Tag: John White

Dinner With John White At Dabbous, 16 April 2014

I remember that this was a really splendid meal at Dabbous – one of the very best restaurant meals we’ve had.

(Coincidentally, writing in November 2017, as John and I had a cracking good meal just the other day, at La Chapelle.)

It was a busy time. John was in the process of changing jobs (I think he’d handed in his notice to the Timber Trade that week).

Also, we had both been busy sending notes to Keele about our interactions with Neil Baldwin, ahead of the making of the film Marvellous.

Anyway, Dabbous was quite simply superb. Modern European with a sort-of middle-eastern twist of ingredients. Here is a link to a search term that should find you reviews if you want them.

John had chosen the place (well done him) so I had to deal with the damage; it was well worth it.

I wonder whether John can remember what we ate. I remember describing the meal in detail to Janie afterwards and all of us (including Mandy) agreeing that it would be a good place to try together, but we didn’t get round to that. Nor can I remember now what I ate.

But that evening and meal at Dabbous was marvellous…tremendous even.

Dinner At Salt Yard With John White, 16 March 2011

This one was John Boy’s idea and what a good idea it was too.

Extracted from an e-mail from John to me a couple of days before:

…I have booked a table at Salt Yard, a Spanish tapas bar on Goodge Street.  I was taken recently to Barrica next door and it was really good and was then told Salt Yard is better; something with which the reviews seem to concur.  They only had a table early or late so went for the early one at 6.15p.m.  Suggest we meet there and can if we want go for a drink afterwards…

I don’t think we went for a drink afterwards; maybe we did, but I have a feeling that the restaurant was not so strict with its “two hour” rule and we simply took our time over the meal.

Here is a link to the Salt Yard website.

…and here is a link to its TripAdvisor page for those who want up to date independent-ish (maybe) views.

Because oft he tapas-style, we got to try lots of different things. My memory fades on the specifics – John might remember better.

Part of my excuse for not remembering exactly what I ate that night is that I liked the meal so much I returned a couple of months later with Janie, Anthea and Mitchell…except in truth I don’t recall what I ate that night either.

John wrote the following in his follow-up e-mail:

Thanks for last night.  Brilliant food and a great natter.  I ran out of petrol on the way home so it was a little later than anticipated!!!!

 

Also the envelope has arrived.  Hope Janie didn’t find out you had not delivered 12 hours…

We had just got back from holiday in India & Sri Lanka, so I suspect I was supposed to hand over something from our travels…

…seems I am a long-term serial offender in the matter of forgetting to hand over the holiday swag and/or gifts generally to John when we meet up.

Middlesex v Essex T20 At Lord’s With John White & Family, 13 June 2010

I remembered that we had done the Lord’s T20 thing with John and family a couple of times, but it wasn’t until I found diary/e-mail references to this Sunday afternoon gig that I realised that there were several years between visits.

I had written up the 2007 visit under assumed names for MTWD – see this Ogblog piece for the text of that masterpiece.

I recall that, in many ways, the 2010 outing was more successful. None of the Friday afternoon/evening stress – this was a Sunday afternoon outing in good weather.

I think the girls had genuinely enjoyed the Lord’s visit in 2007 so had been really looking forward to this afternoon visit and they weren’t disappointed.

John was possibly a little disappointed by the result – another “close but no cigar” match for Essex. Here is a link to the scorecard.

I seem to recall the weather smiling on us that first half of June, which made the unseasonable cold snap the following weekend all the more surprising…but that’s another Ogblog story all together – click here for that.

Dinner At Yauatcha With John White, 1 June 2010

This was a successful choice, by all recollections and accounts.

It was my turn to choose and I plugged for Yauatcha.

Janie and I had tried a light tea-time/early evening meal, I think on this occasion…

Wedding Day At The Cro-Magnons by Wajdi Mouawad, Soho Theatre, 14 April 2008

…but John and I went for the full tilt dinner.

The place did not disappoint.

I’d suggest that the dining at cousin restaurant Hakkasan is slightly finer, but the relaxed atmosphere of Yauatcha was ideal for a catch up and chat with John.

John’s e-mail later that week:

I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed our dinner on Tuesday evening. Thanks.  The challenge is now on to find something for out next get together…

That e-mail also signalled our impending family get together at Lord’s, which was only just over a week later.

It also flagged the idea of going to the Thaxted Festival, which we didn’t implement that year or indeed any year since. One to think about for a future year, I’d suggest.

Advanced question for students of this page…

…well, for John, really…

…do you recall what we ate at Yauatcha? I must admit I don’t; I simply recall a very good meal and enjoyable catch up.

Dinner With John White At Bam Bou, 29 March 2010

No wonder I sounded a bit stressy in communications earlier that month – not only was I running some gargantuan projects at that time I was also up against The Price of Fish draft deadline ahead of sloping off to China.

Earlier on the afternoon we were due to meet…John to me:

I have booked Bam Bou a Vietnamese restaurant for 7 through top table – and am still awaiting confirmation.  When and if I do I will confirm to you.

Me to John:

 

John

Thanks.  Been there several times.  It is excellent.

Assuming that is confirmed can we please meet there – I am up against deadlines this week as you might well imagine, not least the book to finish today and tomorrow!!

Best

Ian

John to me:

Booked for 7 pm.  See you there.  Bring the book!

I’m not sure I did that, but I might have taken a small chunk or two with me.

Bam Bou was an excellent restaurant then and I recall having a fine meal with John on that occasion.

John might remember what we ate.

Sadly, departed. Bam Bou I mean. Not John. Nor the book, The Price of Fish – that is still available at Amazon and all good book outlets:

 

Keele In The City, Tiger Tiger, 11 March 2010

I was supposed to go to this event with John White, but it seems he blew me out about a week before (story of my life this, John).

But then, a “quite by chance” encounter with Bobbie Scully (at the Van Gogh we think) rescued my evening. My correspondence with John Easom on 6 March confirms. I wrote:

> I believe you placed John S White on the guest list as well.  Sadly, he is unable to chaperone me that evening, so his name need no longer appear on the list.

> However, I ran into Bobbie Scully unexpectedly last night (what a small place London is) and she has volunteered to take John’s place, as long as it isn’t too late to add her name to this list.  She is also 1984 and might be on your lists as Barbara Scully.

Best wishes and see you Thursday

Why I thought I needed chaperoning for anything I have no idea, but Bobbie certainly did join me that evening at Tiger Tiger I recall.

I remember chatting with quite a few people, not least Mark Thomas, sharing reminiscence of my headline piece when he was elected President of the Union (to be Ogblogged in the fullness of time).

I also met John Easom for the first time that evening, I am pretty sure.

It was quite noisy, though, so I seem to recall Bobbie and I not hanging around too long and heading off in search of a quieter place to eat and have a chin-wag. I think we might have ventured to a Chinese Restaurant for that purpose. We were in that part of town.

Bobbie might remember better than I do…

…or perhaps not.

Dinner at E&O, Without John and Mandy, 9 January 2010, With John and Mandy, 6 February 2010

My dairy reads:

9 January, John & Mandy?

…then…

6 February, John & Mandy? 8:30

The e-mails disambiguate. John to me on 11 January:

Sorry we didn’t make it on Saturday, probably the sensible thing not to travel but I was a bit miffed when the 6 inches of snow never turned up. Anyway 6th of Feb is fine by us.  Same arrangements?

Me to John, same day:

Great. Janie and I decided to go to E&O anyway and enjoyed the meal so much we’d be very happy to go there again 6 Feb if it took your fancy.  Otherwise we could go somewhere else if you two have a special request. Let me know asap so I can get a booking sorted.

E&O is a superb Asian-fusion restaurant – still around at the time of writing (2017) – click here.

I first came across E&O a few years earlier than 2010; I recall having a lunchtime businessy meal there with Michael and Jeremy. This seemed a good location for a little lunchtime over-indulgence, as my doctor’s surgery is just a short crawl across the road. Not so useful location-wise on a Saturday evening. But I digress.

I remember both of those early 2010 evening meals reasonably well, although to some extent they merge into one in my mind.

I recall bumping into the then ubiquitous Richard Russell and his family at a nearby table, but I think that was the January visit when I was with Janie only, but perhaps it was the gang of four February evening.

I can’t remember exactly what we ate – perhaps John can. It is an especially good place to go with a small group (e.g. four) so you can share and taste lots of different dishes – I remember thinking that when Janie and I went as just a pair.

I’m pretty sure John and Mandy didn’t stay that time – I’m guessing the kids were being baby-sat but perhaps the girls were staying with aunts or grandparents.

I’m hoping John will chime in with some more recollections about the evening, if he has them.

Dinner With John White At Ba Shan, 2 November 2009

An e-mail from me to John earlier that day:

I’ve booked us a table at Ba Shan – 24 Romilly Street – for 19:30.  Probably a good idea to get there early if anything.  I’ll come over your way c18:30 and call you on your mobile once I emerge from TCR tube station – if we walk towards each other I suspect we’ll meet each other!

Ba Shan. Aka Bashan. Hunanese food. Here is the Bashan website.

I seem to recall really liking the food, although not to the extent that I would prefer it to its sibling Barshu.

It is well-regarded on TripAdvisor – click here.

A selection of small dishes I seem to recall. Perhaps we over-ordered. Me to John the next day:

Just a quick thank you message for last night – great to see you and a very good meal, for which I am suffering as expected this morning.  Thank goodness no clients until lunchtime!

John might recall more details.

Dinner With John White At The Pearl But Total E-Mail Silence, 19 November 2008

Nothing in the e-mail trail about this. Nothing at all. Not setting it up. Not cancelling it.

The e-mail trail stops with John apologising that he will have to miss my Gresham Lecture a couple of weeks before this date…

Commercial Ethics: Process or Outcome?, Gresham Lecture, Barnard’s Inn Hall, 6 November 2008

…but I know that John came to the lecture because I even wrote him into the script and handed him a bootleg CD as he dashed off to his unavoidable engagement that night.

So I guess we must have spent some time talking to each other on the telephone during those weeks. I remember talking on the telephone. That’s what we used to do to arrange things before e-mail and messaging and things.

Anyway, it was my trusty payments log that helped me solve this one, as I spent a suspiciously John & Ian dinner sum at The Pearl on the very night recorded in my diary.

Pearl At Renaissance Chancery Court – click here for a link.

Here is a review from a year or so before we went.

Review scraped to here just in case – after all, the place is long gone now.

I remember a good but pricey meal. The company, needless to say, was excellent. John must have chosen the place because I paid.

Do you remember anything else about it, John?

Commercial Ethics: Process or Outcome?, Gresham Lecture, Barnard’s Inn Hall, 6 November 2008

This was my first Gresham Lecture and by gosh the preparation felt like hard but very interesting work.

A lot of the material from this one ended up in The Price Of Fish.

Here is a link to the lecture – you can watch it, listen to the audio, read the text, download the text, look at the slides, download the slides…

Here’s the YouTube of it so you can watch from here instead (but for the resources as well, you need to click the above link):

More observant followers of this lecture (e.g. John White) noticed that I strung some lines from songs and stuff through the slides. I made up an iTunes playlist for the lecture – back then, iTunes playlists felt like fun things to try.  Here it is: 

We held a traditional Z/Yen-Gresham reception in the Headmaster’s Study after the lecture. Doubtless someone pointed out my resemblance to the Chandos Portrait of Shakespeare in that room – someone always did. As I explained on Facebook to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Bard’s death:

After the reception, Michael Mainelli escorted an honoured few of us to Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese for one of his traditional post lecture meals. Not sure exactly who attended but I do recall Michael, Elisabeth, Kim, Micky, Charlie, Me, Janie and a few others.