West Cornwall Pasty Co. at EDI

If you have ever found yourself in an airport at 4:30am wondering what to do, my answer is always "EAT!" The Edinburgh airport (EDI) was my last stop in Scotland before heading to London to catch my flight to India, and it was my last change to eat in Scotland.

After checking in, I found the West Cornwall Pasty Co. I remember my wife talking about pasties way back when she was studying in London so I knew this was the place to eat. A pasty is a type of pie commonly associated with Cornwall, United Kingdom. Traditionally, it is a pastry shell filled with diced meat, potato, and onion. Other common ingredients include swede, or rutabega, also known as yellow turnip in Cornwall.

If it was lunch time I definitely would have gone for the large traditional pasty, but since it was 4:30am, I opted for the small traditional and a cappuccino; both were excellent. The dough of the pasty was nice and dense and the filling was flavorful and tender. The cappuccino was actually more of a latte, but it was good and I drank it all up.

If you ever find yourself in the Edinburgh airport, look for this place - it's to the right of the escalators when going up to the departures area. Have yourself a pasty and you won't have to worry what the meal is on your flight. Cheers!

Follow me through Edinburgh

Has it really been seven weeks since my last post?! I've been back from India for six weeks now and I've been dying to post something. Kelly T asked for some pictures of where I was, so here they are. I've got one more post from the Edinburgh airport coming up soon, then it's on to the amazing country that is India. Enjoy the pictures - better yet, go to Scotland yourself, it's a beautiful country!

Petit Paris in Scotland

My first dinner in Scotland was at this French restaurant called Petit Paris last Friday night. It is on Grassmarket right across the street from the hotel we were staying at. The food was excellent, the wine (private label) was drinkable, and the service was quite good. I think everyone really enjoyed their meals. Many of my colleagues started with the steamed mussels so I tried some, they were very good, served in a bleu d'Auvergne sauce. My dinner can be seen below, and it was great.

White Asparagus with Quail's Eggs, Walnut Oil Vinaigrette and Roasted Pine Nuts

The white asparagus was tender and delicious, and the quail's eggs were delicate and, well eggs. The salad was great.

Fresh Sea Bass Filet with Olives, Fresh Basil, Garlic Confit and Sun-Blushed Tomatoes

The sea bass was cooked perfectly, and well seasoned. The olives, basil, garlic confit and tomatoes tasted great together, I was very happy with my choice.

Sauteed Potatoes

Crème Brûlée and a Glass of Monbazillac

The crème brûlée could not have been any better. Nice and crispy on the top, sweet, smooth and delicious underneath. It went very will with the glass of monbazillac that I had. I asked for some sauternes, but this is what they had for sweet dessert wines. It was very good. Monbazillac is a French dessert wine made from Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle grapes that have all been affected by noble rot.

Petit Paris
38-40 Grassmarket
Edinburgh
EH1 2JU
Tel: 0131-226 2442

Haggis, Neeps and Tatties, Oh My!

When in Scotland, do as the Scots do, right? So what do the Scottish do? They eat haggis, neeps and tatties, that's what. Now you may be wondering what on earth I am talking about, or you may be thinking to yourself, "OMG, I can't believe he ate that!" For those of you in the former camp, let me tell you about haggis, neeps and tatties. Neeps are mashed boiled turnips and tatties are mashed boiled potatoes; turnips are also known as swede here in Europe in case you've heard that.

Now then, what is haggis? At it's most basic, haggis is the heart, liver, and lungs of a sheep minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices and salt, mixed with stock and traditionally boiled in the sheep's stomach for three hours. In speaking with some Scots in Scotland, I was told that the haggis served in different pubs can vary quite a bit, but usually it's either peppery or it's not.

The haggis that I had on Sunday night was peppery, and was quite good actually (see the picture below.) It definitely doesn't look great on the plate, although at Deacon Brodie's Tavern in Edinburgh, they made it look as nice as it probably can. The neeps and tatties were good, smooth and creamy, mashed really well. And the haggis was good, seriously. It had a meaty, nutty, oaty flavor, and as I hoped, was quite peppery. It was just like some tasty ground beef.

When I ordered it, I honestly wasn't sure if I'd like it. So I ordered the Bacon and Brie salad to start, it was great. Big slices of bacon, not like the bacon we're used to in the US, but more like slices of Irish bacon, grilled up nice and tasty. The brie was also great, nice and creamy, and the salad was rounded out with sliced tomato, green pepper, green beans, red onions, celery, and a sweet chili vinaigrette.

I also had a Guinness, can you see the shamrock that the bartender poured into the head? I hope so, that's a tell-tale sign of a good Guinness pour.

Deacon Brodie's Tavern - Edinburgh, Scotland

A well poured pint of Guinness

Bacon and Brie Salad
Haggis, Neeps and Tatties

My dining companion, my new friend and colleague Giulia from Italy had a pint of Stella, a "Caesar" salad, and some fish and chips (battered Haddock.) The caesar salad was SO not a caesar salad though. Imagine longing for a caesar salad, loving caesar salad, and getting a plate of shredded lettuce, diced chicken, red onions, and tomato; I'm not sure what the dressing was, but this was about as far from a caesar salad as you can get. Deacon Brodie's gets a big thumbs down for misleading Giulia on the caesar, but the haggis, that was good stuff.

So dear reader, remember when you travel to eat local. My attitude is that if it's on the menu, then someone likes it, so maybe you will too. You may have heard that haggis is disgusting, but if you don't try it yourself, how will you really know? Be adventurous, leave your comfort zone, and if you find yourself in Scotland, try haggis. If you don't like it, then you can say so yourself. At least your friends will think of you different for being so bold.

This was not my first meal in Edinburgh, nor was it my last. Stay tuned for more from Scotland.

Cheers.