FOOD & DRINK RECENT OPENINGS
SUPPORTED BY
MAKING ROOM A recent rearrangement of the long established ‘A Room In . . .’ venues in Edinburgh has allowed two popular Leith venues to double in size, as Hannah Ewan reports
S ighs of regret at the closure of A Room in the Town on Howe Street have been swiftly replaced by nods of understanding as the Room In team reshuffled their pack down by the Leith docks. A Room in Leith has shifted across the cobbled way to the former Skippers, allowing Teuchters Landing to expand into the rest of the waterside conservatory now vacated by the bistro. In the new Room in Leith the space has been freshened up in signature dark green, but it still manages the trick perfected at its old home of being consistently busy yet somehow avoiding the heave of town. The famous waterside sun-terrace offers plentiful al fresco eating, though you’ll still fight for a table when the weather’s right. Regulars can relax: the old menu has simply been extended slightly, and stays true to its Scottish- sourced casual bistro roots. A newly added seafood platter harks back to the old Skippers days, though is a mixed bag: lovely smoked halibut alongside beautifully cooked, but cold, scallops. The celebrated black pudding Scotch egg remains, however, and more than lives up to the hype.
A ROOM IN LEITH
1a Dock Place, Leith EH6 6LU, 0131 554 7427, aroomin.co.uk Ave price two-course meal: £13.95 (set lunch) / £20 (dinner)
The best of the new restaurant, café and bar openings in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Prices shown are for an average two-course meal for one.
Glasgow FROSOULLA’S GREEK
29 Sinclair Drive, Southside, G42 9PR, 07887 528490, greekgoldenkebab.com, £16.50 (lunch / dinner) After 40 years, the Greek Golden Kebab restaurant has literally crossed the road into a new building, with a new name. The contemporary space is open and warm and the menu is much the same, with an increase in i sh dishes. The top quality remains intact, from keftedes – meatballs of juicy, herb-infused lamb – to the Adana kebab with rich peppery lamb patties. Staff treat every customer like an old friend, which adds another layer of satisfaction to proceedings. With the old site set to be transformed into a deli/takeaway, this corner of the city is likely to gain many new friends too. VELDT DELI CAFÉS
– and traditional home-made bread and cakes. The rootsy décor creates a relaxed vibe and, although small, it never feels cramped, helped by window seats allowing for people-watching. Veldt’s slice of sunshine with home-cooked TLC brings a welcome splash of colour and offers a chance to sample an overlooked but richly diverse cuisine.
THE WEE GUY’S CAFÉS 51 Cochrane Street, City Centre, G1 1HL, 0141 552 5338, guysrestaurant.co.uk, £7 (lunch) Owner of Guy’s on Candleriggs, Guy Cowan has drawn on his years catering for the stars for his new café. Classic i lm posters and location photos from Glasgow-shot movies, including World War Z (i lmed right outside the door), adorn the bright walls and, coupled with the outlook, make the place much more hip NY deli than Glasgow tearoom. Closed weekends, it’s geared towards worker bees with sandwiches and a salad bar to go. But it’s worth settling down for a full breakfast, heartier daily special or messily enjoyable steak baguette at one of the big wooden tables or window stools to soak up the city bustle. Home-made cakes and bakes, interesting soups and good coffee add to the enticement.
407 Great Western Road, West End, G4 9JA, 0141 237 3352, veldtdeli.co.uk, £7.50 (lunch) Meaning ‘i eld’ in Afrikaans, Veldt Deli has a natural freshness in both atmosphere and taste. The café/deli Edinburgh MAIALINO CAFES
menu offers South African dishes, from spicy curry in a roll from the co-owner’s native Cape Town and robust boerewors sausage on Tapa bread to sosaties – marinated grilled lamb with juicy apricots 34 William Street, West End, EH3 7LJ, 0131 477 7778, facebook.com/MaialinoDeli, £5 (lunch) The foodie rejuvenation of the western half of William Street continues apace with new addition Maialino on the (totally transformed) site of the former William Street Food Co. The fresh sandwiches at Claudio Sapienza’s swish little deli are of distinctly Italian descent; think Parma ham with provolone and i g chutney or fennel salami with pecorino and artichoke. Elsewhere, the offering is comfortably continental –
Danish pastries, croissants and even British charcuterie – i tting nicely with the area’s boutique feel.
THE GRASSMARKET CAFÉ CAFES Grassmarket Centre, 86 Candlemaker Row, EH1 2QA, 0131 225 3626, grassmarketcommunityproject.co.uk, £6 (lunch)
Housed in a new building at the foot of Greyfriars Kirkyard, this café is run as part of a social enterprise with much of the work front and back of house being taken on by volunteers working alongside
members of the community seeking vocational training and experience. Offering a simple but satisfying array of sandwiches, drinks and cakes including a soup and hot dish of the day, it’s both a worthwhile cause and a sanctuary away from the hustle and bustle of the Old Town, with fair trade and locally sourced ingredients (including herbs from the Kirkyard garden) as well as pleasant outdoor seating.
ZIZZI ITALIAN Roxburgh Court, Old Town, EH1 1PG, 0131 226 2661, zizzi.co.uk, £16 (lunch)/ £19.95 (set dinner) Part of the £45million redevelopment of Advocate’s Close, Edinburgh’s fourth Zizzi comes complete with outdoor courtyard for al fresco aperitifs. Inside, rich slate blue hues, bare stone walls and motifs by local artist Amy Murray – plus commanding views of Princes Street Gardens – imbue it with far more character than the average chain restaurant, even if the menu still feels a little impersonal. A selection of new dishes including king prawns with a roquito, tomato and lobster sauce help temper that a little.
Independent write-ups on all the restaurants worth knowing about in Glasgow and Edinburgh are available on our online Eating & Drinking Guide at list.co.uk/food-and-drink 38 THE LIST 11 Jul–22 Aug 2013