Does it still make that boast? Do that many people go there? For good-deal lunches

Does it still make that boast? Do that many people go there? For good-deal lunches and early-evening dinners, they should. In the clattery ground-floor Mezzonine canteen for contemporary Thai food (whatever that is), it’s £8.90 for two courses, for lunch; around £25 ?a carte for dinner There is a DJ in the evening. Downstairs, Mezzo has a live band at night, and a modern European menu and Conran’s trademark crustacea, with three courses from around £40, or set lunch/pre-theatre supper £12.50-£15.50.
Neat, Second Floor, Oxo Tower Wharf, Bargehouse Street, London SE1. Brasserie (020-7928 4433) daily lunch and dinner; restaurant (020-7928 5533) Mon-Fri lunch and dinner, Sat dinner. Opened in June, and one of this year’s largest new restaurants, the London bastion of the Cannes-based British chef Richard Neat occupies the second floor of the Oxo Tower Wharf, six floors below the equally large Oxo Tower eaterie. The cooking’s the tops, but so is the cost and there are a lot of seats to fill – 100 in the restaurant, more in the “brasserie” and bar. Brasserie is a misnomer, with starters from £7.50, mains from £13.50; though the food might justify the prices, the Europop and brassy decor don’t.

The restaurant is more soothing, but pricey at dinner – around £80 with wine. The £29 lunch is recommended, though.New World, 1 Gerrard Place, London W1 (020-7734 0396) Mon-Thur 11am-11.45pm, Fri, Sat 11am-midnight, Sun 11am-11pm. BC – before Conran – huge restaurants weren’t unheard of, but nobody was counting the seats. New World was known for its Cantonese food, and especially dim sum, as much as for its size Still is. This Chinatown warhorse has something approaching 700 seats on three floors, and still on Sunday lunchtime there can be a queue for the dim sum. It’s only around £10 for lunch, and a little more in the evening when there’s much more on the menu.Yang Sing, 34 Princess Street, Manchester (0161-236 2200) Mon-Thur 12-11.15pm, Fri, Sat 12-11.45pm, Sun 12-10.15pm.

Although the newer Pacific runs it a close second, the Yang Sing is still the largest restaurant in Manchester, and arguably the best Chinese restaurant in the country. On four floors of a Victorian warehouse, and with three kitchens, it seats 270 on two floors, and another 300 for private banqueting on two more levels. The range of its dim sum is said to be the largest in Europe, the standard is consistently excellent, the service superb. From £10 a head for dim sum to £45 for a banquet (without drinks).. Although many of those travelling around even the more remote parts of the world with a Lonely Planet guide in their rucksack are seeking the quickest route to a milk shake and banana pancake, its World Food pocket guides provide an informed and tantalising flavour of what can be eaten in a country or region

Although many of those travelling around even the more remote parts of the world with a Lonely Planet guide in their rucksack are seeking the quickest route to a milk shake and banana pancake, its World Food pocket guides provide an informed and tantalising flavour of what can be eaten in a country or region Latest in the series is World Food, Caribbean (£8.99). If you’re heading that way, the sections on markets and how to construct a dream beach picnic, on where to eat, and the thorough glossary of grub are useful.

But even if you’re staying at home, recipes for dishes and cocktails could help realise the potential of market stalls in Brixton. So too could the just-published-this-summer hardback, The Caribbean Cook by Patrick Williams (£18.99, Michael Joseph). A classically trained British chef (associate of Marco Pierre White) brings contemporary flair to bear on some traditional West Indian dishes and comes up with some of his own. It’s beautifully produced and gives the undervalued cuisine a stylish makeover, as well as a delicious insight into what younger black Britons might eat. With a copy of The Caribbean Cook, anyone unwilling or unable to brave the crowds and stalls of jerk chicken at Notting Hill Carnival this weekend can cook up a fresh Caribbean feast or lay on a splendid tropical barbie.
* Plenty of Lonely Planet guide-clutching travellers to Thailand will have spent time looking for a bowl of muesli in Chiang Mai, but those with a well-developed taste for Thai food might want to got to Surrey this weekend, where today, tomorrow and Monday the Amazing Thailand Festival is taking place. It’s at Secretts, Hurst Farm, Chapel Lane, Milford, Surrey (01483 520500) from midday until 7pm.

Among the handicraft and cultural displays will be demonstrations of regional Thai cookery. A recreation of a roadside market will have street food, and there’ll be more to eat from street sellers’ baskets. With snack in hand, you can watch classical dancing today, Thai boxing and sword fighting tomorrow, and folk dancing and flower-filled boats floating on the lake on Monday. Admission is £2.50 and proceeds go to charity.* Newlyn claims to be the biggest fishing port in England and Wales.