More Good UK News on The DailyDust today

Head To Toe Restaurant Gets a Michelin Star

Posted: 18 Jan 2009 08:45 AM CST

Fergus Henderson’s infamous head-to-toe restaurant, St John, has finally been recognised with a Michelin star

Fergus Henderson opened St. JOHN restaurant in October 1994.

The former smokehouse, situated around the corner from London’s Smithfield Market had fallen in to serious disrepair since ham and bacon smoking ceased in 1967.

Henderson continues to develop projects all in the name of Nose to Tail Eating, the basic principle which best sums up Fergus’s approach to food and the spirit with which one should approach not only cooking but the dining experience as a whole.

The restaurant serves up delights such as Ox Heart, Beetroot & Pickled Walnut or Pheasant & Trotter Pie. They have a website to accompany it.

The team at the DailyDust haven’t been yet but hope the marketing team there read this and invite us to review it

Restaurants to show service charge breakdown on menus

One To Watch on TV Tonight - James May’s Big Ideas

Posted: 18 Jan 2009 08:22 AM CST

Top Gear Presenter, James May, travels the globe in search of the ultimate flying machine

He begins by heading into the frozen wastes of Russia to pilot one of the best-kept secrets of the Cold War. He then heads to the US to fly the world’s only surviving flying car.

After watching a man struggle with his tiny chopper in Japan, he gets back to the suburban gardens of Sussex to turn himself into a human rocket - all in pursuit of finding a better way to get from A to B.

Finally, in California, James encounters his ultimate dream - a flying car capable of vertical takeoff, and one so simple that anyone can pilot it, but is the world ready for a flying car?

More to the point, can May pull off presenting a show alone..the answer is yes, it does need a Clarkson though..

BBC2 -18.00 Tonight

Excuse me, do you work here?..

Posted: 18 Jan 2009 07:53 AM CST

A Facebook group, made up from Tesco Employees, has seen many workers posting rude comments about their customers (not the lady above we must add).

Claire Biggs-Tandy, from Coventry, said she hated the question: “Excuse me, do you work here?”

Her response on the internet was: “No, I just think the Tesco uniform is the height of fashion. In fact, I saw it in Vogue only last week. Of course I work here, you moron!”

Scott Harrop objected to having to serve “smelly ppl … who make me feel sick”.

Gawain Duly, from Brighton, was unequivocal about what ruins his day: “When a customer comes to my till, PERIOD.”

Zara Ashley Earl objected to customers who put their money on the conveyor belt rather than in her hand:”Do we have some kind of infection that you might catch??? Ignorant bastards … And they think we are the stupid ones because we work at Tesco.”

The Facebook group, which calls itself Tesco Employees Could Rule The World, has nearly 2,000 members.

A Tesco spokesman said: “Facebook is a popular and fun website but if some of our staff have gone too far, we will investigate and take appropriate action if necessary.”

We suggest things like telling customers to stop asking stupid questions and tell cashiers they don’t need to ask “Do you need help packing that?” to every single customer..especially if they only have one tin of beans..

Charlotte Loses Out In Eurovision Selection Process

Posted: 17 Jan 2009 03:26 PM CST

Youngest competitor told “your country no longer needs you”

We’ve reached the half-way mark in the UK Eurovision national final “Your Country Needs You”, but for 17-year old Charlotte Finlay-Tribe, the dream has come to an end as she was eliminated in tonight’s programme.

Charlotte performed a Duffy song in her final audition, and she did another one on the show tonight, namely “Rain On Your Parade” but it wasn’t enough to stop her falling into the “danger zone” for the second consecutive week. She was saved by Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber last week, but this time she wasn’t so lucky as he chose the five-piece Emperors Of Soul to continue in the competition instead. Their rendition of Prince’s “Kiss” backed up singer Fraser’s assertion that “we’re not just stuck in the 60s” and the judges agreed that they rose to the challenge, although judge Duncan James of Blue still thought they needed to make their style “more contemporary”.

Despite backing up his decision to save her last week, Lord Andrew admitted “Moscow’s a big scary place” and he wasn’t convinced that she was quite ready for the stage at the Olympic Arena. He showed worries about her nerves and inexperience, and those concerns were shared by Duncan, who reminded her that representing the UK was a “huge responsibility”. Words of encouragement from Lulu - and Frankie of tonight’s “guest band” The Saturdays - were in the event not enough for the public to cast their vote for Charlotte.

Again, each act was asked to sing in two group numbers as well as their solo pieces - in this case the 1976 winning song “Save All Your Kisses For Me” at the beginning, and while the votes were coming in the girls sang Debarge’s “Rhythm Of The Night” while the boys did Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” - both songs that were written by Diane Warren, who will be providing the lyrics to Lord Andrew’s music for the eventual winner to sing at the final in Moscow.

The Emperors will join Mark, Jade and the twins Nicola and Francine in what will effectively be the semi-final of the competition. “Your Country Needs You” continues on BBC One at 6.30pm on Saturday, January 24. Keep informed by visiting the BBC Eurovision website and the Daily Dust!

Sainsbury’s first to ban battery eggs

Posted: 17 Jan 2009 09:47 AM CST

Sainsbury’s are the first of the big four supermarkets to ban eggs from battery hens. The eggs will be removed from its 790 stores and will be replaced by free range and barn eggs.

The move follows recent campaigns for animal welare by celebrity chefs.

Rowen West-Henzell, a spokesman for Compassion in World Farming, said: “The scale of this move is breathtaking. Battery cages confine hens to small wire cages, which prohibit natural behaviours. We’ve worked closely with the Sainsbury’s team.

“What stands out is their dedicated hard work and a genuine commitment to continuously improving life for all farm animals in their supply chain.

“Let this be an example to the other big four UK supermarkets.”