How macaroni and cheese became the dish of the day

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Yet the unstoppable spread of mac'n'cheese is even more scary because it isn't really a British comfort food at all - we favour traditional "comfort" dishes like mashed potato or anything stodgy with custard. Mac'n'cheese is a Yankee interloper.

At Spuntino, they do an implausibly rich version using rather good cheese and with a sprinkle of breadcrumbs to give the top some crunch.

At the new Eat.St market in King's Cross, Anna Mae sells an American southern-style elbow macaroni in a three-cheese sauce served with a selection of different toppings, while Pizza East's version is served hot straight from the wood oven. If you can brave it, the new Hawksmoor Guildhall does a plate of lobster mac'n'cheese for £20.

Restaurants such as Spuntino have spruced up the concept to make it trendy in much the same way as Franco Taruschio took a lasagne and then made it into a star turn by using better cheese, porcini mushrooms, Parma ham and lashings of cream.

I dare say that Italians flinch when any of their classical dishes get the makeover treatment but if so, whatever would they make of macaroni cheese and its journey first to America and then back to London as a must-have comfort food? Lorraine Pascale is another chef to have joined the bandwagon, creating her own luscious "Glam mac and cheese" recipe, which includes pancetta, fresh thyme and spring onions.

Most expat Americans agree that the Hampstead Butcher does a fine version to take home and heat up - £5.95 a portion, if that's any comfort.

spuntino.co.uk; eat.st; thehawksmoor.co.uk; pizzaeast.com; hampsteadbutcher.com