Margot, Edinburgh

  Margot 7 – 8 Barclay Terrace, Edinburgh EH10 4HP 0131 281 4170     www.margotedinburgh.co.uk The Bill  A la carte  £7.80 – £14.00  The Score Cooking 6/10 | Service 3/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 4/5  TOTAL 17.5/25  Margo(t). You wait years for the girl, then two arrive at once. Well, that’s not entirely accurate. Margo,…

Read More

Bell Bottom Indian Eatery Edinburgh

  Bell Bottom Indian Eatery 2 Polwarth Crescent, Edinburgh EH11 1HW 0131 467 2555    www.bellbottomeatery.co.uk The Bill  Lunch – Thali (Drink Included)  Veg £19.99 | Non Veg £22.99 A la carte  Starters £6.99 – £8.99 | Mains £8.99 – £19.99  The Score Cooking 6.5/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 4.5/5  TOTAL 20.5/25 …

Read More

sō-lō, Aughton, Merseyside

  sō-lō 17 Town Green Lane, Aughton, Ormskirk L59 6SE 01695 302170  www.restaurantsolo.co.uk   The Bill Lunch Menu (3 courses) £52.00 Sunday Lunch Menu (4 courses) £64.00  Tasting Menu (6 courses) £105.00  The Score Cooking 10/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 25/25  We like to think of this as more than…

Read More

Tiger Rock, Liverpool

  Tiger Rock North John Street, Liverpool L2 9RU 0151 363 6650  www.tigerrockliverpool.uk     The Bill Small Plates £6.80 – £11.80 | Desserts £4.80 – £6.80  The Score Cooking 5.5/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 4/5 | Value 4.5/5  TOTAL 18/25  It’s Grand National weekend in Liverpool, further extending the range of remarkable Scouse sights. There are more…

Read More

Purslane Restaurant, Edinburgh

  Purslane Restaurant 33A St Stephen Street, Edinburgh EH3 5AH 0131 226 3500  www.purslanerestaurant.co.uk   The Bill  Lunch  Two courses £29.95 | Three courses £34.95 Dinner – Tasting Menu Only 5 courses £75.00 | 7 courses £95.00  The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service 3.5/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 5/5  TOTAL 21.5/25  Purslane. No, not one…

Read More

The Best Meal: The Worst Meal

Six months or so ago I issued an invitation to all of you who have provided guest reviews over the years. The call was to contribute articles recalling your best ever, or worst ever, dining experience, or both. It would appear that many of you have, ahem, forgotten. But a single response was received. Since…

Read More

Capri, Fuseta, Algarve, Portugal

  Capri Praça da República 4  8700-012 Fuseta, Algarve, Portugal +351  289 793 165  Instagram www.instagram.com/cafecaprifz     The Bill (in Euros)* Mains €7.50 – €19.00 Desserts €3.50 * Prawns, crab and langoustines are sold by weight  The Score Cooking 6.5/10 | Service 4.5/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 5/5  TOTAL 20.5/25  As a youth I…

Read More

Craobh, Crieff

   Craobh 26 James Square, Crieff PH7 3EY 01764 650762    www.craobhrestaurant.com The Bill Brunch/Lunch Brunch Dishes £7.50 – £10.50 | Sandwiches £9.50 – £12.50 Mains £14.00 – £33.00 | Desserts £1.50 – £8.50  Dinner Small Plates £8.50 – £10.00 | Mains £15.00 – £33.00  Desserts £1.50 – £8.50  The Score Cooking 5.5/10 | Service…

Read More

Dinner in St Petersburg – Guest Reviewer, Binkie Johnston

  Peterhof, St Petersburg 1914   We first encountered my ancestor Binkie Johnston four years ago when we published his account of the last meal served from the First Class kitchen of the Titanic. Many of you assumed he had perished: some were kind enough to send condolences. I did drop a hint that we…

Read More

Rogue, St Andrews

   Rogue 209  South Street, St Andrews KY16 9EF 01334 470354  www.rogue-standrews.com The Bill* Starters £8.00 – £18.00 | Mains £22.00 – £44.00  Desserts £7.00 – £9.00 *Most seafood and premium cuts of beef are charged at market prices  The Score Cooking 6/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 4/5 | Value 4/5  TOTAL 19/25  Congratulate me,…

Read More

Muna’s Ethiopian Cuisine, Edinburgh

   Muna’s Ethiopian Cuisine 8 Gillespie Place, Edinburgh EH10 4HS 07886 118334  Instagram munasethiopiancuisine The Bill Veggie Dishes £12.95 – £13.95 | Meat Dishes £15.95 – £16.95   Combo Platters for one £15.95/£18.95 (Larger platters are available)  The Score Cooking 6/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 4/5 | Value 5/5  TOTAL 20/25  Joy. It’s an old fashioned…

Read More

Wallawwa, near Negombo, Sri Lanka

   Wallawwa Minuwangoda-Gampaha-Miriswatta Rd, Kotugoda, Sri Lanka +94 77 363 8381 www.teardrop-hotels.com/wallawwa/   The Bill*  Starters  £6.25 – £11.50 | Rice and Curry £10.50 – £24.50 Mains £9.00 – £24.25 | Dessert £3.00 – £6.50 The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service – 4/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 4/5  TOTAL 21/25  *Exchange Rate £1 – 350…

Read More

Review of 2024. Part 2: 1 – 17=

RANK     RESTAURANT TOWN SCORE     COMMENTS 1 The Ritz NATIONAL RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR London     24 Perfection at a price. Executive Chef John Williams enjoys legendary status. Well deserved bit.ly/4cacb5l 2 Macau Kitchen SCOTTISH RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR Edinburgh     23 Unlikely that you will have eaten food like…

Read More

Review of 2024. Part 1: 20 – 34

It’s very hard to believe that it’s that time of year again. Scores overall are significantly higher than in 2023. It could be that I’m getting softer as an assessor, but I think not. I can think of only two or three places where the food was mediocre or worse. Most of those at the…

Read More

Why Tom (Sometimes) Doesn’t Eat

  A Restaurant With No Name Somewhere in Scotland   A ridiculous title, of course. Anyone who knows me will be aware that I couldn’t have got to my present shape without regular sessions in the nosebag. What it should have read, had I had a half decent sub editor, was Why Tom Sometimes Doesn’t…

Read More

Maison François, London

  Maison François 34 Duke Street, St James, London SW1Y 6DF 020 3988 5777      www.maisonfrancois.london The Bill  Starters  £9.00 – £25.00  Mains £18.00 – £47.50 | Dessert £3.50 – £13.50 The Score Cooking 5.5/10  Service – Dylan 3/5; Sam 5/5 – Average 4/5 Flavour 3.5/5 | Value 3/5 TOTAL 16/25  For heaven’s sake,…

Read More

Quo Vadis, London

  Quo Vadis 26 – 29 Dean Street, Soho, London W1D 3LL 020 7437 9585  www.quovadissoho.co.uk The Bill The Bite! £7.50 – £8.50 | Starters  £9.50 – £16.50  Mains £17.00 – £38.80 | Pudding £9.50 – £11.00 The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 4/5 TOTAL 21.5/25  Did we always crave reassurance,…

Read More

dulse leith, Edinburgh

  dulse leith 102 Constitution Street, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6AW 0131 283 3309   www.dulse.co.uk/dulseleith The Bill* Savoury Plates £12.00 – £35.00  Dessert Ice Cream £2.50 per scoop The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 5/5 | Value 4/5 TOTAL 22/25  * Oysters are available at £3.50 each. Baked Fish with Champagne & Chive Velouté…

Read More

Makani Indian & Arab Kitchen, Edinburgh

  Makani Indian & Arab Kitchen 88 Haymarket Terrace, Edinburgh EH12 5LQ 0131 287 2587  website not yet up and running The Bill Starters £4.49 – £6.49 | Mains £6.99 – £15.99 The Score Cooking 6.5/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 20/25 Everyone, I’m sure, has heard of the Bermuda Triangle, that area…

Read More

Veeno, Edinburgh

    Veeno Edinburgh 76 Rose Street, Edinburgh EH2 2NN  www.veenobars.com/edinburgh The Bill I Piattini  £5.50 – £13.50  | I Taglieri £15.00 – £19.50 Le Pizze £13.00 – £17.50 | La Pasta £11.00 – £15.00  Desserts ? The Score Cooking 5/10 | Service 4.5/5 Flavour 3/5 | Value 4/5 TOTAL 15.5/25 After tasting three dozen wines…

Read More

Dhoom, Dunfermline

    Dhoom 19 – 25 New Row, Dunfermline KY127EA 01383 223340  www.dhoomuk.co.uk The Bill 7 Course Taster Menu (Lunch Only) £16.95  10 Course Taster Menu £28.95  A la carte  Starters £7.50 – £9.95 | Mains £10.95 – £18.95  Desserts £4.95 – £5.95 The Score Cooking 6/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 4/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 20/25 In the restaurant…

Read More

Locanda Terramare, Turin

    Locanda Terramare Via Silvio Pellico 2B. 10125 Turin +39 011 1903 2953   www.terramarelocanda.it The Bill (Euros) Antipasti €11.00 – €22.00 | Primi Piatti €15.00 – €24.00 Secondi Piatti €16.00 – €26.00  | Dolci  €6.00 – €7.50   The Score Cooking 8/10 | Service 5/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 4.5/5 TOTAL 22/25 Trip Advisor has…

Read More

Il Tucano 2, Pegli, Genoa

    Il Tucano 2 Via Pegli 10 rosso  16156, Pegli, Genoa 010 696 9780    Website – click here     The Bill (Euros) Antipasti €8.00 – €16.00 | Primi Piatti €14.00 – €16.00 Secondi Piatti €14.00 – €25.00  | Dolci  €6.00 – €7.00   The Score Cooking 5/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 4/5 | Value…

Read More

Ristorante Miro, Genoa

    Ristorante Miro Viale Giorgio Modugno 33r,16156 Pegli, Genoa +39 010 696 9351  www.ristorantemiroge.com The Bill (Euros) Antipasti €13.00 – €17.00 | Primi Piatti €11.00 – €14.00 Secondi Piatti €12.00 – €27.00  | Dolci  €4.00 – €6.00   The Score Cooking 6/10 | Service 4/5 Flavour 4.5/5 | Value 5/5 TOTAL 19.5/25 Truth be told,…

Read More