Do leave off ..he's an utter lightweight.

Infact I was insulted.

Mildly.

One last thing. I actually read the article first before Googling it. So it was a fact known by me before this topic came up.

Just how exactly do you read an article BEFORE Googling it???

Yahoo News. I read that daily and it was mentioned there first. I Googled to get the article for proof so it wouldn't look like I was pulling that fact from my ass.

Sure you did darling, sure you did

I read it on the Internet so it must be true!!!

You know I could say the same thing about the rest of the stuff you 'quote' just the same. As long as I stay away from quoting 'The Daily Mail', 'National Enquirer', and 'The Star', I think I'll be alright.

Zagat, certainly not the premier restaurant reviewer. Its American, unheard of elsewhere. http://www.michelinguide.com Think it was started in USA, because USA restaurants could not get into, the better guides
Reg. Frank R.

Did they take into account, Brit minimum wage $11+ plus great medical benefits. Usa minimum wage $7, no medical benefits

Price quoted in the article seems a bit steep to me. Average? Calculated how? I'd wager it wasn't what the average local would shell out for a meal in London unless it was for a special occasion.

I get back to London quite often and eat out every night when I'm there. Admittedly it feels pricey if I convert it to dollars (but then compared to where I live, not NYC) but as a Londoner earning London wages I wouldn't have thought twice.

And OP - everyone knows you're supposed to get trollied in the pub before you go for a curry...

Correct...I'm a Londoner living in NYC (only moved a few months back) and I'd say that the cost of eating/drinking out is almost identical to London. I.e. someone earning 20k GBP in London would be earning 40k USD over here, and likewise a meal that would cost 60 quid in London would be about 120 dollars over here. OVerall the cost of living in NYC is definitely cheaper than London, but not as much as most people think..although I can undertand someone not from either of those places finding it expensive...

Manchesta, Altrincham (we lived in Lymm)

Christ, no wonder you dont want to go back!

I was surprised how Altrincham has gone downhill...such an affluent area of the UK too.

I spent about 3 months in Oxford between November and March (3 separate work trips). I really loved being back for the most part - had not been at all for about 3 years, it was just fantastic to be able to do the things that I used to take for granted - pop in the pub for a pint and Sunday lunch, pop to see my family and friends on the weekends, get a fry up, get some chips, and so on. But, was happy to get back to the US each time too - some of it to do with my wife and daughter being here, but not the sole reason - I think because we generally have a decent life in the US (time off work excepting) and gotten used to it has something to do with it as well.

I did notice general living costs to be constantly rising in the UK - noticed it despite the fact I had it good, with an all expenses paid posh flat bang in the centre of Oxford and a sizey living allowance, including free hire car to get home to the folks at the weekends. I was also being paid in pounds - but still noticed that everything now costs a tenner. Trainfare into town from my old village - tenner. Little Chef all day breakfast - tenner. Sandwich and drink in London - tenner. 3 pints of beer - tenner. Last time I was back for any length of time (5 years ago or so), I'm sure it was more like a fiver.

Didn't notice the roads being any busier than here - traffic round Tampa is shite in addition to your average bod being a bad driver, so driving back in UK was a breath of fresh air to be honest (apart from fuel costs....(expensed).

One thing I did notice is the negativity of just about everyone in the UK. There does seem to be a "real hard done by" sentiment in the air, not helped by national news etc. Just about everyone I spoke to thought Britain was crap - despite having never lived anywhere else. Just doesn't happen over here, no matter how bad it is, its very rare that you hear people completely slagging the US off in the same way as in UK. And certainly you do see (far far)more of the foul mouthed, scrotey kids mentioned in this thread than you do here.

Despite its faults though, I still wouldn't mind living in the UK at some point - would like my daughter to at least spend some good time there - not sure if we ever will though, we'll see.

Everyone from Wyhthenshawe goes to Altrincham, cos "it's posh".