Starting our new reader
service: Foodlist. A
fortnightly in-brief listings
of good value eating
places in Glasgow and
Edinburgh.
EDINBURGH
EXPENSIVE
o PRESTONFIELO HOUSE HOTEL Priestfield Road 667 8000 12.30pm—2.30pm. 7-10pm. Dinner £50. All major credit cards and travellers cheques. Traditional fair, fish and fowl — but the peacocks remain on the lawn. 0 LA POTINIERE Main Street, Gullane. 0620 843214 Saturdays only. 8pm. Five course set meal. £40. No credit cards accepted. 0 L'AUBERGE 56—58 St.Mary‘s Street. 556 5888 12.30-2pm, 6.35—9.30pm. Mon—Thur. 6.35—10. 15pm Fri/Sat. A La Carte menu £40. All credit cards. A tempting range of subtle nouvelle cuisine is imaginatively presented in intimate French surroundings. Service is excellent and unobtrusive. enhanced by broken English (with even the British waiters adopting true Gallic insouciance). And for added kudos, there‘s a quietly framed reminder. on the way to the loos, that Princess Diana has not long passed this way. OMERCHANTS 17 Merchant Street, 255 4009 Noon-2.30pm. 6.30—10.30pm. £40 All major credit cards. Beautifully presented nouvelle cuisine style food (and portions) and excellent, unobtrusive service. OMARTIRS 72 Rose Street North Lane. 225 3106. Closed until 29 Sept. Lunch noon-2pm, Dinner Tues—Thurs 7—10pm, Fri & Sat 7—10.30pm. (Dinner main course £7.75—£10.50). Smart. up-market restaurant tucked away behind Rose Street, Martins serves excellent Scottish cuisine, though the portions are modest. Beware the service however — it can be
astonishineg and unapologetically slow.
NEW
OOBLOMOV The Mound. Newly-opened and usefully-situated continental-style bar with a Dutch flavour tothe decor, hence the rugs (under glass) on the tables. Reasonable value pub food cg beefopen sandwiches plus salad £2.20.
CAFES
o WAYFARERS 53 Clerk Street, 667 6116. Mon—Sat 9.30am—9pm; Wed 9.30am—6pm; Sun 2—9pm. Spotless and friendly, with wonderful Italian ladies behind the counter. (25p. 55p)
OUTSIDE THE CITIES
0 GREYWALLS HOTEL Muirfield, Gullane, East Lothian, 0620 842144 12.30pm—2.00pm. 7.30pm—9.00pm £47
0 LA POTINIERE Main Street. Gullane 0620 843214 Saturday only 8.00pm £41. Not the place for a discreet affaire amoureuse, but more of a dinner party atmosphere. Superb quality fresh local produce and an excellent wine selection make it worth the two-year waiting list. If you like rich Norman fare, this is the choice; and when you finally manage to secure a table (and it‘s worth checking for cancellations) don’t arrive late — the chef won‘t wait! 0 WATERSIDE BISTRO 1/5 Waterside, Nungate, Haddington, 062082 5674 Weekdays 11.30am—2pm, 5.30pm-10pm Sundays 12.30—2.30pm, 6.30—10pm £10. All credit cards. Popular and busy bistro— more expensive restaurant upstairs- serving unfussy but slightly unusual French fare (such as an hors d‘oeuvre of deep fried brie
..,;}..‘..£;-.. a, '7 J,‘ —
with redcurrant jelly), where you can linger with no risk of waitress-harassment, however little you‘ve eaten.
GLASGOW
INEXPENSIVE
OGREENS 123 Old Castle Road, 633 1272. Last orders 10ish. A bit out of the city centre, but worth the trip. Claire the chef, whips up extrordinary and adventurous food with none of the usual attendant delusions of grandeur. Try the fragrant spiced heather honeyed spare ribs or Aberdeen monkfish tails in saffron and, to follow, their magnificent Scotch pancakes. Approx £25 for two.
OCIAO 441—445 Sauchiehall Street. 332 4565. Mon—Thurs lOam—l 1pm, Fri & Sat 10am—1am. Forget the Chianti bottles and checked tea cloths. this is what Italian restaurants really look like — an eclectic mixture of tapestry, tiles. golden Gaggia machine and chandeliers, plus the tremendous panoramic view on to west end Sauchiehall Street life. The food (fresh pasta. oven cooked pizza, and the full Italian gamut) is tremendous value. About £10 for two with wine. OOI MAGGIO'S Ruthven Lane. 334 8560. Pizzas and Pastas in an old mews off Byres Road. There should be something to appeal to everyone from the extensive menu in this informal little trattoria. Recommended is the Tagliatelle Quattro Forrnaggi — a sumptuous melt of four different Italian cheeses. Young studenty clientele reflected in the prices. OHIGO'S 379 Sauchiehall Street, 332 5736. Unfortunately whenever you open the door of an evening, fourteen people fall out. Not recommended to anyone with the slightest vestige of claustrophobia. When quiet, which isn‘t often, it‘s a gem and, with the Rock Garden, an old Glasgow favourite. OOIHO'S 39 Sauchiehall Street, 332 0626. Stereotypical Italian adjoining a much more basic and traditional caff. Utterly splendid range of fresh pastas all priced at a reasonable £2,60 per main course. Try the Taglionlini Al Salmone— green noodles in alight creamy sauce, and the olive oil and garlicky Foccaccia bread whilst congratulating yourselves that your not in Pizzaland next door.
0mm GOWSTER Blackfriars Street. 552 5055. One of the only tow Scottish Bars in the Egon Ronay Pub Guide so it must have something going for it. What is has is terrific ambience, reasonably priced wines and ales. good food. what Jack McLéan calls ‘a raffish air’ and most nights, a queue out the door. The epitome ofthe Glasgow success story.
CAFES
OJB'S DIHER 212 Gallowgate. Thurs-Sun 8.30am—5pm. Up a close at the Barras lies] B‘s offering the epic Sunday hangover cure - JB‘s special breakfast. The works for under £2: bacon. beans. black pudding etc. and the most spectacular homemade thick potatoes scones. Licensed. OWIHTERGREEN CAFE People‘s Palace. 554 0223.
L A Daytie o. peect
setting for a wholefood restaurant, nestling as it does amidst the lush greenery of the Winter Gardens. Choose from homemade quiches, lasagne and salads — you‘ll be hard pushed to spend more than a fiver for two. OCORONATIOH RESTAURANT 55 Gallowgate. 552 3994. Seven days 11am-7pm. Wonderful formica and chrome Fifties‘ interiors— recent star of Channel 4‘s Brand. Nice big chips too. OCAFE OI JACONELLI 570 Maryhill Road,9461124. lOam—9.30pm. Closed Thurs. The Jaconellis obviously haven't done any modernisation since the cafe‘s inception — a little Sixties gem.
MORE EXPENSIVE
OCOLOHIAL 25 High Street. 552 1923.
Considered by some to be “ ‘I
the best ofthe Nouyellish
Vogue in Glasgow. Although the superb presentation and attention to freshness are all there, you don‘t leave feeling the desperate need for a black pudding supper as a dessert. The food is totally memorable, imaginative and served in generous portions. Not at all cheap, but worth the odd shudder at the cheque for a truly special meal. OTHE BUTTERY 652 Argyle Street, 221 8188. Beautiful surroundings in the heart ofsunny Anderston. Innovative menu which works very well most of the time, but occasionally veers towards the pretentious along with a tendency towards the hushed reverence school of waitressing. Business account clientele match business account prices- not an ambience which encourages renditions of
, ‘Stand by Your Man.‘
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25A DUNDAS STREET EDINBURGH EH3 6QQ tel 031-556 0079 Monday to Friday 9am — 9pm Saturday 9am — 7pm
Sunday 12 Noon -— 6pm
RESTAURANT: Tue—Sat (evenings only) Table D‘Héte and a la carte menus BRASSERIE: Seven days: lunchtimes and evenings Wide range of meals available
7 OLD l-‘ISHMA RKIiT CLOSE HUM/BURCH
(BI-225 5428
VIVA MEXICO”
“sensed PESUB Grant:
LUNCH _ 12—2365m EVENINGS —- 6—11pm (last orders 10.30pm)
’lO,arwchor“ close Cockbu r‘n street: EDINBU FISH
226 5145
The List 18 Sept- 1 Oct45