Food Drink
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Retro ice-cream emporium Ottavio’s serves up the sweetest Italian sensations. Words: Susannah McMicking
hatever else we cut out during the summer months to maintain a svelte figure. ice-cream is definitely not one of them.
Following the recent and sad demise of the ice-cream icon .\lr
Boni. the bathroom scales may have whooped in glee. btit tip steps a noughties version to fill the gaping hole and serve its scoop-loads of fresh ice-cream.
Still a naughty little indulgence. ice-cream is even harder to resist when it‘s fresh. Italian and served retro-chic. ()ttavio’s. named after its young proprietor. is a refreshingly bright and modern installation on Edinburgh's Royal Mile. Among its more neo-traditional neighbours. the ice-cream parlour is so kitsch you can almost see the teddy boys loitering in the corner. The red and pink hues combined with the exotic flowers. neon lights and towering bar stools give the parlour a fresh. sesy feel.
‘l've tried to imitate the ice-cream parlours I remember from when l was growing up in ltaly.’ says Ottavio. Needless to say the ice-cream carries the same air of authenticity. With so much of it these days made with such evil substitutes as vegetable fat. tnilk powder and air tyes air! ). it‘s a sacred treat to enjoy ice-cream made with genuine. bovine- authenticated double cream.
Ottavio makes the ice-cream from scratch following a traditional Italian recipe handed down from his father. There's over 30 different flavours to get your taste buds salivating including plenty of choice for chocoholics to swoon over and a luxuriously creamy vanilla. There’s also a few nutty types. fresh fruit sorbets and. the owner's favourite. banana ice-cream. And for classy chicks about town there‘s champagne sorbet. The menu also includes crepes and super-fragi-caloritic milkshakes.
When the mood takes him. ()ttavio experiments with different flavours. He devises these interesting alternatives — liquorice is his latest — so there's more than enough excuse to keep coming back for more (all in the name of research. of course). With cones starting at 70p and cosmic ice-cream sundaes from £2.95. it's a bargain with a strawberry on top.
Ottavio’s, 229 Canongate, Edinburgh, 0131 557 5038. 1 10 THE LIST 19 Jun—3 J..i 2253
Ottavio: ‘I've tried to imitate the ice-cream parlours I remember’
CREAMIER THAN THOU
The best parlours in central Scotland. Words: Sarah Loader and Susannah McMicking
I LUCA’S
Its two well established shops serve Such exclusive flavours as lrn Bru and chocolate ginger. It also sells confectionery and cakes to order.
8 l uca of fly/lusse/burgli, 32-38 High Street. Musse/burgli. 0737 665 2237; 16 lilo/ringside Road. Edinburgh, Ol3l 448 (>233
I DI ROLLO’S
Over 20 different flavours of ice-cream and sorbet including irreSistihle crystal berry and raspberry shortcake.
Dr Rol/o's Ice Cream and Confectioners. 34 Bridge Street, lllusselburgh, 0731 653 25 70
I NARDINI’S
Pietro and Rosa Nardini thought they were on a ship to New York when they found themselves in bonnie Scotland ~ but hey. the Big Apple's loss is Our gain, They opened in Largs in 1935 and in good Italian tradition the business is still in the family. More unusual flaVOurs in their extensive menu include malt whisky and lrn Bru.
Nardrni's Esplanade Cafe, Greenock Road. largs. 07475 674555.
I unwensmr CAFE
The influx of Italian immigrants in the late 18005 brought on a rash of ice-cream parlours in Glasgow (there were no less than 336 by 1905). This traditional an deco cafe is a nostalgic reminder of the period. lovineg frequented by students and locals alike. as much for the experience as the ice-cream. It's unique in that it serves only vanilla ice-cream.
I UniverSrty Cafe. 87 Byres Road, Glasgow, 0747 339 5217.
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Side dishes
News to nibble on . . .
I FOR ONE LONG HOT Summer night. Scotland's King Cllllll, Doug Be: the man behind the Luise Pinto's delrs. is taking over the krtChen of Coconut Game in Lochrin Place. Tollttross. Edinburgh. Bluesy tunes. tall tales and Spicy food inspired by Bell and Rhoda Robertson's recent book. Two Cooks and a Suitcase the stOry of an opt: culinary tourney across the US and Mexrco — should make for a memorable evening, For tickets for the event on Tuesday 24 June at 7.30pm. contact Lupe Pinto's in Edinburgh {0131 228 6241) or Glasgow (Otttt 334 5:144).
I PROBABLY THE biggest annual celebration of Scottish produce takes place this fortnight as part the Royal Highland Show at lngliston, just outside Edinburgh. The Lowland Hall hosts ‘Food and Drink at the Royal Highland', with over 60 different producers including a shellfish and champagne bar run by the Mussel Inn. The show is open Sam-7pm Thursday 19 June to Sunday 22 June. with entry £16 for adults on Thursday and Friday. £15 on Saturday and Sunday.
I GARY SCOTT‘S bar/restaurant Sugo now has a second branch at 103-105 Dalry Road. offering much the same formula which has made it a popular edge—of—town venue on Lerth Walk. Serving breakfasts. fuson-style lunch and dinner along Wllh a full cocktail menu and bar snacks, it's open seven days a week with DJs after 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Another new arrival in the capital this month is Sweet Art Continental. 139 Bruntsfield Road. a deli specialising in goods from southern Italy and the south of France Such as Sterlian biscwts. top-grade olive oil, pasta sauces and coffee.