Good Food Guide partial recognition

Every year September brings with it a deluge of guidebook publications, firstly the AA, then the Good Food Guide and finally the Good Hotel Guide. All publish in time for the Christmas rush, a bit peculiar given the time till Christmas but I am sure as soon as one comes out they must all follow to insure sales. It does however amaze as soon as the book is published it is out of date and also given the preparation period prior to publication it must only include data and information covering properties till the middle of the year and yet they title themselves for the Proceeding year. ie 2009.

Anyway we have had partial success with the Good Food Guide this year, and much of this is down to our loyal guests who continue to respond and send in reports to keep the guide independent although it retains inspectors and is supported financially. This year Eriska is listed as the 15th longest running entry in the guide and just shows how long ago it was that my parents managed to get us an entry in the guide.

However on the downside they have managed, despite me writing to them directly and filling in a form as requested, to get both our address and and Roberts tenure in the kitchen both wrong.! I was so incensed that last year when they published a menu we had not served for over 18 months, an advantage of an ever changing menu so we could track it down, that I wrote to them to draw their attention to the inaccuracy and so this year I have been repaid with further mistakes. Its a shame that this has happened as in a day when all the independence of the guides is being questioned, simple clerical errors do not enhance the support and one wonders how much longer we will wish to be associated with the guide.

At least the Good Hotel Guide which is published next week has to date managed to be factually correct and as I understand it remained completely independent, surprising given the cost of publishing but maybe it is true that the customer buys the best guides and they will survive!