What a difference a year makes…This time last year I reviewed Stac Polly on Dublin Street with my friend ‘Stressed bride-to-be’. Fast-forward to April 2013, and now I’m the one with a wedding a but a few months away. A leisurely (and ideally slightly boozy) lunch with my sister was called for and so I scheduled a visit to Stac Polly’s recently launched brasserie, gin and wine bar.

And what a great transformation of this formerly rather gloomy ground-floor space. There’s a traditional but colourful element of ‘Scottish’ in the form of Bute Fabric’s tweeds in the upholstery and fun light shades, arty arrangements of stag antlers, alongside the townhouse’s original features such as ceiling roses, fireplaces and exposed stone walls.

My sister and I started with one of their house cocktails, a luscious raspberry gin fizz, and  checked out the suitably concise daytime menu. From the choice of three sharing platters, we decided to tuck into the ‘Meat’ option at £12.95. Presented on a slate, we hungrily picked through the selection of tender home-smoked and spiced duck breast, Rannoch smoked chicken and a very delectable Aberdeen Angus carpaccio which was perfectly enhanced by a squeeze of fresh lime. With spot-on little touches like tangy caper berries and the perfect salad peppered with micro-herbs, the only letdown was the generic blonde baguette which didn’t quite match the calibre of the rest of the ingredients.

Following in the theme of threes, the mains are divided thrice into three sections with three choices each. So from ‘fish’ my sister chose the fishcake (£8.95) and from ‘meat’ I had the wild pigeon and Stornoway black pudding dish (£7.95). The fishcake was crisp on the outside, uber-fluffy from the tatties and flavoursome from salmon, scallions and great seasoning. The pan-fried pigeon breasts were gamey and juicey, and the soft black pudding provided great backup in the meaty department.

Desserts -all £4.95- were a tad overindulgent (did you expect this gourmande to be on a pre-wedding diet?) yet blithely we shared the silky chocolate ganache which came with zingy strawberry sherbet icecream, and the food equivalent of a cosy duvet in the form of bread & butter pudding with custard.

Stac Polly have made this a really appealing space, and I reckon this’ll be a choice pick for many lunches to come.

Stac Polly

29-33 Dublin Street

Edinburgh

EH3 6NL

Tel: 0131 556 2231

www.stacpolly.com

Lunch in The Brasserie Mon-Sat 12-2pm

Brunch Sun 12:30-3pm

Dinner 7 days

If you know your history of Edinburgh’s restaurants, you’ll know that Malcolm Duck’s eponymous Duck’s at Le Marché Noir sat comfortably at the top end of respected fine dining establishments for almost 2 decades. A few years ago he decided to make a change, and moved to Kilspindie House in Aberlady to create a restaurant with rooms. His new home gives him the flexibility of space, so these days there’s the welcoming Donald’s Brasserie with warming Scottish fare, perfect stuff to follow a round of golf of a walk along the coast. Having just been adopted by The Scotch Malt Whisky Society as an official Home from Home, the bar epitomises well-stocked.

On this visit, our appetites took us into the more formal side of things, Duck’s Restaurant itself. An amuse of silky leek and potato soup with shredded brisket and marmalade hit clever contrasts and was the perfect intro to dishes to come. The Silver Fox saw and pounced on his favourite ‘Steak Tartare’ (£8.95), this version was lime-cured, and featured the sweet acidity of pear and peaks of mustard. Jealousy might have arisen had my trio of lemon sole not been flawless. As it was each roulade of soft fish hugged a delicately flavoured centre, earthy beetroot & Jerusalem artichoke, salsify & basil, butternut squash & thyme, sitting on a sweet orange and celery butter sauce. Heavenly.

We swapped proteins for main course, my fella chose the Halibut with roasted tomatoes and black olives (£22) which looked very fresh and Mediterranean. I went for the carved sirloin of Buccleuch beef (£26.95), served succulent medium rare with sautéed mushrooms, tatties and seasonal kale with chilies through it. That the accompaniments were presented on the plate in individual ramekins, and that there was no sauce with the dish was slightly odd, but the excellent cooking of each component made up for it.

To finish, my parfait of hazelnuts, walnuts and pistachio (£6.50) with honey sauce was a creamy, munchy iced delight and the Fox’s special of exotic fruit salad with ice cream was a thing of colourful beauty.

Chef Alessandro Grillo seems to have a real finesse and delicacy with flavours, the ingredients are first class, and the service is relaxed. Edinburgh’s loss is most definitely Aberlady’s gain, and just 20 minutes away, Duck’s is well worth a visit.

As far as awesome job titles go, I think ‘Chocolatier’ sits pretty highly on the fantasy list. Whether it invokes thoughts of working as a maverick Wonka-esque character, or as a precise traditional artisan, the thought of spending your days enrobed in chocolate sounds pretty tempting. Well, Edward & Irwyn are bright young stars on the Edinburgh confectionery scene, and it just so happens that their world is perfectly balanced between left-side of the brain creativity and mastered skills.

First off, let’s introduce Edward & Irwyn, or Edda and Kirsty. Edda, an experienced chocolatier learned her craft at Valhrona’s Chocolate School in Lyon France and Kirsty comes from a background in arts festivals. They met whilst working on a project a few years ago, and quickly bonded over a shared obsession with bees. a wish to start an urban honey project, and that the honey would be incorporated into chocolate creations.

Five years on, and their business has found its wings. Edda is Master Chocolatier and Kirsty her apprentice. I was lucky to get a sneak peak into their recently opened Chocolate Kitchen in Morningside. A handwritten sign with the words ‘Constant Vigilance’ is pinned to the wall, and this mantra underpins the attention to detail required of any chocolatier.

All the chocolate used in their creations earned its place following a rigorous (and I’m presuming a quite delicious) process of blind tasting. Tempering the small batches of chocolate on marble is the traditional artisanal method, and this the skill Edda is now passing on to Kirsty. It’s a science, working the chocolate to exact temperatures to achieve chocolate with the perfect shine and with the perfect ‘snap’.

Coming up with phenomenal flavour combinations doesn’t seem to be challenging the two of them too much though. From Scandinavian-influenced flavours like juniper, Scots pine and smoked salt, to variations on a theme of their beloved honey, your brain and senses engage excitedly as the chocolate melts in your mouth.

The Chocolate Kitchen isn’t generally open, however they do plan to organise pop-up shopping events and to have the kitchen open for purchases a couple of times per week. In the meantime, you can find their chocolates in Vino and Villeneuve wine shops, and taste their rich aromatic hot chocolate at Brew Lab.

For info, including details of pop-up shop events, go to www.edwardandirwyn.wordpress.com

It feels like Edinburgh’s settling comfortably into a new era of ‘how to do restaurants’. The knock-on effect of the stellar performances from the city’s famed Michelin and Rosetted chefs is filtering down into accomplished but relaxed new places, meeting good quality pub food halfway. It’s more about the food, less about a theme, and UK/Scottish produce is on the menu. Budgets may be tight, pretensions are diminishing, but I think that expectations are are higher than ever before; it’s a logical time for the bistro to make a comeback.

Field, a newbie, has opened just over the road from the Pear Tree, in the space formerly occupied by Home Bistro.  It’s a knacky wee spot, just off the north bridge, and if the name conjures up vast expanses, then the restaurant itself is the opposite in stature. The team behind it come with a great pedigree (The Wee Restaurant, The Plumed Horse) and hope to offer (in their own words) ‘delish’ affordable food. Mum and I ate on a Friday night, a few weeks after opening and found it to be a cosy welcoming kind of place.

The menu offers the best of challenges to the picker, when any five of the offered starters could have been selected. A bottle of Pipcoul de Pinet was opened, a few sips were taken and we finally plumped for the ham hock rissole with poached egg and Hollandaise, and the terrine of confit duck leg with a parfait bonbon.

The rissole was a generous plateful, and in any other context would have been a contender for best breakfast dish ever. As it was, a soft potatoey cake with strips of smokey ham hough through it, and a satisfyingly crisp breadcrumbed outer. The runny poached egg and creamy Hollandaise put the dopamine levels into overdrive. With this dish is the ultimate in comfort, mum’s terrine was more of a ‘think piece’, a surprisingly delicate presentation of the duck meat, with notes of five spice. The co-star of the duck dish was another golden breadcrumbed lovely, the duck liver parfait bonbon. Punchy but with a silky texture, the intensity of the flavour in each bite slightly kicked its cold plate-fellow into submission.

Main courses hit the Friday night dinner spot well. Mum, a great believer in the ‘less is more’ school of thought on cooking fish was full of praise for the hake dish, the pan-fried, super fresh sweet former swimmer was the star of its show. A deliciously light take on ratatouille without too much sticky tomato action, and some appropriately billed chunky chips which were perfectly seasoned. The coo beckoned me (it does feature rather prominently in the restaurant’s artwork), and a special of rose veal successfully tempted me. Served perfectly pink, tasty from high-heat searing, this was close to the perfect piece of meat. More ‘golden balls’, this time in the form of a croquette with soft red onions in the centre, and juicy roasted baby plum tomatoes completed the picture. A lot of ‘yuming and ahhhing’ ensued.

Desserts, were excellent too. I have reservations about cheesecake, it can be so heavy or over-set, but the black forest version I tried was light but rich with hidden cherries, little bitter flecks of dark chocolate and a crumbly base. Mum had a banana Tatin which had that nice caramel brúlée edge to the pastry and with its vanilla ice cream hat was deemed a triumph. Only small gripe was about the overenthusiastic drizzling of toffee sauce over both desserts.

The ‘loos’ are like a real Pinterest board, papered with an array of images of artfully photographed food porn, which thankfully the restaurant’s own kitchen output lives up to. It’s the perfect size for a neighbourhood eaterie, the atmosphere is casual enough for jeans, but smart enough for date night. I really like the relaxed friendly vibe and I imagine with an eye on the seasons, chef Gordon Craig’s menu will be well worth repeat visits.

We dined as guests of Field.

I hope that the new year has started off well for all and that you’re looking forward to a delicious (lucky!) year ahead. This month, we’re taking a trip outside of the ‘burgh, down the gorgeous East Lothian coast to Dunbar. A food-lover’s revolution has quietly but assuredly been gaining momentum over the past few years in this coastal corner. The local bakery in the town closed in 2008, and a community driven co-op was established to get a new bakery off the ground.

Shareholders raised around £40k, which along with grants saw the bakery open in the autumn of 2011. The aim was to meet the needs of local people for a good quality local bakery, helping to keep business local , and providing employment and apprenticeships.

In the spring of 2012, the project took another leap forward as award-winning pâtissier Ross Baxter took the helm in running the business. Ross’s previous post was with Chez Roux at the Greywalls Hotel, and has brought with him supreme baking talent and a professional drive.

The lovely thing about this bakery is its please-all qualities, as there’s the right balance between traditional Scottish baking and fine continental pâtisserie. Breads are baked from scratch with time, due care and quality ingredients. Personal favourites include the sourdough, loaves with ale from the local Belhaven brewery, and a soft challah. Savouries for a tasty lunch or snack include
a daily selection of quiches, bridies and pasties, and Scotch pies all made with locally sourced ingredients where possible.

It is, however, the sweet pâtisserie that have really drawn me back time and time again. The salted caramel tart has a luxurious silky filling and super crisp pastry, whilst fish and chips by the harbour has now been surpassed by ‘macarons sur mer’. A  bag of three brightly flavoured macarons are a real treat.

Despite the recent opening of an übermarket, locals still enjoy the benefits of shopping at their local butcher, fishmonger, greengrocer and of course bakery. On any given morning, Dunbar’s High Street is a thriving place; just the way it should be.

Things to know:
The community bakery is currently owned by around 500 shareholders.
Shares can be purchased from £20 to £100 each.
Shareholders are entitled to a discount of 10% off purchases.
Dunbar is only 20 minutes away from Edinburgh Waverley by train.

The Bakery Dunbar
60 High Street
Dunbar
EH42 1JH
Tel: 01368 238178
Open Mon-Sat 8am to 4:30pm
www.thebakerydunbar.co.uk

Tis the season to be merry and whatever your festive spirit of choice, rest assured that Edinburgh’s bartenders are standing by to indulge your party-fuelled thirst.

The rest of the post can be viewed here.

I have to confess that during our visit, I developed a bit of a crush on The Roamin’ Nose. The gloomy former site of Duck’s and La Garrigue’s new town outpost has had such a radical transformation that it’s virtually unrecognisable. Step into the light gorgeous previously hidden cornicing, exposed stonework, creams and blues, informal ‘kitchen’ style furniture and a killer soulful soundtrack.

I’m writing this for the January edition of Bite, and I reckon we’ll all be feeling the aftermath of an expensive prior month. Well this little bistro has pretty tiny prices, and offers really good Mediterranean plates and comfort food. Italian chef Stefano brings the simplicity of home-cooked style together with the quality of ingredients you’d expect from more expensive restaurants.

The Silver Fox and I started with a selection of breads with antipasti (3 for £7.5o) and high praise was easily lauded on our chosen trio. The goat’s cheese crostini drizzled with honey and topped with toasted pine nuts tasted just as good as it sounded, and the roasted aubergines were moreishly tasty without that greasy slipperiness you often get. The last of our accompaniments was a fruity green olive oil with sweet balsamic vinegar. The simple, satiating qualities of good bread with oil and vinegar should never be underestimated.

For my main course, I opted for their different take on the usual fish and chips (£9.50), in this case made with lemon sole. I love this delicately flavoured fish, and it was presented as little flat goujons, sporting a perfectly seasoned crispy crumb, and partnered up with small chipped potatoes, tartare sauce and a relish. My signor tucked into the Spezzatino (£9.00), a rugged lamb stew packed with concentrated tomato flavours and chunks of potatoes. A side dish of seasonal veggies including spiced red cabbage and broccoli and a potato rösti guaranteed a satisfied belly.

Desserts of a lemon tart and a chocolate cake were so-so, but it takes a lot to please me on the puds front. With an all-star Italian wine list that offers really decent bottles from £14, (including the bright Sicilian Catarratto Bianco) fresh and coffees and breakfast bites during the day, the Roamin’ Nose is highly recommended for a ‘pick me up’.

Brunch can be hit or miss.  By definition, it’s neither lunch nor breakfast, but a little something in between the two. Given that my dad used to work in hotels, I grew up understanding the concept of brunch being a pretty lavish affair. I have fond memories of these spreads offering seemingly endless options for eats, and that my palate at the time thought that French toast with bacon, strawberries and gallons of maple syrup washed down by a Shirley Temple cocktail was the business . It could be said that my fate as a food-obsessed individual was sealed by a pretty young age.

So, show me a stingy or  unimaginative buffet and I’ll show you a sad face. I’m glad to report and share with you that a new brunch has arrived at Hotel du Vin and it’s good. In fact, it’s ‘le bomb’. In truth, it focuses less on the breakfasty things, and goes all out for savoury continental with a bit of British Sunday lunch thrown in for good measure. I’d advise taking a healthy appetite with you too, as it turns out to be some feast!

For those feeling delicate from the previous night’s tippling, you’ll be glad to hear that the lighting in the bistro is at a suitably low level, and that staff are quick to offer a ‘hair du chien’ in the form of a bloody Mary, glass of bubbly, or old fashioned H20. We satisfied our thirst with a brilliantly fresh but balanced Chilean reserve Viognier. 

Knowing that we had a four-course marathon ahead, we opted for a taster of the intro course of Soup du Jour, which on this Sunday was spiced parsnip. A cute little demitasse of the soup was enough to act as an opener, and the soup was sweet and buttery.

Next, a trip to the French Market Table, which the menu very accurately describes as offering ‘fresh seafood, crustacea, charcuterie, pâtés, rilletes and a selection of salads, vegetables and freshly baked artisan breads.’  The hot-smoked salmon took a serious hit as we all love the stuff, as did the langoustine and dressed crab. We were even offered some freshly shucked oysters, which seemed very decadent. The slices of crusty sourdough, some duck rillettes and leafy greens would have made my normal mid-week lunch die of embarrassment. In fact, if the whole lunch had been based around this spread of quality meats and seafood it would have been superbly satisfying, but we still had two more courses to go.

The menu offered à la carte main courses from a selection of classic casual dishes like risotto, omelette, salmon Hollandaise and burger, but the allure of the roast beef and promised proper Yorkie puds was the stuff of Sunday lunch dreams. Forget your grey roasts from carvery style restaurants of yore, as what was presented was the pinkest tastiest roast beast I’ve had in some time. A nice eye of fat through the middle gave so much flavour, and without shame we smothered it and its vegetable plate-fellows in the accompanying gravy.  Mention should also go to how good the roasted carrots and parsnips were, with their caramelised flavours.

Dessert? Really? Waistlines were expanding, one or two of us were by this stage audibly groaning, but we gamely launched into the puds course. The apple crumble which I had was good but not amazing , could have done with more crunchy texture in the crumble, but frankly by this stage I was in need of a nap so my critical faculties were pretty dulled. I do remember that the custard was good though.

We had such a lovely time and a brilliant feed that our monthly Sunday lunch club now has its next date booked at the Glasgow Hotel du Vin, AKA One Devonshire Gardens. Just need to clear the food diary a few days ahead to make the most of it!

Le Brunch at Hotel du Vin, available Sundays 12pm to 3pm . More details online here. 

]]> http://www.leilappetit.com/blog/2012/11/review-of-le-brunch-at-hotel-du-vin/feed/ 0 http://www.leilappetit.com/blog/2012/10/gourmet-girl-goes-to-the-wee-boulangerie-for-bite-mag/ http://www.leilappetit.com/blog/2012/10/gourmet-girl-goes-to-the-wee-boulangerie-for-bite-mag/#comments Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:00:55 +0000 leilaarfa http://www.leilappetit.com/blog/?p=863

I love stories that go along the lines of ‘I wasn’t happy in my job, and so I decided to leave and retrain to become a …’ . Especially when the passion which has sparked the need for change involves food and cooking. Recently, I met Katia Lebart who just a couple of months ago opened The Wee Boulangerie, located on the South Side near the Queen’s Hall. She first came to Edinburgh as a researcher and lecturer in engineering & computer science at Heriot Watt University.

However, the work-life balance wasn’t  quite right and so she decided to kill two birds with one stone. Her change of career took her back to her native France to retrain as a boulanger-pâtissier-confiseur, the aim to pursue something she was passionate about, and to help fill the void of good bakeries here in Edinburgh.

As you probably know, bread is a complete way of life in France and Katia doesn’t mind promoting the theory that good bread makes people happy. I’m with her. As readers of this column will know, wherever my travels take me, the first thing I’m likely to seek out is a

So, what can you expect if you pop in to  The Wee Boulangerie? Well, the shelves and rustic baskets are filled with loaves of pain de campagne, real baguettes, the kind that have a crunchy crust with irregular ‘knobbles’, are airy in the middle but not so fluffy as to have no substance. Bread takes time, says Katia, the mixtures have to prove, the bake should never be rushed. And, thanks to quality ingredients, artisanal bread is far superior to that found in supermarkets.

Everyday there’s a selection of ‘fougasse’, a Provençale flatbread with various Mediterranean style fillings. I managed to scarf down one which was stuffed with goats cheese and sun-dried tomatoes in under 2 minutes. I did, however manage to take home a superb almond croissant, sweet pain au chocolat and plated raisin loaf to share with my mum and fella.

Breads will always be her main love, but Katia’s also a dab hand with tarte aux fruits, macarons and the shop will feature some delicious seasonal specials in the run up to Christmas. In all, it’s a big ‘oui’ from me for the Wee Boulangerie!

The Wee Boulangerie,
67 Clerk street
Edinburgh
EH8 9JG
Tel: 0131 629 3134
www.theweeboulangerie.co.uk

 Tollcross has always had something of a no-man’s land air about it when it comes to eating and drinking spots . Beyond the old-school pubs, (and with the exception of The Apartment & Henricks), lately there haven’t been any real go-to places. Until now.

Landing in the middle of Leven Street is The Blackbird, the latest project from Martin & Colin of Hamilton’s & Treacle fame. The interior gives the eye plenty to catch upon, including original exposed stonework, plaster and fireplaces, bright fabrics, prints and specially-commissioned artwork. The drinks list, with the tempting Alice-referencing ‘Drink Me’ on the front reveals an accomplished compendium of cocktails, which cover everything from the girly sweet, to serious bitters and everything in between.

Lou and I started with ‘Crispy fishcake’ (£4.95) and ‘Wild mushrooms on sourdough’ (£5.95) respectively. The fishcake – singular yet sizeable – was excellent with a crisp golden crumb and good balance between fish and potato filler. A hint of fragrant Thai-style seasoning and coriander kept the bites light, and the addition of tangerine perked up the sometimes sledge-hammer-esque qualities of the accompanying sweet chili jam. The funghi plate wasn’t quite so perfect, but very nearly so. The selection of wild mushrooms was generous, including skinny enoki and chunky oysters, however they could have taken much more of the promised  Tallegio and Dijon, and the toast deserved to be much crunchier.

On to mains, and my appetite was ready for ‘Charred Auchterarder venison steak’ (£13.95), the meat cooked pink and the plate-fellows of sweet pumpkin mash, and moreish haggis fritters (which Louise suggested would make for amazing late night bar snacks, hint, hint!) convinces that the food quality is more ‘bistro’ than ‘boozer’. My seafood-loving pal chose the ‘Grilled salmon with chorizo and butterbean stew’ (£12.95), which with the addition of sweet bright broad beans was presented even better than its menu billing, and sported a fine lemony butter sauce.

Despite being thus-far extremely well fed, we were soon tempted down the rabbit-hole of the dessert menu.  Lou took on the surprisingly non-icky warm chocolate and peanut butter brownie (£4.95) and I chose homely pear and blackberry crumble which came with the comfort blanket of vanilla custard.

With an emphasis on local and Scottish ingredients, good flavours and skilled presentation, The Blackbird will soon have a flock of fans.

37-39 Leven Street
Edinburgh
EH3 9LH
www.theblackbirdedinburgh.co.uk