Cosy salvation at the Westroom

The snow that's hit Edinburgh has really taken it's toll. I've been kind of torn.

The view from Princes St up towards the Old Town and the castle is spectacular, and there's a stunning sea of white all around, at least until you look a bit closer at the brown slush around your ankles and then you find that solid ice has formed overnight and any coordination you might have doesn't seem to make a difference. Walking on lumpy ice is bound to result in a fall at some point, or at least an awkward, goofy stumble - one of those ones where you're not sure whether to laugh at yourself obligingly; look around to see if anyone saw; or attempt to hold your dignity intact and continue to walk on, eyes forward.

This is unprecedented for Edinburgh (snow, not poor coordination). I've been told it does snow, but not this much and not this early!

The city hasn't really known what to do with itself. People have been stranded on the M8 (highway between Glasgow and Edinburgh), for 12+ hours, people unable to get to work and businesses shut as a result, and peoples' houses are crippling in one way or another. Our humble abode, for example, has had boiler troubles for months and being puny Aussies we can't really take it. Well, everyone's going to struggle in a freezing house with no hot water, but it certainly hasn't helped that we've not long been back from a visit to Australia where we basked in a handful of 30 degree days.

So, when we finished work to come home to a letter from plumber - who'd been in the house installing a new boiler (which we were thrilled about) - telling us that out of his control, the house's water supply had frozen solid and so, we had no water at all, all we could do was rock back and forth in our own patheticness. It's not really a big deal. I mean really. But it's a tad frustrating, depressing and bloody freezing!

After some time squatting in our lounge next to the one electric heater that we have, and rocking back and forth for a while longer, we sought refuge at the Westroom on Melville Place (same owners of Monteiths and Sygn). It's a slick, cute, little bar/cafe/restaurant with a Swedish feel to it, and, despite its very polished look, it's blended with warm lighting and some traditional Scottish touches (the stag's head for example - not sure if it's real or not). These soften it, give it a very subtle rustic touch and make it damn cosy. I'm in love with the super cool screenprint - a panorama of Edinburgh with Calton Hill, a soldier on a horse, the castle, the Scott Monument and the other brilliant things in Edinburgh's skyline (not that the word 'skyline' really works for Edinburgh, but you know what I mean) juxtaposed. I'm also in love with the HUGE lampshades that hang from the roof, made with vintage floral fabric.

The Scottish factor is completely there in the food. This wouldn't be what I'd be after all year round, but with these temperatures, even if you like lighter food, you inevitably crave something richer. At the Westroom it's all about hearty, warming food such as fish and chips in a bag with chippy sauce and pickled onions, winter stew with root vegetables and rump steak with chunky chips. Desserts are apple and rhubarb crumble with custard, and warm chocolate brownie with ice cream, as well as the cheese board option. We had 'the pigs in blankets' for our main, which was good quality pork, coriander (the spice, not the herb in this case) and chilli sausages, wrapped in bacon and served on mash. Not really healthy, but that's not the point.

The other reason that the Westroom was a cosy little sanctuary for us after our boiler/water woes was because of the amazing mulled wine they had on offer. It wasn't anything like the nasty, face-puckering stuff I had at the German markets. Sure it was probably made with fairly cheap wine, but had been made with clementine peel (a citrus fruit that I don't think I've seen in Australia) and the perfect blend of spices.

Only complaint was having to walk home back to our freezing house. We now have a new boiler but the flat's taking its time in getting back to a more comfortable temperature. I'm contemplating heading back right now if only to drink mulled wine in such a cosy atmosphere with exciting aesthetics. Hmm...

I'm back in Melbourne

...but just for a visit. I'm here for my brother's wedding, which I'm stoked to be able to come back for, and it has the bonus of being at the time of the year when weather in Victoria is pretty good (good for their wedding, hopefully - it's next week - and good for giving me some time to defrost and soak up some vitamin D (while wearing SPF 30+, of course). There's been some rainy days I've been told, but it's been three days and it's been gorgeous. I did get a little chilly last night, but that's fair enough since I was only wearing a sun dress and thongs (flip flops to those in the UK), as opposed to thermals, coats, scarves and gloves. Ah, it's bliss.

I thought there was value in posting something from here since my driver for starting this blog was because I'd become accustomed to great food in Melbourne and wanted to review and reflect on the food in a city that was new to me: the lovely Edinburgh. 

Since I've been in Melbourne for my visit I've squished in plenty of amazing food. When I first touched down in Melbourne I stayed in a hotel in Spencer St (in the south of Melbourne's CBD), and so in the morning I lazily (and jet laggedly, if that's a word) wandered up to Queen Victoria Market. 

If you don't know it - either because you're not from Melbourne/Australia or because you've never been (in which case, you're a fool!) - it's glorious. There's a great market culture in Melbourne and it can be very affordable to shop at markets. 

I didn't buy much to take away because I knew I'd be moving around while I'd be here, but it was a feast for my eyes. The cheeses, the meats, the antipasti, artisan breads, teas, wines, honey, organic produce, wholegrains, as well as the hot food places that offer burek, pizza (from the Colour of Earth stall, which has several gluten free base options and some interesting toppings), kransky and more... my eyes were wide and I may have had a bit of drool coming out the side of my mouth. I love this about Melbourne - not drool, but the appreciation of great, fresh food, the multiculturalism and diversity and what this has meant for food in Melbourne, and the zest that people have for all of this. There's not just the Queen Victoria Market, there's also Preston, Prahran, South Melbourne and Footscray and Camberwell markets (all suburbs of Melbourne). I must say that I severely miss this about Edinburgh. The Edinburgh Farmers' Market is great, although much smaller, but it's less accessible in terms of price. Unless you buy what you need and not just what you crave, it can get expensive very quickly. 

To emphasise how much food I've had already and how much I love food, here's where else I've eaten since I've been here:

• Le Triskel, Hardware Lane, City (Authentic French creperie that serves savoury buckwheat galettes, sweet crepes, Breton cider and the most magnificant caramel macarons I've tasted without being to Paris yet)
• Casa Farro, Nicholson Street, Carlton (Rustic Italian offering woodfired dishes and lots of spelt options such as spelt and ricotta gnocchi and spelt pizzas. It's also my favourite Italian restaurant in Melbourne)
• Grill'd, Various - this one was in Hawthorn (Gourmet burgers with choices such as the Hot Mama, with harissa, tzatziki and roasted peppers; the Baa Baa Burger, with lamb, as well as terrific herbed chunky chips)
• Spudbar, as above (Gourmet spuds with loads of toppings. I had the Chili Bean and Mushroom, which had not only chilli beans and mushrooms but also cheese, chives, sour cream, fresh tomato and baby spinach)
• Los Amates, Johnston Street, Fitzroy - (A great Mexican joint with amazing food, a large (but not over the top) menu in colourful surrounds with super friendly staff, altogether rocking my world)

I've also stopped in at Haighs, my favourite chocolatier (there are several in Melbourne but it originated in South Australia), and I've also had several great coffees.

Ahhh, this might sound exhausting for some, or just ridiculously indulgent, but, how could I not? It's been glorious. I find in Melbourne, if you feel like Korean, you've got it; feel like Czech/Slovak food, I know of a place; feel like Middle Eastern, lots of options and, er, I think I've made my point. I gorged myself, and without breaking the bank.

As much as I adore the food culture in Melbourne, I'll miss plenty of things about Edinburgh when I finally come back here. There are things we just don't do as well, or at least, our produce isn't as good (although with such different climates, that's fair enough to a point).

In my visit, I've brought home some bottles of raspberry vodka for a couple of my friends and it's pretty special. Special enough to thoroughly enjoy just over some ice. None of that Absolut stuff... this is proper, tart, intense, sweet, real raspberry vodka from East Lothian from a favourite shop of mine, Demijohn. My point is actually that berries in Scotland are incredible and shit all over Australia's. As does Scotland's game, pork, seafood (I think), fish (I think, although I loathe haddock, which is on almost every menu here), and the dairy and cheeses are pretty damn good too (by that I don't mean the orange stuff they sell at Tesco - head to Iain J Mellis in Victoria Street). Combining the point about pork and raspberries, I dropped into a wee farm with a wee shop near St Andrews, and admired the produce, but mostly admired the big, healthy looking pigs gorging on a pool of raspberries. Their snouts were coloured by the red slop and I couldn't help but feel strangely jealous. 

Yes, Scotland's produce is excellent. I found myself quickly missing its porridge too, because when I woke up the morning after arriving I ate an instant cup of Uncle Toby's and it was a gluey, sloppy mess. Stoats (at Edinburgh Farmers' Market), is much different; much better, AND you can get Cranachan porridge (with raspberries and topped with toasted oats) or things like whisky and honey porridge.

Being back in Melbourne has been great. There's no denying that it's great to get some sunshine and warmth, catching up with friends and family and returning to my old stomping grounds. I do love the food here, but there's great things about food in Edinburgh, especially if you know to try the things I've mentioned and try Scottish cuisine in general, including haggis - it's delicious.

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.