The raspberry sounds nice, as does the apricot/walnut. Hey - between us, we could provide food from all five food groups - it’d be a healthy Londope 
Well, I haven’t made a booking for us. Although, with the range of activites they do, its almost as if they are expecting us. 
As we are now only a week away may I suggest we start finalising plans for an initial meeting-place.
Thinks of organised Dopers
KABOOM! brain explodes
And now, I am going to offer a suggestion, yes I am going to make a useful, and coherent comment…
How about 1pm, under the big clock at Waterloo Station?
Cause its dead easy for me to get to it from Euston.
Arrangements for the LonDope, Saturday Nov 29th 2003.
Meeting: assemble any time 12.30-1pm on the main concourse at Charing Cross Station, so that by 1pm we’re ready to find a pub and commence the First Session. (Garius has special responsibility for meeting Angua and helping her and her comestibles to find us).
First session: We will try the following pubs, in order, until we find one acceptable:
The Chandos. corner of St. Martin’s Lane and William IV Street. Nice, almost certainly over-crowded.
The Imperial. 5 Leicester Street, just off Leicester Square, to the left of the Empire Cinema (if facing the Empire). Should be a little less crowded.
The Comedy. Oxendon Street (same street as Comedy Store, but no connection). Nice enough, should be a good bet at that time of day.
The Three Crowns. Babmaes Street. Last-ditch option. Empty-ish on Sats because it’s out of the way.
Those who want to can wander off to go shopping or pursue culcha as and when they wish.
Second Session. At around 6-6.30pm, those who do not want to go somewhere specifically for food will relocate to The Silver Cross, on Whitehall. See below for directions.
Those who do want to go somewhere for communal eats… we have a choice. I’ll put it to the vote here on this thread until Wednesday 26th Nov. I need to know preferences and numbers before Thursday, when I’ll phone and make the actual booking.
Option 1. The Mongolian Barbeque, 12 Maiden Lane, 020 7379 7722. If you haven’t been, it’s great fun. You select your own barbeque ingredients from a vast selection of meats, fish, sauces and veg, which they cook for you on a vast hotplate while you wait a few minutes. You can go back as often as you like (I think). Good fun for a large-ish group.
Option 2. Tale of India, 19 New Row, Covent Garden. 020 7240 5348. Nothing special, just yer average London curry place serving up all the usual stuff. It’s the only one in the area that’s a suitable size, and they’re willing to accommodate us.
After we’ve eaten, we’ll re-join the others at the Silver Cross for the Gyrate Mega Quiz.
The Silver Cross is easy to find. First find Trafalgar Square. One of the streets leading South from Tr. Sq is called Whitehall. A handy landmark is a theatre called The Whitehall Theatre (what are the odds?) currently showing ‘The Rat Pack’. Silver Cross is more or less opposite this theatre. Also easy to reach from Charing X Stn. Exit station, turn left down Strand, cross over Northumberland Ave, go round corner occupied by ‘Europa Food & Wine’, you’re now on Whitehall.
The Silver Cross does very good pub food which can be ordered any time.
That’s it.
Maps. Furriners may want to get a handy central London street map (on sale everywhere) but online maps can be found here:
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/ . Ch X station is on a big London street called The Strand. Enter ‘Strand’ and check the ‘London Street’ option. Then take the ‘WC2’ option.
Contact numbers. Email me via my profile and you can have my mobile phone number for use in emergency only. If others don’t mind giving out their phone nbrs, that might be nice.
Don’t forget: I need preferences and numbers for Option 1 or Option 2 before Thursday!
I look forward to seeing you all there. If anyone criticises my organisational capabilities or logistical flair, I will ask Tir Tinuviel to bite you. Let’s hope the weather is nicer than it was today (Sat 22nd) when it was dark, cold, wet and windy.
Foodwise, I’m easy with either option - wherever the most people want to go, or even stay in the pub. Yes, I know its not helpful, but hey.
If people email me, they can have my number. Which will only be useful once we’re in a big group and you want to find out where we are. If you get lost, I’m probably one of the last people you want to call!
I vote for Indian, but will happily go elsewhere if that’s the majority consensus. Those of us who have survived late Soviet dorm food aren’t fussy…
I will e-mail **Angua ** for her mobile phone; I’m pretty decent at finding my way around, but if she says she isn’t, who am I to argue? Anyone else who volunteers to share mobile numbers will be greatly appreciated. I’d share mine, but as previously mentioned, it won’t work in the UK because of different technical standards. So I will have to see if there are any pay phones left in London; they are getting scarcer by the day here.
Looking forward to seeing you all! By this time next week, I hope you will all be trying your first rugelach!
As far as food goes i’ll be more han happy with any of the options offered(can you tell I don’t eat out much?)
If any one is needing my mobile No e-mail me (or posswibly Tir if she hasn’t wiped it).
I just realised that doesn’t count as a vote so I’ll go with whatever is the majority option.
I don’t care where everyone else wants to go, I want Mongolian BBQ!
Well, actually I too shall go with the flow, I just wanted to be different. However, if the flow takes us to the Mongolian BBQ I’d be happy, as I have never flowed there before.
Oh, and I’d be happy to give my phone number out to anyone who wants it.
I vote for Indian, but would be happy with the other option as well. Either way, let’s aim for 6pm food, lest I get accused of hogging the rest of the evening.
We’re really not doing well at this consensus thing are we? I reckon ianzin should just pick an option at random, and we’ll go with that.
As a note, neither Alex B nor I will be there for daytime sessions as I am a feeble old woman and cannot handle all day in a pub, but we will probably get to the Silver Cross around 7ish. We won’t have had out evening meals, so will be happy to go where the crowd leads us.
Can I suggest a start time for the quiz of 8.30?
[ Re-posting here because we’re on a new page, for the sake of latecomers who might not realise it is / was on page 17. ]
Arrangements for the LonDope, Saturday Nov 29th 2003.
Meeting: assemble any time 12.30-1pm on the main concourse at Charing Cross Station, so that by 1pm we’re ready to find a pub and commence the First Session. (Garius has special responsibility for meeting Angua and helping her and her comestibles to find us).
First session: We will try the following pubs, in order, until we find one acceptable:
The Chandos. corner of St. Martin’s Lane and William IV Street. Nice, almost certainly over-crowded.
The Imperial. 5 Leicester Street, just off Leicester Square, to the left of the Empire Cinema (if facing the Empire). Should be a little less crowded.
The Comedy. Oxendon Street (same street as Comedy Store, but no connection). Nice enough, should be a good bet at that time of day.
The Three Crowns. Babmaes Street. Last-ditch option. Empty-ish on Sats because it’s out of the way.
Those who want to can wander off to go shopping or pursue culcha as and when they wish.
Second Session. At around 6-6.30pm, those who do not want to go somewhere specifically for food will relocate to The Silver Cross, on Whitehall. See below for directions.
Those who do want to go somewhere for communal eats… we have a choice. I’ll put it to the vote here on this thread until Wednesday 26th Nov. I need to know preferences and numbers before Thursday, when I’ll phone and make the actual booking.
Option 1. The Mongolian Barbeque, 12 Maiden Lane, 020 7379 7722. If you haven’t been, it’s great fun. You select your own barbeque ingredients from a vast selection of meats, fish, sauces and veg, which they cook for you on a vast hotplate while you wait a few minutes. You can go back as often as you like (I think). Good fun for a large-ish group.
Option 2. Tale of India, 19 New Row, Covent Garden. 020 7240 5348. Nothing special, just yer average London curry place serving up all the usual stuff. It’s the only one in the area that’s a suitable size, and they’re willing to accommodate us.
After we’ve eaten, we’ll re-join the others at the Silver Cross for the Gyrate Mega Quiz.
The Silver Cross is easy to find. First find Trafalgar Square. One of the streets leading South from Tr. Sq is called Whitehall. A handy landmark is a theatre called The Whitehall Theatre (what are the odds?) currently showing ‘The Rat Pack’. Silver Cross is more or less opposite this theatre. Also easy to reach from Charing X Stn. Exit station, turn left down Strand, cross over Northumberland Ave, go round corner occupied by ‘Europa Food & Wine’, you’re now on Whitehall.
The Silver Cross does very good pub food which can be ordered any time.
That’s it.
Maps. Furriners may want to get a handy central London street map (on sale everywhere) but online maps can be found here:
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/ . Ch X station is on a big London street called The Strand. Enter ‘Strand’ and check the ‘London Street’ option. Then take the ‘WC2’ option.
Contact numbers. Email me via my profile and you can have my mobile phone number for use in emergency only. If others don’t mind giving out their phone nbrs, that might be nice.
Don’t forget: I need preferences and numbers for Option 1 or Option 2 before Thursday!
I look forward to seeing you all there. If anyone criticises my organisational capabilities or logistical flair, I will ask Tir Tinuviel to bite you. Let’s hope the weather is nicer than it was today (Sat 22nd) when it was dark, cold, wet and windy.
Hmmm… Thinking some more about it, I’ve heard of this Mongolian BBQ place before, and it sounds like fun. Put my vote for there.
I had a Mongolian barbie when I was in Brunei. It was very nice.
This may be terribly American and un-P.C. of me, but whn I think of “Mongolian barbie” I think of a busty 12" high doll wearing too much makeup, a fur hat with earflaps, and living in a yurt. Does Mattel make the Barbie Dream Yurt?
Mongolian barbeque would be an excellent choice.
Hey! I want a Mongolian Barbie Dream Yurt!
Fran: we can start the quiz later if you’re willing to be in charge of inflicting bodily harm on people who take too long to answer the questions. I’m really going to try to keep it moving this time (he says).
Eva, there is coffee all over my monitor.
That’s all. Just thought I’d let you know…