Stag Espresso at the Warburton Gallery

Posted on March 16, 2015 by BKR

Exterior

Exterior

During May and June last year, it was lovely to see the cafe space in the Warburton Gallery taken over by Artisan Roast as an early summer pop-up. I sheltered there on many an occasion. Recently, the folks from Stag Espresso have taken over the space, establishing Stag 2.

Originally just offering coffee and cakes, soup has recently been added to the menu, so I gave it a visit to put it through its paces.

Soup

Soup

The wood panelled cafe is very smart. The emphasis is on long, communal tables with a few window seats. I sat at one of the long tables after having ordered their soup of the day, which was spiced tomato and chickpea.

This soon arrived, delivered by the friendly counter man. It was accompanied by three little slices of good looking bread.

Interior with magazines

Interior with magazines

It proved to be very good indeed, with warm and welcoming spicing and a hearty texture. On a day of heavy, soak-you-to-the-skin raindrops, it was just the thing.

Their espresso changes regularly with this week’s choice being from Scottish roastery Glen Lyon. It was excellent. I’ve subsequently visited and tried the outstanding Atkinson Archetype, which is now the house espresso over at Dovecot Studios.

So overall, Stag 2 is right up there at the same level as its big brother at the other end of Chambers Street. I was really pleased with the quality on offer and would strongly recommend a visit.

Scores
Blythe scores Stag 2
4.5/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
4/5 for setting
4/5 for service
giving an overall 16.5/20

I ate: spiced tomato and chickpea soup

I drank: espresso, water

I wore: www.tieclub.co.uk tie

Total bill: £5.80

Stag Espresso on Urbanspoon

Posted in Coffee shop, Edinburgh Cafe, Old Town, soup | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Frontier

Posted on March 15, 2015 by BKR

Interior

Interior

After my recent visit to Reekie’s Smokehouse, I was pondering whether there were other places doing a similar sort of thing. Clerk’s Bar is doing something vaguely similar, and then I thought of Frontier, in Tollcross, and wondered whether its American classics style menu was along these lines, too. I crossed the threshold to find out.

With a soundtrack of generic 80s American rock and an interior heavy on wood, it certainly looked and sounded the part. The friendly and attentive waiter was promptly over with menu in hand and details of their specials boards for me to consider.

Soup and chips

Soup and chips

The emphasis is on meaty dishes, as you might expect, with a menu of very familiar dishes and a range of burgers at its heart. I spotted a mention of a chowder of the day, which was sweetcorn, so ordered that along with the basil and blue cheese burger.

I accompanied the food with a Founder’s All Day IPA, which I reckon was the highlight of the meal.

Burger and fries

Burger and fries

The corn chowder was decent and nicely creamy, but had two or three massive chunks of potato buried in its depths, which was a slightly curious and a “beyond rustic” surprise. The accompanying corn chips were nicely crisp.

The burger was rather poorer, with a bone-dry slab of crumbling, flavourless beef topped with a mountain of iceberg lettuce. The basil and blue cheese topping was quite good and the bun was nicely toasted, but the centrepiece was very disappointing.

So overall, Frontier felt a little half-hearted, tame and ordinary. There was a sense of a place struggling to establish its identity and in need of a bit of a rethink. If you do choose to go, give their burgers a wide berth as they’re unlikely to please.

Scores
Blythe scores Frontier
2.5/5 for food
3/5 for presentation
3.5/5 for service
3.5/5 for setting
giving an overall 12.5/20

I ate: corn chowder; basil and blue cheese burger, fries, slaw

I drank: ale, water

I wore: blue suit

Total bill: £18.40

Frontier on Urbanspoon

Posted in American, Burger, soup, Tollcross | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Real Junk Food Project

Posted on March 14, 2015 by BKR

Busy, busy!

Busy, busy!

Drawing its inspiration from the Real Junk Food Project which was founded in Leeds in 2013, Donna McArdle and Charlie Hanks have brought an Edinburgh project into being. It had its first outing at Union Of Genius, a couple of weeks back.

The issue of food waste is central to a number of existing local endeavours, not least Zero Waste Scotland and the work of the Cyrenians in Edinburgh. What TRJFP adds is the idea of taking the food and transforming it into dishes for sale through cafe and pop-up outlets. It uses a Pay as You Feel model of charging.

Soup

Soup

Having gleaned much of the core vegetable selection from a field at Knowes Farm near Dunbar, they have delivered a personally handled field-to-fork experience. This has been augmented by the involvement of a number of local projects, such as Dig-In and Grow Stronger, as well as generous bread support from the folks at Breadshare.

I was joined on this visit by Amy, who is an integral part of the Union of Genius team. She rather enjoyed having other peeps serving her some delicious food in her usual workplace.

Bruschetta

Bruschetta

I got the opportunity to go and meet the team in the kitchen who were working at a furious pace to meet the considerable demand. Everything looked rather impressive, so we soon joined the queue to sample things.

We had a go at most of the items on offer. I started with deliciously fresh cabbage and tarragon soup. It was hearty and nourishing fare.

Curry

Curry

I followed with a warmly spiced potato and sprout curry which hit the spot very nicely.

I had a little corner of the mushroom and tomato brushetta which was lovely. Amy wolfed her potato cakes and beetroot, while I perched and chatted to a steady stream of familiar faces.

Amy couldn’t resist sampling the sweet treats with an impressive looking rhubarb crumble being pronounced a winner.

So overall, I was delighted with the excellent fare on offer from Edinburgh’s Real Junk Food Project. They’ll be appearing every second Sunday at Union of Genius, with the next one on 15 March. I’d strongly recommend a visit to support this outstanding initiative that is serving high quality dishes. The project is looking for volunteers to support the highly committed team already in place. If you like the sound of that, check out their Facebook page and get in contact.

Posted in local produce, Vegetarian | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Forn

Posted on March 13, 2015 by BKR

Exterior

Exterior

In the little shop on East Preston Street where Cafe Valencia traded very briefly, another Spanish place has taken over, in the shape of Forn. On a wild and windy Saturday, I stopped in for a visit.

The interior has had a little redesign with the counter moved out of the corner. This makes for a much brighter and relaxed set-up. Things still have a little settling in to do, but that’s only natural given that my visit was on only their second day of business.

Pa amb tomaquet selection

Pa amb tomaquet selection

The menu focusses on a simple selection of lovingly sourced Catalan products, with pa amb tomaquet (toasted bread with tomato) served with a range of cured meats and cheeses. I opted for a selection of these and an espresso.

The espresso, El Zenit from Cafespont, was again sourced from Catalonia (roasted in the owner’s home neighbourhood of Sabadell) and was not one I’d tried before. It was quite a dark roast which worked nicely with the selection of toasts, which were soon with me after having been freshly prepared.

Interior

Interior

The very neatly presented plate looked really enticing. Each of them proved to be of excellent quality. There were three cured meat varieties, with tasty chorizo, fuet and llonganissa, then impressively good manchego cheese and well-crafted tortilla. They all made me very happy indeed.

So overall, it was great to discover this burgeoning little gem. Forn packs great quality into its focussed range of dishes. I think it has a prime opportunity to carve out a niche for itself, so look forward to many future visits. Highly recommended.

Scores
Blythe scores Forn
4/5 for food
4/5 for presentation
3.5/5 for setting
4/5 for service
giving an overall 15.5/20

I ate: pa amb tomaquet with selection of meats and cheese (chorizo, fuet, llonganissa, manchego)

I drank: water, espresso

I wore: blue

Total bill: £6

Forn on Urbanspoon

Posted in Southside, Spanish | Tagged , | Leave a comment

L’Echoppe

Posted on March 12, 2015 by BKR

Exterior

Exterior

It’s always sad when category winners from our annual Guide to Edinburgh cease trading. It was a particular shame to see Copper Bird close as it was a super friendly place as well as serving the best breakfast rolls in the city. In its place, L’Echoppe has emerged so I gave it a visit, in its second week of trading.

Keeping much the same look and feel as before, which is a smart play as it’s a lovely cafe space, the menu has been given a revamp. Cupcakes have been replaced by madeleines and financiers for a more Gallic feel that the new name suggests.

Roll

Roll

The breakfast roll selection has changed a little with the welcome addition of Buccleuch black pudding to go alongside bacon, sausages and eggs. I opted for a smoked bacon and black pudding roll, which the friendly counter man was soon about freshly preparing to order.

I was soon on my way, eating as I walked. The roll made very good eating. The filling was of really pleasing quality with the black pudding particularly good. The roll itself was floury, substantial and deliciously fresh.

Interior detail

Interior detail

So overall, it was a great relief to see Copper Bird’s legacy being continued and built upon by L’Echoppe. It’s early days for them, yet, but they’re starting from a very good place. I look forward to visiting again, perhaps to try one of their good looking sandwiches.

Scores
Blythe scores L’Echoppe
4/5 for food
3.5/5 for presentation
4/5 for setting
3.5/5 for service
giving an overall 15/20

I ate: bacon and black pudding

I wore: heavy overcoat

Total bill: £2.40

L'Echoppe on Urbanspoon

Posted in Breakfast, West End | Tagged , | Leave a comment