Chef Watch featuring Darin Campbell of Cromlix, by Dunblane
Chef Watch Darin Campbell Head Chef, Cromlix, by Dunblane How long have you been a chef? I’ve been a chef for nearly 30 years. I started out working in a small local hotel in my home town of Largs. I realised I had a passion and talent for cooking so I moved to Edinburgh and…
Read MoreWhen in Rome, Eat Artichokes
If you’re French and you’re reading this, do you realise how much of a laugh the Italians are having at your expense? My admiration of the cuisine of la belle France knows few bounds except, perhaps, when it comes to today’s star ingredient. We refer not the little tubers which cause extreme flatulence, the so called…
Read MoreLa P’tite Folie, Edinburgh
La P’tite Folie 9 Randolph Place, Edinburgh EH2 1LH 0131 225 8678 www.laptitefolie.co.uk The Bill 2 Courses Set Lunch £19.95 A la carte Starters £6.50 – £14.00 | Mains £16.00 – £29.95 Desserts £7.50 The Score Cooking 6/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 4/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 19/25 St James Centre – A Planning…
Read MoreWater? Water Fuss!
How long would you like the extended warranty to be for? Like all attempted con tricks, this one was delivered with flair, with a smile and, of course, with absolute confidence (hence the name). If, on the first of June this year, you part with some of your hard earned for a five year warranty…
Read MoreOne, Two, Salsa!
No! Not that sort of salsa! If you think I’m going to be a dance master in April, you little know your man. Even before the titanium hip I discovered that I had been born lacking a sense of rhythm. The delights of dancing the salsa (which, as you know, is a Cuban fusion of…
Read MoreDaika Kanm, Edinburgh
Daika Kanm 3 Johnston Terrace, Edinburgh EH1 2PW 0131 225 1329 www.daika.co.uk The Bill A la carte Starters £8.60 – £10.50 | Mains £17.95 – £22.85 Desserts £6.50 – £8.95 The Score Cooking 4/10 | Service 3/5 Flavour 3/5 | Value 3/5 TOTAL 13/25 A confession. The Johnston family owes an apology or two to…
Read MoreA Decade of Tom’s Food!
March 31 was the tenth anniversary of my retiring from the practice of law. One door closes, a hundred restaurant doors open. It wasn’t quite the plan. People have asked why the Tom’s Food! domain name is www.ormidalels.com. Simple, really. It’s short for Ormidale Licensing Services. Glasgow’s coat of arms features a bird that never…
Read MoreButterflied Leg of Lamb with Home Made Mint Sauce
Well, sod seasonality! I said firmly to the laptop. No, I’m not referring to what we should cook or eat, but to the issues it raises for us scribblers. You might think that Easter would be a gift, with all its food traditions. Yes, but this is the ninth year of Tom Cooks! Fortunately, many of…
Read Morepizzologist, Edinburgh – Guest Reviewer Miranda Heggie
pizzologist 70 Haymarket Terrace, Edinburgh EH12 5LQ 0131 603 0173 www.pizzologist.co.uk The Bill A la carte Starters £4.00 – £12.00 | Mains £7.50 – £12.50 Desserts £2.00 – £8.00 The Score Cooking 7/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 21/25 The winner of the Tom Eats! Be A Restaurant…
Read MoreNational Food Days
When news is slow, journalists (and, I confess, food bloggers) can struggle to find material. On the food front, a constant source of entertainment is to look up the mutitudinous foodstuffs which have been allocated a specific day or week. There are of course a few which have long standing significance. Perhaps the best known…
Read MoreGoulash, Of Course
I’m shocked, let me tell you. Totally shocked. No, I’m not being Louis Renault, Casablanca’s police chief, on discovering that gambling is carried on at Ricks Cafe (just before receiving his winnings). Rather it’s the lack of goulash recipes out there. My go to encylopaedia is Prue Leith’s Cookery Bible. There you can find out how…
Read MoreThink Austro-Hungary: Think Goulash
Come On, You Reds! Today’s column is inspired by a recent visit to Vienna, to visit the grandson (and his parents, of course). The boy’s education is coming along nicely. If you say to him, come on, he will, without bidding, add, you Reds. I’m fairly certain his choice of weekend attire was responsible for Man…
Read MoreEducated Flea, Edinburgh
Educated Flea 32B Broughton Street, Edinburgh EH1 3SB 0131 556 8092 www.educatedflea.co.uk The Bill Lunch 2 courses £20.00 A la carte Starters £6.00 | Mains £15.00 Sharing Plates (for 2) £30.00 – £60.00 | Desserts £6.00 Dinner Starters £6.00 – £10.00 | Mains £18.00 £26.00 Sharing Plates (for 2) £36.00 – £60.00 | Desserts…
Read MoreThe Ubiquitous Chip, Glasgow
The Ubiquitous Chip 12 Ashton Lane, Glasgow G12 8SJ 0141 334 5007 www.ubiquitouschip.co.uk The Bill A la carte Starters £9.00 – £16.00 | Mains £19.00 – £35.00 The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 4.5/5 TOTAL 21.5/25 Nooo! I said to myself. It’s happened. Worst fears realised. When you…
Read MoreSome Rhubarb Thoughts
Those of you of a certain age may be having a nostalgic chuckle at this point. Rhubarb is radio jargon for unintelligible background speech. Extras would mutter the word over and over to provided atmosphere for, say, a party scene. The Goons, ultimate radio anarchists, had a sketch where it was repeated, clearly and audibly,…
Read MoreRhubarb and Edinburgh
My next vocation will be a hazardous one. It will involve walking through great crowds. There will almost certainly be fire eaters. Chainsaws may be buzzing and the noise will be infernal. That is a modest description of Edinburgh’s Royal Mile during the Edinburgh Festival in August. Eh? Oh, let me explain. I am on…
Read MoreThe Prahna Indian Grill, Edinburgh
The Prahna Indian Grill 295A St John’s Road Edinburgh EH12 7XF 0131 334 9998 www.theprahna.co.uk The Bill A la carte Starters £7.50 – £14.00 | Mains £12.00 – £32.00 The Score Cooking 7/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 4/5 TOTAL 19.5/25 Prahna: Breath, Considered A Life Giving Force Prahna Is Not…
Read MoreChristopher Trotter’s Cheat’s Cassoulet
You may have noticed the low and slow theme recently. As well as oxtail and beef short ribs, my haul from Balgove Farm included a good chunk of pork belly. That’s currently in the freezer, but with an offspring scheduled to visit soon, the mind is turning over what to do with it. A few…
Read MoreRestaurants Are Too Expensive – Eh?
Anything is expensive if you can’t afford it. Of course I get that. And with the horrendous across the board price increases which we have seen recently, many have had to readjust budgets. Luxuries such as eating out are the first to be culled. I get that too; however, I guess you don’t read a…
Read MoreThe Fat Pheasant Country Pub, Newton, by Edinburgh
The Fat Pheasant Country Pub 13 -15 Main Street, Newton, EH52 6QE West Lothian 0131 629 8671 www.fatpheasantnewton.co.uk The Bill A la carte Starters £5.95- £12.95 | Mains £15.95 – £29.95 Desserts £7.50 The Score Team L Cooking 3/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 2/5 | Value 2/5 TOTAL 11/25 Team T Cooking 8.5/10 |…
Read MoreBraised Beef Short Ribs Asian Style
While the nights may be getting longer, the miserable weather which fills them calls for slow cooking. Now with a recipe which is best done over two days, the climate may have improved by day two, but it’s a risk worth taking. While in St Andrews recently I popped into Balgove farm shop. Their prices…
Read MoreWant To Be A Restaurant Reviewer? Enter And Win A Prize
Or maybe you like the idea of a free meal for 2 with wine and cocktails at Tapa in Leith, the Tom Eats! Restaurant of the Year in 2023? Yes, for once we are offering a real prize, not just a year’s free subscription. All you have to do is to pen a review of a…
Read MoreSea Bass with Ginger and Spring Onions
I’d rather be a horse than a rat. But deep down I secretly envy my as yet unborn grandchild. If all goes well in April, he or she will be a dragon. Now who wouldn’t want that? As you may know, tomorrow (Saturday) marks the Chinese New Year. I discover I was born in the…
Read MoreDine Craiglockhart, Edinburgh
Dine Craiglockhart 101B Colinton Road, Edinburgh EH14 1AL 0131 229 2929 www.craiglockhart.scot The Bill Set Menu 2 courses £21.50 | 3 courses £28.50 A la carte Starters £7.00 – £10.50 | Mains £16.00 – £27.50 Desserts £6.50 – £7.50 The Score Cooking 7.5/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 21.5/25…
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