La P'tite Folie

Staff very welcoming. Menu nicely varied in the evening with good choice. Reasonably priced food and wines, food excellent quality and beautifully presented. Thoroughly enjoyable evening.

Quintessentially French dining experience. If you are a fan of traditional French cuisine then rejoice that La P’tite Folie – The Little Madness – can be found in the heart of Edinburgh’s West End.
Virginie has transformed this former ‘Tudor House’, at 9 Randolph Place, into a traditional dining venue with wood-panelled walls and cosy tables. Opened in 2003, this has fast become the restaurant of choice for diners in Edinburgh’s West End.
Of course, the star of the show at the restaurant is the outstanding traditional French cuisine. You can find quintessential dishes including Steamed Mussels with White Wine and Garlic Cream and the classic Moules-Frites, as well as surprising mouth-watering choices such as Herb-Crusted Carpaccio of Venison served with Port Jus, or Aberdeen Angus Beef Fillet with Gratin Dauphinoise and Blue Cheese Sauce. And of course, no French meal would be complete without a delightful dessert like White Chocolate Crème Brûlée or traditional Apple Tart Tatin.
At La P’tite Folie you are guaranteed a warm welcome and sumptuous dishes that you aren’t likely to find anywhere else in Scotland, which are, naturally, complemented by the best French wines.

When I grew up, French food was the epitome of all things elegant and fancy. The country had the patent on style, sartorial and culinary. Italian was earthy, Chinese exotic but only French managed to be elegant. In the town I spent my first ten years there were only three types of restaurant. When I was four and five, we went to the Chinese every Tuesday because it was cheap and I could get stuff in fluffy batter, served with sweet, sticky sauce, for both main and dessert. When I was seven and eight, we spent the summers on the French Riviera and ate French food every day. Although this removed some of the mystery of French food to me, it only added to the glamour.

When I was eleven, we moved to Stockholm and the culinary landscape opened to me. Swedish, Indian, Malaysian, Italian, Turkish, American, Tex Mex, Japanese – capitals are melting pots and their restaurant scene reflect that. The French cuisine remains a favourite with me and an elegant restaurant, whether in Stockholm or Edinburgh, often offers local with a French twist. I love going to authentically French restaurants. There are several in Edinburgh but one of the first ones I learned to love was La P’tite Folie.

La P’tite Folie has two restaurants, a busy, buzzy one on Frederick Street and a little more reserved in Tudor House in Randolph Place. Last week, my glamorous companion and I visited the Tudor House restaurant.

Tudor House is a beautiful building and we sat in the turret alcove, a cosy nook with a nice view of the street outside. While reading the menu and negotiating who would have what and which dishes were the most exciting, we sipped kir royales. They came in very attractive foot-less glasses that could be dangerous if you had more than one glass. 

The menu is rounded and varies regularly. If you’re after vegetarian, ask what today’s option is before taking a table. This is very much a fish and meat restaurant (as you’d expect, from a French establishment). There’s often steak and lamb, rillettes, steamed mussels and other tasty French classics on the menu. The room is unfussy with sturdy tables and French posters on the wall. It’s bright and comfortable.

Getting Started

You always get bread and a small salad to nibble while you wait for your starter. I really like that. It whets the appetite without filling you up. I’m personally rather partial to the Dijon mustard dressing that the salad comes with: it’s tangy and used sparingly so that it doesn’t swamp the crisp lettuce. I started with asparagus with parmesan shavings, flaked almonds and truffle oil. It was a fresh and light dish to start with and had the added benefit of making me feel virtuous. My companion had the Barbary duck breast with braised cabbage, bacon and Calvados jus, It was meaty and tender. 

Steak!

I was so excited about my steak the photo didn’t come out. Sorry. It was fab! 
For her main, my companion had the fillet of halibut with lemon grass and mussel broth. She had great difficulties choosing between that and the rack of lamb with fondant potato and a Niçoise of olives and tomatoes with a mint jus. In the end, the mussels won her over. I’m sure the lamb would have been great too but the halibut was lovely. It sat on a pile of green beans, surrounded by a rich creamy broth.

I also found it difficult to decide what to have for my main but decided to go for a French classic: steak frites. The steak was juicy, cooked to perfection (which for me means somewhere between blue and rare) and came with a spicy, satisfying Café de Paris butter and a large heap of pommes frites. Fat chips in all honour, but I love the thin crispiness of a pommes frites. It’s the deep fried potato shape of my childhood and I am deeply loyal to it.

Cheese and Chocolate

La P’tite Folie does a really nice cheese board and is a popular option for my companion, who has a savoury, rather than a sweet, tooth. I couldn’t resist the chocolate tart, an unusual choice for me. It was just perfect: dark with chocolate and smooth with cream. The pastry was crisp and the vanilla ice cream worked perfectly with the rich chocolate. It had the tiniest wobble and made me very grateful that I’d passed on the Colonel – lemon sorbet and vodka, very refreshing – I usually have. 

 Wrapping Up

I have been going to La P’tite Folie for years and have always enjoyed the authentic French food and a warm, friendly welcome. This night was no different. The food was lovely, the ambiance comfortable and unpretentious. The staff were stars.

When I got home, I received a phone call from the restaurant telling me that I’d dropped my headphones under the table. Thank you, Maria, for re-uniting me with these, to me, very important objects! And thank you for giving us a really nice evening.

Fabulous food beautifully presented with outstanding service. The most delicious sea bass I have ever had. My partner had the best duck ever. Simple but nice dining room in an historic building. Had a table by a big window. Arrive early if you are infirm to get one of the few tables downstairs-the upper dining area is up many stairs. Our charming, professional, kind & beautiful 20 something French server in an amazing short jumpsuit added the perfect garnish to our lovely evening. There’s a huge construction project on the road in front, but it didn’t bother us. They need to ditch the dried grass placements which add nothing and can’t be washed. Fair prices. Dinner only. A very popular wine bar is adjacent.

Lunch date with a friend. Restayrant was veey busy and we were told 2 hours for table, we over ran but this wasn't a problem. Two course lunch deal was good value and qualiry was very good, all washed down with a nice bottle of red. Staff friendly and polite. A lovely buzzy Saturday afternoon.

Very lovely French restaurant with tasty food and excellent service. We had a starter and then the meat, that was tender and perfectly cooked. The Crème Brulée is delicious. A place to come back to.

We had a fabulous meal for 3 on 22 July. Great central location. Restaurant was very busy, but had a great atmosphere and vibe and the service was excellent! The food was also excellent and was a very good price too. We will definitely return.

The highlight of my trip to Edinburgh. Amazing food