http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/article5359710.eceSome people feel they have to race on dog sleds to the North Pole; others are driven to climb the highest mountains on the planet; but Andy Hayler has a far more agreeable obsession — he thinks he has become the first person to eat in every three Michelin-star restaurant in the world.
Topping off a quest that has spanned 68 restaurants, three continents and countless acres of starched linen, last month Mr Hayler paid £500 for a 20-course tasting menu at Per Se in New York: "a chunky price but they certainly did not stint on the truffles".
Mr Hayler, a businessman and food blogger, has spent about £15,000 on food and drink and the same again on transport and accommodation. But he claims that he is not one of the super-rich — his world-class gourmandising has cost no more than a BMW, he says. "It really isn't very expensive - it's still less than the price of a decent car. I've done OK but I'm not a millionaire."
He first became addicted to fine dining in the early 1990s when, disappointed by London's culinary offerings, he read a review of Joël Robuchon's Jamin in Paris and decided to give haute cuisine one last go.
"I thought to myself, 'I know it will be disappointing so then I won't have to go again. But it backfired because it turned out to be the best meal I had ever eaten and got me hooked on high-end restaurants."
The hobby turned into a global itinerary of gastronomy four years ago. "In early 2004 I realised I'd been to quite a lot of them, and could go round the rest." This year alone he has been to 26 three-star establishments, going ever farther afield as the guide expands in America, China and Japan. The logistical difficulties of getting to many of these restaurants will, he believes, make it hard for anyone to emulate his relentless pursuit of amuse-bouches.
So far he has also evaded the fate of the only other man known to have sought to bag all 68. Pascal Henry, a Swiss motorcycle courier, vanished in June after disappearing from the celebrated Spanish restaurant El Bulli without paying the bill.
Mr Henry was attempting to eat at all 68 in 68 days, a quest that Mr Hayler described as "really strange. You can't eat this kind of stuff every day. It's not natural". Sometimes, Mr Hayler said, "I'm just happy having a curry."
Mr Hayler left a career with Shell to start an IT company and now runs a consultancy firm. He visits most of the restaurants with his wife, Stella, and some on business trips. He says that he has to go to the gym five times a week to cope with the effects of the rich diet.
At home he tries to replicate some of the dishes he has eaten, not always with great success. "It makes you appreciate how incredibly good these chefs are when you try to do it yourself," he said.
Although Mr Hayler rates Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck highly, he has a lower opinion of Britain's other three-star offerings, The Waterside Inn and Gordon Ramsay. "I don't think Gordon Ramsay or the Waterside Inn have been three-star level for some time now and even at their peak they were only mid-range three star. I don't think they are that inspiring. The last meals I had there were both pretty ordinary."On his website, andyhayler.com, he offers reviews of all the restaurants he has eaten in. Top marks this year went to Schloss Berg in Germany, where he praised the sushi of langoustine, foie gras parfait and belly of pork with caviar of prawn.
Yet, with the 2009 edition of the guide already out, Mr Hayler is pursuing a "permanently moving target" as more restaurants are added to the three-star roster. But Mr Hayler does not sound too unhappy about that. Three new three-star ratings have already been announced, in Germany, Hong Kong and Macao. He said: "I'm booked to go there in February."
