Photo of
January 26, 2015
Tom Kitchin in his new dining room. Photo by Marc Millar.
Tom Kitchin in his new dining room. Photo by Marc Millar.

Last week, the 5pm Dining blog was at the launch of Tom Kitchin’s recently expanded restaurant in Leith.

It is impressive. Not just because the Michelin-starred restaurant has doubled in size but also because of its clever, eye-catching design.

‘I can happily grow old here,’ grinned Tom as he showed the blog around. ‘I want The Kitchin to be an institution and this development gives us the space to realise our ambitions.’

The Kitchin opened in Leith a little over eight years and was awarded a Michelin star within six months.

If you believe that further stars are partially dependent on a restaurant’s fixtures and fittings, as well as the food, then The Kitchin’s hip new look is a definite statement of intent.

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The expanded kitchen will certainly make it easier for Tom and his brigade to work their magic. However, it is the new diner areas which will first grab the attention of his customers.

New whisky snug

As well as an expanded dining room (now seating some 65-70), the restaurant has a new bar, a whisky snug, a temperature controlled wine cellar and an opulent private dining room.

Tom Kitchin portrait by Marc Millar.
Tom Kitchin portrait by Marc Millar.

The striking interior of the restaurant has been led by Tom’s wife and business partner, Michaela, together with Glasgow-based Stephen Patterson of Burns Design.

Being a cynical old hack, this blogger is suspicious of places that claim to demonstrate a kitchen’s ethos through the medium of interior design.

Well, we quickly swallowed our cynical ‘Aye right’ last week.

As a chef, Tom has always wanted his food to be ‘from nature to plate’. It’s always been about showing the finest, freshest Scottish produce in the best possible light.

The restaurant’s new décor echoes that.

A medley of textures, tweeds, tartans and tiling blend Scotland’s natural resources with a hint of Swedish-born Michaela’s Scandinavian heritage.

Among the design features are fabrics from the Isle of Bute; wallpapers from Scottish design duo Timorous Beasties and bespoke crockery in earthy hues from Clare Dawdry.

Together with the exposed stone and brick work from the building’s previous life as a whisky bond, they all combine to give the impression of a cool, contemporary Caledonia.

Thanks to touches such as wall panels made from silver birch; sheepskins from the Isle of Skye and, I kid you not, drystone dykes from Aberdeen, there is also a feeling that the design has brought a strong sense of the countryside into the Leith restaurant.

Statement of confidence

You don’t need to be a gifted quantity surveyor to guess that the refurb cost a substantial chunk of change.

After a painful recession which did Scotland’s dining scene few favours, The Kitchin’s new look is a definite statement of confidence in the future.

Tom and Michaela are not the only operators who are investing heavily to ensure continuing success. Over the course of the coming week, we will also have news from Number One at The Balmoral and Martin Wishart’s restaurant in Glasgow – The Honours at Malmaison.

 

Note the drystone dyke in foreground. Mini-sheepskin stools are for handbags. Photo by Marc Millar.
Note the drystone dyke in foreground. Mini-sheepskin stools are for handbags. Photo by Marc Millar.