Carluccio's restaurant to open in Berkhamsted

Totally agree with 'Cheaptrip' - went there yesterday, very mediocre. I find myself heading to Amersham to avoid the blandness!

Anything that goes in there has to be some improvement on the dreadful offering that was Brasserie Gerard but, like Geotraveller, I am saddened that it is yet another chain of mediocre Italian type restaurants. Visiting towns like Lewes in Sussex or Stamford in Lincs, which are of a very similar size in population to Berkhamsted, there are such gems of thriving, independent, vibrant cafes and restaurants some with excellent delis stocking fresh produce alongside. Is there some reason why the independents steer clear of Berkhamsted? Are we not very good at supporting smaller independent offerings?Are we too boring and staid a population to utilise unusual cafes and restaurants if they do appear? The success of the Rex would tend to show that we like small independent places so let us hope that in the near future someone with entrepreneurial flair will consider us for something more exciting and atmospheric than our present chains,Carluccios, Pizza Express,Brasserie Blanc, Cafe Rouge, Villagio and Ask. Do not get me wrong, all have great merit in their own way and I will support them all but it would be nice to have an alternative that is both affordable and different. Affordability is often the problem with other restaurants that appear in Berkhamsted from time to time as is lack of atmosphere and thinking that they are more up market than they really are! The independent Indian, Chinese and Thai in the town get more of my custom than other places as they tend to be affordable, friendly ,relaxed and consistent in terms of staffing and food quality.

It would be lovely to have somewhere to eat, drink and have the option for a bit of a boogy later in the evening... but not that attracted the young and rowdier groups.

Funny ol' world, ain't it? When I was foolishly involved with the 're-development' of the Town Hall, I suggested a well known local organisation took over the ground floor (they ended up making other arrangements!), but was over-ridden by the Chairmans' committee (I wonder who that was?) who wanted a large organisation who would guarantee an income for the Trust for the foreseeable future. Strangely, the local organisation is still chugging along, the person who was Chairman of said Committee is now part of the local organisation. Like I said, funny ol' world but don't worry, I'm still around for another week or two.

Difficult to get enthusiastic about yet another 'safe' chain Italian retaurant. Sorry, pasta and garlic may have seemed cosmopolitan in the 1970s, but it feels pretty boring in the 2010s.