FOOD : Ondine at Home, Edinburgh

For me, seafood is synonymous with Scotland; they go hand in hand and are a perfect fit.

Our rivers, lochs and seas overflow with some of the best seafood in the world and this is where Ondine comes in. Ondine Edinburgh are one of the top seafood restaurants in our city and so it was with much glee that I accepted their offer to review their At Home offering.

The Ondine At Home is super easy to order online. Choose between having it delivered or collection from Ondine Restaurant, pop your address in if having it delivered and it will then take you to the takeaway menu where you’ll find the menu accompanied by images of the food, the price and description.

The box is well sealed and packed with ice packs. With it being seafood, get this into the fridge as soon as possible until you need to cook it.

There are no tailored instructions for your menu but there is an instruction card for all dishes that need prepared at home; find your dish and prepare accordingly. Luckily for me, as well as a love of eating seafood, I also know how to prep and cook seafood.

REVIEW - ONDINE AT HOME, EDINBURGH

STARTERS

CARLINGFORD OYSTERS – big fat Irish oysters. Ondine take the hassle out of shucking these for you; they arrive opened but with the shell ‘lid’ on to help retain their juices. You need to loosen the foot of the oyster, wash them a little and plate them up. Use a large platter and add a pile of salt to the plate to hold them in place. A red wine shallot vinegar adds a lovely sharpness to the salty sweetness of these edible gems.

DRESSED BROWN CRAB – these beautiful crab claws were born in Scotland. Scottish brown crab meat it sweet and delicate and served on warm crumpets allows this Scottish shellfish to grab the limelight. Simple but oh so tasty.

MAINS

GRAND FRUITS OF THE SEA – this is the main that you want to order. Phenomenal seafood for you to feast on – razor clams, cockles, oysters, scallops, mussels, lobster and prawns. This truly is a platter to gorge on and ample for two people. The seafood is fresh, with nothing frozen, it’s first class produce, letting the seafood flavours take centre stage and only adding ingredients that will enhance the shellfish and seafood to create an easy to prepare, fool proof dining experience at home.

Razor Clams – these had been prepped with the sack removed and cleaned. All you had to do was heat them through.

Oysters – as I didn’t know these would be part of the main, I added them to the starters oysters for a oyster feast.

Scallops – these are Isle of Mull Scallops from Guy Grieve. Already opened and ready for you to cook. I took these out the shell and fried them in a little butter.

Mussels and Cockles – these are already cooked and just need re-heated. I added these all to a saucepan with some white wine, garlic and cream.

Lobster – this had already been prepped and cooked too, all that was needed was to place it on a tray in the oven for around 8-10 minutes until caramelised. The lobster meat was sweet as it should be.

Prawns – these came shell on and needed the most amount of work. I de-shelled and remove the vein along the back. I then cooked these in some garlic butter until pink and juicy.

DESSERTS

CHOCOLATE ROYALTINE – this is decadent, a chocolate showcase for a chocolate lover. It’s thick and dense, dark and rich. Chocolate soil and hazelnuts add a different texture but you’ll want to take this dessert slow; just to let the chocolate melt on the spoon as it wraps itself around your tastebuds.

TREACLE TART – light as a feather sponge with a good ‘snap’ base and the clotted cream ice-cream was a cant-stop-wont-stop scooping this into my mouth. Lovely!

Nothing can beat an amazing dining out experience but this Ondine At Home delivery comes darn close. If you are a seafood lover, if you have fair to medium confidence of cooking seafood at home and do follow instructions well, then this At Home dinner is an absolute breeze and a pleasure.

Ondine, 2 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1AD. Tel : 0131 2261888 www.ondinerestaurant.co.uk

My Spoon Award : Gold Spoon, 9/10

I was invited by Ondine to review their At Home Delivery menu. Food was complimentary but the views are very much my own.