Letter: Those salad days of wilted lettuce

Sir: Brian Appleyard's piece on foodie trends in our supermarkets fails to acknowledge the contribution made by the gush of contemporary restaurant critics in papers such as the Independent. Much space is given to the latest concoctions of 'innovative young chefs' in their stylish new premises where price seems no object to the yuppie customers. What a far cry are these silly salads and fantastical plates from the lovely dishes we learnt to cook with Elizabeth David and Julia Child.

Of course, it is yet another legacy of the Eighties, when presentation triumphed over content, with advertisers promoting the banal and the phony with dazzling flair. One can hardly blame Sainsbury's, Tesco et al for cashing in on this or, I suppose, customers with more money than sense helping them out.

Yours faithfully,

ROBERT NAIRN

London, SE1

15 March