Lunch Quest: Edinburgh

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Best wishes for the festive season and all the best for a fabulous 2012 :-)

Our burger quest made its fifth stop, today, taking advantage of the joys of the festive markets in east Princes Street Gardens. The Well Hung and Tender Beef stall is a regular visitor to these type of events. It offers locally-sourced sustenance to balance out all the glüwein, lebkuchen and other Germanic goodness on offer.


On another bitingly cold lunchtime, I made haste towards the market. Upon arrival, I was confronted with a busy hot plate of burger treats.


I opted for the Angus burger, which comprised a rustic burger, chunky onions and Lockerbie cheddar, served on a morning roll.

It came in a minimalist carrying case (a paper napkin), so the situation didn’t lend itself well to me transporting this back to the office for consumption. This was no bad thing though, as I was chilly, hungry, and the burger had a tempting aroma.


This experience was quite different to what we’d got from the Balmoral Beef Gourmet Burger Van, the other day. Where the Balmoral was a flat, wide burger, topped with a range of relishes and salad items, what we had here was a smaller, chunkier burger, that relied on the cheese and onions to add condiment detail.

The meat of the burger was very well seasoned and had good flavour. The cheese was excellent; by far the best cheese on any burger so far, not only by virtue of being the only thing that came close to being actual cheese, but also because it added a lovely mature tang to each mouthful. The onions were curiously bland, but served to add a different texture, so still did their bit to add to the overall experience.

But while the ingredients were of better quality, they weren’t brought together as effectively as the Balmoral folks had managed with theirs, so I was left a little less satisfied. The Balmoral roll was much nicer, as well.

In other exciting burger news, it appears that the first Burgher Burgers event will be presided over by none other than chef Neil Forbes of Café Saint Honoré fame. If you’ve not heard about Burgher Burgers yet, take a look at their website at: http://www.burgherburger.co.uk/ and their Twitter @burgherburger.

So, the burger quest will crack on to new and uncharted territory, next week. Maybe somewhere indoors might be good, given the increasingly inclement weather.

Scores
Blythe scores Well Hung and Tender:
4/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
3/5 for service
3/5 for setting
giving an overall 13/20

I ate: Angus burger

I drank: nothing

I wore: pinstripes

Total bill: £4

With winter just starting to bare its teeth, a trip to the cosy confines of a well-appointed Thistle Street restaurant was a very welcome Monday lunchtime treat. Taking a recommendation from the lovely Susan of Hula Juice Bar fame, a trip to Dusit, one of Edinburgh’s premier purveyor of Thai goodness, had been arranged. This was a veritable super-group quest, as joining Susan was Yelp’s Jenny, still in the clutches of Thai food mania, and the excellent Jemma of Jemma Eat World.

David Cameron undermined my promptness, today, but as I gently promenaded towards the venue, I bumped in to Jenny, and together we joined the already arrived Susan and Jemma, in Dusit’s cosy back room.

We perused the lunch menus, which offered two courses for £12.95. The choices on offer looked good to me, but Thailophile Jenny couldn’t resist asking for a quick peek at the full menu, which was swiftly provided.

From the menu, there was no way I wasn’t going to eat a dish called the Three Musketeers, no matter what it contained, so I ordered that to start. To follow, I opted some spicy beef fillet.


By this time, the room was packed to the rafters, so I was pleasantly surprised by the speed of the starters’ arrival. First came Susan duck roll, then the musketeers for Jemma and I, followed by some chicken for Jenny. All dishes came neatly presented with salad and flowers (presumably edible, although I didn’t end up verifying that).



My musketeers were good. King prawns served three ways: in filo, in tempura batter, and in panko bread flakes. This was very reminiscent of the dish Jemma had in Karen’s Unicorn, the other day, so she’ll be better placed to tell you how it matched up, but it certainly looked a lot prettier and it tasted pretty good.


Main courses were preceded by one of the waiters bringing us fresh warm plates, and spooning a big spoonful of fragrant white rice out for each of us. Where the mains arrived, they looked very stylish. They were served in boat-shaped dishes that neatly held the plentiful ingredients and rich sauces.


Jenny was very happy with hers, as it was “just the duck she’d been looking for.”


Susan and Jemma, tucking in to a fragrant chicken curry that perfectly echoed Jemma’s sunny outfit, were similarly contented.


My beef dish was, continuing the theme, rather like the main course I’d eaten at Karen’s Unicorn. The beef was crispy, the sauce sweet, and the chillis fierce. It had much more elegance than the dish at Karen’s, but I enjoyed the two about the same, I’d say.

Find out what Jemma thought about today’s quest at Jemma Eat World.

Overall, I was impressed with Dusit. I found it quite hard to compare with our other recent Thai quest, when we visited Siam Thani, as the two places are very different. I imagine this reflects both the diversity of Thai cuisine, and the differing approaches of the owners and chefs. I think both places merit a further visit, as I having a feeling that their evening menus are where they both shine more brightly. For sure, pay Dusit a visit, soon. You'll be very pleased with what you're served and how you're served it.

Scores

Blythe scores Dusit:
4/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
3/5 for service
3/5 for setting
giving an overall 14/20

Today’s lunch questers were: Jemma, Susan, Jenny, Blythe

We ate: duck, prawn, and chicken starters, duck, chicken, and beef main courses

We drank: sparkly mineral water, still water

We wore: a symphony of yellow, orchestral brown boots, a rhapsodically cool coat, tympanic three-piece suit

Total bill: c.£60

Dalry Road is just round the corner from where I live, and has some nice restaurants, but for one reason or another, I haven't sampled any of its delights, of late. Last night I took the opportunity to rectify that situation, with a trip to Kebabish.

Kebabish is the UK's biggest chain of Asian restaurants, specialising in spicy treats from their famous grill. Free corkage BYOB is the order of the day, so we popped in to the Co-op, handily located a couple of doors down, and picked up the inevitable lager.

The place was busy when we arrived, but fortunately they had a couple of bigger tables free, so they were able to fit in our party of 9.

While the chairs were comfortable, the place has a really cramped feel to it, and not just because it was busy. We were seated right in front of the large open kitchen, where we had the extremely dubious honour a witnessing the boss man glower at his staff as they busily prepared dishes.


If people want to run their kitchen with the atmosphere of frowning scrutiny, that's fine, but in this circumstance, where everyone could see what was going on, it seemed very out of place, to me.

There was a good deal of confusion about which menu we were to order from. We were first given the full a la carte, then this was taken away and replaced by a Christmas menu. This was swapped back, then one of the many waiters offered us yet another deal, not on either of the menus. It was a total mess.

Eventually, we settled upon an array of main courses, with some poppadoms and pickles for a light, shared starter.


The main courses arrived quickly, with my mixed grill looking incredibly impressive. It was a huge plate of meat comprising lamb kebabs, chicken wings, lamb chops, and further pieces of chicken and lamb, all served on a bed of onions.


The meat was all excellently cooked, with a good range of power-packed seasonings. The dishes from the grill are definitely the stand-out items on offer. The more standard items that you'd find in any number of Indians, around the town, looked good, but not terribly special.

Overall, the food that I had at Kebabish was extremely good. The service and setting don't match it, at all. The frowner-in-chief should turn his attention away from glowering at his chefs and glower at his serving staff, instead. If that dead-eye stare has the same effect on them as is does on the kitchen staff, he'll address the place's real weaknesses, in no time.

Scores
Blythe scores Kebabish
4/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
2/5 for service
2/5 for setting
giving an overall 11/20

Today's late Lunch Questers were: a gaggle of bedraggleds

We wore: checked shirts (2), grey sweater, grandad shirt, red t-shirt, jumper with zip, pakora hat, maroon polo, suit

We ate: mixed grill, an array of main courses, poppadoms, pickle tray, rice, naan

We drank: lagers

Total bill: c.£130 (9 diners), not including the lager from the Co-op

A day off with no plans prior to pub time! What to do, what to do? The excellent Emily and Georgia, of Total Food Geeks fame, soon offered a solution to my quandry, offering the prospect of lunch merriment to punctuate 15 mile "training" walk.

They suggested E:S:I (Englishman: Scotsman: Irishman), a place I'd spotted recently, but never ventured inside. I was delighted to go with this, as it looked intriguing.

I ventured forth on my coastal route, encompassing Cramond, Silverknowes, Granton and Newhaven, bringing me round to sunny Leith.

Even at a distance of 11 miles, I managed to maintain my new found meticulous promptness. I was warmly greeted and shown to a nice table on the upper level of the stylish triple-decker layout. The table came with good light from the large windows, and an excellent view of chef carefully preparing the starter, in the open kitchen.


Georgia and Emily soon arrived, and we swiftly turned our attention to the menu. Today was the first day of service for E:S:I's Christmas menu, which offered a nice blend of classics and originals.

We agreed that all options sounded good, but soon settled upon our choices. Georgia started with the salmon, on recommendation, and followed with the traditional turkey 'n' trimmings. This sounded way too good to Emily's ears, so she made it two for salmon and turkey. I opted for the intriguing Thai turkey soup, followed by gnocchi.

As the merry banter flowed, our dishes arrived. G and E's salmon looked excellent. It was served with a vibrant chutney, packed with fruity goodness, and oatcakes.


In terms of looks, I had a touch of food envy, as my soup looked a little underwhelming, by comparison.


But what it lacked in looks, it more than made up for in flavour. It was a beautifully subtle dish, full of lovely aromatics. I thought it one of the more imaginative attempts at a "festive" dish that didn't abandon the principles of what the restaurant is all about, the rest of the year.

It's a little too early in December for the turkey and trimming treatment, for me, but I must admit when G and E's dish arrived, it did look good.


The sprouts, which looked like they'd been stir-fried, stood out.

My gnocchi was extremely good. My good friend Mina, from LQ: Istanbul, is quite the connoisseur of gnocchi, and I have learnt a little from studying at her side. Of similar dishes that we've sampled across Edinburgh (and there have been quite a few, over the years) the only place that's served better gnocchi is The Bonham, which given our general adoration of that place, is high praise indeed.


It had a particularly pleasing marriage of different textures, with the use of chestnuts another example of a smart seasonal, festive twist.

The dreaded "lunch hour" meant that G and E had to fly back to the office, but I lingered and considered things a little further over a good cup of coffee, before hitting the trail homeward.


Overall, I was extremely impressed. The new festive menu was really nice, and will no doubt get better as the month goes on. The setting is cool, with the feel of a sharp, modern art gallery about it, a feel which is enhanced by the stylish art work, on the walls. I took the opportunity to look over their evening menu, so I'll definitely be back to sample their Steak Night, held every Thursday. I look forward to that visit, early in the new year, muchly.

Scores
Blythe scores E:S:I
4/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
4/5 for service
4/5 for setting
giving an overall 15/20

Today lunch questers were: Emily, Georgia, Blythe

We ate: salmon, soup, turkey, gnocchi

We drank: ale, lager, cranberry juice, sparkly water, coffee

We wore: Emilian spectacles; Georgian blonde tresses, Blythian rosy cheeks

Total bill: c.£58

Blythe’s Verdict
Café Marlayne has been a Thistle Street staple throughout the 2000s, attracting high praise from many of its customers. Around a year ago, they expanded their operation, opening a second outlet on Antigua Street, in much bigger premises than the intimate Thistle Street surroundings.

The first thing I noticed, once I'd taken in the full extent of the place, is that it's very much a "two-in-one". The front half is a café, offering a relaxed atmosphere and seating to match, while the back room is a bright bistro.

I was prompt, as MJ has conditioned me in to being, and had a moment to survey matters. Christmas had broken out, it being 1 December, with some nicely understated trimmings giving touches of festive cheer. The bistro room is a little strange. While it is simply appointed in white, with clusters of artwork on the walls, it has the feel of a back-room bistro that you might find attached to a village pub. It’s the kind of room that could turn its hand to many things, perhaps doubling as the place you'd hold local fundraisers, when the kitchen isn’t serving posh nosh. This sense of flexibility could be used as a strength, but I’m not sure things are quite optimal, as they stand.

The kitchen sort of pours out of the door, in a slightly curious fashion. Where I was seated I had a full view of everything that was going on, and I didn’t personally feel it added much to my enjoyment of things.


As I pondered, bread arrived, as did water, then some hand-written menus, and soon I was joined by my dining companion, Jane, who previously quested with us at Leith Lynx.

Both Jane and I agreed that the bread was tasty, as we contemplated our menu choices. Jane opted for the chef’s salad followed by trout, while I went for soup then lamb.

Our starters arrived promptly, as a large party of early Christmas revellers took up residence at big table, next to ours.


My soup, a blend of butternut squash, sweet potato and coconut was very good. It lacked an extra dimension to elevate it beyond that, but was a really well-judged marriage of flavours. I was very pleased with it. This was all looking very good.

Then we sat for an extremely long time before our main courses arrived. Of course, the attention of the staff was taken up by the patrons at the big table, but a good deal of the time, the staff seemed almost entirely absent, presumably tending to the needs of customers in the front café.

Over the coming Christmas madness, service is likely to be a little less than perfect in a lot of places, so I had some sympathy for the staff, as this was the first day of the advent season, and I’m sure they’ll iron out most the kinks, in the coming days.


When the main courses arrived, they were excellent. I tasted a little of Jane’s trout, and it was lovely. My two chunky pieces of lamb were very soft and tender, deeply flavourful and extremely satisfying. For me, the dish could have used a bigger dollop of yoghurt, but that’s my inner honorary Istanbulian talking. The herb dressing was packed with flavour. A plate of vegetables, for us to share, were simply prepared and provided solid accompaniment.


With service having taken a considerable length of time, Jane had to bolt back to work, as soon as she'd finished her trout, as she was constrained by the strict application of the “lunch hour”, while I had time to digest things, and finish with a little espresso.


Overall, the quality of the food was excellent. My main course was one of the best I’ve eaten, of late. However, the service we received wasn’t good. I’m sure the start of the festive season explains this, at least in part, but the venue’s split configuration, and their choice to have staff managing service across both parts of the place, doesn’t lend itself to good service, as far as I could see. If you’re looking for a quick, business lunch, I don’t think this is the place for you – I’m not sure that’s a market they’re targeting, either. On a relaxed afternoon, with a nice glass of wine, I can think of nothing better than letting the world drift by while extremely tasty dishes sporadically appear, so when that’s what you have on your agenda, I’d recommend you pay Café Marlayne a visit.

Jane’s Verdict
I started with the salade du chef, which today comprised endives, mushroom, bacon and gruyere, with a drizzle of mustard. It was very tasty, with a perfect balance of salty smoky bacon with sweet mushroom and gruyere. Personally, I could have lived without the mustard, but that’s just me.


My fillet of trout with capers and pine nuts and a beurre noisette was perfectly cooked, with nicely crisped skin, but not too crispy, and again a nice balance of salty capers and sweeter pine nuts. There was a good contrast between softness and crunch. Yum!


There was big gap between starter and main, so points off for service, but overall it was all very tasty.

Scores
Blythe scores Café Marlayne:
4/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
2/5 for service
3/5 for setting
giving an overall 13/20

Jane scores Café Marlayne:
4/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
2/5 for service
4/5 for setting
giving an overall 14/20

Today’s lunch questers were: Jane, Blythe

We ate: squash, sweet potato and coconut soup, chef’s salad, trout in beurre noisette, lamb rump with yoghurt and herb dressing

We drank: water, espresso

We wore: chic black, lilac shirt and tie

Total bill: c.£25

Blythe’s Verdict
Karen’s Unicorn easily wins the award for the most amusingly named restaurant we’ve visited, so far. It has built up quite a reputation for offering high-quality Chinese dishes, since it opened in late 2009.

With MJ away in Istanbul, spending most of her time hopping between Europe and Asia, I was joined on today’s quest some of our wider network of questing pals. John, who first joined us at The Mulroy, dropped me a line a couple of weeks ago, suggesting that Karen’s Unicorn would be a good place for us to try. Tony, who had also joined at The Mulroy was happy to join. Completing the party was the profilic Jemma, of Jemma Eat World fame, who has been reviewing a veritable avalanche of places, over the past couple of months.


I took up the mantle of promptness, arriving in good time to take an exterior shot, and then be shown to our table to await the arrival of my fellow diners. First to arrive was Tony, then John was hot on his heels. A combination of another branch of Karen’s Unicorn in St Stephen’s Street, and a slight over-reliance on Google Maps delayed Jemma a little while, but soon enough we were contemplating the business lunch menus.

Offering two courses for £8.95, the menu covered all the bases you’d expect. Their evening menu covers some more exotic fare, with an enticing list of daily specials, but lunchtime service focuses on more basic dishes, quickly served, for express, business customers.

The main restaurant room is very neatly styled in black and white, with just a hint of purple-pink. My tie and handkerchief combo fitted in extremely well. It retains all the fixtures of the New Town style, as you would expect, but these are given a sensitive, modern treatment. There was evidence of a little added festive glamour, but this was very understated and classy.


Water was provided on arrival, as were prawn crackers and soy sauce, so we could sip and crunch while we contemplated. Our cogitations soon coalesced, with Jemma opting for king prawns followed by lemon chicken, John going for the prawns followed by beef in black bean sauce, Tony opting for hot and sour soup followed by vegetable chow mein, while I chose the soup followed by crispy shredded beef.


Dishes arrived quickly, and I have to say that I thought the soup looked considerably better fun than the prawns. It tasted incredibly good, as well. It was a richly meaty broth, full of shredded goodness, with the odd little prawn there for further textural variance. As hot and sours go, it was right up there with the best I’ve sampled.


My main wasn’t quite up to those standards, but was still a hearty portion of crispy beef, served in a sweet and sticky sauce that had a nice amount of chilli punch. The fried rice was a good, simple accompaniment. Jemma's lemon chicken looked very much like a fish supper covered in golden syrup (perhaps in tribute to St Andrew's Day?!), but I dare say it tasted good. Tony's chow mein looked a nice dish, as did John's beef with black bean sauce.

As an express, business lunch it ticked all the boxes, very nicely. If you’re looking for something that will wow you, I’d advise an evening visit, when their more extensive menu swings in to action. The lunchtime service offers you well-executed Chinese classics, served quickly by the excellent staff, at a very reasonable price. The surroundings are extremely stylish, too. I’d heartily recommend you pay it a visit.

John’s Verdict
Having dined at Karen's Unicorn on 3 occasions on very busy Saturday nights and been very impressed, I was keen to try their business lunch offering.

The decor in Karen's is stylish and modern mostly black white and purple, which I find pleasing. The lunch menu while lacking any of the more exotic dishes available on the lengthy carte and the daily specials board was not short of choices.

On arrival our coats were taken and water and prawn crackers provided to keep us going while we made our choices and waited for Jemma, who had mistakenly gone to the other branch in St Stephen's Street, which is closed on Tuesdays.


So, to the food. I ate crispy prawns with sweet chilli dip, followed by my favourite Chinese staple of beef in black bean sauce with fried rice. Both courses were very tasty and well presented, although if anything the black bean sauce was a touch under seasoned, which is quite a culinary feat.


The service was efficient, attentive and unobtrusive. Extra marks for the steaming hot face cloths at the end of the meal, which are always welcome to bearded diners, especially.

Tony’s Verdict
After choosing my selection online from the a la carte menu, I had to rethink when presented with the lunch menu. Good value at £8.95 for 2 courses, but did not have any of my original selections. I will need to go back one evening to try those.

The lunch menu had 6 or 7 options for each course - varied enough to cover most tastes. I was warmly greeted and shown to our table where early bird Blythe was already seated.

At the table, water was already poured and prawn crackers and soy sauce in the centre of the table. Prawn crackers were light and non greasy.

I started with the hot and sour soup. It was certainly spicy enough for me. However, I thought it a bit gluey to get full marks.


To follow, I decided to try something different from my normal chinese selections and went for a vegetable chow mein. This was a bit plain for my taste, but then the menu promised nothing else. It was pleasant enough but did wish I had gone for the shredded chilli beef. To finish off, I had filtered coffee.

I would like to go back and try the chef specials that are on the a la carte menu. It would be good to go in a group and share the selections

Jemma’s Verdict
I started with the prawns, which were really nice. I thought the batter was delicious, but perhaps that's just me showing my Scottishness. They were lovely and sweet and the chilli sauce, although it looked like the ubiquitous Blue Dragon stuff, actually had a nice bit of a kick to it. Three prawns may have seemed a bit stingy, but for £2 odds you can't really complain.

The main was basically a big lump of battered chicken covered in a sticky golden sauce. It wasn't much presentation-wise, as it was a bit of a yellowy-beige monotone, and I echo Blythe's sentiment that it looked like a fish supper.


The chicken itself was tender and juicy, although it had a slight reconstituted look about it. The sauce, although yellow, had the same sort of flavour as the pink gloopy sauce you normally get with sweet and sour.

The fried rice was good and easy to pick up with my chopsticks.

For further thoughts on this, and to see all my other reviews, visit my blog, Jemma Eat World.

Scores
Blythe scores Karen’s Unicorn:
4/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
4/5 for service
4/5 for setting
giving an overall 15/20

Tony scores Karen’s Unicorn:
3/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
3/5 for service
3/5 for setting
giving an overall 12/20

Jemma scores Karen’s Unicorn:
3.5/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
4/5 for service
4/5 for setting
giving an overall 14.5/20

John scores Karen’s Unicorn:
4/5 for food
4.5/5 for presentation
4.5/5 for service
5/5 for setting
giving an overall 18/20

Today’s lunch questers were: Jemma, John, Tony, Blythe

We ate: hot and sour soup, butterfly king prawns, lemon chicken, vegetable chow mein, beef in black bean sauce, crispy shredded beef, fried rice

We drank: water, coffees

We wore: blue sweater, black and pink striped tie with matching handkerchief, maroon coat, high-performance footwear

Total bill: c.£40