][1]The finalists for this year’s highly anticipated Scottish Restaurant Awards have been announced and, to use a technical term, they are all beezers.
Ahead of the glamorous awards ceremony, taking place in Edinburgh’s Ghillie Dhu on Tuesday 4th of June, the 5pm Restaurant blog will be profiling as many of the categories as we can.
We’ll get the ball rolling today with a look at the finalists who are lining up to contest the Best Italian Restaurant of the Year.
Hat trick for Cucina@ Missoni?
First up are the familiar figures of the staff at Cucina in Edinburgh’s Hotel Missoni.
Led by Head Chef Mattia Camorani, Cucina @ Missoni has taken down the Best Italian prize for the last two years in a row.
Having worked with Giorgio Locatelli, among others, Chef Camorani’s focus is on highly seasonal Italian cooking.
The time tested traditions of Italy’s culinary heritage underpin everything that he does but, as befits a hotel restaurant owned by a fashion house, he is not afraid to innovate,
Can Team Cucina make it a hat trick?
Centotre aiming for crown
Well, they’re up against stiff competition in the form of Edinburgh’s Centotre.
Victor and Carina Contini have been at the helm of this George Street Italian for just over nine years and it’s hard to imagine a couple more dedicated to their cause.
While they make no excuses about importing some authentic Italian ingredients, they are also very enthusiastic about supporting local suppliers as well as growing their own produce.
][6]Their cocktail menus can get pretty funky but, in general, the dishes on their seasonal menus strive for simplicity and honesty. As they say, ‘We want to eat food our great grandmothers would recognise.’
Last year, the Contini’s sister business, the Scottish Cafe and Restaurant, won the Best Customer Service award. Will they extend their winning streak?
Second time lucky for Osteria in North Berwick?
North Berwick’s Osteria hopes to claim the crown having been a finalist at last year’s awards.
The cosy High Street restaurant is owned by Angelo Cocchi who looks after the front of house. Angelo is well known to a couple of generations of Edinburgh Italian fans as the man who ran the famous Cosmo’s on North Castle Street for many a year.
His daughter, Daniella, is an award-winning chef in her own right and she is queen of the kitchen range at Osteria.
Classic Italian dishes with an emphasis on seafood is the name of the game at Osteria and it’s a formula which has won the restaurant a clientele base which stretches far beyond North Berwick.
The 5pm Restaurant blog wishes them all the very best of luck.
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