In one week, the cream of the Scottish restaurant scene will converge on Edinburgh’s Ghillie Dhu to find out which finalists have taken the top prizes at the Scottish Restaurant Awards.
One of the most closely fought categories is that of Best Urban Restaurant. Comprising Timberyard, The Gardener’s Cottage and The Pompadour by Galvin, all three finalists opened or relaunched in Edinburgh last year and they all caused a big splash.
][3]Timberyard
Having opened last August, Timberyard on the capital’s Lady Lawson Street rapidly attracted glowing reviews and quickly developed a waiting list for weekend bookings. Cleverly and stylishly reclaimed from an old timber merchant’s premises, the restaurant is the latest venture from the Radfords who had previously run Atrium and blue.
Very much a family affair, it features Andrew and Lisa at the helm with son Ben in the kitchen; Jo at the bar and Abi taking care of comms.
Making good use of the building’s spacious interior, outhouses and exterior spaces, Timberyard looks nothing like any other restaurant in Edinburgh and the food is just as contemporary. Local, artisan suppliers are at the heart of the offer and we understand that there are moves afoot for the Radfords to start growing their own produce.
Typical dishes might be the crab, pear, fennel fronds, horseradish and creme fraiche sorbet or, for something more substantial, the hay-smoked chicken breast, boneless leg, wild leek, parsnip and black pudding.
][6]The Gardener’s Cottage
Once the gardener’s home for the wealthy inhabitants of Royal Terrace, The Gardener’s Cottage opened last summer with chefs Dale Mailley and Edward Murray at the helm. An unusual, compact space for a restaurant, a sympathetic conversion played to the building’s strengths and produced something quite magical.
Featuring communal seating; a very open kitchen and a set, six course dinner menu packed with hyper-local and seasonal ingredients, The Gardener’s Cottage is the antidote to the stuffy image which Edinburgh sometimes has.
It’s fun, informal, sociable and, if you have ever pondered the real benefits of eating seasonally, then one taste of the kitchen’s daily changing menus should help convince you.
][8]The Pompadour by Galvin
The Caledonian Hotel relaunched last year after a multi-million pound refurbishment. Now known as The Caledonian, a Waldorf Astoria Hotel, it invited Chris and Jeff Galvin, the acclaimed duo of sibling chefs, to reinvigorate the hotel’s restaurant offer.
The flagship outlet is The Pompadour by Galvin. The restaurant room first opened in 1927 and, while the refurbishment has really refreshed the spacious room, it retains its original, listed murals and intricate cornicing.
Craig Sandle is the Scottish chef in charge of operations on a day-to-day basis and he really makes the Galvins’ ideas sing. Classical French cooking is the offer at The Pomp and Sandle uses top quality Scottish ingredients to bring the dishes to life.
You can view the a la carte menu here. This blogger recommends the poulet en vessie “Pompadour”, Savoy cabbage, pommes cocotte and foie gras sauce.
The restaurant’s signature dish features an extremely well brought up chicken which is cooked in a pig’s bladder and carved at the table. It’s a memorable meal for the eyes as much as the taste buds.