One Leicester Street, London WC2, restaurant review Aylesbury duck, green olives and corn (£14.50) was a hefty dish but not dauntingly so: inch cubes of meat, pink with perfectly charred skin, a decent, young flavour; the corn a revelation, with the appearance of very buttery mash but a starchier, denser texture and, well, a cornier flavour. Cerignola olives, giant and mild, stopped it all becoming too rich. I liked this, especially with a little-gem, buttermilk and dill salad (£5.50), in which one could actually taste the lettuce (I'm surprised how rare that is). No, of course we didn't omit to order curds. People from the 20th century? Grilled onion on top of goat's curd with wild fennel (£6.80) was an impressive and considered dish, subtle flavours quietly playing off one another, the temptation to add anything dramatic - even a flavour as sudden as a caper - wisely resisted. And finally, devilled mussels, with sea purslane and saffron (£8), which N found the least interesting, and I agreed. The mussels weren't quite a match for the heat. Nor was the purslane. None the less, there was originality and skill, and I can honestly say that I greeted every plate with excitement, which may have been a pain for the kitchen, the burden of my reachless expectation, but was fun for me. For pudding, I had buttermilk and blueberry ice cream (£5), which was fractionally too sharp and yogurty for my tastes; N had shaved elderflower ice (£3.50), which was a bit ascetic for his. Although we didn't end on a wildly enthusiastic note, I will return, to taste the lamb's tongue, and I would enjoin you to drop in, if only for the dizzying poshness of the pork scratchings. I am glad this restaurant exists. Nelson Street Restaurant 53/54 Nelson Street, Buckingham (01280 815556) Large shop-front windows draw you in to this small, chic restaurant. At the back, you can see the chefs at work on their speciality dish of roasted lamb rump with spiced chickpea relish, minty fattoush and hummus (£15.95) Penny Street Bridge Penny Street, Lancaster, Lancashire (01524 599900) This grand old town house serves pub classics - everything from chunky sausage sandwiches (£5.25) and ploughman's platters (£7.50) to steak and Lancaster Bomber ale pudding (£9.95) - all in an elegant dining-room hung with ornate mirrors and art deco lights. St Andrew's St Bistro 16 St Andrews Street, St Ives (01736 797074) Mismatched chairs, eye-catching prints and well-worn rugs give this split-level bistro a higgledy-piggledy, bohemian vibe - all part of its appeal, as is the fantastic seafood. Try the scallop, mussel and crab linguine (£16.95)