I love seafood. So I went to Mussel & Crab in Tuxford just out side of Retford. This restaurant seems to have good reputation around here. There bread with roasted garlic was excellent. A Thai fishcake my partner had was nice. However, my dishes were appalling. My starter, seafood and bits of leaves, tasted simple salad source from supermarket shelf. My main course was much worse. The crab was overboiled and it came on the massive plate with leaves, a couple slices of cucumber and tomato, a few small deformed olives, 'cheap' white bread, big oily chips and the same salad as came with starter it was basically a ploughmans with a dessed crab instead of cheese and pickle. This dish costed nearly £20. It was horrendous. I could not speak with great disappointment. Considering the high price of crab, still it was unforgivable. On top of that their information says its owner has been hotel industory for long time and the main chef was trained in the famous cooking school. Not the chef who made this dish!

In one local pub with good reputaion I had a hamburger for about £10. It was just hard bulk of beef without any taste. I complained. They cooked the same dish with apology. But result was nothing different and I was explained a good quality hamburger is like this. Rubbish!

I know what is 'properly' cooked or not even though the preference of taste surely depends on individuals.

The sad thing is I believe and my partner says I can cook better than these 'chefs'. I am not a professional cook and have no intention to become that. I just cook for daily necessity. So when I pay certain price, of course I expect the quality in order to pay that amount.

I really wonder whether they ridicule local people 'who do not know what kind of quality they should get for these inflated prices and pay money for a reputation' that is past its day and resting on its laurals and old glory. Was it only my bad luck? I would like to know. I doubt I am alone.