04/07/09
I really wanted to stand by my word and not come back here again. Daughter insisted, what can I do?
Deli chips and guacamole. The latter was rather nice but the former lagged behind your average bag of Doritos.
Daughter's 1/4lb Hot Dog. She obviously loved it.
My KC Brisket Special. Shit poor, the meat was tasteless and stringy.
Pride London 2009
Henries and mock lesbian.
--------
21/12/08
Today was just like our usual monthly patronage at this Soho branch but with a difference. We were patronised for the first time, perhaps not directly, by a waiter/server who struggled with his command of the English language. One of our orders was a combo of ½ Jerk chicken, pulled pork and sausage. Now the chicken served was quite clearly raw, the camera doesn’t lie and nor were the photographs tempered with PhotoShop. We alerted our server about this (Hey Neville!) and he kindly offered to take the whole tray back to be the kitchen. Now I for one belong to that camp whereby we do not believe in getting our erroneously cooked meal remedied back in the kitchen. Neville’s offer was politely refused but I did suggest that the cook come over and inspect the food in front of us (afterall the kitchen is within 20 steps away). Neville came back a few minutes later, without the cook of course, proclaiming a statement that more or less suggested that my daughter and I were born yesterday. Neville coughed out by saying that if we’ve never had Jerk chicken in our lives, well that’s the way it’s served, cooked medium (more like raw!) to retain the tenderness of the bird and realise the full potential of the spicy marinade. What a load of codswallop! Now has the chef, let alone Neville heard of E. coli or salmonella in undercooked poultry.
I’m appalled, incensed and rightfully saddened.
www.bodeansbbq.comThis is Bodean's reply (as of 22/12/08), which indeed confirms that my daughter and myself are new born babies and know absolutely sod all about the perceived nature of a cooked chicken-
Les,
I am sorry that you were less than happy with your meal at Bodean's Soho yesterday afternoon. I can assure you that all of our chicken, and all of our products, are cooked to more than government standards. I checked with staff who smoked all of the chickens that were prepared with yours and we keep logs for our files in case we have any doubts. In addition, we reheat the chickens to a core temperature of 70 C per government standards and they are held in warming drawers at between 65-70C. Even further than that, we flash the chicken on both side on a grill for about two to three minutes per side to give it a char grilled taste.
I believe it was mentioned to you yesterday that when we smoke our chickens, the color of the meat does change and takes on a pinkish color. This is the smoke penetrating the meat and changing the color. Yours is a comment we often receive. The best way to check if chicken is cooked is to look at the juices instead of the meat. If the juices are clear, as they appear to be in your photo, that means the chicken is cooked. if they appear cloudy, then I would say that the chicken is undercooked.
I do understand that for some people they still would rather not have chicken prepared this way. All we can do if offer our guests another dish as a substitute as we did in this occasion.
I hope this better explains our cooking process.
Bryan Tyrell
Director of Catering
Bodean's BBQ
Les,
I am sorry that you were less than happy with your meal at Bodean's Soho yesterday afternoon. I can assure you that all of our chicken, and all of our products, are cooked to more than government standards. I checked with staff who smoked all of the chickens that were prepared with yours and we keep logs for our files in case we have any doubts. In addition, we reheat the chickens to a core temperature of 70 C per government standards and they are held in warming drawers at between 65-70C. Even further than that, we flash the chicken on both side on a grill for about two to three minutes per side to give it a char grilled taste.
I believe it was mentioned to you yesterday that when we smoke our chickens, the color of the meat does change and takes on a pinkish color. This is the smoke penetrating the meat and changing the color. Yours is a comment we often receive. The best way to check if chicken is cooked is to look at the juices instead of the meat. If the juices are clear, as they appear to be in your photo, that means the chicken is cooked. if they appear cloudy, then I would say that the chicken is undercooked.
I do understand that for some people they still would rather not have chicken prepared this way. All we can do if offer our guests another dish as a substitute as we did in this occasion.
I hope this better explains our cooking process.
Bryan Tyrell
Director of Catering
Bodean's BBQ
2 comments:
That's quite appalling.
For a better jerked chicken experience, Mr Jerk and Jerk City (both on Wardour St) have never let me down.
You have to get the "Pig out for a tenner" deal. For ten pounds, you get a whole rack of baby back ribs, chips, coleslaw and a glass of wine/beer/soft drink. It's not on the menu and the deal is only on certain days so it's probably best to call in advance and ask if it is on. The ribs are yummy.
Post a Comment