Today’s guest needs little introduction in the world of food and travel journalism, a renowned restaurant critic, a writer whose words can make your mouth water, and a familiar face on TV—many of you will recognise him from his appearances as a judge on MasterChef. It is of course Jay Rayner.

Jay’s is a name synonymous with gastronomic excellence. As a long-time food critic for The Observer, he's sampled and critiqued some of the best, and worst, dining experiences around the globe. Beyond his razor-sharp reviews, he’s a celebrated author, his books like "The Man Who Ate the World" and "My Dining Hell” offering a deeper look into the intersections of food, culture, and travel. And he’s back with a new book, “Nights Out at Home, Recipes and Stories from 25 years as a restaurant critic". And he reflects on these years, and the 1000s restaurants he’s visited on today’s episode. I interviewed him a few weeks ago on the South Bank in London and I loved getting a glimpse into the world of reviewing restaurants, how it works, his tips on what to order when travelling, and the culinary destinations that have stood out to him, lots of restaurant recommendations as you might expect, so don’t forget they’re all included in the episode show notes here on your podcast app, and on the podcast website too. 

Holly’s Destination Recap:

- Son Bunyola, Mallorca, Spain

Jay’s Destination Recap:

• Cromer, Norfolk, England
• Knoll House Hotel, Studland Bay, England
• Erst, Manchester, England 
• Gloriosa, Glasgow, Scotland
• Tayyabs, London, England 
• Bentley’s, London, England 
• Fallow, London, England 
• Otto’s, London, England 
• The Dining Room, The Ritz Hotel, England 
• Takahashi, London, England 
• Good Old Days, Reading, England 
• Cubo, Birmingham, England 
• Greece & Turkey backpacking 
• Syros, Greece 
• New York, USA
• Russ & Daughters, NY, USA
• The Fat Duck, Bray, England 
• Wheelers, Whitstable, England 
• Whitstable, England             
• Julian, California, USA
• Steamboat, Oregon, USA
• Sylvia Beach Hotel, Oregon, USA
• Castle Elvira, Puglia, Italy         
• The Maybourne Riviera, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France 
• Moscow, Russia 
• New Zealand
• Australia

“Nights Out at Home, Recipes and Stories from 25 years as a restaurant critic” is out now. 

Thanks so much for listening today. If you'd like to hear more from the podcast don’t forget to hit subscribe, or if you use Apple Podcasts to press follow so that a new episode lands in your podcast app each week. If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok - I’d love to hear from you.

 And if you can't want until then remember there’s the first 12 seasons to catch up on, that's over 125 episodes to keep you busy there. Don't forget that all the destinations mentioned by my guests are included in the episode show notes here on your podcast app, and listed on my website, thetraveldiariespodcast.com

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