I've long believed that good food, good eating, is all about risk. Whether we're talking about unpasteurized Stilton, raw oysters or working for organized crime 'associates,' food, for me, has always been an adventure

I lurched away from the table after a few hours feeling like Elvis in Vegas - fat, drugged, and completely out of it.

I love the masochistic aspect of eating seething, real Sichuan food in Sichuan Province.

Good food is very often, even most often, simple food.

your body is not a temple, it's an amusement park. Enjoy the ride.

Do we really want to travel in hermetically sealed popemobiles through the rural provinces of France, Mexico and the Far East, eating only in Hard Rock Cafes and McDonalds? Or do we want to eat without fear, tearing into the local stew, the humble taqueria's mystery meat, the sincerely offered gift of a lightly grilled fish head? I know what I want. I want it all. I want to try everything once.