I'M LOCKED INTO THE CELLAR DOOR

The Cellar Door
44-46 George IV Bridge
Edinburgh
EH1 1EJ
0131 226 4156
www.thecellardooredinburgh.com
Open seven days: lunch 12-3: dinner 6 till late: high tea 3-6: brunch (Saturday and Sunday only) 10am to noon

SOUTH African-born Ivan Leader has a passion for Scotland. That’s why he moved to Edinburgh, a city he fell in love with.
Currently, citizens of Auld Reekie, and tourists, are falling for his new city centre restaurant, The Cellar Door, which opened only five months ago.
It is housed in a converted from a former warehouse and the 50-cover diner sits in the city’s tourist area.
Just off the city’s world-famous Royal Mile and yards from the statue of Greyfriars Bobby, the Skye Terrrier dog who reportedly spent 14 years guarding the grave of his owner, John Gray, until he died in 1872, the candle-lit restaurant offers an affordable option for discerning diners.
Ivan and his wife Morven are hands on. They use local suppliers and change the menu regularly.
They also like to surprise diners. A two course (£13.95) or three course (£17.95) surprise dinner menu is on offer. You are then at the mercy of head chef Eden Sinclair, however, nobody should worry. He won’t create anything that you can’t or won’t eat.
A static on the menu are main course grills. Prime cuts of Aberdeen Angus beef, hung for a minimum of three weeks, are offered, and the meat is sourced by Eden.
An 8oz fillet steak is £18.95 or a 16oz T-bone £23.95. Chateau Briand (for two) is £39.95 and the steaks are served with four choices of sauce including blue cheese.
Char grilled Perthshire lamb cutlets or organic Spring lamb are alternatives.
All seven starters appealed. Haggis fritters served with a whisky sauce was a possible along with salmon, lime and coriander fishcake with a celeriac coleslaw and a sweet chilli dressing were among them.
However, I couldn’t resist the grilled Stornoway black pudding and goats cheese salad served with a Somerset apple dressing.
The black pudding and goats cheese blended beautifully. A great choice. One of my companions was not disappointed by the haggis fritters and neither was the second with the soup of the day plus crusty, home-baked bread.
We couldn’t wait for the next course but it was hard to pick from the five mains. Stir-fried loin of beef with coriander style noodles, leek and smoked cheddar risotto, a home-made beef burger served with chunky chips and a choice of three sauces, including Strathdon Blue, or grilled fish of the day.
The fact that sea bass was on offer sold it for me. The fish nestled on the top of a mound of spiced new potatoes and buttered baby spinach. The flavours merged beautifully.
Pam tucked into grilled free range chicken with flageolet beans, smoked bacon and sweet corn. We also asked for a side order of home-made chips as my other guest, Chris, wouldn’t allow us to steal any more of his. He loved his burger.
The restaurant also boasts a ten cover, street-level patisserie specialising in quality cakes, confectionary and hand-made chocolates, all made on site by Petra, specially flown in from Germany.
What’s more, a varied brunch menu is available on Saturday and Sunday. For example, a traditional breakfast is £7.95 but if you fancy eggs Florentine and baby spinach and Hollandaise sauce on a bed of toasted, home-baked, crusty bread it is £5.95.
Simply, I’m now locked into The Cellar Door.