REVIEW : Otro Edinburgh Dinner review

For me a restaurant is a tale of two halves - front of house and the kitchen. Both are dependant on one another; when one is broken or running insufficiently, the other has to pick up the slack no matter what in order for that restaurant to maintain its standards. Ultimately you want a well oiled machine in the back and the front of house but this is becoming ever more difficult in restaurants up and down the country.

Hospitality is without a doubt one of the harder professions; with the long hours and relentless pace dealing with customers whims and new dietary requirements, both kitchen staff and front of house staff have to be on their top game constantly. With very few young people making a career in a hospitality, be it chefs, waiting staff or sommeliers, the industry is suffering.

Luckily there are still a few gems out there, like Otro, who have hit the jackpot. Who have won the lottery with their staff. On my recent visit to try out their new flexitarian menu, the one thing that stood out, was their service and commitment to their customers. This was evident in the knowledge parted from their front of house staff but also the presentation and passion that oozed from each plate of food that was set down in front of us. Otro, I salute you and whatever you are doing, continue to do so.

Dinner review of Otro Restaurant Edinburgh

But lets get onto the main reason - the food.

Otro have launched a Flexitarian menu. What this means is that anyone with a dietary preference can dine here without feeling marginalised. Most menus will have a fish dish, or a vegan/veggie choice or two on their menu; but nothing where there are a good few dishes for each diet to choose from.

Otro menu is easy to read. They have split the menu into Vegan/Vegetarian starters and mains; Fish starters and mains and Meat starters and mains. You can choose from either of these menus or mix and match across the 3 sections as we did. They also have a nice menu of sides and desserts.

Vegans, vegetarians, pescatarians and omnivores can all eat here at the same time hassle free!

The Flexitarian Menu

I checked out the menu at lunchtime and I was still left deciding once we had arrived. Nibbling on these giant fleshy Gordal Olives did help make the decision easier.

STARTER VEGAN/VEGETARIAN SECTION

I as in a deep dilemma as I was drawn to the Hand-dived Orkney scallops with Cockburn black pudding and pickled apple (£12.50) but this Deep fried Clava Brie with beetroot and caramelised walnut salad (£8.50) won me over.

What an absolute joy to eat. The brie nugget casing was crispy but inside lay hot molten gooey brie cheese that oozed out over the plate. The beetroot had a slight sweetness to it, but mostly earthy as were the walnuts. I built a perfect mouthful of beetroot, leaves, walnut and gooey cheese. There was a little honey on the plate too that mixed with the cheese. Yum!

STARTER MEAT SECTION

Nduja sausage, burrata, aubergine and mint (£9.50). Had my dining partner not claimed that this is what they were having, this would have been my starter. So nice to see a whole burrata served instead of a part burrata and lovely to be able to cut into it as that’s half the fun of ordering a dish like burrata. I have to admit, I did have several bites of this. The burrata is such a wonderful vehicle for flavour but it is the creamy base that this dish is built around. The nduja sausage is packed with sweet spice that compliments and works well with the aubergine and mint.

The staff suggested having the bread and butter with the Burrata dish - a great suggestion as you’ll want to mop up every last piece of this starter. Great creamy balanced butter from the Edinburgh Butter Co.

MAINS MEAT SECTION

Both the Grilled lamb rump with the fermented turnip, Cockburn haggis and kale (£19.50) and the 10oz 35 days dry-aged ribeye steak with green salad and peppercorn sauce (£23.00) ticked my box; but although tempted by the lamb, I’d had had enough haggis already this week so opted for the steak instead.

A beautiful and correctly cooked (medium rare) rib-eye arrived. Tender and my knife cut through it like butter. My only slight wobble regarding this dish was the peppercorn sauce. It was extremely thin and had an overpowering taste of vinegar. I did ask and was informed that the Chef had added some balsamic vinegar to the brandy, cream and pepper base - hmmmm might be worth not adding it in.

Unfortunately, I had not tasted the sauce before I poured it over the steak (to capture that instagram shot - the things I do for the gram!). Alas it wasn’t terrible and the steak was so delicious, I ate it all.

MAINS FISH SECTION

My dining partner loves fish and was always going to order a fish for mains. They choose the Fish North Sea cod with mussels and vadouvan curry sauce and roasted cauliflower (£17.50).

An exception plate of deliciously cooked fish. The fish was stunning - well seasoned and flaky. The dish was well balanced.

We ordered some sides of Tenderstem broccoli and smoked almond aioli. Give me more of this aioli with the nuts sprinkled onto please. A lovely side dish.

Also the Halloumi fries with harissa yoghurt and pomegranate went down a treat. You could also try the Creamed Wild Mushrooms or the Crushed turnips and carrots. All sides are £4.00

There is only one vegan dessert dish; a Coconut, passion fruit and mango Eton mess (£7.00) - it does sound good though and I was considering ordering it.

My dining partner ordered the Dark chocolate cremeux, honeycomb and salted caramel ice cream (£7.00). A chocolate hit to end the meal. The cremeux was silky smooth with the chocolate shard which tasted like dark chocolate coco pops was scrumptious. I loved the honeycomb too.

As I mentioned I was about to order the Eton Mess but the thought of sharp lemon got to me and I ordered up the Yorkshire rhubarb with lemon posset, pink peppercorn and pistachio shortbread (£7.00).

The presentation was not what I imagined but it didn’t detract from the sharp, tangy lemon posset that lay underneath the rhubarb. Pistachios were a nice touch as was the shortbread.

An utterly superb dining experience and I encourage you all to go. I do need to return to try their legendary Sunday Roast.

Otro, 22 Coates Crescent, Edinburgh, EH3 7AF. Tel : 0131 5560004 www.otrorestaurant.co.uk/

My Spoon Award : Gold Spoon 9/10

I was invited by Otro to review their menu. Food and drink were complimentary but the views are very much my own.