[_______-_____ l
THE CITY CAFE
OPEN
LUNCH Monday-Saturday Noon-2.30pm
DINNER Monday-Thursday 5.30-l l pm
Friday-Saturday 5.30-Midnight
Sunday 6.30- l 0.00pm
SUNDAY BRUNCH Noon-3pm
APPETISERS l2 noon-8pm Daily
THE CITY use
19 BLAIR SIREEI’. EDINBURGH EN] 10! RESERVATIONS 031-220 ("25
72'l‘he List 16— 22 / ugust 1991
I Grassmarket, then give Helios
FESTIVAL
with a wide variety of people. probably lured by good beer.
I St James’ Oyster Bar 2 Calton Street. 557 2925. llam—Zam. Inviting atmosphere— low lighting and plenty of nooks and crannies — small but appetising seafood menu. If you‘ve got £2—£3 to spare. try one of the delicious fruit beers imported from Belgium.
I Pierre Victoire 8 Union Street. 557 8451 (also 1()Victoria Street. 225 1721 and 38—40 Grassmarket. 226 24-12). Daily 1 lam—4pm (not Sun).
. 6pm till late. Celebrated informal.
reasonably priced French
restaurant. The menu is small and * changed daily. and the cooking is
generally very good and tastes authentically French. Pierre Victoire is usually very busy during the Festival. and they tend to cram people in. even when they have booked. so don‘t go if you are feeling touchy.
Fast and filling
Grabbing a lunchtime bite-to-eat doesn‘t have to mean queueing up tor a Big Mac or even chewing through yet anotherlilled roll. Scattered around Edinburgh are sit-sown eateries where the grub is good and there‘s no table-service to slow things down or jackup the price.
Round the corner trom the Assembly Rooms (Venue 3) and tucked below street-level, Hendersons otters a legion ol imaginative salads, hot vegetarian dishes and rich desserts. It also has a bar.
Nestled between the Book Festival (in Charlotte Square) and Princes Street, Country Kitchen is not the bland assembly-line its facade and decor suggest. In tact, the hot and cold load is almost tasty enough to warrant the slightly hettier price tag.
0n the other side at town and just across trom the University, Seeds is earnestly giving vegan cuisine a good name. The lentil (and other) soups are always a winner while halt-portions ot the main courses can silence even the heartiest appetite. ,
Ilyou‘re browsing through the l
I Queen Street Cate National Portrait ;
. Gallery. 1 Queen St. 557 28-14. Mon—Sat “lam—5.30pm. Sun noon—5.30pm. An oasisol'quiet ' reached by walking through the cool. I
echoing hallsofthe gallery. Serves a ' homely selection of hot dishes. soups and salads at lunchtime and coffee and tea with baked delights such as
' florentines and shortbread all day
long. I Rapido 79 Broughton Street. 556
i 2041. Better than average fish bar with crispy chips; as well as baked potatoes and other hole-fillers and paunch-producers. I Umberto's 2‘) Dublin Street. 556 2231. Daily noon—2pm (not Sat and Sun). 6-] lprn. 'l'his stone vaulted basement restaurant serves Italian food of the most extravagant kind; everything on the menu seems to have cream and alcohol in it — and sometimes that is exactly what you feel like. Pricey.
Fountain a try. Behind the shelves ol ‘right-on’ books and trinkets, there is a kitchen Churning out deliciously wholesome soups, salads, cakes and
bakes. Vegetarian, vegan and cheap.
to this town, art and lood go hand in
hand; nearly every museum and gallery has some sort oi leeding arrangement. The Netherbow Art Centre represents a rare oasis in the heart at the bustling Royal Mile. Inventiver tilled
croissants are the piece de resistance at an unusual and inexpensive menu that can be enjoyed indoors or in the courtyard. At the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in George Street, meanwhile, you can lunch on a shoestring at the leet ot a newly-commissioned John Bellany. A long way all the beaten path, the Modern Art Gallery is an idyll where exquisite and reasonably-priced tood can be consumed on a patio looking out on to a lawn studded with hits at sculpture.
Lunching in testival season is never
; easy. But, with a little ettort, you can
lind places that will satisfy without biting too deeply into either itinerary or
I pocket. (Carl Honoré)