Tuesday, 19th March, 2002 (18:30 - 21:00)

The rather peculiarly named Agnes Hotel (the owner's name spelt backwards, apparently) came with strong recommendations from the British Chamber of Commerce in Japan, so we booked it without hesitation for our March dinner. It's a small, elegant, modern place, and the high-ceilinged "Agnes Hall" fitted our needs perfectly. One felt that the manager and his staff had gone out of their way to provide us with good homely fare of a high standard at an extremely reasonable price (\5,500 including drinks - the menu is attached below). Unfortunately, someone seemed to have absconded with the Fish and Chips before we arrived, but its absence was more than compensated for by the wonderful roast pork and roast beef. Several members eyed the latter suspiciously at first, but most tucked in after assurances had been issued that it was Australian. During the course of the evening, two new members were introduced: Mr Paul Etheridge (Pembroke, Oxford) and Ms Mika Tsuchiya (Trinity Hall, Cambridge). Five of us finished off with a few post-prandials in the hotel's bar. This was possibly slightly too cozy for the presence of a pianist, whom David Turner had to be restrained from throttling. Nevertheless, we will undoubtedly make return trips to The Agnes. (TDM)

MENU

Assorted Italian salami and cold meats
Salad of shell pasta mixed with garden vegetables
Assorted sausages
Welsh rarebit
Shepherd's pie
Fish & Chips
Spaghetti Bolognese
Gnocchi gratin
Chicken pie
Roast pork with apple sauce
Roast beef
Fried rice with bacon and mixed vegetables
Fruit punch
Coffee