SURPRISE CHALLENGER TO RAMSAY FOR TITLE OF CAPITAL'S BEST CHEF

Morgan Meunier has emerged as the surprise challenger for the title of the capital's best chef, in the survey of some 8,000 restaurant-goers conducted for the new edition of Harden's London Restaurants, published today. Meunier is beaten for the quality of his cuisine only by Gordon Ramsay (who is voted the capital's top chef for the 11th consecutive year) and by Bruce Poole (acclaimed, for the second year running, as the chef of the capital's favourite restaurant, Chez Bruce).

According to the survey, and rated entirely on the quality of their food, the top ten chefs in London are:

Rank	Chef	Restaurant
1	Gordon Ramsay (Mark Askew, Head Chef)	Gordon Ramsay, Chelsea
2	Bruce Poole	Chez Bruce, Wandsworth
3	Morgan Meunier	Morgan M, Islington
4	Marcus Wareing	Pétrus, Knightsbridge
5=	James Bennington	La Trompette, Chiswick
5=	Vineet Bhatia	Rasoi Vineet Bhatia, Chelsea
7	Pascal Proyart	One-O-One, Knightsbridge
8	Shane Osborn	Pied à Terre, Fitzrovia
9=	Michel Roux	Le Gavroche, Mayfair
9=	Nino Sassu	Assaggi, Bayswater

Peter Harden, co-editor, said:

"Many people would probably have thought the obvious contenders for Gordon Ramsay's crown would be Marcus Wareing (Pétrus) or perhaps Tom Aikens (Tom Aikens), but our reporters' conclusion is that Morgan's cooking trumps them both. His restaurant is also considerably less expensive!"

Meunier, 34, first came to public attention at Monseiur Max in Twickenham, and later at Admiralty in the Strand, having trained for five years with Michel Guérard at Les Prés de Eugénie in Eugénie-les-Bains. He set up on his own restaurant, Morgan M, in late-2003.

The guide notes that a major theme of current restaurant times is 'back to basics', both in terms of the style of cooking - with renewed interest in traditional French cuisine - and the style of service. In that sense, Morgan Meunier's restaurant, where the whole emphasis is really about 'what's on the plate', is a good emblem of the times.

AND THE THREE TOP RESTAURANT GROUPS ARE...

With the successful launch last August of maze, Gordon Ramsay, consolidates his position as the capital's leading restaurateur, and his group now accounts for five of the top 10 restaurants nominated by reporters for their best meal of the year (up from three last year). The guide cautions that Ramsay's grip on the popular imagination, when it comes to quality dining out, now risks becoming 'stifling'.

The guide notes, however, that, for sheer consistency, Nigel Platts-Martin's "stunning" portfolio of restaurants - Chez Bruce, The Glasshouse, The Ledbury, The Square and La Trompette - is still unmatched, even by Gordon Ramsay.

The other group of particular interest is the 'Caprice Group', now owned by Richard Caring, which is responsible for the continuing success of Le Caprice, J Sheekey and the Ivy. The group's new Rivington Grill, however, is characterised by the guide as "the worst thing to have happened in Greenwich in 400 years".

MOST-MENTIONED ARRIVALS

The guide highlights five new entries on the list of restaurants attracting most survey reports. They are:

maze (14th Most mentioned) - The quality of Jason Atherton's intriguing small dishes Ð plus a little help from the Ramsay PR machine Ð has made this Mayfair restaurant the top arrival on the Most Mentioned list.

Galvin Bistrot de Luxe (22nd) - The Galvin brothers' foodie favourite, in Marylebone, and the leading example of the vogue for Gallic cuisine and old-fashioned simplicity.

The Ledbury (33rd) - The latest addition to the Platts-Martin stable, in Notting Hill, quickly establishing a reputation to match the others in his portfolio.

Cipriani (38th) - A "vulgar Eurotrash trattoria with rip-off prices and surly service", in Mayfair. It has quite a following nonetheless.

Bentley's (40th) - Richard Corrigan's re-launch of a Mayfair classic oyster bar and restaurant - the former has been a greater success than the latter.

BIG NAMES WHO DO NOT SHINE

The guide identifies some famous-name restaurateurs who do not seem to be doing very well in satisfying survey reporters. Restaurants associated with Marco Pierre White, for example, are particularly floundering. According to the guide, his link-up with jockey Franco Dettori, in particular, has proved a losing bet. Frankie's Italian Bar & Grill is described as a "huge let down"; MPW's Mayfair flagship, Mirabelle, is characterised as a "fading classic"; and the guide notes very variable standards at the new Luciano, in St James's.

The guide also has harsh words for Gary Rhodes. After the disappointing début of Rhodes W1, the restaurateur is branded "a repeat offender when it comes to putting his name to disappointing spin-offs". Sir Terence Conran's portfolio of restaurants continues to fare poorly in reporters' esteem. Bluebird, in the King's Road, is particularly slated for "dreary food, plain décor and awful service", and the guide suggests that Conran Restaurants deserves "some sort of special award for its consistently criminal mismanagement of this Chelsea landmark".

Harvey Nichols fares no better. Its Oxo Tower restaurant, overlooking the Thames, once again tops nominations as both London's 'Most disappointing' and 'Most overpriced' restaurant. It is slated for its "over-inflated prices for barely average food and appalling service."

- Ends -

For further information, contact Richard or Peter Harden on 020 7839 4763.

Notes for Editors

1. The 16th edition of Harden's London Restaurants, including details of over 750 restaurants, is published on 29 August.

2 The guide is based on the annual Harden's survey of regular restaurant-goers, in which some 8,000 people - contributing nearly 90,000 individual reports - participated this year.

3. Harden's also published Harden's UK Restaurants, in association with Rémy Martin Fine Champagne Cognac.

4. Morgan M's potential was recognised in 2003, when the establishment was awarded a Rémy Martin Restaurant Award, in conjunction with Harden's.

Schedule: Survey winners and losers

Rankings are in descending order of votes in the respective categories. (Last year's position in brackets.)

Top gastronomic experience 1. Gordon Ramsay (1) 2. Chez Bruce (3) 3. Le Gavroche (5) 4. Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's (2) 5. Tom Aikens (4) 6. Pétrus (9) 7. maze (*) 8. La Trompette (7) 9. Nobu (6) 10. Connaught (Angela Hartnett) (-)	Favourite restaurant 1. Chez Bruce (1) 2. The Ivy (2) 3. J Sheekey (4) 4. The Wolseley (3) 5. Le Caprice (5) 6. La Trompette (7) 7. Gordon Ramsay (6) 8. Hakkasan (8) Hakkasan (7) 9= Zuma (10) 9= Moro (-)
Best for Business 1. Bleeding Heart (1) 2. 1 Lombard Street (7) 3= The Don (2) 3= The Wolseley (3) 5. The Square (4)	Best for Romance 1. La Poule au Pot (1) 2. Andrew Edmunds (2) 3. Bleeding Heart (3) 4. Chez Bruce (4) 5. The Ivy (5)
Most disappointing 1. Oxo Tower (1) 2. The Ivy (2) 3. The Wolseley (3) 4. Tom Aikens (6) 5. Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's (4)	Most overpriced 1. Oxo Tower (1) 2. Cipriani (6) 3. Sketch (Gallery) (2) 4. The Ivy (5) 5. Hakkasan (8)

Note - 'conflicts' Every year, a review of Harden's notes a purported 'conflict' between, for example, the Ivy's appearance on both the Favourite list and the Most Disappointing list. It is hardly surprising, though, that - in a survey of 8,000 people - some establishments incite opposing views. The guide's editorial and ratings derive their force from reflecting the balance of differing views among a large number of people.