The Scran & Scallie

 

I must be some kind of foodie Jedi and I'll tell you why. I *really* wanted to win our christmas raffle prize which was a three course meal with wine at The Scran & Scallie - the fabulous gastropub in my hood. I said as much a few times but it was a raffle and there were over a hundred bods at our christmas do so my chances weren't particularly high. But I won it! And I rarely win anything (without working very hard for it) so I reckon I must have willed it through sheer mind-force. The raffle was in aid of SANDS Lothian - a charity close to my heart and so I thought it was only right that I thank the pub and the 'force' with a review.

We booked a table soon after new year's as the place was pretty busy till then. I've been to The Scran & Scallie (TSS, too long otherwise) before but Ed hadn't. The restaurant was packed but the service was swift and friendly. We sat down, ordered some wine and quickly decided our menu choices. The oysters were talking to me. Ed chose the chicken liver pate.

You will have heard me talk about oysters several times on the blog as well as on my social media sites. The UK and Scotland in particular has many good oyster bars so I have pretty high expectations. TSS served Loch Fyne oysters and they were huge and very juicy. They were served with a nice onion sauce  but I just stuck with gold old Tabasco. Ed's pate was pretty good too and I even let him have an oyster!

For our mains, Ed choose the braised roe deer  with roast haunch and squash and I choose the roast partridge. with cabbage and bacon. We also ordered a side of roasted chorizo potatoes. The deer was beautiful! My partridge was tasty too but quite big - I only just made a dent in it.

We were sat next to a group of very friendly European diners (possibly Italian) and one of them also ordered partridge. The difference was there was no trace of partridge after this gentleman finished his meal. I helped them with group photos and they said ciao as they left the restaurant - how very nice. Shame folk don't talk much at restaurants - it would make going out so much more interesting!

Ed has a whole collection of wine guzzling photos of me -  the fact is I'm not much of a drinker at all despite all this photo evidence. I like a good wine or cocktail but can go without one for weeks and not miss it. Anyway, what I was going to say before I rambled on was that the house wine was pretty good. We ordered a nice 2014 Tempranillo and it went beautifully with our meal.

Then there was pudding! As you will have figured by now, TSS do good hearty food with great finesse. So Ed's apple crumble was presented in a fabulous wee earthenware pot with sauce on the side in similarly quirky pottery.

As you'll probably already know, I'm a chocolate fiend and the brownie was calling my name. I loved the way they served it too in a griddle of sorts - very cool. My pud was super but my belly (despite only half a partridge in it) was very full and so I could no finish it - shocking, I know!

Overall, Ed and I had a wonderful time at The Scran and Scallie and we'll be going back there again many times more - sadly we'll be paying next time.

Hope 2016 has got off to a good start for all of you. Ann x

Wearing Bella Freud Sept Heure Du Matin jumper with Cos slim fit shirt, levis and Jimmy Choo heels.

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Exploring Melbourne

If I were to draw parallels between British cities and the Australian ones, Sydney felt like a cross between Birmingham and London whilst Melbourne felt a lot more like a bigger (i.e. denser) and more modern version of Edinburgh with its relatively more cultural going-ons, its food markets, the weather (wet and cold) and its refinement. Fair to say, I really liked Melbourne.

I'd heard great things about the foodie scene in Melbourne and we were not disappointed. We stayed near the MCG (Air BnB again, a lovely studio for £45 a night!) and were within walking distance of most places in town. Ed found Sezar ( a modern Azerbaijaini restaurant) via Zomato and that's where we dined on our first night in town. Amazing place - do check it out.

Like Sydney, I had a very limited shopping agenda for Melbourne and it was to stock up on my Aesop essentials as they are far cheaper than in the UK. I also wanted to check out the Sass and Bide outlet - I've been lusting after their snowbird cape and was hoping to find one cheap-ish.

Melbourne has a brilliant public transport network and travelling within the inner city limits via tram is free. We took advantage of that to do a quick survey of the city's offerings before venturing to St.Kilda.

Some have raved about St.Kilda whilst others have turned their nose up at it. I think it depends on where you go. We thought it was quaint but weren't that enamoured by it. It has lots of seaside shops and cafes plus there is Luna Park if you fancy a bit of adventure. We didn't. It was very cold too ( even by Edinburgh standards - those Arctic ocean winds!) and we were quite happy finding a cafe to grab a drink and slowly make our way back into town.

My favourite bit about Melbourne was its markets. We checked out two - the Queen Victoria Market and the South Melbourne Market. The quality of the seafood, fresh produce and coffee were all exceptional. I loved the fresh oysters at the South Melbourne Market - tasty and less than 50p!

For a final spot of shopping exploration, we headed to Chapel Street and the Docklands. I did not find my Snowbird cape although I've now added the Soldiers and Riders cape to my lust list (It wasn't a priority buy at over £400 and I'll hunt it down on eBay someday). 

Given the foodie and social scene here, we wanted to check out a few more places. On our last night, we drank at the Double Happiness bar and ate at the vietnamese street food place next door called Rice Paper Scissors. They were both was exceptionally good!

Have you been to Melbourne too? And if so, what were your favourite bits? Ann x

Wearing Carven Paris Map blazer, Gap skinny jeans, Muji shirt, Tom Ford sunnies and Bloch ballet flats

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Cool Things to do in Edinburgh

Despite being so much further north compared to many of our friends, family and previous lives, we've continued to see a lot of them. That has less to do with our wonderfulness and more to do with Edinburgh. Many of the folk that visit assume that Edinburgh is all about the castle, wandering Old Town and Princess Street. I've been on a mission to show our visitors more of the city as there is so much more to it than the aforementioned places. This is my attempt to highlight what I consider 'cool' in Edinburgh. I have excluded most of the Old Town, the Castle, the Zoo as most of you will do these anyway and they can be easily explored in a day. I have also excluded places that are outside Edinburgh City limits (Roslyn, South Queensferry etc.) as I will write about these separately.

1. Visit Stockbridge: Those of you that know me will have guessed this was coming. I am biased but I do think Stockbridge is quite special. It is so close to the centre of town (15-20 min walk) and yet so different. It was built by the Water of Leith and has the feel of a market town. The boutiques and charity shops here (especially St. Stephen Street) are worth visiting and it also has some fabulous cafes, bars and restaurants. I live here too so do drop me a line if you visit :)

2. Visit Dean Village: Literally next door to Stockbridge is the Dean Village. Again, very different in character to all other parts of Edinburgh and so very special. A walk along the Water of Leith from here to the Museums of Modern Art is well worth doing.

3. Explore the Museums: My favourites are the Modern Art Museums as they are stunning in their setting and always have some fantastic exhibitions on at all times. The National Portrait Gallery, National Museum of Scotland and the Scottish National Gallery area also pretty spectacular. All these museums have very good cafes that serve excellent food and drink.

4. Take in spectacular views of Edinburgh: By virtue of its hilly terrain, Edinburgh has a number of fine spots from where you can take in spectacular city views. The top of Calton Hill, Arthur's Seat and also any high building at the top end of New Town works for this.

5. Experience France in the West End: I love the West End! It is home to my favourite festival - The Edinburgh Book Festival and is a mini France of sorts. The French Institute is situated here and so are some fabulous French cafes and restaurants including La Petit Follie and L'escargot Blanc.

6. Go for a walk in the Royal Botanic Gardens: These magnificent gardens are over a hundred years old and very impressive. It aways amazes me how well they have managed to preserve the variety of plants they have in here despite the Scottish weather.

7. Go for a concert or show at Usher Hall and surrounding theatres: Edinburgh is one big cultural extravaganza and Usher Hall and nearby theatres host some wonderful musical and theatre talent. The one I'm currently looking forward to is the John William's concert next month.

8. Experience the New Town: The New Town is older than Australia but it is 'new' by Edinburgh history standards. This is where the rich moved to after the Old Town got too full with people and disease. New Town is filled with galleries, antique stores, fashionable boutiques including Multrees Walk which is home to Harvey Nichols - although some may argue we are now getting in to Leith.

9. Explore Leith: Whilst on the subject, some Leithers would be offended if I called it Edinburgh but administratively, it most certainly is. Plus, it is a ten minute walk from town. I'll talk about the Leith-Edinburgh history another time (or watch Sunshine on Leith) but it has a great harbour ( home to Royal Yatch Brittania), some great pubs and restaurants.

9. Morningside and Bruntsfield: This is another lovely neighbourhood - a bit more mature compared to Stockbridge but lovely nevertheless. Check out Falkos Konditorei, the quirky Canny Man's restaurant and charity shops whilst in the area.

10. Go to the beach and Victorian Baths at Portobello: Yes, Edinburgh has a beach! Head to Portobello for a bit of beach fun and to explore the bohemian neighbourhood. Portobello is also home to Edinburgh's last surviving authentic Turkish baths!

Hope you enjoy exploring my favourite city! Ann x

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Aizle, Edinburgh

Edinburgh is home to some the finest restaurants in the UK. I am constantly amazed by the quality of the food served here and the calibre of the chefs. This also means that after a point, you are not easily impressed. Aizle was highly recommended by a number of my foodie friends and so I'd already set the bar very high. 

You don't get to choose what you eat at Aizle. You can highlight food allergies and preferences and they will cater to these within their seasonal menu but that's it. Less adventurous foodies may find that a bit worrying but Ed and I were quite excited by the prospect. The 'harvest' for the month is laid on a board so you get a sense of the ingredients in your 5 course meal but the presentation of them is a surprise you wait for at every course.

While waiting for our first courses we ordered a couple of cocktails and were also served some lovely artisan bread with creamy chicken flavoured butter and peppercorn salt. The cocktails were both stunning and tasty - it was a very good start. 

The first course was oysters served with horseradish, apple and cream and game served with rowanberry. It looked spectacular and is by far the most amazing rendition of oysters I've ever had - and I've had some amazing ones including the most recent version at Sezar, the hip Azerbaizani restaurant in Melbourne.

The next course was ox tongue served carrot and herbs - despite Ed not being an ox-tongue fan, he was impressed. So was I.

The fish course was John Dory served with sea astor and oyster leaf. Beautifully cooked and well balanced flavours.

The meat course was duck - served pink - with chicory, damson and pistachio garnish. Lovely.

The dessert course was a complex but beautiful creation that included pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, popcorn and chocolate sauce. Stunning. It was Ed's birthday and they served with with a 'happy birthday' which was a lovely touch. The final and optional cheese course was also unusual and very good indeed.

Overall, we were very pleased with our dining experience at Aizle. Having just returned from Japan and Australia on a holiday filled with gourmet adventures, we were going to be harder to please than usual and Aizle succeeded beautifully.

Hope 2016 has started well for all of you - Happy New Year! Ann x

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The Great Barrier Reef

I believe that self-growth is all about pushing out of your comfort zone, experiencing new things and  exploring new places. It was this belief that made me sky-dive many years ago despite no real interest in jumping out of a plane. I can't say I particularly enjoyed it but at least I know what it feels like to be hurtling down to earth from over 10,000 feet. It was the same with paragliding although that was much more pleasant (as it was Switzerland rather than A1/fenland with my skydive). My feelings about scuba diving were not dissimilar to that of skydiving but I really wanted to do it and could not think of a better place to do so than the Great Barrier Reef.

 We used Cairns as our hub for exploring the reef and stayed in a fabulous AirBnb place there too. There are *so many* options when it comes to reef exploration from Cairns and we chose a boat that wasn't too big or too slow and had good reviews. After about an hour's sail into the reef area, we stopped to get on to a glass bottomed boat and do some initial lazy viewing of the Reef's offerings.

After that, our interest definitely piqued, we were given thorough safety demos and training. I was mildy terrified ( as I'm not a good swimmer and a wimp) but decided to keep focused to complete my bucket list mission. The diving session started with us being kitted up, testing equipment and procedures at a shallower depth before heading deep into the ocean.

The diving instructors were absolutely brilliant and kept us safe whilst pointing our the wonderful features of the reef. One of my fellow divers had a panic attack and had to be taken back up so I had another instructor guide me - to be honest I was quite pleased to have kept my cool despite this other person throwing a wobbly under the ocean.

The fact is that once you relax and start taking in the magnificent underwater surroundings, you stop feeling terrified and are instead are awestruck but the curious aquatic life around you. My favourite bit was when a big scary fish came into our zone and all the little fish started scurrying away. We were so close to all the action - it was super!

In between diving sessions, we stopped by a little island in the middle of the ocean for a bit of a rest.  It was stunning wee place but the hot Australian sun was beating down mercilessly and our Scotland acclimatised bodies couldn't sun bathe for very long. So we headed back to the boat for another round of snorkeling and diving before calling it a day.

Unlike my skydiving experience, I loved scuba diving ( even if I was hardly a pro) and would highly recommend it to anyone!

Have you sorted out new year resolutions for 2016 and how much of them are about pushing boundaries? I'd love to hear about them! Ann x

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Exploring Sydney

I must start this post with a apology of sorts - this is written from the perspective of someone who had an incredible 10 days in Tokyo and Japan before landing in Sydney. We were prepared to be underwhelmed - few places in world are as 'out of the ordinary' as Japan. But, that does not mean they are not just as special in their own unique way. So forgive me if I do not ooze with the kind of enthusiasm  I've displayed in the past whilst writing about Japan, The Outer Hebrides and East Africa. Sydney is a very cool place too - big and gutsy -  it is just that bit more familiar than the others mentioned despite being so far away.

Whilst in Sydney, we stayed in a stunning AirBnB property in the Petersham neighbourhood. It was handy for getting to and from the airport and an interesting area too. Many of the suburbs in Sydney have strong European links.  Petersham, for example, is very Portuguese with houses that were beautiful and had ornate architecture. Even the local supermarkets and what they offer seem to vary depending on the locality. It felt very cosmopolitan. Plus, the transport links across Sydney are very good.

 We spent an afternoon in Manly beach catching up with an old friend and that was very pleasant. Not the most spectacular beach but it was lively and had a friendly vibe. We were told that Bondi is usually teeming with tourists and so we gave that a miss. The journey by boat from Sydney Harbour to Manly and back is well worth doing (on a clear day) for the spectacular views of Sydney Harbour.

Sydney is great for shopping too but I had only one shopping agenda on my mind - heading to the Bloch flagship store and stocking up on ballet flats at half the UK price. And I did just that as I know they will last me absolutely ages - I wore my last pair almost daily and in all kinds of weather and they looked reasonably good even after a year of heavy use.

Other things we did in Sydney included a trip to the Bally outlet (but we didn't buy anything), numerous pit stops in town for coffee and cake (Gumption coffee is well worth checking out), catching up with friends and checking out some local restaurants. City is even more stunning by night  and a walk around the Harbour area and The Rocks is a great way to finish an evening.

Hope you are all having a lovely holiday season! Ann x

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Kyoto Highlights

Historic, mysterious and magical - Kyoto is a very special place. It is steeped in culture - you cannot go far without passing by a temple or few. Each of these temples is unique in its architecture, philosophy (although largely Shinto or Buddhist in terms of religion) and its history. There's also the famed geisha district, still very much preserving its culture the old-fashioned way. Then there's the beautiful countryside - Arashiayama and its bamboo groves being a huge favourite. Kyoto also has great food scene and is renowned for its kaiseki (or Japanese haute cuisine) restaurants. With so much to do, we weren't sure where to begin!

We stayed in a Ryokan not far from the city centre and figured the simplest thing to do would be to work our way through a few temples nearby. Kiyomizu Dera was the quickest to reach from our 'inn' and so we started from there. We happened to get there just in time for the a prayer ceremony which was fascinating to watch. Other temples we explored, in between matcha and kakigori breaks, include those within walking distance of the Kiyomizu Dera in the Higashiyama district.

In between our temple hopping we were accosted by a bunch of school kids who were on a school trip and part of their homework was to interview English speaking people. Ed and I dutifully answered their questions and we were rewarded with a photo with the group which will now no doubt be on some Facebook page or school noticeboard in the Kyoto area!

The most magnificent of these temples was the iconic golden temple - Kinkaku-ji, a zen Buddhist temple that exudes calm and opulence, two qualities that don't often go together. You will find many Kyoto temple photos on my Instagram page- this blogpost will be incredibly long if I added them all here! Worth mentioning that we bought a day ticket for the buses which meant you could travel around Kyoto's numerous temples inexpensively and efficiently.

Of all the places in Kyoto, Gion was the one I was most excited about. Having read the Memoirs of a Geisha many years ago and watched the movie (both more than once, which is unlike me), I was very keen on seeing the places and characters described in the book first-hand. I didn't realise that geisha spotting was actually quite rare and a sport of sorts - there were cameraman with the biggest lenses I've seen waiting outside the geisha houses for a glimpse of one as they headed to one of the many tea rooms for an evening entertainment session.

We decided to walk down one of the quieter alleyways and were lucky to spot a beautiful young maiko ( apprentice geisha) scurrying past us. It was so fascinating to watch! A lot of serious business (big business and political deals) happens within these tea houses and 'managed' by the geisha. We happened to see a very expensive car with tinted windows in one of these alleyways...I wondered who was in that car and why?!

The lesser known geisha district is Pontocho, a short walk from Gion. We weren't quite as impressed by it - quaint as it was, it was also a little bit seedy and noisy. We walked up and down the streets of Pontocho a few times and then headed over to the river bank - popular hangout for young couples and teenagers, before making our way back to the Ryokan.

I must also mention our fabulous kaiseki meal in Gion but that needs a blogpost in itself. As does Arashiyama and Fushimi Inari. Our Ryokan experience was also very interesting but unfortunately for my super tall husband, it was a wee bit challenging! That said, we were both pleased we did it!

So there we are, a few snapshots from our Kyoto trip!

Hope you are all having a lovely weekend! Ann x

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