Ration Reality

Belfast pizzaria sues food critic

Posted in food, ireland, law, news, world by Soylent Ape on March 17th, 2008

Irish Pizzaria’s Libel Award Against Food Critic Overturned.

Belfast–The proprietor of an Irish restaurant who won a libel suit against a newspaper has seen his award overturned by The Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland. Lord Chief Justice Sir Brian Kerr overturned the lower court’s ruling, which had become a landmark case among the UK press.

More than 7 years ago, restaurant critic Caroline Workman reviewed Goodfellas restaurant for The Irish News. Her commentary on the Goodfellas dining experience was less-than-flattering, referring to the eatery as “joyless” and “smoky”. Scathing! Some others of Workman’s assertaions: “The staff have no more time to be involved with their customers than those in a motorway cafe” and “Our main courses arrived in as much time as it took the chef in view to rip open three blue industrial-size bags of processed cheese.”

With such a venomous review, it’s little wonder that proprietor Ciarnan Convery filed a libel suit in response. Last year, he was awarded £25,000 for the damages he and his restaurant suffered as a result of the review.

Lord Lester, of the Queen’s Counsel, defended the paper in the appeal, arguing that the ruling was a significant challenge to press freedom and stating that it would be “Perfectly ludicrous” if a restaurant owner could sue for libel anytime he didn’t like what was printed. The appellate court determined that the issue of malice (a determining factor of libel) had not been decided by the lower court and allowed for a retrial. Convery stated that he would go back to court on the issue.

The whole thing, then, is likely to play itself all over again in an Northern Ireland courtroom. I don’t know enough about British law to speculate on an outcome, but I do have to ask this question: How good could an Irish pizzaria really be? You’re not supposed to boil a pizza.

[Ed. note: Feck off, Soy! You love my soda-leavened boiled-sheep-innard Guiness pizza!]


When the pizza be stinkin…When the pizza be stinkin, the children be leavin.
(Ok, so I just really like this song -bagel)

Sources: The Times of London - Out-Law.com - The Sydney Australian - Canoe.com

Related posts: Confessions of a pizza delivery girl - Juanita the Wonton Bitch - Chocolate Soldier

39 Responses to 'Belfast pizzaria sues food critic'

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  1. what's a donzer said, on March 17th, 2008 at 7:27 am

    Well, Jaysus! What these mucks need is that fair lass Hillary O’Clinton minking it to the old blarney to straighten out this knackered shite!
    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/03/13/whillary113.xml

  2. Keypatrick said, on March 17th, 2008 at 10:24 am

    Knackered, indeed. Like I need another excuse to drink. Thanks, Patrick, thanks alot.

  3. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 11:18 am

    Arent the majority of pizzarias run by Chinese folk ?
    Wok pizza ?

  4. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 17th, 2008 at 11:21 am

    micky: I found this link the other day when you were bitchin about the oreo pizza. Had been saving it for the news sidebar… but it seems appropriate here:

    http://www.miscmasala.com/2008/03/top-ten-craziest-asian-pizza-crusts.html

  5. LA Retail Slut said, on March 17th, 2008 at 12:08 pm

    In Los Angeles all of our restaurants are required by law to show a health department grade in their windows. When you see B’s and C’s you begin to wonder…there was a UCLA cafe in their Medical plaza that had a C - no I did not go in (I had visions of Sweeney Todd), but I thought it was totally insane that a restaurant where doctors and nurses eat at fuckin UCLA’s medical compound was close to getting shut down- unbelievable. From what I remember there is no D or F only health department closure.

    Anyway - the critic’s cheese line was funny and so was Bagel’s boil sheep pizza!

    Love the video..hehe…BELFAST!!!

    Happy St. Patty’s Day everyone…guzzle your beers!

  6. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 12:18 pm

    Thanks bagel.
    I dont think the madness will end untill someone makes a shit pizza.

  7. LA Retail Slut said, on March 17th, 2008 at 12:54 pm

    LOL micky…I’ve seen one of those in a fitting room….

  8. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 1:05 pm

    Was it a thin NY style crust, or was it Sicilian ?

  9. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 1:07 pm

    Combination rayon/polyester cheese filled crust sprinkled with dingleberries

  10. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 17th, 2008 at 4:17 pm

    ‘dingleberries’ may be the nastiest word in the english lexicon.

  11. Keypatrick said, on March 17th, 2008 at 4:59 pm

    ‘moist’. I hate that word.

  12. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 17th, 2008 at 5:05 pm

    spelunking

  13. St. Keywork said, on March 17th, 2008 at 5:26 pm

    oooh, I hate that one too.

  14. Cody said, on March 17th, 2008 at 5:27 pm

    Moist dingleberries spelunk often in boxers.

  15. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 5:36 pm

    No Cody, thats briefs. If you’re wearing boxers they just spelunk down your leg into your socks.

  16. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 17th, 2008 at 5:59 pm

    just don’t get any on your frock

  17. Soylent Ape said, on March 17th, 2008 at 6:29 pm

    As much as the thought of Irish pizza makes my stomach churn, Scottish pizza has to be worse. “I’d like double haggis on it, please”.

  18. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 6:42 pm

    Maybe I could take all the leftovers from my circumcision and make a penis pizza ?

  19. LA Retail Slut said, on March 17th, 2008 at 7:18 pm

    You guys have me laughing my ass off - pun intended, but nothing is pouring out of it at the moment - thank god…

    Micky - To answer your question about my fitting room shit pizza - let’s just say you could call it Bikini Barbecue Surprise (the woman used swimsuits and it was on the walls and ceilings - I wrote about in on my blog under Fitting Room Nightmares - Everybody Poops They Just Shouldn’t Do It In A Fitting Room).

    And I once saw an old guy drop a piece of poop from his pant leg on to the marbled main aisle floor of my store..he must have forgotten to wear his diaper. The candy bar-sized poop fell out of his pant leg landed on the aisle. So gross. We called housekeeping - no way were we going near it. The housekeeping guy was pissed.

    I like your penis pizza Micky;) I think it would a hot seller hear in West Hollywood.

  20. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 17th, 2008 at 7:31 pm

    Oh hell! I was looking for a foreskin joke I vaguely remember, when I found this:

    In a divorce, who gets custody of the foreskin?

  21. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 8:18 pm

    You should leave with what you “came” with.

  22. micky2 said, on March 17th, 2008 at 8:20 pm

    Slut, I guess it would be a one time deal. Like a grilled cheese samich with a christ impression.
    Or I could just use calamari and tell everyone I’m huge.

  23. LA Retail Slut said, on March 18th, 2008 at 2:09 am

    LOL…love it!

  24. LA Retail Slut said, on March 18th, 2008 at 2:10 am

    I think Heather got Paul’s foreskin….

  25. micky2 said, on March 18th, 2008 at 11:02 am

    Shes using it to make herself another leg

  26. micky2 said, on March 18th, 2008 at 11:05 am

    If I was a fucking biilionaire and could have any bitch I want.
    Choosing a bitch with one leg means that she must really be doing something right.
    And from what we’ve seen it sure as hell wasnt her personality.
    If Pauls next squeeze has no legs we’ll know for sure whats going on.

    What was that movie with Lara flynn Boyle where her lover cut off all her legs and arms?

  27. LA Retail Slut said, on March 18th, 2008 at 12:33 pm

    hahaha …she’s using it to make another leg…bad, bad…
    I think the movie is boxing helena…
    Maybe Paul should go for no head next time

  28. micky2 said, on March 18th, 2008 at 12:43 pm

    Yea thats the movie.
    What ? A chick with no head ?
    Perfect ! You just fuck her neck hole

  29. Hot Keywork said, on March 18th, 2008 at 12:58 pm

    A chick with no head? Well, it would remedy the whole post coital ‘talking’ thing. Micky, I’ll put the katanas to the stone on this one.

    KW: Now Offering Female Decapitation.

  30. micky2 said, on March 18th, 2008 at 1:05 pm

    I think were getting real close here to pocket pussys with a pulse.

  31. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 18th, 2008 at 2:41 pm

    Or a stoma fetish

  32. keywork. said, on March 18th, 2008 at 3:02 pm

    or something from Bagel’s not-so-private fetish gallery.

  33. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 18th, 2008 at 3:24 pm

    smooth young oriental men?

  34. keywork. said, on March 18th, 2008 at 3:27 pm

    look, you’re only telling on yourself from this point on. keep guessing, though, this may get really interesting. Smooth young oriental men? That would explain the abundance of posts concerning the Japanese. I noticed.

  35. micky2 said, on March 18th, 2008 at 3:54 pm

    Or the Daikon shaped penis

  36. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 18th, 2008 at 10:48 pm

    KW, I assumed you knew all about that fetish, since you gave it to me.

    What kind of dad gives his daughter a Chinese hustler for her 10th bday, then teases her liking it?

  37. keywork. said, on March 18th, 2008 at 10:52 pm

    The kind of dad that was never around.

  38. micky2 said, on March 18th, 2008 at 11:01 pm

    Chinese people are weird.
    Do you know they plan on controling the weather for the olympics?

  39. The Bagel of Everything said, on March 27th, 2008 at 6:03 am

    Japanese people are weirder.
    I smell an article….

    Batshitathon: Japan vs China

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