant in its category"), 11 with two stars ("excellent cooking, worth a detour"), and only 3 with three stars ("exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey").

A 3-star Michelin ranking is exceedingly rare. Only 26 3-star restaurants exist in France, and only 81 in the world.[4]

Since 1955, the guide has also highlighted restaurants offering "good food at moderate prices", a feature now called "Bib Gourmand". They must have a menu priced at no more than £28 in the case of the UK, or €40 in Ireland. The name comes from Bib (Bibendum), the Michelin Man, Michelin’s logo for over a century.

The guide also recognizes many restaurants without any stars or Bib Gourmands. These restaurants are usually rated solely on the scale of "forks and knives". The forks and knives rating is given to all restaurants recognized in the guide, and range from one to five, one fork and knife being "Quite comfortable restaurant" and five being "Luxurious restaurant". If the forks and knives are colored red they designate the restaurant to be "pleasant" as well. The forks and knives scale is designated to speak of the overall comfort and quality of the restaurant, however any listing in the guide requires a relatively high standard of the kitchen as well.

Restaurants, independently of their other ratings in the guide, can also receive a number of other symbols next to their listing.

The coins are given to restaurants that serve a menu for a certain price or less. The price depends on the local price-standard. In France the required price is currently €16.50.
Interesting view or Magnificent view, designated by a black or red symbol, are given to restaurants that offer dining with a view.
The grapes are given to restaurants that serve a somewhat interesting assortment of wine.

As motoring became more widespread, the star system was developed and guides to other countries introduced. Today a series of twelve guides list more than 45,000 hotels and restaurants across Europe, and the guide to France has sold 30 million copies since it was introduced. There are now Red Guides covering France, Austria, Netherlands, Belgium/Luxembourg, Italy, Germany, Spain/Portugal, Switzerland, and the UK/Ireland. The guide covering France is still by far the most thorough. There is also a Red Guide covering the "Main Cities of Europe". The first guides for cities outside of Europe were published in 2006 for New York City and for San Francisco (Hauman).

Guides for Tokyo, Los Angeles and Las Vegas have been released since November 2007. A guide for Hong Kong and Macau was published on 5 December 2008. Michelin today publishes guidebooks in 23 countries and is one of the best-selling restaurant guides in the world.

In 2008, German restaurateur Juliane Caspar was appointed the editor-in-chief position of the French edition of the Guide.[1] She is the first female and non-French national to take over at the French edition.[2]

A guide for Kyoto and Osaka was published on 16 October 2009. Kyoto and Osaka were awarded a total of 106 and 79 stars respectively.

Typical bengali dishes to be served. We are looking for a financial partner.

Voujon is a very successful chain of Bengali + Indian Restaurant in UK.
There is nothing like a proven success. You can Google for Voujon and see many of the websites of these restaurants. You can learn about menus and ambiance. Location is the most important factor. I suggest you contact them. You may be able to open ‘Voujon Singapore’. Good luck
http://www.voujon.co.uk/
People love good food, and they love to try new places. There is always a room for another new restaurant.

Hi folks,

Is anybody aware of an English language restaurant guide online for Seoul, South Korea?
I’m looking for something similar to Yelp. I’ve managed to find a few for Tokyo, Japan but still haven’t found any for Seoul.

Thank you!

http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/FO/FO_EN_6_4_4.jsp

http://english.visitseoul.net/visit2007en/lodgingdining/dining/dining.jsp?cid=76

http://www.lifeinkorea.com/Food/menu.cfm

I have seen signs at fine dining restaurants that say " michelin rated". What does that mean, If no stars? Thanks.

http://santarosa.about.com/od/foodandwine/a/michelin.htm

The guide awards one to three stars to a small percentage of restaurants of outstanding quality. One star means "a very good restaurant in its category," two stars mean "excellent cooking, worth a detour", and three stars is “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey." Just to be listed in the guide, with no stars, is a major coup.

Influence
Appearing or not appearing in the Michelin Guide can make or break a restaurant. Not surprisingly, people in the business tend to take it seriously. In 2003, Bernard Loiseu, a French chef in Burgundy, committed suicide amid rumors that his restaurant might be downgraded from three to two stars.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=travel&res=9B0DEEDD1F3BF935A25750C0A960948260

It’s the secure way to travel in France.

You want a special dining experience, so you reach for the stars, the Michelin stars. To many diners, the Michelin guide’s one-, two- and three-star restaurants are a sure-fire guarantee of a good meal. Unfortunately, many travelers never get beyond the stars, missing the numerous unstarred gems that may or may not have made their way into the thick red bible.

The 1986 edition, released last week in France, lists 3,801 restaurants, 678 that rate one to three stars and 3,123 that rate none.

But how does one begin to choose an unstarred or unlisted restaurant? And why, one might ask, should a traveler with limited time take a chance at anything less than a starred restaurant?

Because, quite simply, there are some authentic regional jewels begging to be unearthed, restaurants that will add immeasurably to the traveler’s understanding and appreciation of a city or a region.

While most travelers and chefs agree that Michelin is the most authoritative and dependable guide available, it is, after all, written by the French, from a French point of view. That means that the pleasant one-star restaurant in Lille or Lyons may be perfectly fine for two French businessmen or businesswomen meeting for lunch, but it may add little or nothing to the foreign diner’s knowledge and enjoyment of the local cuisine.

Like all guidebooks, Michelin has idiosyncrasies and biases that need to be considered when making a restaurant selection. In Paris, for instance, popular establishments such as L’Ami Louis in the third arrondissement continue to be ignored, while spots that lost their luster years ago manage to hang on to their Michelin star. The idiosyncrasies become more dominant outside of Paris, perhaps because there is such a vast territory and range of restaurants to cover, as well as a variety of regional cuisines to evaluate.

Traveling about France, I’ve come to divide the nation’s restaurants into two broad categories: petit four restaurants and non-petit four restaurants. To best understand the city or the region I’m visiting, I try to work out a balance of the two. Petit four restaurants are usually the starred ones, elegant establishments showered with flowers, with crisp linens and waiters in evening jackets; they have plenty of show, but are not always strong on regional culinary character. The non-petit four establishments tend to be small, modest, generally inexpensive restaurants, those little spots most travelers seek out when looking for regional flavor, local color, simpler food. Most often, these are not the places that win the hearts and palates of Michelin’s dozen inspectors.

But there are other reasons to set oneself loose from the stars. A trip that is limited to starred dining will undoubtedly offer a distorted view of France and everyday French cuisine. The French do not dine in starred restaurants day in and day out, though many foreign travelers have come to assume that the French begin each meal with a kir royale and end it with an aged cognac. Also, many starred restaurants ignore the specialties of the region altogether. This is not a sin in itself, but why bother traveling to the south of France if you can get exactly the same food in Paris?

Unfortunately, Michelin does not make it easy for travelers to unearth the gems. Aside from the stars, the only food rating Michelin offers is a red R, which distinguishes establishments that offer good value for the money. I have not found it to be a particularly reliable symbol.

Probably the easiest way to attack the problem is to travel with a lot of flexibility, a bit of a gambler’s spirit and an ability to trust one’s own instincts. Many of the nonstarred restaurants I’ve enjoyed were made known by fellow travelers, but other spots were discovered by simply standing in front of a restaurant, reading the menu and falling in love with what was there. The following, then, are a few of the nonstarred gems.

Sites not mentioned in every other guide book as well as non-touristy restaurants.

Can anyone recommend a local guide who can do a tour of the city?

Is there a Christmas Market in December?

Anyone run the Florence Marathon in November?
Thank you all for your answers. We actually spent 1.5 days in Florence last year and thought that was definitely NOT enough. So we are returning this November for a week.

sueet2b’s-I guess it’s good to know there isn’t anything really hidden. I will definitely follow your suggestions.
Prematurely hit submit.

What is an ‘artigiani’? a fabricator? Is the restaurant you are referring to 4 Leoni? – On the opposite side of the Arno from the Uffizi. We dined al fresco there, and plan on dining inside upon our return. Do you have any other favorite restaurants?

How about a great Enoteca where we may sample some wine (possibly) and purchase some to bring home? I heard Barolo and Brunello’s were good Tuscan wines?

Can you recommend a book about Florence and the its artists – plan on reading The Agony and the Ectasy by Irving Stone regarding Michelangelo’s fictional biography.

Would love to chat. Pick your brain about Florence? Possible? We don’t leave until November. Hope you are enjoying your studies there!

i ve been living here in florence for the last 4 years so i know it pretty well. i didnt understand, what do you mean by ‘off the beaten path places’? first of all florence is really tiny in comparison to rome or milan, so i mean you can see all of florence in one day. the only thing that would use up your time are the meusums, long lines, churches ecc. so i recommend you to make early reservations to certain museums like the Uffizzi before hand so you dont have to wait the horrible 3 hour lines.

aside from the main spots all the basic monumentale areas are already noted well in any guide book, there isnt anything really hidden, in fact i can name them all to you: il Duomo, Santa Croce, Palazzo Viechio, Piazza della Signoria, Uffizzi, Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Pitti, Piazza Santissima Annunciata, Santa Maria Novella, Palazzo Medici, Palazzo Strozzi. these are the main ones.

you can cruise between the streets of palazzo pitti and santa spiritu. i love that area because the streets are so narrow and tiny and you can see the old old spots where the ‘artigiani’ use to work and till this day do. theres a top restaurant at that spot, ask anyone there they will tell you. (i forgot the name its something like, ‘quatro…??’)

when you go by santa croce, stop and get a panino (sandwich) at the famous antique "Noe’s" dont get overwhelmed since it looks pretty trashy in an ugly street, but it the name spot, really extremly well known, and its tiny like maximun five people inside. so you buy and you leave. real good spot.

another good restaurant is called Tratoria delle Belle Donne in via delle belle donne. i go there often since the service is real nice compared to so many other spots and the food is good, plus its really small and really traditional and beautifull too.

well ill stop here, if you have any questions feel free to send a message and ill be happy to help.

good luck!

responding to your additional questions:

in relation to hidden points and highlights about florence, maybe now that i think of it, what i think isnt really known or heard off are the shows and events that occur in florence. i mean when i lived in the eye center of florence for 3 years straight, i would never ever hear of special events occuring in such piazza or some parade in a certain date, instead, i would just be walking and out in the blues there was this big show in the middle of some piazza all free. so sadly, its not very easy to come upon events and free shows that are to occur in florence, thats one bad ponit of florence. dont be surprised if some reason you bump into one in some street.

another thing that might be odd, kinda hidden and not mentioned in a guide book, is the Corridoio vasariano that is actually this corridor above ground that takes you from palazzo vechio a palazzo pitti passing by the uffizzi and ponte vecchio. it was the corridor that Cosimo I used. however this corridor is like almost always closed, i dont know why, but once in a while they have it open once a year and you have to make reservations to go there. so you might want to contact the florence information offices and see.

another thing that maybe isnt really highlighted, is the little town of San Gimignano. its about 1 hour away from florence and you can only reach it by bus not by train. its a beautiful little town still closed in by the walls. i highly recommend you to go there, its real close to florence and must visit spot.

An ‘artigiano’ means, an artisan. in the past there were the blacksmiths, the butchers, there were the artigiani, who did the furniture, the design, the objects in carved or constructed material. they were the masterminds of design in that age. so in between santo spirito and palazzo pitti through the littel streets where there was that restaurnta you said, Quatro Leoni, you can see the old ‘botteghe’ (workshops) where the artisans use to work. however thats one thing i never read in a guide book, i just figured it out because i once lived in one of those streets for a year and i got to see a lot of these only that spot in florence and yet still open, you can see these old men carving out frames or building objects out of wood.

about favorite restaurants, like i said the ones i like, are Trattoria delle Belle Donne located in Via delle Belle Donne. its a tiny restaurant but its real good, and be sure to go there early or else there it gets full. its called via delle belle donne (street of the beautiful women) because in the past it was the main tiny street where all the prostitures use to hange aroudn even during the day and its in the center of flowers. now however, its just a regular street, no prostitutes dont worry. like i said, for lunch go to Noes, located in Via M. Palmieri its actually under a small short tunnel that seems kinda dirty and smelly, but its good place and like i said, well known. ask anyone if you cant find it.

about wine tasting, im not that familiar with that, since im not much into wine, however there are a lot of wine bars around florence, ask at the information offices which ones are the best and recommended to visit.

ok! have a good trip!

any other questions, feel free!

When I served @ a restaurant..I was told white on right for the blind..so salt and sugar to the right. Some places have all the sugar substitutes. It seems like when I go out I notice left to right..pink yellow and blue. Yellow-splenda always seems to be in the middle.

pepper to the left and the ketchup is normally brought to the table when needed.

Are these sentences correct in English?

"How can the alimentary toxicosis be avoid? How can a guide handle its occurrence?
1.To avoid its occurrence, the guide should take tourists only to designated restaurants for meals.
2.The guide should remind them not to eat food sold by street vendors.
3.If it is found food or drinks have done bad while eating, the guide should ask for change and ask the manager of reastaurant to apologize to the tourists.
4.The local citizens can eat the food, but perhaps the tourists can’t eat it.
5.If the tourist is poisoned, the guide should ask hime to drink a lot of water to flush out the poison and send him to hospital immediately.
6.Report it to the health epidemic prevention department, to examine the causes.
7.Ask the hospital to give a testimonial
8.The guide should report to the travel agency and announce the family members of the patient.
9.The guide should find out,analyze and grasp the causes of the alimentary toxicosis.The dependable material in offering,in order to find out whom is responsible for this.
HELP!!!!!!!!! ANYONE WOULD HELP ME????

I really dont understand what alimentary toxicosis is. I’ve checked my dictionaries on this but found none. Anyway,here we go.

How can alimentary toxicosis be avoided and how can a guide handle it?
1. To avoid alimentary toxicosis, the guide should bring tourists to designated restaurants only for meals.
2. The guide must constantly remind the tourists not to eat the food sold by street vendors.
3. If the food or drinks are spoiled, the guide should ask the restaurant manager for a replacement.
** I think in this case, it would be automatic that the restaurant manager will ask for an apology.
4. Remind the tourists that there are foods food that can be eaten by the locals but tourists can’t.
5. If the tourist is poisoned, the guide should perform the needed first aid and bring him to the hospital afterwards.
6. Report the incident to the local health department or hospital. The local health department shall examine the cause of the poisoning.
7. Request a medical report from the health department.
8. The guide should inform the agency and the patient’s family members of the incident.
9. The guide should be familiar with alimentary toxicosis, and how to handle such incidents.

There you go! Hope I was able to help.

this is the site to answere your questions.
http://www.healthdiscovery.net/restaurants/index.html

I’m looking specifically for someone who has opened restaurants in Japan and could guide us on the do’s and dont’s.

How is this?
http://www.gnavi.co.jp/en/
This is the most popular restaurant navigator in Japan.

The website listed below is a forum of lots of different restaurant owners sharing ideas on how to make their business better, hope this helps you with whatever kind of restaurant you are wanting to open.