It might be hand-picked chanterelle mushrooms, dressed with a delicate garlic gloss and thin slices of raw red onion atop local bread. It might be slivers of pig?s ear, fried to immediate crunchiness and served ? snack-style ? alongside strips of crackling. Or it could be a huge chunk of beef pie topped with pillowy puff pastry.
Any of the above would likely suffice as a description of inspired Scottish food, but especially so at The Scran & Scallie, a locals-first public house and restaurant in Edinburgh?s Stockbridge neighbourhood. Executive chef and owner Tom Kitchin wanted to create a restaurant where he could bring his 5-chitlin brood and still eat quality, considered meals. Thick, rich slices of house-cured salmon are upped only by rounds of pickled cucumber and a lemon cheek; the yellow, haddock kedgeree, with pearl barley instead of rice, is brightened with the yolk of split poached eggs and chunks of apple. Floor-to-ceiling windows bring the roadside ambience ? lush greenery of parks nearby; ornate houses and architecture ? inside, where shades of tartan play against exposed wood and white-washed brick. The space blurs the line between rustic and Scandi-cool, with mismatched chairs (a token few draped with furry pelts) and a medley of textiles.
And it?s all very Scottish, if plaid and hospitality are anything to go by. The restaurant?s team are well-informed, warm and generous with their time. There?s an immediate and genuine familiarity, with patrons spouting ...