I ucmsr I rang
harder royal icing).
In savoury dishes too. the dominating flavour is nostalgia: Dundee broth (water, meat bones. barley. leeks, kale. turnip, carrot). mince and tatties. skirlie (onion, oatmeal and dripping), stovies (potatoes, onions. dripping), potted hough (jellied meat), bridies (D-shaped meat pies), and fruit dumpling (dried fruit. carrot. apple, bicarb, suet).
But ifit came to cooking or eating these dishes 1 am afraid I would be less enthusiastic. To be honest, I think a lot ofthe food our grandmothers cooked was pretty disgusting. It is for this reason perhaps that the rather incongruous ‘Grace‘s TV Recipes’ section has been included. with, paradoxically enough, more reassuring ideas such as cashew nut curry. and pomegranate water ice. To be fair though, Grace Mulligan has modified many ofthe traditional Dundee recipes for modern tastes. cutting down on quantities of fat for example, and some of them such as raspberry jam. Highland coffee, smokie soup and black bun sound delicious. There is one very serious omission however — no orange peel in the Dundee cake recipe!
I _ ’
Ten trend :
; Tucked down a sunless lane, forehead
to forehead with the original
Mackintosh-designed Glasgow Herald
offices, is Glasgow’s latest splash oi ‘ innovation. Honouring the tradition of g
: incorporating a hair salon, DLC, the
the purpose-built bar used in recent years by Nico’s, Charlie Parker’s and the timeless Hock Garden, Sam Placentini’s new bar, ‘Ten' puts a
i design concept tirme in a pint glass. l
Located in an abandoned furniture store in Mitchell Lane, and ' building, with its long striking windows and atmospheric high ceilings, tends to : leap out at the unsuspecting ; lane-lrequenter. {
Although new to many a Glasgow I punter, Sam Piacentinl, a Glaswegian x himself, is music to the trendy’s ear. Creator of Edinburgh’s Gilded Balloon i and The City Cafe, both of which stretch ’ the idea of the bar without making it I
impossible to swallow what’s in front of
you, Piacentini regards himself somewhat smugly, but not unjustly, as ,
an innovator. Sitting precariously on I
one of the numerous minimalist bar stools which spike the tiled floor- ‘my own input’ — he explains just what it is about this rather sparse, but surprisingly comfortable bar, that will bring Glasgow to its door.
‘What’s important is not so much the place, as the people behind it. ljust don’t understand the attitude that the till comes first; it’s shortterm. . . it’s how much money can be saved. . . it’s an insultto the customer. Ten will fill a huge gap in Glasgow, since no one has done a purpose-built bar for years. Everything else is just a watered down version of that.’
Although Piacentini is the inspiration behind Ten, along with partner Marlin Burke, ‘an eccentric like myself’, it is the brush strokes of London man-of—the-moment, Ben Kelly, that have whipped the place into its present semblance. Famous for his Manchester creations, The Dry Bar and The Hacienda, Kelly is regarded by Piacentini as a hot commodity in a cold climate for design. ‘I'd seen Ben’s work in Manchester, and felt that I had come of age to be able to take someone like that on. With the recession, we’ve hit a down-turn in people being able to realise theirtalents, design or otherwise, and it needs risk-takers to spurthe situation on.’
Surprisingly perhaps, Piacentini holds a soft spot in his entrepreneurial heart for old faves such as Drury Lane’s Horseshoe Bar, which appears to share little more than its surroundings with its new rival: ‘Both Ten and The Horseshoe are very individualistic,’ he insists. ‘This is probably a modern-day, European Horseshoe. It’s got quality about it. Just look at those marvellous old bartaps.’
(Kathleen Morgan) Ten, 10 Mitchell Lane, Glasgow, 041 221 8353.
SUN -THURS 25PM - LATE
PIZZA IN OUR TIME
THE GOURMET AMERICAN PIZZA HOUSE
HOME DELIVERIES
(Student Discount on request)
225 6464
We also deliver beer, wine, starters and desserts
28-30 THE GRASSMARKET EDINBURGH EH12JU
FRI 8- SAT: 12PM - LATE
82The-List3lMay-I3June1991— I
Food news is compiled by Catherine Fellows. Please send information to her at least ten days before pubHcahon.
I Cookery challenge ASDA Stores are running acompetition in conjunction with Dundee 800m find the most interesting, well-balanced and appetising meal made for under£10 using fresh Scottish ingredients. Six finalists will be given an all-expenses paid weekend in Dundee and the winner will be flown to Paris for a Gourmet Break fortwo. Entries must be in by Fri 281unc and you can get further details from Heather Burns. PR Department. ASDA llousc. Southbank. Gt Wilson Street. Leeds LSll SAD.
Glasgow
I Tron Cafe-Bar Trongatc. 552 4267. Victorian Bar Mon—Thurs noon—11pm; Fri and Sat noon—midnight: Sun 1230-] 1pm. Chisholm Street bar opens Mon—Sat 1 lam. The Tron is offering a new and more extensive menu in its larger Victorian bar. It includes breakfast suggestions — parma ham sandwiches (£2.60) — tapas dishes — salami and marinated olives (£3. 15). garlic bread and melted gruyere (£1 .70) — and. most appealing. a range of
main dishes which are available in large and
small helpings. Some of these are pitta bread filled i with grilled lamb, garlic sauce and salad (£5.80 or £3.95). fresh salmon cakes with lemon served with salad and potatoes (£5.80 or £3.95). puff pastry served with mushrooms and gruyere (£4.75 or £3.25). There are also some rather alluring Italian gz‘iteaux. (‘akes and sandwiches are available in the smaller Chisholm Street bar.
Edinburgh
I Fishers l . Shore. Leith. 55-1 5666. Mon—Sat Ham—midnight; Sun 12.30—2pm and 6.30pm—midnight.'1‘he latest waterfront bistro-bar (opened on 25 May) boasts a range of seafood fit to challenge its rivals. You can start with fish soup. fish pate. oysters. whitebait. for example. then move on to flaked salmon and fennel salad. grilled or steamed langoustine. monkfish. sole. halibut, scallops. .. ()r you could eschew fish altogether and choose goat cheese and walnut salad and steak. The menu is designed to encourage flexible eating: a bowl of soup and a glass ofwine at the bar is perfectly acceptable here. Starters are around £2.20per portion. main courses between £5 and £7.
I Bertie's Bar and Bistro 7
Merchant Street. 225 2002. Mon—Thurs Ham—midnight; Fri & Sat 1am; Sun 12.30pm—midnight. Bar lunches noon—6pm. bistro food Mon—Sat noon—l 1pm; Sun 12.30-1 1pm. The arches of North Bridge have been sheltering a new eaterie since early April. lnthc , large bar area. drinkers can enjoy a wide variety of . real ales and reasonably f priced lunches from the student menu (chicken curry. chilli etc— everything around £2). The far end ofthe premises has been sectioned off to form an intimate. informal bistro f offering a wider choice of meals throughout the day and evening. The French/Italian menu changes frequently. but examples from it are mussels in white wine. tomato and basil (£1.90), seafood crepes (£2.90 or £4.50). mixed grill— skcwers of lamb, beef, kidney. pork and chicken (£6.90). A sweet trolley might wheel cheeses. chocolate mousses. and fruit vol au vents to your table.
I Festival of Traditional Beerat the Caledonian Brewery Slateford Road, 337 1286. Thurs 6 Jun, 5—1 1pm; Fri 7and Sat8 Jun. noon—1 1pm. Admission £2 (charge includes a memento half pint glass to take home)