MrBen

Louisa, Is it possible that you've posted about this topic before? Possibly about 20 odd threads on the subject? What's the fresh perspective not covered in those many hundred posts and discussions that you're going to give us this time round? Even old time semi fans of yours like me are yawning...

Malambu...what are you smoking old chap? There are almost four times as many minicabs in London than there are black cabs. The last lot of TX4s had catalytic standards enforced to reduce emissions and no cabbie will keep his engine running to waste fuel on a slow moving rank. The future probably involves constantly circulating, electric, driverless cars and cycling....until then...

Arf! I suspect KB has had a career punting whatever the latest fad is to the consuming public masses and having seen it from the other side he's suitably sceptical if not a tad jaded. On the subject of burgers, it's not news but I tried Burger Bear at Old Nunhead last night but home delivered via Deliveroo and it was top notch. Deliveroo is proving life changing.

I'm assuming that because your experience amd description of black cab drivers doesn't tally with the 150 odd rides I did in the last year or so so..and sorry but 3 years of hard training and thorough vetting of drivers can't be compared with the cornflake packet minicab licences handed out by TFL.

Jeremy Wrote: --------------------------------------------------- > > Minicab (so Uber/Addisson Lee) drivers are > licensed, right? And there is a record of who's > car you've been in and when. They have sat navs so > know where they're going (unlike black cab > drivers, anywhere out of central London). > > I would suggest that they are safer, more > convenient, and more efficient than black cabs. > > Traditional black cabs are for tourists as far as > I'm concerned. Spot the non cab user. :-) The skill most central black cabbies have to find alternative routes, know the rhythmn of traffic patterns throughout the day and help a whole load of people from tourists to wheelchair users to drunk single females can't be knocked. And you think sat navs are always right on the best route? There's lots cabbies need to do to run with the times but the test for me is which would I rather my missus took home late at night.

It's always interesting dynamic when a company that's sold itself on it's independence sells out...but lots of other factors are at play both personal and commercial. Bigger question is whether the craft beer trend will last at its current size or just dilute into the mainstream and fade over time. My bet is on the latter....much as I tried to like it I'm done with overly hopped beer and back on the Heineken and Red Stripe.

Cabbies hated Ken for what they saw as a gradual erosion of their privileges enshrined in various bits of 19th century law. Many of them backed BJ to kick Ken out but now feel betrayed by BJs failure to protect them from what they see as threats from everything from Uber meters to Addison Lee using bus lanes. But BJ knows they're a powerful voice that will help his cause in office so he's basically walking a tightrope between keeping their favour and allowing inevitable change in the operating model caused by disruptive technology. London needs a trusted regulated taxi service like any other major developed city. Black cab drivers are some of the most qualified drivers in the world....but it's a model that will die when you have less qualified l Romanian drivers willing to work for less whilst using powerful Goldman Sachs funded technology to source work. Make them less polluting and more efficient for sure but I think London's black cabs need to be protected....they're trusted and part of the cities brand and heritage...and that has a whole lot of intangible value attached.

General Sir Lord Fox of Dulwich, I would like to propose that you start your own Dulwich Fox Price Index (DFPI). Unlike the established RPI which measures the changing costs of retail products and services, the DFPI would: - Have it's underpinning basis in late 1970's goods pricing - Take into account a "blow in " adjustment i.e the effect of gentrification on commercial lease prices - Assess with like for like comparables elsewhere in the neighbourhood - Negate the differences between economy and premium products - Exclude any measures of pizza pricing (pizza is not a worthy food). - Measure curry house pricing increases since the mid 1980's taking into account their "economic" operating models What say you sir?

aquarius moon Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > I had a veggie breakfast there last year. Very > cheap and no complaints at all. Probably the best > breakfast I've had for ages. Interesting fact: Their veggie breakfast is around 250 calories more than their meaty one.

Steak Tuesdays where you get steak and chips and a soft drink for ?5.99 implies that it's probably none of your blow-in 28 day organic grass fed Angus nonsense.

I've said it before...but I love Henry on here.

Cross posted with Mick.

Like it or not tho..a huge majority are... a lifelong Labour voter I know went Tory this time round. But his reasons were pretty simple...he's the so called hard working squeezed middle...on a joint household income of ?50k with no disposable at the end of the month. He has a young family and had calculated that a Conservative government would give him an extra 1500 quid a year. Enough to let him take his family on holiday for the first time. You'd be living in lala land if you didn't think that dynamic influenced Thursdays result.

Anything hot on a Ryanair.

GAME CHANGER. Gowlett test this evening. Placed order for 2 pizzas on their simple, super quick website at 7.27pm?wait time showed as 45 minutes?.but food arrived in 32 minutes nice and hot. This could be seriously dangerous.

This gives you a good overall snippet of their proposition and plans for global PE backed domination: https://indexventures.com/news-room/news/deliveroo-raises-25m-in-series-b-funding-to-transform-the-food-delivery-experience

Gowlett Pizzas delivered? Talk about a game changer if you could drake that happen consistently. The best test? Try ordering a Gowlett Pizza through them at 7.30pm on a Saturday night.

Finally...The gloves are off on this thread with some proper political debate.

Maxxi. You could solve that dilemma by booking a Ryanair flight to France departing at 8am on Thursday 7th May..... whilst simultaneously realising you've missed the deadline for a proxy vote.

Weird. I'm a long time fan and have to say every time I've been it's been at least good if not excellent. Last visit was in January when I had one of the best meals ever locally. Until they serve me a duff one it will remain a go to destination for me.

Seems to me that pretty much nobody on this forum will admit to voting for anyone other than Labour or Lib Dems (with a token Green here and there). Anyone brave enough to own up to voting Tory or UKIP this time round?

All of that plus ex Glasgow School of Art.

And why is that AM?

And I'm loving the Podcast Republic app (Android, IOS) to find lots of new things from across the globe.

The Business of Film, an excellent 3 parter with Mark Kermode on how films are developed from a concept ,financed and then marketed. http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/businessoffilm