The value added tax, which is applied on a range of items in restaurants, will be reduced to 5.5 percent from 19.6 percent, beginning July 1, the office of President Nicolas Sarkozy said Tuesday.

The change, presented as a “contract for the future” between the government and the hospitality industry, includes a commitment by restaurateurs to pass along the tax savings in the form of lower menu prices.

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The tax-cut agreement also includes a commitment by restaurant and hotel owners to work with the government to improve pay, training, and working conditions for staff.

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Wine lovers will not be raising their glasses in celebration because the agreement does not cover alcohol.

Gérard Jourdain, the director of Les Fontaines Saint Honoré, a bistro near the Louvre Museum in Paris, said that in anticipation of the decision, he cut the price of set meals and à la carte dishes by about 10 percent a month ago.

Mr. Jourdain said he had already hired a staff member — he now employs 15 — and would add another in the summer if business kept picking up. Many restaurants in France are chronically understaffed because high social welfare costs, which amount to between 50 percent and 59 percent of the total salary for each employee, discourage hiring.

By Matthew Saltmarsh

April 29, 2009 Read more @ www.nytimes.com

The programme celebrates the traditional and contemporary aspects of whisky through a wide range of events – from musicals and smugglers walks to cookery and a rare whisky auction.

The starting point for the month-long festival, and a must for any journey of discovery into Scotland's whisky, is the refurbished Scotch Whisky Experience opened by First Minister Alex Salmond MSP on 1st May. ….

The middle of the month – 16th & 17th May – sees the distilleries that make up the dramatic Whisky Coast come together in the stunning grounds of Inveraray Castle in the brand new Spirit of the West.

Sign up for sessions with the master distillers, cooking demonstrations from Nick Nairn and top chefs from the west coast. Feast on the freshest local produce and experience the culture and heritage of the region through a programme of music, dance and unique entertainment. Be quick to pick up tickets for the sumptuous Burns Ceilidh Dinner at the castle on the Saturday night! …

Other new activities during Whisky Month include dining experiences for non-members at Edinburgh's exclusive Scotch Malt Whisky Society venues, guided walks along the routes of the smugglers and Excisemen in the forests of Balmacara (9th May) and Glen Affric (29th May) and whisky tastings with a difference as you cruise the majestic waters of Loch Ness on board the Jacobite Queen, Just Add Water (8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th).

The Homecoming Whisky Auction, taking place on 13th May at McTear's, offers you the chance to bid for some of the rarest bottles of Scotland's national drink.

On 15th May, Scotland's oldest whisky merchant, Robert Graham, will allow visitors to its Edinburgh and Glasgow stores to sample its exclusive Robert Graham Homecoming Single Islay Malt, especially selected to mark the Year of the Homecoming.

Gavin Hewitt, Scotch Whisky Association chief executive, said: "The Scotch whisky industry has pulled together an exciting programme during Homecoming's 'Whisky Month', with events across the country celebrating whisky's contribution to Scotland's culture, heritage and economy.

"The combination of festivals, distillery visits, exhibitions and events will showcase our national drink to an international audience."

Marie Christie Homecoming Scotland 2009 project director, said: "Scotch whisky is a unique aspect of Scotland's rich culture and heritage which is celebrated across the world.

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Source: Scotch Whisky Association.

Read it all @ www.scottishfoodanddrink.com

This is one of the three recognised restaurant guides used by Gourmet-Portal.com to establish their restaurant rankings in Britain and as such is looked at in relative detail every year. The detailed basic information on chef and address for example are clearly marked but would be more accessible if they were not printed in running text but listed.

Due to the amount of editorial information presented and the size of print and paper format only 2 to 3 restaurants generally appear on any double-page spread causing a lot of page turning when checking restaurants. Also the expressions children’s portions or children allowed are rather pretentious. What is wrong with children catered for? The fact that in The Good Food Guide there is still no definition of children and the prices charged for them can lead to horrible experiences when the bill for them comes. But The Good Food Guide does not stand alone here.

The movement in Britain of looking at the carbon footprint of food is much stronger than in many other European countries. It would have been nice if The Good Food Guide had taken this into consideration.

BUT the guide has a lot going for it: I especially like the cartography, simple clear and restaurants marked. I would suggest a change of scale for areas with large conurbations and large numbers of restaurants and an overview of London would be nice. The ‘cartes en place’ are very useful and make up for the crowding in the aforementioned.

Also on my list of likes: the clear marking of where vegetarians are catered for, the easy to use restaurant index (indices are expensive to create, so thank you), the fun little questions to the chef, the clear marking of new entries (encourages ‘oh, let’s give them a try, then!), and no silly email addresses if there is a website available.

On the whole a successful and handy guide to gourmet eating out and goes to show that looks aren’t everything. Not quite so basic as Michelin and not as pleasing to the eye as the AA Restaurant Guide but definitely a useful tool.

The Good Food Guide. 2008, Which? Ltd. ISBN: 978-1-84490-046-6. GBP 16.99.

Text by Jane K. Clouston, Dec. 2008

The AA guide to restaurants in the UK is one of the most important tools we at www.restaurant-ranking.com (formerly the-best-chefs.com) use when bringing the British Isles restaurant rankings up to date using the data in the major guides to establish our virtually objective lists. To do this we get through a lot of guides, some of which take quite a lot of getting used to. This piece takes a more critical look at the oldest hospitality guide for Britain.

Founded in 1908 as a hotel guide the current restaurant guide is the 16th edition of the AA’s purely gastronomic guide, restaurants having been assessed as from 1967. Initially intended for the traveller driving through unchartered parts of Britain its first mention of eating places were hotel restaurants serving lunch.

Times have changed and along with them the toys a driver now has at his/her disposal. Some of us still have maps but the majority use a GPS in some form or other. So I wondered about the detailed road maps at the back which did not indicate where a restaurant was to be found. And if you can’t find the one you are looking for then which one are you closest to at the moment – on the map. Of course you can do this in the body of the book as the guide is divided into counties. I personally prefer regions subdivided into counties.

If the address is known you can find a restaurant on the road. However this information is not always available even if a restaurant has a rosette or two. And although an email address is usually given it was not always accompanied by the website address. Unfortunate that checking such details is not afforded. Websites are easily found and, theoretically, provide information on chef, owner, seating, prices, address etc.. It is also strange that in an unfortunate number of entries directions are given but no address. So having got lost using the directions (can do, have done) you cannot ask a local for 9 Back Street.

On the other hand I love the articles and colour photos of quiet landscapes. The small portrait photos are clear and enticing. The size and shape of the guide make it possible to use three columns of entries which are clearly laid out and easy to follow. The texts are not over the moon fanatical gourmet gobbledigook and so available to the average reader. The alphabetical index of restaurants at the back is a very useful tool.

It’s a lovely book to handle and have on your coffee table for planning. But I do feel that there are gaps which could make it bit of a handicap to have in the car as one’s only source!

 AA Restaurant Guide 2009. 16th ed., 2008, Automobile Association Developments Limited. ISBN: 978-0-7495-5789-8. GBP 16.99

Text: Jane K. Clouston, Dec. 2008

Joachim Wissler (45) has now finally made it to the top of the German restaurant rankings which have been published now for nigh on twenty years. He is number one in Germany. Last year he shared this position with Harald Wohlfahrt (53) who had been at the top for many years. The lead was a wafer thin 0.3 points!

Please use the following link to view all the interesting and fascinating results: Restaurant-Ranking 2009

Each of the six major guides has its own approach and philosophy which we take into account every year when weighting each of their awards. Those which include fewer restaurants and set a higher standard result in more points for the restaurant which achieved these awards. How these are analysed and calculated is described in detail at the following link:
Legend

One might argue the value of each guide but the lesser ones add a bit of spice in that they often include young and ambitious cooks who are just starting out, either on their own or becoming known to the informed public thereby giving a wider view of the current situation in Germany’s gourmet kitchens. On the other hand it is interesting to see a certain lack of respect for the Michelin starred restaurants as these will sometimes be given fewer points.

We hope you will enjoy browsing through the new rankings and that you will have the pleasure of excellent meals at the restaurants listed in the coming months. Should you have any questions or comments we would be grateful if you would take the time to contact us. We too strive to improve.

Hannes Buchner & Christian Stromann

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Organised by the Verband der Köche Deutschlands – VKD (The German Chefs’ Society) the International Culinary Exhibition (IKA/ Olympiade der Köche) this is the 22nd time it takes place and for the 3rd time running in Erfurt.

Between 19th and 22nd October the participants of the challenge will meet at the fair grounds, where, in 2004, there were 1200 participants, 40 nations represented, 23,000 visitors and more than 300 media representatives. In 2008 the German Chefs’ Society expects these numbers to be overtaken.

Participating countries may compete with different teams: national teams, junior national culinary teams, military teams, teams working in community catering, regional teams and individual competitors.

Each kind of team has to compete in different categories – the main classifications being “Hot kitchen” and “Culinary art”, whereby in hot kitchen the dishes are cooked and diplayed hot and in culinary art (cooked and displayed cold). For community catering the teams have to prepare up to 110 three course menus within a set time. In the category Culinary Art there will be show platters and show pieces as well as dishes which are prepared hot but displayed cold.

The official conditions can be obtained from the VKD in Frankfurt, also via the official website where media representatives and interested visitors will also find lots of useful information: www.olympiade-der-koeche.de .

The IKA started back in 1900. At that time the VKD was only a partner of the Internationaler Verband der Köche (International Chef Society), the local Frankfurter Gastwirtevereins (Frankfurt Society of Innkeepers) and the Verein zur Förderung des Fremdenverkehrs (Tourist Association) that was under the protectorate of Prince Friedrich Carl of Hessen and Prince of Prussia. The event took place in Frankfurt am Main.

Since that time interest in this important event has risen constantly. The IKA today is not only a top-class culinary competition, but also an active centre where chefs from all over the world can network. Attracting a wide range of visitors from professional and amateur chefs to families which enjoy food the IKA/Cooking Olympics presents the profession to the world at its best.

Source: text provided by the VKD press office: 15.10.08

According to the rankings calculated by The Best Chefs Vendôme takes first place in Germany along with Schwarzwaldstube and in the European rankings finds itself in the top 10.

The 45 year old, Swabia-born chef mans the stoves at Vendôme, the luxury restaurant at the glorious Grandhotel Schloss Bensberg in Bergisch Gladbach near Cologne. Wissler's working life got off to a good start under Harald Wohlfahrt at the Traube Tonbach, before a career-making move took him to the Marcobrunn Restaurant in Erbach from 1991-1999. Since Vendome opened in 2000 his guests have enjoyed elegant flavours matched to highly technical, avant-garde zip. Restaurant Manager Miguel Angel Calero Novillo and Sommelier Romana Echensperger work the newly refurbished dining room.

How aware are the majority of eaters (including the bloke on the street) of what they are actually eating and how important to them is it to understand what they are eating and where it comes from? The more exclusive the eatery the more aware it would seem the kitchen is about what they are serving. But here, too, not all at the top of the gourmet tree are as informative as for example The Iglu in Edinburgh.

The Iglu stated that at present and for the past two and a half years they had have been striving to source their stock from organic, wild & local producers. Their meat comes from local farms (with the exception of the wild boar mince which comes from different farms in the UK, mostly Scotland & Northern England) and the venison is wild highland red deer & wild shot wood pigeon. They also use organically farmed fish from Shetland & wild caught fish from local waters that are not on the endangered lists such as Pollock & Coley.

With several vegetable suppliers, organic & non-organic, they pick and choose from the seasonal varieties grown in Scotland and the rest of Britain. There are some exceptions such as peppers but that these they also try to source from not too far away. Locality has now become their number one concern due to rising awareness of food miles and environmental impact. In fact they suggest that we are merely returning to the way we all used to eat before the advent of massive supermarkets and air freighted produce.

Another aspect which is of increasing pertinence is although an organic alternative may be in some way “better” for you, if it is grown several thousand miles away has its intrinsic value been diminished by the method of delivery? The Soil Association has reported on this very issue in the past few months.

The amount of time they, and similarly oriented restaurants, spend finding and checking out the background of new suppliers and networking with existing ones can become a bit of a nightmare, especially when your supplier list is as long as your arm!

Ladies and gentlemen, this aspect of a restaurants work is included in the price of the wonderful food in front of you.

Interestingly enough there does not yet seem to be a German word for 'food hero'!

The Slow Food movement promotes food and drink which is good, clean and fair and that food should be savoured not rushed, which is why the Slow Food movement will be reminding us all how to grow and enjoy our food at the pace nature intended.

Slow Food UK will be bringing the fabulous Taste Workshops to the show. These tastings offer a rare chance to taste the finest ingredients in UK from producers who use traditional methods of food production.

This is your chance to learn why it is so important that we preserve our rich food heritage. There will be an extensive schedule of Slow Food Taste Workshops at the show where you will be able to taste produce our bursary winning from producers and learn from Slow Food's and diverse knowledge pool and taste education programmes.

Check site at www.glasgowbbcgoodfoodshow.com for details of tickets, times and dates.

The Awards, supported by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Food and Drink Forum and Williamson Foodservice, celebrate excellence and achievement in the food and drink industry in the Highlands and Islands.

Judged by a panel of industry experts with representatives across the sector, the winning entries were announced following a mouth-watering Awards Dinner - featuring produce from throughout the Highlands and Islands.

Guests at the dinner were entertained by speaker Tom Lewis of the award-winning Monachyle Mhor Hotel, Balquidder.

More? www.scottishfoodanddrink.com