Edinburgh is on the brink of the festival with the first of the preview shows getting underway tomorrow. For the next month, every day and most of the nights will be party time as the city’s population doubles and every cubby hole and cellar is pushed into service as a performance space.
Among the temporary eating and drinking options popping up is the Hullabaloo Garden in George Square. The Spiegeltent are body-swerving the Fringe this year and the team behind the Underbelly have stepped into the breach. The Square is being transformed into an Oriental village with pagoda style tents, Indian furniture and hanging lanterns. The food options will include a seafood bar, a curry café and a BBQ pit.
As always before the festival, there has been a flurry of new places rushing to open their doors before the curtains go up. Among the latest is Platillos which opened on Hanover Street at the weekend. In the basement space that used to house the Sizzling Scot, they are now serving Mexican street food.
Also new is the latest incarnation of the Holyrood Tavern, a trad boozer located just a hop and a skip from the Pleasance venue. There has been a bar on the Holyrood Road site since Arthur’s Seat was active but it’s been plagued by periods of being mothballed and, to be honest, the pub has long been crying out for a bit of TLC.
New owners Gordon Fuller and Gary Thomson have done the place proud and it now looks rather smart. A big selling point is the massive range of twenty draught beers. I also liked the honesty of a wine list which is split into three categories: cheap, good and great. A wide burger selection is one of the highlights of a fairly extensive food menu.
We should also mention Hispaniola. Last year, the long established Ciao Roma Italian on the Bridges expanded around the corner by knocking through to Stewart’s bar on Drummond Street. Judging from the menu, the new room is simply an extension of the original restaurant but the décor takes a decidedly different path. The sign outside says ‘Hispaniola’ but it could be named the Jolly Roger. Everywhere you look there are dummies dressed as pirates and armed with hooks and cutlasses. A cage in the ceiling holds the skeleton of a pirate. I’m genuinely not sure if it s a restaurant or a Fringe show.
