Ian's Eating Experiences

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2010-02-07T15:27:00.000-08:00

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J. Baker, York

2009-11-22T13:24:00.000-08:00

A chance fine, this so-called Bistro Moderne was a chance find on a business trip to York. Absolutely excellent meal - starter was Tongue and Cheek - Ox cheek ravioli with ox tongue, followed by Glouceser Old Spot pork with black pudding. Pud was apple sponge, apple sorbet and apple cream. About £40.

The Tolbooth, Stonehaven

2009-11-22T13:20:00.001-08:00

The Tolbooth is a fish restaurant overlooking the harbour at Stonehaven in NE Scotland. Excellent meal - crab soup to start followed by roast monkfish and a pine nut tart, most of which was eaten by my daughters. About £35 each, including an excellent bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, glass of dessert wine and coffees.

Centotre, 103 George St, Edinburgh

2009-08-30T03:06:00.001-07:00

Centotre is a classy Italian recipe where the food is simple, but with excellent ingredients. I started with wild mushroom and cheese bruschetta which was disappointing - good mixture of tastes but rather soggy bread. Followed by pasta - with sausage, rocket and cream. Not a combination I would have thought of but it really was excellent. Expensive (£30 each with house wine) for bruschetta and pasta but a great atmosphere.

Restaurant Itri, Gilmore Place Edinburgh

2009-06-27T01:26:00.000-07:00

An unremarkable looking restaurant near our apartment in Edinburgh which has started to get very good reviews. Sicilian style food - unpretentious (like the decor). I had ravioli with ricotta and pancetta to start, followed by swordfish, with potatoes and cauliflower. Unusually, I had a pudding - ice cream with hot chocolate sauce. Unusual Sicilian white wine. It really was like being in Italy - friendly but not fast service, good, simple food and a lively atmosphere. Better than VinCaffe which is more celebrated and more expensive.

The Manchurian CausewayEnd, Aberdeen

2009-06-27T01:22:00.000-07:00

Saturday lunch with Chinese friends from Australia, so it was mostly Dim Sum. They ordered so not sure exactly what we had but all was excellent and reasonably priced. Introduced to Chinese porridge (Congee) with fish. I had never liked the look of this but it was really tasty. Resto is definitely recommended

The Angel, Hetton, Yorkshire

2009-04-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

Lunch in this celebrated gastro-pub in a Yorkshire village. Two starters - excellent fish soup then their own black pudding. Excellent, along with the local pale ale. If it wasn't so far away, we'd be back there for dinner.

Foveran Hotel, Kirkwall, Orkney

2009-04-26T11:47:00.000-07:00

Ate in various places during a short holiday in Orkney but this was the only memorable meal. The Foveran is just outside Kirkwall and the dining room looks over to Hoy. I started with fried orkney cheese - a local speciality which was enjoyable but not, perhaps, something I'd want to repeat. This was followed by wonderful slow-cooked mutton with potatoes. Mutton is hard to get in most places but has more flavour than lamb. Lovely setting and excellent food. About £33 each with a reasonable bottle of Sauv. Blanc and some dark Orkney beer.

Some say the Foveran is the best food in Orkney, others that The Creel in St Margaret's Hope is better. It was fully booked when we tried to get in so I can't comment.

Plumed Horse, Henderson St., Leith

2009-03-20T16:36:00.000-07:00

Edinburgh's most recent Michelin starred restaurant that we visited on my daughter's birthday.

Fixed price menu (£43) - canapes were wonderful (blue cheese choux pastry, foie gras and pork roll) as was the amuse bouche (artichoke foam). My starter was tian of crab which was excellent but the parmesan and truffle souffle was outstanding. Main course - roast monkfish was very good and banana souffle for pudding was remarkable. With an Australian riesling and a New Zealand SB, we were about £60 each. Highly recommended.

Maison Bleu, Victoria St, Edinburgh

2009-03-20T16:33:00.000-07:00

Small French restaurant that I hadn't been to for many years. Not classically French but with Moroccan influences. I had squid to start which is there speciality - good, but not as good as I remembered it. Main course was seafood gumbo which was excellent. As we were with an Australophile, we had Australian rather than French wine. Good, middling restaurant. About £30 each with wine.

The Glass House, North St, St Andrews

2009-03-08T13:00:00.000-07:00

Bright modern restaurant for lunch. Soup and vegetable pizza. Pizza was thin and crispy as in Italy. Quite good.

The Manchurian, Causewayend, Aberdeen

2009-03-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

Recommended as one of the most authentic Chinese restaurants in Scotland and 4 of us went for Sunday Dim Sum. We were with an expert so we let him do the ordering and almost everything was excellent. My contribution was to suggest ordering 'Five Spice Beef Belly'. This was tripe which wasn't as bad as I remembered it but which really wasn't great. Particularly enjoyed the crispy fried squid and the salted duck eggs with pork chops.

The Canny Man's, Edinburgh

2009-02-16T12:12:00.000-08:00

This is a favourite of ours - they specialise exclusively in open sandwiches. The food is OK - we shared a ham sandwich to start then each had different variants of smoked salmon. But you don't really go here for the food - it's the quirkyness of the place (full of antiques, junk, etc.) and the really high quality services (white tablecloths in a pub).

Restaurant 21, Market Street, Aberdeen

2009-02-16T12:09:00.000-08:00

Lunch in a newish restaurant in Aberdeen, which has had good reviews. Very stark white decor and we were the first in the restaurant when we arrived at 12.45 on a Sunday. Excellent starter of grilled goats cheese and apricot chutney but my warm chorizo salad never arrived - I got a Caesar salad with chorizo! In general, the quality of the food was high (my daughter Alison was very complimentary about her risotto). Worth trying again I think. Not too expensive.

Mother India Cafe, Argyle Street, Glasgow

2009-02-16T12:04:00.000-08:00

The original Mother India cafe and, like its Edinburgh counterpart, serves small tapas-like dishes. The menu, as far as I can remember, was the same. There were 4 of us and we had 8 dishes - too many to remember but the honey baked lamb chops were particularly good. Very busy - no reservations so join the queue and take your chances (we had to wait about 10 minutes). Cost about £66 for 4, which included beers.

Petit Paris, Grassmarket, Edinburgh

2008-12-13T10:49:00.000-08:00

A fondue evening at Petit Paris which is genuinely French - it has good an bad days! The fondue was fun - charcuterie to start, which was OK, a really nice cheese fondue and an apple and almond tart. With house wine and tip, it worked out about £22 each. Petit Paris has a great atmosphere, like lots of French bistros, and it's worth visiting.

The Forge, Covent Garden, London

2008-12-13T10:46:00.000-08:00

Unusually, eating out in London (normally I take day trips) and we had a working dinner at the Forge. Good tuna sashimi, followed by swordfish and tarte tatin. Excellent wine from the USA (Washinton state), chosen by one of my wine buff colleagues. Perfectly good meal (I didn't pay so don't know the price!)

Nargile @ Rendezvous, Aberdeen

2008-12-13T10:40:00.000-08:00

Nargile is a Turkish/Mediterranean restaurant with branches in Edinburgh and Aberdeen. We started with mezze (hot and cold) which is excellent - the highlight of the meal. The others had kebabs of one kind or another (lots of meat) but I tried the Rendezvous Special which was torn up pitta, lamb and garlic with a buttery/spicy sauce. It was good but we have eaten so much mezze that it was difficult to finish. Wine list was uninspring and the house wine (white and red) was pretty ordinary. We'd definitely go back but may well skip the wine next time.

Glass and Thomson, Dundas St Edinburgh

2008-11-23T09:14:00.000-08:00

Great cafe for a quick lunch. The quiches are always good.

Midland Hotel, Derby

2008-11-23T09:12:00.000-08:00

If you are ever unfortunate enough to stay there, go somewhere else to eat. The food was abominable, especially the flabby breakfast toast. The worst hotel I've stayed in for a long time.

(I know this is nowhere near Edinburgh but it was so bad it deserves a warning).

La Garrigue, Jeffrey St, Edinburgh

2008-11-23T09:07:00.000-08:00

La Garrigue is, I think, the best of Edinburgh's French restaurants. We went there in a large group of academics and researchers for a project dinner. My starter was lamb sweetbreads with aioli, followed by roast belly pork with braised little gem lettuce. Dessert was poached plums with orange cheesecake. £25 for 2 courses. We had some excellent Picpoul white wine which was very reasonably priced.

The Cellar, Anstruther

2008-11-23T09:02:00.000-08:00

The Cellar is a well-known Scottish fish restaurant which gets excellent reviews. I had no complaints but, unlike some reviewers, wouldn't say that it was in a different league from other fish restaurants such as Fishers in Edinburgh. I had excellent crayfish bisque to start, followed by roast halibut, (on the usual cabbage with pancetta) and date and ginger sponge for dessert. Dinner was fixed price (£39.50) but it worked out about £50 each, including drinks (an excellent New Zealand Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc).

Martin Wishart, Leith

2008-09-28T12:36:00.000-07:00

Martin Wishart's restaurant is, arguably, the best in Edinburgh. It's a place for special occasions and we had a wonderful meal there in September 2008. Canapes when we arrived then an amuse bouche of fois gras brulee with apple sorbet. My starter was a Lobster souffle with smoked haddock and spinach; main was Ross-shire shin of beef with fois gras and pudding was a remarkable St Felicien with Apple cannelloni. This was cheese wrapped in apple - a really nice mixture of cheese and dessert. New Zealand Reisling and a Chilean merlot (Lapostolle). Everything was absolutely delicious, service was impeccable. Really very good.

It's expensive (it worked out including everything at about £80 each) but it was such an experience you felt that you did get value for money.

Levens, Leven St, Tollcross

2008-09-11T06:10:00.000-07:00

A Thai fusion restaurant which seems to mean European style food with some Thai flavouring. Modern ambiance, good service and a relatively short menu. I had butternut squash soup with crabmeat, followed by sea bass with a saffron sauce. Not outstanding but very enjoyable. About £25 each, which included Thai beer.

Cafe Rouge, Frederick Street

2008-09-04T13:29:00.001-07:00

A quick meal before a concert. Toulouse sausages and warm potato salad. As usual, OK, quick but not wonderful.

Pink Olive, West Nicholson St., Edinburgh

2008-09-04T13:09:00.000-07:00

This replaced Phenecia, a restaurant where we often had lunch when visiting Edinburgh University. They have continued the style of reasonably priced lunches - £6-£7 a head. I had pine nut soup then peppers and goats cheese. Fine for lunch if you are in the area but probably not worth a trip

Mother India Cafe, Infirmary Street

2008-09-04T13:05:00.000-07:00

This is a fairly recently opened branch of a well known Glasgow Indian restaurant. They serve tapas style dishes - smaller portions so you can try several. The menu is not as large as many Indian places which is good. We had 4 dishes between 2 of us - garlic chilli chicken, spiced haddock, aubergine and potato and minty lamb, plus some Indian bread.

The food was excellent - far better than the regular Indian/Bangladeshi food. Good atmosphere - we will be back. About £34 between 2, including Kingfisher beers.

Meltons Too, York

2008-08-08T11:47:00.000-07:00

A bit further afield than usual but I had a meeting in York and we had dinner in Meltons Too (there is a Meltons but I've never been there). They do tapas plus conventional starters and mains. They try to use local ingredients and tell you where they came from on the menu. My starter was lobster and baby tomatoes on garlic herb toast, followed by trout with samphire and spinach. The starter was better than the main but both were good. Bowls of chips were on the table but they were overcooked and soggy so I suggest you order the potatoes. Reasonably priced - not sure exactly as our hosts at York paid.

Olive Branch Bistro, Bruntsfield

2008-08-08T11:41:00.000-07:00

The Olive Branch is part of a small chain and it took over the space from the Bistro des Arts (a sad loss). We visited in July 2008 and were first shown to a table in the basement which was not good. However, the people there were very helpful and found us an alternative by the window. My starter was sardines followed by liver. Liver is a good test of a restaurant - get it wrong and its pretty grim. I asked for it rare - it was not quite rare but nevertheless very good. Good atmosphere and friendly service - we will be back. About £30/each, which included a bottle of wine and pre dinner drinks.

Toast, Marchmont

2008-08-08T11:36:00.000-07:00

Toast is a local Marchmont bistro that we'd heard good reports of. We walked there on a fine summer evening and I had the classic goats cheese salad followed by sea bass. The food, atmosphere and service were all good. About £25 each with wine. If we lived in Marchmont, we'd certainly go more often but if you have a local place available (e.g. Grand Cafe or Olive Branch Bistro in Brunsfield) then its the same kind of place.

Farmers Market, Edinburgh

2008-06-13T14:38:00.001-07:00

Large farmers' market that we visit most weekends that we are in Edinburgh. Stalls come and go but my favourites are Jock's Tattie stall (though I haven't seen him for a while), the Northumbrian Pie stall, Belhaven Fruit (in the summer) and Creelers for fish. Puddledub bacon is pretty good. The organic veggie stalls are OK but over-priced and their quality is a bit variable.

The Living Room, George St, Edinburgh

2008-06-13T14:35:00.000-07:00

A quick lunch here with my daughter (june 2008) as it looked a more interesting menu than some of the other places. She had beef salad, I had a goats cheese, roasted pepper and rocket sandwich. Tasty but not cheap, although probably average for George St.

Carron Restaurant, Stonehaven

2008-06-13T14:12:00.000-07:00

The Carron is an unusual art-deco restaurant in the seaside town of Stonehaven. Saturday lunch on a sunny terrace where I had crab soup and unusual deep fried beetroot. Everything was excellent. Highly recommended.

La Partenope, Dalry Road, Edinburgh

2008-06-13T14:09:00.000-07:00

We ate here a while ago and had a terrible meal. However, this place is well thought of so I thought I'd try again in May 2008. Went for lunch and had a simple meal of bruschetta followed by sea bream with a glass of house white. It was good so we'll try it again in the evening

Travels

2008-06-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

Not blogged for a while as we've been travelling. I won't say too much about it except that we had no bad meals in Australia. In the unlikely event of you being in Exmouth, WA, go to the Whalers Restaurant - really super seafood, especially the local bugs. In Hong Kong, the lunchtime dim sum at Maxims Palace, City Hall was wonderful though we have no idea what we had. More prosaically, Millstones Inn, West Bradford in Lancashire was excellent for lunch with very unusual Rhubarb with white wine jelly as a starter.

Cafe Grande, Bruntsfield Place

2008-03-09T13:24:00.000-07:00

Revisited the Cafe Grande for dinner with friends. Starter was scallops with leeks and chorizo - scallops were lovely but chorizo was a bit overcooked and too hard. Main course was duck - very rare - with kale and potatoes. Cafe Grande is reliable - good but not outstanding. The puddings were reported to be very good but I've been eating too much recently so gave them a miss. About £27 each with 2 bottles of house wine between 4.

Cafe Rouge, Frederick Street

2008-03-09T13:23:00.001-07:00

Saturday lunch in the Cafe Rouge. A chain but I think they are OK. Goats cheese salad - cheese was excellent,, salad a bit limp. I think the tarte au jambon is better.

Hewats, Causewayside Edinburgh

2008-03-06T15:36:00.000-08:00

Visited in a big group - a project meeting in Edinburgh - where we had the £24 fixed price menu. Starter was mushroom risotto with black pudding and (overcooked) parma ham. Main was sea bass, scallop and langoustine. Mango panacotta and poached fruit for dessert. Competent, modern Scottish cooking. Not outstanding but enjoyable and not overpriced.

Milton Restaurant, Milton of Crathes

2008-03-06T15:31:00.001-08:00

My birthday so we tried this restaurant which I'd looked at several times. It was busy on a Saturday night with an older clientele (so I wasn't out of place!). Short menu, with local ingreedients which is always a good sign. Starter was Parmesan Tart with Spinach which was excellent, followed by Grampian Lamb with roasted root vegetables. My lamb had a strange flavour which may simply have been specific to that lamb. I wasn't taken with it but it was certainly nicely cooked. Dessert was a selection including lemon possett and whisky creme brulee. Very good. About £35/head which isn't outrageous for the general quality of the food. We'll definitely go again but will probably stick to fish.

Carron Restaurant, Stonehaven

2008-02-06T15:40:00.001-08:00

Lunch after visiting the small (but good) Farmers Market in Stonehaven. The Carron Restaurant is an amazing place - Art Deco style with lots of original and sympathetically restored features. Owned by the same people as the excellent Tolbooth fish restaurant in Stonehaven. It was lunchtime, I wasn't too hungry so had 2 starters - very good local crab soup then unusual and excellent deep fried beetroot. Anne had stuffed aubergine which was also excellent. We will be back in the evening. About £30 for two, including a large glass of wine each and coffees.

Lairhillock, Netherley

2008-01-07T15:01:00.000-08:00

This is a really nice country pub where we've eaten several times in the past. It changed hands a few months ago and, sad to say, I think it has lost its edge. Their cullen skink (smoked haddock soup) had more potato than fish and my main course of roasted hake was OK but just OK. Unfortunately, it became very quiet quite early on a Saturday evening, not helped by the reluctance of the staff to keep the fire going. This place could be so good but it's menu needs a rethink and more attention to detail.

Marine Hotel, Stonehaven

2008-01-07T14:57:00.000-08:00

A relatively new resto in this pub overlooking the harbour. We'd had lunch in the bar 2 or 3 times and enjoyed it so we thought this worth a try. My starter of black pudding and chorizo salad was OK but not really a good chocie. The smoked haddock and leek tart was much better. Main was roast partridge which was nice but a little bit overcooked (it's hard to get it right with such a small bird). Good atmosphere and service. Definitely worth revisiting

Laraz, Lochrin Place, Edinburgh

2007-12-09T01:38:00.000-08:00

We went on a cold winter evening and the restaurant was cold. Starter was Kurdish dips (basically, hummus, tsatziki (cucumber and yoghurt) and rather bland aubergine dip). Excellent flatbread. Main course was Kozisham which was described as " Rice, raisins, lamb and chicken cooked with a touch of mild curry and wrapped in a Kurdish pastry". This was served with stewed vegetables in a tomato sauce which was excellent but the Kosisham had too much rice, was rather dry and I neither found a raisin nor detected a curry flavour. Finished with Kurdish tea (tea flavoured with cardamom) which was good. Overall, it was OK but the cold meant we didn't feel like lingering and I felt a bit over-carbed at the end of the meal - I should probably have had a kebab. About £22 each including 2 bottles of wine between 4. One of two Kurdish restaurants in Tollcross - we enjoyed Hanams in Brougham Place more, but that was in summer.

Daniels Bistro, Leith

2007-11-29T14:49:00.000-08:00

Daniels is a super French bistro in Leith. We had a Sunday lunch here - French onion soup followed by Potee Alsacienne - Potatoes, bacon and lots of Munster cheese. Excellent food and ambience. Highly recommended.

Cafe Grand, Bruntsfield

2007-11-29T14:44:00.000-08:00

Our nearest local restaurant. The food is usually always good - I have only had one bad meal here. The tables are small but service is friendly and the place has a good atmosphere. Saturday evening meal where I started with scallops and black pudding (more BP than scallops), followed by very nicely cooked venison steak with sweet potato. there were 4 of use, everyone enjoyed their meal. The house wine is (relatively) cheap, reliable (George Duboeuf) and quite drinkable. About £25/each.

The Seafood Restaurant, St Andrews

2007-11-22T12:02:00.000-08:00

Wednesday evening dinner in the Seafood Restaurant in St Andrews. Excellent food and wine. Starter of smoked haddock soup with cheese dumplings, followed by roast monkfish, cabbage and bacon and plum upside-down cake. Very unusual wine - a Spanish sauvignon blanc and a superb dessert valpolicella. Expensive but very good.

The Cowdray Restaurant, Echt

2007-11-17T14:02:00.000-08:00

The Cowdray Arms is country pub in Aberdeenshire where the food was good but the atmosphere sadly lacking. I had Cullen Skink followed by slow-cooked belly pork, which was very tasty. However, the room was overlit with harsh overhead lighting. We arrived at 8 on a Saturday evening and by 8.30 the place was almost empty. Maybe OK for lunch but we won't rush back in the evening.

Cafe 52, Aberdeen

2007-11-17T13:54:00.000-08:00

We went to Cafe 52 in Aberdeen at the last minute after Scotland's sad defeat by Italy. Good ambiance and service and excellent food. My starter was a kipper fishcake with garlic mayonnaise followed by duck confit with beef and black pudding sausage in a barley broth. Anne had smoked salmon to start followed by what looked like very nice cabbage stuffed with cous-cous in a beetroot sauce. We will be back. About £30 a head, including everything.

Fenwicks, Salisbury Place

2007-11-14T15:35:00.001-08:00

An informal restaurant near Arthur's Seat. Fixed price £22 dinner which was excellent - goats cheese and onion tart, properly cooked liver (i.e. pink and tender) and walnut and treacle tart. Ended up about £30 a head with pre-dinner drinks and a nice bottle of sauvignon blanc.

Le Mouton Noir

2007-11-14T15:21:00.000-08:00

A new French restaurant, recently opened in Bruntsfield on the site of the unlamented Parrots. It was disappointing. My starter of rabbit saddle wrapped in ham with raspberry vinaigrette was dreadful - the rabbit overcooked and the raspberries just strange. My main course - choucroute de la mer - was unusual but OK. The dessert was almond and fig tart and was nothing great. The waiter had to ask us how to make kir (in a French restaurant!) and the wine was mediocre. About £30 each. Hopefully, it will improve in time.

Cafe Rouge, Frederick Street

2007-11-14T15:15:00.000-08:00

Cafe Rouge is part of a French restaurant chain. Very busy on a Saturday lunchtime and better than we expected. We both had savoury tarts - mine was ham, my wife's smoked salmon served with an excellent potato salad. Fast service and not expensive.

Sweet Melindas

2007-07-19T02:17:00.000-07:00

Sweet Melindas is a small restaurant in Marchmont - the student area of Edinburgh which is a short walk from the City Centre. The focus is mostly fish - reportedly bought from Eddie's Fish Market next door which has a wide choice of fish and is always busy with Chinese people - a good sign of quality. There was one vegetarian and one meat option on the short menu.

My meal was excellent - crab with samphire and parmesan followed by sea bass and smoked salmon. The scallop soup and cod were also reported as very good. Not cheap (but fish never is nowadays) About £70 for two which included a medium price bottle of French wine (Sauvignon Blanc, good). Good atmosphere - the restaurant was full on a Wednesday evening and the service was fine. Recommended.

Holiday eating highlights

2007-07-17T10:05:00.001-07:00

Not about eating in Edinburgh but we've had a 2 week holiday near Lucca in Tuscany where we had some memorable eating experiences.

The closest village to the house we rented was Ponte a Moriano which is remarkable for a place of its size for having 3 good restaurants. The highlight was the Tuscan tasting menu at La Mora where we had 9 separate courses (Red pepper pudding, rabbit pate, crostini, stuffed zuccini flowers, barley soup, cheese/spinach ravioli in a marjoram sauce, pigeon, roast loin of pork and strawberry semi=freddo).

We also really liked Antica Locanda di Siesto (more or less next door) where we had an amazing steak (Tagliatta con Ruccolla) and outstanding pasta with truffles. Erasmos's on the main road in Ponte a Moriano is cheaper and simpler - the highlight there was the veal in lemon sauce. In the same area (up very steep and bendy hill road) is A Pallazzo - superb trio of pasta (Ravioli with ricota and spinach, Maccheronni with mushrooms and Tortelli with ragu).

In Lucca, excellent Pizzas at Gli Orti di Via Elisa and an unusual barley risotto at Trattoria Buralli. We also ate at Ristorante all'Olivo which has been praised - it was OK but my fish was overcooked and the whole meal was overpriced. It was the only place that I felt we didn't have good value.

In Florence, we were very lucky to find a reasonably priced, non-touristy restaurant near the centre. We can recommend Trattoria Antellisi in Via Faenza. Simple lunch of crostini and vegetable risotto but nicely cooked.

Restaurant suggestions at Philip's restaurant guide to Lucca and Tuscan House favourites.

Gurka, Morningside Road, Edinburgh

2007-06-18T14:38:00.001-07:00

Gurka was Edinburgh's first (only?) Nepalese restaurant and we went there for a quick meal before the cinema (it is very close to the Dominion Cinema). We had Nepalese specials - Lamb, Chicken and Vegetables. Names of the dishes were unusual and hard to remember but they were nicely spiced. Basically, it was quite similar to other Indian/BanglaDeshi restaurants - the food was not dramatically different. However, it was perfectly acceptable food, good service and not expensive. About £10 each which included a beer with the meal.

Clarkes - Bruntsfield Place

2007-06-15T15:21:00.000-07:00

Specialises in cheese, fruit and vegetables and Italian products. Everything is very high quality - we had asparagus today which was absolutely superb and Italian tomatoes with buffalo mozzarella. Quite expensive but top quality stuff.

Lupe Pintos-Tollcross

2007-06-14T22:28:00.001-07:00

Lupe Pintos is a great deli in Tollcross. It started off as a Mexican deli but has now a variety of American, Mexican, Spanish and other food and drink. Lots of different kinds of chilis. The chorizos and the guacamole are quite simply the best I've ever had in the UK. Well worth a visit for ingredients that are hard to find elsewhere.

The Sun Inn - Kirby Lonsdale

2007-06-14T22:13:00.000-07:00

We went to a wedding in Kirby last month and stayed overnight at the Sun Inn. Both dinner and accommodation were excellent. Dinner was duck salad to start, followed by roast monkfish and apricot tart for pudding. A couple of pints of Cumberland Ale and a NZ Sauvignon Blanc with the meal. Highly recommended.

Excellent. £££.

The Peat Inn

2007-06-14T14:05:00.000-07:00

I recently visited the Peat Inn (near Cupar and St Andrews) which has an excellent reputation for its food. I started with Balladine of Rabbit and Sweetbreads (good), followed by Red Mullet and Asparagus Risotto (disappointing, the fish was dull and the risotto not as flavoursome as it should be) and Rhubarb Jalousie (basically a rhubarb tart, OK). Rather a formal atmosphere. Overall the food was good but not as good as I expected.

Good; ££££.

Traditional butchers-Bruntsfield

2007-06-14T10:39:00.000-07:00

Luckily, some top-class traditional butchers still exist in Edinburgh. The closest one to us is in Bruntsfield Place - Wm. Christie - highly recommended. Friendly people and top-class Scottish meat. Their sausages are particularly good. They are not cheap but so much better than supermarket meat.