Posts by Tom Johnston
Chef Watch Featuring Robert Corrigan, lately of Mr C’s Pies
Chef Watch Featuring Robert Corrigan latterly of Mr C’s Pies How long have you been a chef? I started cooking in a professional kitchen on 14th February 1969. A Saturday job at a Stakis Steakhouse. I turned 15 the following week. In the June the chef went on holiday and I was the “chef” for…
Read MoreNational Barbecue Month? In May?
As the rain bounces off my window, I have two inspirations for today’s column. The first of these was reading that someone somewhere had decreed May to be the National Barbecue Month. In fairness, the weather in Scotland in May can often be surprisingly good. Sadly, not this year. I have cleaned my barbie in…
Read MoreUNALOME by Graeme Cheevers, Glasgow
UNALOME by Graeme Cheevers 36 Kelvingrove Street, Glasgow G3 7RZ 0141 501 0553 www.unalomebygc.com The Bill A la Carte 3 courses £90 Tasting Menu 6 courses £110 Tasting of Vegetables Menu 6 courses £110 The Score Cooking 9.5/10 | Service 5/5 | Flavour 5/5 Value 5/5 TOTAL 24.5/25 So what’s the coolest…
Read MoreDo You Know The Michelin Man?
No one does, of course. These faceless men and women who selflessly eat out anonymously in the world’s finest establishments, paying their bill at the end and leaving without comment. But what is Michelin all about? The idea for this piece came about from a conversation over dinner. In a Michelin starred restaurant, as it…
Read MoreClaire Macdonald’s Salmon With Watercress And Shallot Sauce
Claire Macdonald A few weeks ago I had the great pleasure of meeting Lady Claire Macdonald. Not only meeting her, but getting her permission to reproduce recipes from her huge range of cookery books. We own about a dozen. I commend each and every one of them to you. Needless to say, you’ll never get…
Read MoreTimberyard, Edinburgh
Timberyard 10 Lady Lawson Street, Edinburgh EH3 9DS 0131 221 1222 www.timberyard.co The Bill Eight Course Tasting Menu £89 A la Carte Snacks £2.00 – £10.00 | Starters £13.00 – £14.00 Mains £23.00 – £29.00 | Desserts £9.00 – £10.00 The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service 4/5 | Flavour 4.5/5 Value…
Read MoreThe Food Producers – Michael Kaplan, Great British Vermouth
Michael Kaplan The supermarket most local to me sits just behind Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium. Next to it is an industrial plant, well protected with security cameras and razor wire. This is not, as you might assume, due to its proximity to Gorgie and Tynecastle Stadium. The principal reason is that they, quite legally, manufacture morphine.…
Read MoreNoble Rot, Soho, London
Noble Rot Soho 2 Greek Street, London W1D 4NB 020 7183 8190 www.noblerot.co.uk The Bill Starters/Snacks £3.00 – £14 | Mains £21.00 – £32.00 Puddings £8.00 – £9.00 The Score Cooking 7.5/10 | Service 4/5 | Flavour 4.5/5 Value 5/5 TOTAL 21/25 Don’t be confused by the picture. Read on. Noble Rot is a…
Read MoreGlenlivet and Bon Accord Do Cocktails
I wrote recently about attending the Masterchefs of GB lunch. There were sponsors a-plenty and we all received a goody bag to take home. Sponsors included The Glenlivet whisky and Bon Accord soft drinks. Not only did the bag have samples, it contained a few cocktail recipes which I thought I would share. But first,…
Read MoreCookery Classes? Beware of Little White Haired Ladies
Lest my good pals Nyssa, Ash and Dereick of the Edinburgh School of Food & Wine are concerned, allow me to allay their fears. Going to a cookery class is usually a fun thing to do. Read recent articles for details. NOT Fiona G Lines Written Pre Class Today, I speak from the other side…
Read MoreJerusalem Artichoke and Ginger Soup
This is a very short recipe – soup ones always are. I was doing some fridge tidying up before we headed off to London for a few days’ hedonism. In the depths of the vegetable drawer (so often a source of inspiration for off the wall stuff) I discovered a bag of Jerusalem artichokes. It…
Read MoreBrasserie Zédel, London
Brasserie Zédel 20 Sherwood Street, London W1F 7ED 020 7734 4888 www.brasseriezedel.com The Bill Prix Fixe 2 courses £13.00 | 3 courses £17.25 Formule (including a glass of wine) 3 courses £27 A la Carte Starters £3.75 – £19.25 | Mains £11.75 – £32.50 Desserts £3.00 – £8.75 The Score Cooking 6/10 |…
Read MoreChef Watch Featuring John McMahon of Prestonfield House, Edinburgh
Chef Watch Featuring John McMahon, Executive Chef of Prestonfield House, Edinburgh How long have you been a chef? I have been a chef for over 35 years ever since leaving school. Why did you become a chef? My father was a publican and as I had no real direction in life at 16 years old…
Read MoreAnn Smyth’s Flourless Chocolate Cake
I am not a great eater of puddings. You may have noticed that the dessert selection is often missing from the Tom Eats! column. (My simple response is to say that it seems to work for Giles Coren, and he’s made a good living out of his scribblings.) I make an exception, however, whenever I…
Read MoreThe Adamson Hotel, Crossford, by Dunfermline, Fife
The Adamson Hotel 27 Main Street, Crossford, Dunfermline, Fife KY12 8NJ 01383 736132 www.theadmasonhotel.com The Bill Set Lunch Sandwiches £5.75 – £7.50 | Soup and any Sandwich £7.95 A la Carte Starters £4.50 – £6.75 | Mains £9.75 – £26.50 (Half Portion Selected Mains £6.75) Desserts £4.95 – £6.75 The Score Cooking 4.5/10…
Read MoreDiets: The Wee Fat Lawyer Revisited
In June and July we published 15 articles aimed at helping you to lose weight and keep it off. On The Side featured, in five instalments, The Wee Fat Lawyer’s Diet Book. For the first time ever, Tom Cooks! had two columns a week, The Wee Fat Lawyer’s A – Z of Food and Recipes from The Wee…
Read MoreChallah Six Strand Loaf
Well, it’s Easter and we like to be seasonal, and give you something to celebrate with. To be extra topical, my plan was to feature Paska, a Ukrainian loaf traditionally made at Easter time. It’s a sweet loaf topped with a coiled, three strand braid. It’s usually jazzed up with saffron, raisins and other fruit. The…
Read MoreAizle, Edinburgh
Aizle 38 Charlotte Square, Edinburgh EH2 4HQ 0131 527 4747 www.aizle.co.uk The Bill 6 Course Tasting Menu £85.00 The Score Cooking 10/10 | Service 5/5 | Flavour 5/5 Value 5/5 TOTAL 25/25 It was twenty years ago today! (No, not actually today. The anniversary to which I refer occurred on the day of…
Read MoreOur Daily Bread at The Edinburgh School of Food & Wine
The plea to the Almighty to give us this day our daily bread is probably the most common prayer in the Christian world. After two days at the Edinburgh School of Food & Wine, I found myself with a fortnight’s worth, and did wonder if I had overdone things a bit. I have been making…
Read MoreCan’t Sear, Won’t Sear: Scallops Part 2
These days, were you to go on a programme such as Masterchef and cook scallops any way other than searing in a hot pan, you would be met with derision. It wasn’t always thus. I remember asking a chef some decades ago how one should cook them. Gently in a lot of butter was the…
Read MoreA Street Near You, La Casa Dalry, Edinburgh
La Casa Dalry 103 – 105 Dalry Road, Edinburgh EH11 2AB 0131 337 2875 www.la-casa-restaurant.co.uk The Bill Set Lunch 2 courses £9.95 | 3 courses £11.95 A la Carte Tapas/Mezze £2.95 – £7.50 | Mains £10.95 – £19.95 Desserts £4.95 – £5.95 The Score Cooking 5.5/10 | Service 4.5/5 | Flavour 4/5 Value 5/5…
Read MoreTom Eats! With The Master Chefs
It’s early April. Another batch of you with 31 March year ends will have hung up your gowns, spreadsheets, laptops or whatevers and joined the happy band. The band, that is, of the wastrels, parasites on society, to wit the retired. So let me tell you how it is, by relating something which happened to…
Read MorePassorn, Edinburgh
Passorn 23 – 23 A Brougham Place, Edinburgh EH3 9JU 0131 229 1537 www.passornthai.com The Bill Set Lunch (Wed – Sat) 2 courses £12.95 Pre Theatre Supper (Mon – Thu 5.00 – 6.45) 2 courses £15.25 A la Carte Starters £6.00 – £8.00 | Mains £10.75 – £18.25 The Score Cooking 8/10 |…
Read MoreScallops Part 1
In Wednesday’s Chef Watch column, Graeme Cheevers chose scallops as his favourite ingredient. He’s certainly not alone in that. It’s a dish I always find hard to overlook on any menu. Like many stars of Scottish produce (especially those from the sea) we’ve moved on a long way from how we used to (mis)treat them.…
Read More