L'escargot Bleu Restaurant

L'Escargot Bleu November 2015
Dining Out in Paris in Edinburgh

The pre-theatre menu at L’Escargot Bleu is two courses from £12.90 and worth more. I’ll admit that this played into our decision to finally coming here. It’s November and coming up to Christmas, the pockets aren’t quite as deep. As such I expect £12.90 service. Pleasant and most of all efficient. We’re the warm up to the main eventers later on this evening, I expect to be fed and get out. Imagine my surprise when after choosing our dishes I am presented with an amuse-bouche, trout tartare with capers and shallot. I don’t think they got the memo, they’ve gone all out! I regret not putting on perfume.

WE DROVE PAST L’Escargot Bleu a couple of weeks ago, with Sarah stating that “We should go back there soon, it was amazing last time”. A discreet smile briefly adorned my face, as I had booked a table for her forthcoming birthday just the day before. Chef/owner Fred Berkmiller is a hugely popular figure on the Edinburgh food scene, and is normally based at Bleu’s sister restaurant, L’Escargot Blanc, with partner Betty looking after proceedings at this end.  Often out spreading the word of the Slow Food movement, Fred resonates passion for the finest seasonal produce and shows an unyielding commitment to the training of young chefs, both here and in his native France with his Budding Chefs initiative (www.buddingchefs.net). Sarah and I last visited L’Escargot Bleu – which holds one AA Rosette – a year or two ago and can still remember a slightly nervous waiter knocking up a knockout steak tartare. I would have happily ordered any of the starters, but couldn’t resist revisiting what I regard as one of the best I’ve had in Edinburgh; but would it come through this time? Well, the answer is, yes, of course it did.  The added theatre of assembling the dish at the table drew glances from other diners and only adds to this special French classic (priced at £8.90). The quality of the shorthorn beef is unquestionable and all the flavours of shallots, capers, Dijon mustard, egg yolk, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and herbs really tantalise the palette. If you are afraid of eating raw meat then 1) Get a grip and 2) Visit L’Escargot Bleu and have this dish. The birthday girl opened with another classic in the form of moules mariniere, with the bi-valve molluscs coming from the Isle of Lewis.  Provenance is blatantly important to this restaurant and a proud intertwining of French classics with the finest Scottish produce is a clear theme in the menu throughout. I always love getting a whiff of this dish before it’s plumped down at your table.  It’s like catching the invigorating

L'Escargot bleu. The idea behind this restaurant is great - combine French culinary skills with local Scottish produce. As both are excellent the combination is a winner. There are several menu possibilities: at lunch you choose from the blackboard where a range of dishes change every day. There is also a pre-dinner menu also chosen from the board and finally an 'à la carte menu" from 7-30 p.m. onwards which offers a wider choice. The wine choice is limited but has been carefully chosen. This said the house wines are more than acceptable and available by the glass or by the carafe.
The real secret to this restaurant is its unpretentious style. It looks like your typical French bistro but the cuisine offers so much more! Try it
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Two years ago, friends took me to L’Escagot Bleu for a birthday dinner. It was a wonderful birthday present for someone like me. The restaurant used to be a favourite with me when I worked off Broughton Street. It was close by, the food was superb and the ambiance was relaxed and charming. The service is friendly and professional. Now that I work in Gorgie, L’Escargot Bleu is not quite so convenient but it is still where my mind turns whenever I want something authentically French, like choucroute garni.

Readers of this blog will know that I have a thing for French food. My first real food memory is about French food and most of my favourite dishes are or have strong French influences. I was therefore quite excited about going back to L’Escargot Bleu last week to review it.

L’Escagot Bleu is off the street, up the stairs on Broughton Street. The room is warm and cozy and we had a rather delightful table with a view of the street. Three white candles in a silver candelabra lit our romantic table and I had a good view of the bar.

Spectacle and steak

There are certain things that I cannot turn away from if I see them on a menu. Crème brûlée used to be one of those things, but I have managed to break the habit and now go all out for cheese instead. Steak tartare is one of those dishes that I absolutely love and don’t see on a menu often enough to dare turn it down when I do. Luckily, it’s having a moment rights now and in the last year its appeared more often than in previous years. Nowhere have I seen it served the way it was at L’Escargot Bleu where it is prepared at the table.

It’s quite a spectacle when a large board of ingredients is brought out and combined, to your specifications, in a shiny metal bowl. It starts with hand-cut Buccleuch beef steak to which egg yolk, mustard and olive oil is added and quickly incorporated to make a kind of steak mayo. Then texture and flavour is added through the addition of finely chopped gherkins, capers, parsley and shallots. When that is all incorporated a few more flavour enhancers are added: Worcester sauce, Tabasco, ketchup, salt and pepper. A final, gentle mix and the steak is ready to be served. I enjoyed mine tremendously. The flavour of the steak was still there, under the flavourings, and the whole was very tasty indeed. it was served with a green salad, which worked well with the fairly spicy steak, and more crostini than I needed.

C. had a goat’s cheese pithivier (a covered, flaky pastry pie). It broke a pattern of “when in Glasgow, have a pithivier” that started last year. It was flaky, had the right amount of goats cheese and was really good.

I go for capers. Again.

For the main course I had the fish of the day: ling with caper beurre blanc and blue potato pure. Oh, yes, and mussels for decoration. Lovely. The beurre blanc was very nicely balanced and the capers were not allowed to over-power the sauce but only give it depth. The fish was perfectly cooked and the blue pure worked really well both in texture and colour on the plate.

C. has a compte cheese risotto crosquis (a breaded risotto cake) with mushrooms and green salad. The risotto was richly cheesy and the mushrooms were a great. For the joy of it we shared a side of honey-glazed carrots and celeriac. We didn’t need a side: there was plenty of food on our plates, but it sounded really good. And it was.

A worthy cheese board

I sometimes wonder why restaurants bother having cheese boards. At L’Escargot Bleu it’s obvious: they love cheese. The cheeseboard meets you as you come in the door and teases you all through dinner. I had a blue, a soft goat and Langres, a washed rind cheese, each full of flavour. The goat’s cheese was fresh and zingy; the blue full of tingly umami and the Langres had that creamy texture and a gentle version of the big aroma that makes me such a fan of the class. I also tasted a treat: a truffle stuffed brie.

I remember seeing a picture of truffle stuffed brie on Twitter last autumn. One of the several restaurants or chefs that I follow posted a picture. (Sorry, I can’t find it.) As far as I understand, the process is deceptively simple. You take a good brie, before it’s completely mature, slice it in half as if it were a birthday sponge, and fill it with a heady mixture of truffle and mascarpone. The brie is then wrapped up and returned to a cool environment to finish maturing. The result is a brie plus: more mushroom, more flavour, more creaminess. Yes. I liked it.

C. had a selection of macaroons for dessert. The vanilla one was particularly pretty – a pale cream with candy coloured speckles – but they were all good. The green tea and caramel macaroon was the only green tea flavoured sweet that C. has ever enjoyed.

It was cold outside but we were happy and comfortable when we left. I would warmly recommend a visit. The food is great and the atmosphere is relaxed. You know you’re in a French restaurant: the lights are made from wine boxes and there are nostalgic French prints on the wall. It’s classy rather than kitsch, though. The sister restaurant, L’Escargot Blanc, in the West End, is a little bigger and feels a little busier. (I had my first duck egg there. Then I lost a scarf. Good times.)

If January’s having you pinching your wallet shut to keep the pennies from rolling away, pop in to L’Escargot Epicerie, the shop below L’Escargot Bleu for a treat or two. There’s more than one way to enjoy good French food. The L’Escargot chain gives you three.

Oddly enough I find myself in stunning French restaurants in the UK more often than I’d expect, and this was no exception. Our servers were warm and accommodating (critical given the bone chilling cold that day before dinner) and the food was uniformly excellent. The deconstructed fish soup was a particularly fascinating touch and of course a restaurant with escargot in the name did not disappoint with the titular dish. Duck egg omelette was fascinating and a classic beef bourguignon simply hits the spot on a chilly day. Would 100% recommend to francophiles looking for a proper feed in Edinburgh.

We had a great experience. The staff is wonderful.. friendly and helpful with suggestions. Everything was great!... tartar, escargot, Cote de beuf, cod, and the lamb are all recommended! Nemesis and the creme brulee for dessert were great choices for the finish!

Thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! The food and ambiance was great! First time to try snail and the Iles Flottante is a personal fave!

Quaint cozy French bistro in NewTown area of Edinburgh. Brilliant French take using the fresh Scottish produce from the area. The bistro is well managed by French couple with the husband as chef and wife running the front. I have never seen such a “chill” and relaxed kitchen brigade of 2. The menu is the obligatory blackboard which is brought to the table and propped up in the chair. The special of the day is announced by the wait staff. Everything sounds delicious. I was told that this is the place with the best steak tartare which is prepared at your table. I was not disappointed! The escargot was also very good. Wine was well matched with the food. The ambience is relaxed and I could have been in France instead of freezing Edinburgh. Totally enjoyed the atmosphere. Enjoyed watching the kitchen brigade work efficiently and producing steaming hot dishes effortlessly. The bistro is closed Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Open for dinners only the rest of the week. Lunch available only on Friday and Saturday. There’s a cancellation fee as well. Highly recommended for a great French bistro meal in Edinburgh!

Absolutely fantastic restaurant and wine bar. The staff are all friendly and good fun, the food is consistently excellent and the selection of wine is fantastic. They also have steak tartare that is prepared table-side. There is a nice choice of bar appropriate snacks and I have never had a bad time there. with a nice warm and comfortable atmosphere.