Acre Lane has changed since my time. The houses around no longer boast the 70s front doors so often fitted in that flared and flawed decade, instead Victorian doors, white plantation shutters and other classic signs of gentrification indicate that the local demographic is not what it was.Boqueria is another indication.

The regional menus at Namaaste Kitchen and Salaam Namaste March on to Goa this month- and Zoe Perrett gets all fired up about the tiny state’s utterly searing sensations.

Long Ashton is the first village in the green belt north of Bristol, three miles from the harbourside. A reasonable walk, were it not for the manic road system in between. But to one side lies glorious Ashton Court, 850 acres of park and woodland belonging to the citizens of Bristol. So a long walk in Ashton Court, followed by another long walk to the Bird in Hand (yes, Long Ashton is long) would be the perfect prelude to a slap-up lunch.

If you can squeeze your way through the throng over to the stairs in the corner, you’ll be whisked away to a quiet, understated and stylish dining room. It doesn’t feel as if you’ve left the fun downstairs, on the contrary, this dining room feels the place to be, a secret for those in the know.

Copita, its name derives from the Spanish for a type of sherry glass, is from the mothership of Barrica in Goodge Street and has berthed further south in Darblay Street, Soho. Its sober frontage doesn’t exactly holler for attention but thankfully neither does it go for the faux craphole look which is now getting very boring.

Most people would consider throwing in the towel if their dream restaurant went up in flames. There’s not many who would rebuild, expand and then win a succession of awards. Laurie and Jacqueline Gear are doing sterling work with The Artichoke

As a prospecting restaurateur driving expansion through an economic downturn it must feel like pennies from heaven to see the fourth incarnation of your Lebanese canteen packed to the gills on a cold Wednesday night in January. Not only were all 100 covers taken, people were queuing out the door and even eating outside.

The Grand Imperial has recently won two rosettes and was finalist in Tsingtao Legacy of Taste awards for Best UK Chinese restaurant, so I knew the food was likely to be excellent. What I hadn’t expected was the sheer opulence of the place and the hushed atmosphere that hit me like a blast of cold air after the frenetic activity of the station.

Hôp Namô is run by husband and wife Colin and Linh Vu as a deliberate and very successful attempt to bring modern Vietnamese food to an increasingly appreciative audience. ‘Vietnamese with a modern twist’ is their slogan, although they are keen to emphasise that they fully acknowledge the traditions of their country’s cuisine.

All the staff we met had a smile and a friendly air about them and it didn’t seem forced. They were quick to refresh our crockery in the face of my messy eating and swift to top up the tea. And that’s about all I want. I certainly don’t want the American ‘Hi my name is Greg and I’ll just perch my resting actor’s buttocks on the table next to you and simper’ style of serving.