ITCHYCOO PARK BY The Small Faces happens to be one of my
favourite songs. Legend has it that it came on the radio while this project was
being conceived, inspiring designer Jim Hamilton to christen the restaurant
“Itchycoo”. After recently launching a
new summer menu, I wondered if the food could give me as much pleasure as the
'60s classic.
This brasserie-style eatery is part of the four-star
Radisson Blu hotel on Edinburgh’s historic Royal Mile, and first impressions
suggest it has a sleek, contemporary vibe to it. Sarah and I plonked ourselves
down in the far corner and were immediately impressed by the space afforded;
another table or two could easily have been squeezed in somewhere.
The welcoming pamphlet states that the menu's ‘roots stem
from local Scottish produce’, which got me thinking that there are few
restaurants around this touristy location really offering Scottish food worth
waxing lyrical about.
The menu itself … hmm, I understand where the concept is
coming from, but I’m not entirely sure it really knows what it’s supposed to
be. On the one hand, we have Scottish
produce being trumpeted, so I’d come to expect modern Scottish fayre – of which
there is some – but you’ve got dishes like fajitas, gnocchi and curry in the
mix too. I wondered how many of those dishes were actually ordered by the
punters, and reckon you could take four or five of them off the menu and not
miss them. Focusing solely on Scottish produce and making the menu more consistent with dishes
like Inverurie pork belly or Arbroath smokie fishcakes, would give it a more rounded identity that I feel it craves.
Anyway, our waitress for the evening, Miryana,
enthusiastically delivered a few recommendations, poured the wine and duly
jotted down our order. My starter was the Arbroath smokie fish cakes with baby gem salad and a lemon crème fraiche
dressing (£5.95), while Sarah ordered chicken, mango and avocado salad at an
ambitious £7.95.
My fish cake was fine; pleasant smokiness, seasoned well and
crispy on the outside. The two strands
of baby gem were a little lonely amongst the pile of leaves in my
salad, which was a shame, but the crème fraiche dressing brought a light and
citrusy note that completed this decent starter.
Sarah’s portion looked huge, which you’d kind of hope for if
you’re shelling out just shy of eight quid.
The chicken was moist and the plate was well presented. However, the
dish really needed seasoning to bring it alive and, while there was a tiny hint
of warmth from the light chilli dressing, a big kick of heat wouldn’t have gone
amiss.
I had decided on the pork belly beforehand, but changed my
mind after Miryana had recommended the 8oz Aberdeen Angus rib eye steak
(£24.95). The steak was caramelised on the outside and fairly rare, as
requested, on the inside. The chips were
excellent – crisp exterior and a fluffy interior – and the garlic mushrooms
were cooked well and didn’t overwhelm with garlic. A tasty enough dish, completed by a rich
peppercorn sauce.
I’d toyed with ordering the Rump of lamb (£17.95) but was
put off because its accompaniments were the same as the steak, which I found a
little unimaginative, and lead to Sarah request mash potato instead of
chips. The lamb was perfectly cooked and the creamy mash was superb. The
mushrooms and peppercorn sauce were consistent with the steak. A pleasant enough dish,
if not a little uninspired.
Miranya had provided excellent service all night and had
talked us into a cocktail afterwards.
She brought us our desserts to round off the meal, having again giving her
suggestions with real passion and confidence. I went for the cone, lolly and
shake (£7.95), which comprised of strawberry ice cream in a chocolate cone,
white blancmange with Maltesers and a chocolate milkshake. The ice cream cone was, well, an ice cream
cone – you can’t really go wrong with that. The blancmange with its refreshing
lemony taste was excellent and cut through the creaminess of the ice cream, but
that chocolate milkshake wasn’t good. It
just tasted like hot chocolate mixed into cold milk that had been frothed up
with a blender; it didn’t really serve any purpose on the plate and could
easily have been substituted for a fruit coulis or something along those lines.
Sarah went for raspberry and white chocolate Callebaut
cheesecake (£7.95). A generous portion
saw the traditional biscuit base replaced with a light sponge, with amaretti
biscuits served on the side. The
flavours of the cheesecake were pleasant, with the raspberries balancing out
the creaminess of the middle section.
The macerated berries were fresh and juicy, but the dish lacked a little texture because the amaretti biscuits came soft, as described in the menu.
So hits and misses with this meal. For me, you’re paying slightly more for being
in the heart of Edinburgh’s tourist area and this meant the meal lacked value
for money at points. Nevertheless, there was some solid cooking in a chilled
atmosphere, and it was certainly worth noting that the service was exemplary
all night. A couple of menu tweaks
couldn’t hurt but overall, we left satisfied.
Itchycoo.Edinburgh@radissonblu.com
0131 473 6517
Open: Mon-Fri 0900 - 0100
Sat-Sun 1000- 0100
Comments
Post a Comment