Great burgers in Edinburgh - a comparison of reputedly awesome burger joints

I've based this post mostly on my boyfriend Grant's opinions, rather than mine. He's a fantastic judge of burgers and all things meat and, it pains me to say that I'm wheat intolerant, so I don't often have burgers. It's nothing drastic and I won't break out in a rash or get a bulging eyeball if I eat a small amount of it, but if I eat something like a burger then there's a good chance I'll get a nasty stomach ache and feel generally unwell. I won't lie, sometimes it's absolutely worth it.

There are a few places in Edinburgh known for good burgers, although Grant and I haven't tried them all. The ones I know are:

• The Cambridge Bar (Young St, New Town)
• Wannaburger (Queensferry St, West End)
• Gourmet Burger Kitchen (George St, New Town) 
• The Holyrood 9A (Holyrood Road). 

The Cambridge Bar and the Holyrood 9A are both pubs, whereas the others are cafes. I think the Holyrood 9A is also quite young, and isn't as well known, but the Cambridge Bar has been around a while. I'm reviewing these two mostly because they're both pubs - and I like pubs - and both known for great burgers. There are probably endless places that have a burger as an option on their menu, but these places make them their focus.

The Holyrood 9A
We've been to the Holyrood 9A a couple of times now and the place itself is a great blend of slick and cosy (high ceilings, dark wood and floorboards and the odd stag print, plus heaps of boutique beers on tap). The service is friendly and casual but on the ball. Ah, but the burgers are excellent, with thought put into the menu to offer something for everyone - including haloumi and portobello mushroom burgers for vegetarians.

On these two occasions Grant's had the 'MOS' and the 'Bacon Guacamole'. The MOS was sauteed mushrooms with a subtle taste of rosemary, a juicy and plump beef patty and Swiss cheese on a sourdough roll, and the Bacon Guacamole burger, was, er, pretty much as it sounds, but really fresh and tasty. I had a sneaky bite of these burgers and could easily have wolfed into more but I'd ordered a couple of non-burger small dishes instead: lamb kofta with cucumber yoghurt and chicken skewers with a chili jam (there are also a few other non-burger items on the menu). Both were simple dishes, and I think they could have been more heavy-handed with the spices in the lamb kofta, but they tasted good, the meat was succulent, and the price and serving size was reasonable. I think next time I might take my chances on the stomach ache, knowing that I'll get a damn good burger and it'll be worth it.

The Cambridge Bar
At the Cambridge Bar, the menu is more limited. It's strictly burgers. Not a bad thing, really. Easy for Grant, but for me, they had the option of 'low-carb burgers', minus the bun but with extra salad (because of the wheat factor, not because I'm watching my figure). I chose the Hawaiian and he went for the Aussie (I realise how predictable that must sound).

Grant's Aussie was the typical leaning tower you'd expect from something with beetroot, egg and pineapple as well as the beef patty and bun, although unfortunately the ultra refined and slightly stale bun made it even more difficult to eat because the bun was so refined and dried out. It crumbled and fell apart. Not cool, considering the bun is the means with which to grasp the burger and shove in one's mouth. Just a shame, when there was a fair bit to like about the rest.

The benefit of my low-carb option was being able to taste the actual patty and toppings better without the aforementioned dry, refined bun. The patty was a little dry, but with a nice beefy flavour, and topped with a great mature cheddar, satisfyingly-salty bacon and grilled pineapple. Nice balance of salty and sweet.

But another disappointment: the chips. I know this is meant to be about burgers - not chips - but chips are the common sidekick to burgers. At the Holyrood 9A they use shoestring fries - rather than hand-cut chips or something more original (some Australians might think the herbed chips at Grill'd spring to mind) - but they're at least freshly-cooked and crunchy. The ones at Cambridge Bar were chunky, yet withered things that may or may not been sitting in a bain-marie-type vessel for some time. In the land of chip-lovers, I wonder if this would break Edinburghers' hearts.

Oddly enough, the thing that impressed Grant most about the Cambridge Bar was their strawberry milkshake. It was made with a premium ice cream and real strawberries, which might sound ridiculous, but with many made with supercharged, artificial topping, it's something to be very happy about. To flip it back to the Holyrood 9A again, they do milkshakes too: I'd say their chocolate one is just as orgasmic, very chocolatey, in a more authentic way.

My recommendation
For a burger hit, go to the Holyrood 9A over Cambridge Bar.  We still enjoyed our food at the Cambridge Bar, but the Holyrood 9A won us over first and the Cambridge Bar's delivery didn't stand up to its reputation compared to the Holyrood 9A.

For a cheaper option if you're in the West End of Edinburgh, you could always go for the much more casual, American diner-style Wannaburger. It's not a place where you'd hang out for much longer than it takes to wolf down your burger (although you can get beer on tap now) but still tasty, reasonably-priced burgers.

Are there other great burger joints? Have I rated these ones unfairly? I'd love to know what you think.

The search for great coffee in Edinburgh

I like tea, but it doesn't set my world on fire like coffee does. Shame because they do tea so well in Edinburgh - and probably Scotland in general - and probably the UK in general.

Unfortunately coffee isn't appreciated as much as tea here. In Edinburgh, coffee can be really hit and miss. When it's great it's rich, smooth, oh-so-satisfying and great to look at, BUT when it's bad, it can taste like licking a road.

This blog is primarily about food and I think: why write about finding great coffee when someone else has already done a sensational job of it? I know someone who writes a great little blog called 'Edinburgh Coffee Lovers' (best consumed with a nice flat white).

I must say that based on where I've had coffee, the ratings in this blog are bang on. There are some absolute gems rated in this blog, as well as some shockers to avoid - if you don't care for scorched tongues, face-twisting bitterness or coffee that tastes like gravy.

KG's Coffee Shop in William Street - worth a visit if you love great coffee and wholesome, quality lunches

I live in a quaint little street here in Edinburgh, William Street in the West End. My end is full of wealthy ladies' clothing boutiques (useless to me) and three pubs (not so useless, but I don't drop in as often as I could).

A couple of months ago, a little coffee shop opened in the other end of William Street, but being down the quieter end and not screaming out, it wasn't until my boyfriend popped in to try their coffee that we realised we have a haven of good affordable coffee in our own street and excellent food (although, before you get too excited, you'll need to go there during the week - they're not open on weekends unfortunately).

Ewan and Mark, who run KG's ('K' for Scotsman Ewan's surname Kasprowicz and 'G' for Englishman Mark's surname Green), are super friendly and chatty guys. We struck up a conversation with them when we first came in about how they lived in Melbourne for several years, working in restaurants and cafes there (Ewan's the chef and Mark's the barista).   They told us they loved Melbourne, and when dreaming up their new business, they were keen to offer West End locals healthy food and variety, making good use of Scotland's excellent produce. They didn't want to just offer sandwiches or stodge. They also added that coffee in Edinburgh is generally crap (as in, you have to be selective - there are definitely some great coffee spots here).

Mark uses Artisan Roast beans. Well, lots of cafes in Edinburgh do, and they like to make a point of it, even though high-quality Artisan Roast beans are useless unless combined with a good machine and someone who knows how to use it (and I don't profess to be one of these people).  Thankfully, Mark's coffee is smooth, strong, full of flavour, with crema intact and looking lovely. Your sugar is no good here.

Back to Ewan's food. As I said, I was amazed that when I first went in there, it's not all about sandwiches. Sandwiches are a big lunchtime thing here, and it's fair to say they're easy and can be really healthy, but they can also be dull, and useless people who must eat gluten-free.

They still serve sandwiches here - as well as stovies, a Scottish potato and meat stew - but the fillings for the sandwiches are presented in a glass cabinet in KG's that is vibrant with colour - filled with roasted Mediterranean vegetables, caramelised onions, tomato and basil salad, roasted parsnips, thinly slized chorizo and good-quality ham. Always fresh-looking, not like the congealed slop you see in the refrigerator cabinets in some other sandwich shops.

Aside from this variety, I love Ewan's hot lunches. They're 3.80, regardless of the dish, which changes daily. I've had grilled crispy sea bass with a citrus salsa and rocket and roast new potatoes, chicken and sweet potato curry, roast chicken breast with crispy pancetta and tomato and vegetable ragu, as well as more hearty dishes like sausage and parsnip casserole. It's always been hearty and been wholesome, with plenty of vegies. Ewan must feel strongly about this, because he never falters. I could eat his lunches every day and know that I'm eating well. And 3.80?! I've paid much more for this kind of food in restaurants, and been more impressed with the quality of Ewan's food.

As well as these hot lunches, there are two hot soups each day. I could get soup from the cafeteria at my work, but don't see the point when they're always delicious, interesting and wholesome here. My favourite's the Thai butternut squash (which, as an Aussie, I know as butternut pumpkin). Finally, I also need to commend Ewan for his sausage rolls.  He makes them with pork (which is great in Scotland), plus sage, apple and Arran mustard "from the Isle of Arran," Ewan emphasised. All wrapped in flakey, caramelised puff pastry.

I'd love these guys to open their shop on weekends, and to make me breakfast, but as most of the customers are from the local West End businesses, it's not viable for them to be open on weekends. This won't stop me going constantly for my morning/afternoon coffee and hearty hot lunches and soups. If you're in the West End, bypass Pret a Manger for a change, and give KG's a try.

Illegal Jacks - simple, cheap, messy and tasty

This is a quick one, promise.

Illegal Jacks is a casual tex mex joint on bustling Lothian Road. I'd been past there a couple of times and thought, "this place could either be really terrible, or really awesome."

Well, it's probably not really either of these, but it is pretty good value and not necessarily unhealthy (well, nachos are never really going to be good for you).

Illegal Jacks has a surprisingly small menu, like it dedicates itself to doing a few things simply and well. You can grab burritos, fajitas, tacos, nachos, chili con carne and salads.

Let's start with the burritos. They're huge. HUGE. They're loaded with your pick of rice, beans, beef, chicken, guacamole, sour cream and Monterey Jack cheese, mild, medium or roasted salsa, wrapped up in one big fat tortilla log and handed to you.

Next, the fajitas. These I love because they have the characteristically smoky flavour that fajitas should have. Again, a good amount of food. You fill your own tortillas.

A low point of Illegal Jacks for me is that too often they've been playing Matchbox 20, and quite loud (dare I sound like a granny). Of course, if you love your classic rock, then you'll be in Heaven.

Another is that although I find the chili con carne rather tasty and nicely spiced, it has a saltiness which, to me, gets in the way a bit. This hasn't stopped me from ordering the chili beef nachos several times, or the chili rice bowl. A big spoonful of guacamole helps, but if you suffer from heartburn, don't eat it as quickly as I always do.

The high points are that it's great value, IF you have the appetite for such a large serving. As well as that, everything's fresh and prepared on premises (no, really). They have three kinds of homemade salsa, lovely fresh and zesty guacamole and they don't slop all this on your food. You control the amount because you're either standing in front of them as they make it or, depending on what you order, it comes with little bowls full of the stuff.
 
Despite the little bowls though, it's really hard to eat in a tidy fashion here. That's no criticism of Jack's, but probably this style of food in general. I'm not great at this at the best of times, but I got lots of snickering from some young blokes who seemed to get enjoyment out of me getting meaty juices down my arm, and salsa slopped on my nose.

I also like that Jack's is nice and relaxed, with simple and clean designs - wooden stalls/benches not unlike Wagamama (without the communal part). It's always clean, and that somehow makes you feel less feral than you might otherwise feel eating this style of food, or at least until you mess up the place by eating your food the way I do.

Oh, the other thing. NO fries on the menu. This doesn't happen often in Edinburgh eateries. I've seen Thai restaurants offering fries on the menu, AND I've seen people order pasta with a side of chips, and I've seen people put butter and cheese on chips. To not offer fries is a bold move. I high-five Illegal Jacks for this.

The Witchery by the Castle

I’m not setting a precedent with this one, honestly. I really can't afford to eat at places like this too often.

As I said in my first post, I don’t really go for fine dining. It's expensive, and I don't feel comfortable in such formal surrounds... Although I'm 25, I'm still not really sure I actually hold my knife and fork properly. It's kind of caveman-like, but it's comfortable so I'm not changing. Nope.

Yeah. I’d rather be able to sit down and relax, and not really worry too much if I have a noodle hanging off my chin (not that fine dining restaurants generally serve noodles).

So, The Witchery was an exception because while my folks were in town, I wanted us to try somewhere really special for dinner and I thought this would fit the bill as well as having that 'Edinburgh' feel to it - reeking (although not literally these days) of its spooky history, while being absolutely stunning and uber cosy. I was mostly drawn to this place because of how it looked. It looks AMAZING. By that I mean - as the name evokes - it's got this very Baroque-style interior, with stone walls and murals, oak-panelled walls and burgundy leather stalls, and, it's lit almost entirely by candlelight. The latter actually makes things a bit tricky, and in trying to read the menu properly, my dad managed to obliviously trickle melted candle wax on the table.

Maybe because of the reputation this place seems to have as somewhere very special, I thought The Witchery was a Michelin-starred restaurant. It's not, but it's certainly well-regarded, and it's definitely fine dining.

In good news though, we found the service was surprisingly unpretentious and relaxed, but really attentive. The waiter was a lovely guy. He was from South Africa, so we snapped up a conversation with him about living in Edinburgh... Whoops, I digress.

Then the food...

The food is a blend of French and Scottish cuisine.  I had the confit (a fancy term for something that's cooked in fat) chicken breast and thigh with leek risotto and oyster mushrooms; mum had the ‘three pigs’ – pork belly, bacon, and pork cutlets with apple sauce and roast parsnips, and dad had the hot-smoked salmon with… oh I can't remember. Dad liked it, but I was too wrapped up in being underwhelmed. I had a very petite servicing chicken and a tablespoon or two of the leek risotto, surrounded by some sauteed wild mushrooms. Although beautifully-cooked, there just wasn’t enough of it.

Pfft. The broad white plates, with small, immaculately-presented and garnished mains looked impressive, but it’s almost like unless you have a small appetite, you need to turn up here without being ‘ready for dinner’ or eat quite a bit of bread. Perhaps I'm just greedy?

Either way, in all of this, what we couldn’t help coming back to was that some of the dishes at the Witchery were of a similar style to those at The Shore in Leith – one of our favourites, which I'll review later – but the prices were so much higher. In some cases, the meals are better at the Shore and for nearly half the price, and still in intimate surrounds and with similar service. So, go here if it's a really special occasion, but if you were planning on going mostly for the food, don't. The food is only a secondary cost after the service, location and ambiance.