Million Dollar Critic

Back home, Coren is viewed as a bit of a blowhard, but his restaurant reviews are indeed influential. Worth a million dollars in publicity, though? That's arguable. His currency is worth much, much less in America, where few outside dedicated Anglophiles have ever heard of him. That makes his buffoonish behavior, such as mocking one chef for "ordering for" him and another for daring to suggest that a plate of radishes should be dipped in its accompanying sauce, a lot harder to take. If what the chefs might ultimately gain from serving Coren is worth far less than a million bucks, why should they treat him like that's what he's worth?

Nonetheless, it's always interesting watching people order and eat food, and Coren has a few critics' rules that make things more interesting, such as: "Always order the most disgusting thing on the menu. A good chef will make it delicious." "I try it so you don't have to" (as he's about to tuck into a sheep's-head soup). That's good stuff; watching chefs trying to please someone who seems more interested in scoring points than finding the best food, not as much.