The Patch

[David A]

Has James got an 'OFF' button?

[Traceytra]

Good luck to them, I hope they do well. Looking forward to a visit...

[James]

I didn't want to carry on, it's other people who keep bringing it up again!

[steveo]

Is that your last word on the matter James?

[Otta]

James Wrote:

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> Missing the point Jeremy. 'What tastes good' is a

> culturally relative notion... largely based on

> what you were brought up with as a child.

What you're brought up with depends on what your family can afford to feed you, which is why lots of non western cultures eat less meat.

Since the Chinese economy started doing so well, and lots of people out there have a bit more money, meat consumption has shot up. This is very bad for the environment, not least because they ship in massive quantities of soya (to feed livestock) from places like Brazil.

I genuinely take my hat of to vegetarians who don't eat meat because it's not sustainable for the environment. I believe that, I just enjoy a good kebab too much to do my bit.

[Otta]

Lets be honest, there is nothing more to say about The Patch until it opens, so we may as well pass the time chatting.

[Zebedee Tring]

I agree completely with Otta. Enough already.

[Loz]

James Wrote:

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> We have been culturally programmed to see some

> foods as treats and this indoctrination means that

> many people won't accept meat-free meals.

So your saying that veggies don't see food as a treat, but just as sustenance? I can certainly believe that.

[*Bob*]

I suspect a lifetime of crap, uninspiring vegetarian cookery hasn't help with the programming, either

[James]

Oh you are just baiting me now, you trolls (Loz & Bob)! But I am enjoying this so never mind.

For the record, I love my food. And vegetarian food can be wonderful, satisfying and imaginative. The equivalent of your ridiculous generalisations about vegetarian cuisine would be someone basing their opinion of all meals containing meat on what is served at the Aberdeen Steakhouse.

[BrandNewGuy]

http://www.freesmileys.org/smileys/smiley-angry003.gif

[singalto]

Yawn.. All this unpleasantness because a new pub is opening!

[Sue]

Otta Wrote:

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> Pie N Mash, that's what we need, pie and bloody

> mash!!!!!

xxxxxx

The Ivy House has PieMinister pies with mash and gravy :)

[*Bob*]

James Wrote:

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> Oh you are just baiting me now, you trolls (Loz &

> Bob)! But I am enjoying this so never mind.

Not all all, James - wrong end of stick.

I totally agree vegetarian food can indeed be great. My point is the same as yours: that - generally - that vegetarian options are poor (isn't this how your got involved in this thread). Hence, you can't expect meaty types to get excited about vegetables (ooer) having seen (and possibly tasted) the range of options that have been presented so often, for so long.

The Aberdeen Steakhouse is a bad example. A nice piece of steak tastes great anywhere, with the minimal of expertise to make it so. The same cannot be said of broccoli.

[aquarius moon]

Loz Wrote:

>

> So your saying that veggies don't see food as a

> treat, but just as sustenance? I can certainly

> believe that.

I love my veggie food. Everything I eat is a treat.

[Otta]

Sue, I've always like the Ivy House, and am keen to go and see what it's like now, but from where I live in Sydenham it's a mission with no direct transport. Will try and go to see a gig sometime I think.

[James]

Ah, I get you now Bob.

I agree that veggie options are often poor, but this is due to ignorance and bad cooking. You only need to go somewhere like Kerala (predominantly veggie region of India) to realise how wonderful it can be. So in a way I suppose we agree on this point.

[DulwichFox]

Back in the late 70's I was vegetarian for 2-3 years.

Mainly due to my then partner and surrounding friends being mostly Vegan.

Being Vegetarian when you are not really keen on vegetables is a bit of a problem.

The solution was Vegetable Biryanis with a Hot vegetable sauce.

Indian food is a great way to actually enjoy vegetables and there is a vast range of dishes.

There are some great Vegetarian Indian restaurants around. I used the use one in Croydon near to Thornton Heath.

The problem when vegetables when complementing a Meat dish is that they are often poorly prepared.

Or they are kept warm and turn quite nasty.

Many places simply do not know how to cook them.

Foxy

[mako]

I think their sign looks budget and the prices top end. Hopefully the food reflects the budget not the sign.

[Otta]

Foxy makes a good point about Indian food.

Lots of us grew up at a time when food in the UK consisted of veg boiled to buggery, and salads with no dressing. Veg was grim, and to be avoided.

If I'd been given a curry or a nice salad with dressing, I'm sure I'd have been much happier to eat them, and less concerned with the meat part of the meal.

[Otta]

I think it's only in the last 20 years or so that home cooked food in this country has been interesting. Don't get me wrong, there were skilled cooks. My nan makes amazing pastery, and pies to die for, but a homemade curry? Hell No, sultanas and shredded chicken. Yuck!

[Jah Lush]

The latest from The Patch. Cut & pasted from their Facebook page.

The Patch

Bookings now being taken for the restaurant at The Patch for brunch, lunch, dinner, sunday dinner and the private dining room upstairs. Keri Moss and the patch restaurant team will be testing the menu, training the staff and inviting you to join us from Monday the 25th November ( and maybe a squidge before if you pop by and see !! ) - just give us a call, drop us an email, use some fancy social media thingy or actually pop in in person ( the bar is open every day now with a great selection of wines, beers and nibbles.

There are 3 ways to get in touch:-

1- Come and see us at 211 Lordship Lane - bar is open 6pm till Midnight , Monday to Friday and 12 noon till 1am Saturday and Sunday - but from the 25th November we are open all day every day from 11am

2- Give us a call on 0208 299 2068 ( and yes we are going to get an answerphone !!)

3- Visit our Facebook or Twitter pages -www.facebook.com/dulwichpatch or #thepatch2 on twitter

[James]

I recently flew to China with Virgin Atlantic and my only real complaint was the dull, completely uninspiring veggie meal. It seemed as if the assumption was that if you're vegetarian, you're not really bothered about food.

Contrast this with my experience of Air India. Delayed by 6 hours, the flight was chaotic and the interior of the plane outdated and shabby to say the least. But the vegetarian curry served was fantastic. By far the best plane food I've ever eaten. They could teach Virgin a thing or two.

[KidKruger]

Well Air India is cooking what Indians know best, rather than trying to conform to some other culture's menu, so it better taste good innit.

This week I've eaten (and am eating) home-cooked dhal (my second pan already), channa, panir.

Veggie food. Cos I feel like it.

What Foxy said about veggie food though !

Friday will be a big fat donor though.

You see - 'balanced' diet..

James most of India is veggie, Kerala is a tiny bit. They're not veggie necessarily due to poverty (though that can be a reason), there are various 'levels' of Hinduism I believe (an expert can be specific here), some of which advocate no meat and other items - it's about levels of 'purity' (of body and therefore mind) I think.

I've been pure all week and will be filthy all weekend. Balance.

ETA: But I wouldn't wanna ram it down y'all throats or anything (unless you're over for dinner).

[numbers]

jeez all this talk about meat vs veg is driving me nuts. Just because someone is veggie does not mean that they eat a more sustainable diet than a meat eater (am not anti-veggie by the way, just want to make a point).

We are so used to having a rich variety of foods now that we have forgotten the most 'sustainable' way to eat is to get your food variety over the space of year, not a week.

If you truly eat food that is dictated by the seasons, then you will be eating a glut of a particular thing till you think you can eat no more of it and then until it is replaced by something new and so on.

edited to add: so anyone moaning about a particular dish on the menu being the same. well it might ideally be the same ingredietn for that season, cooked in different way. Until the next season. etc.