"Better"?

Two meals I had while in London the other week. Firstly (LHS) is a "greasy spoon" at the appropriately named "Breakfast Club" in London Bridge, and secondly (RHS) a rather fancy Lobster Tostada at the Michelin starred "Dorian" in Notting Hill, the interesting question was which one was better?

Firstly, of course, you have to define what you mean by "better", is it cheaper, or is it tastier or is it even which establishment had the better ambience? Of course, this is a highly subjective question which leads to an infinite regress of "betters". So, my definition (for that day) is which one did I enjoy the most and the answer (predictably) was neither, they were both equally enjoyable.

Some people seem to judge things (mainly) by price, I've lost count of the number of posts in beer forums where people from the North of the country are incredulous about the "price of beer in London", their logic is that a £4 pint is superior to a £7 pint, full stop. It doesn't matter to them that the beer they are drinking is some mass produced, accountant driven recipe from AB InBev, verses a hand crafted, no expense spared, one-off creation by a couple of blokes in a garage in Bermondsey, the key (I think) here is context.

So, the "context" of these two meal was as follows, firstly the Michelin starred one was my treat to my Daughter and her two flat-mates, celebrating happy co-existence and friendship and down to the fact that both her flat mates both work in starred hospitality in London and get a 50% lunch discount at said establishment! Secondly, after much delightful conversation and excellent food (and wine!) I was feeling a bit fuzzy the next morning and decided to treat myself to a slap up "English Breakfast" in the Borough!

Both meals were an experience, both were delicious (according to their context) and both memorable for different reasons, in my view it's impossible to say which was "better" without some qualification. I'd have either again, and, I'd probably enjoy them equally as much depending on the context. It's ultimately (in my view) not about the molecules, but about the human experience.