Reviews Itchycoo Bar & Kitchen

I’m a sucker for an on-line deal voucher, and when somewhere on my list features on one of those websites I obviously have to buy it. This voucher was on Groupon and was £14 for an afternoon tea for two people (half price). Our hot drinks came first while we waited for our feast to arrive, coffee for Craig and hot chocolate for me. The drinks came with a chocolate filled wafer on the side which was one of the highlights for me. Once dipped in my drink the chocolate inside became deliciously gooey and melted in my mouth. We were off to a good start!

I went here for afternoon tea with mum and while it was good, I have had better. The sandwich choice was slightly limited, however they did make a big effort to take my mums dairy allergy into account. The food was very tasty and the service was good, they even gave us boxes to take some of our cakes to go.

We were recently invited down to Itchycoo Bar to try out their new Sea, Field, Farm and Heaven menu. We'd previously overlooked this bar as an add-on to the Radisson Blu Hotel, situated on the Royal Mile. Not that we have anything against hotels, we love nothing more than an overnight stay, it's just that we don't often visit them only for food.

To help peruse the menu we ordered a couple of cocktails. It was early evening and there was no hangover in sight, in spite of this EdinBloggette ordered a tabasco fuelled Bloody Mary - how adventurous, I played things safe with a mojito.

EdinBloggette was over the moon with her drink, I tried a bit but the overwhelming taste of pizza in a glass is just too much for me. I just don't understand this drink, it always tastes so bitter. I was, however, very taken by the slice of lemon with cloves, how pretty. My drink was delicious and as far from pizza as possible, we both found common ground on this.

My starter from the Field was HUGE, a simple chicken and mango salad, the mango was sweet and moreish, whilst the chilli dressing added a little smile to my face. My dining partner ordered a slate of juicy tiger prawns and oak smoked salmon from the Sea. It turned out that EdinBloggette was in heaven two courses too soon, she was loving every bite.

I'd never acquired the taste for salmon (cold fish doesn't do it for me), but I did try a little on this occasion, I think I'm a convert - this was truly scrumptious salmon.

For my main, I moved over to the Sea for a classic - Fish and Chips. The chips were fantastic, crisp and fluffy! The fish was covered in a light batter and cooked perfectly, part of the batter was a little on the soggy side (mostly the underside), but I wasn't complaining as the fish was still delish.

EdinBloggette ensured we visited all areas of the menu by ordering from the Farm. Chicken and Haggis isn't something my partner in crime would usually order, but Itchycoo turned out to be a place of experimentation, the chicken was lovely and moist and the haggis was rich and earthy. The whisky sauce complemented each element and brought the dish together, a perfect combination, bring on the bagpipes.

We couldn't finish all of our mains, that's not to say we didn't enjoy them, we had to make a little room for Heaven - a trio of desserts, the chocolate milkshake was a little unusual, resembling melted ice cream in a cup. The cone was the perfect size and the ice cream was so yummy, the blancmange was also pretty tasty, very light with a hint of citrus - we had to fight over the malteser (I won).

We arrived hungry and left at maximum capacity, next time we visit we'll probably only order two courses. I'd order the chicken and mango salad any day of the week, as for EdinBloggette, she's keen to return for more of that salmon.

It'll be interesting to see how busy Itchycoo gets during the Fringe, we'll certainly be back for a couple of cocktails and a bite to eat to escape the madness.

For full review, please visit:
http://www.edinblogger.com/2014/itchycoo-bar-sea-field-farm-heaven/

I visited Itchycoo this afternoon with a friend and we had a lovely afternoon, so much so that we stayed and chatted in the lounge for several hours whilst savouring our afternoon tea and cocktails. I love the tradition of afternoon tea, and it is always fantastic to indulge in an afternoon of eating sandwiches, scones, and cakes. Itchycoo has taken the afternoon tea to a new level by letting you bypass the actual tea (or coffee) and skipping directly on to the cocktails. This is a fantastic idea (hey, if you're going for a decadent afternoon filled with cake, why not go all the way and get a cocktail, too!).

Itchycoo's cocktail list was lovely, and I couldn't decide between the Death by Chocolate or the Espresso Martini. The waiter helped me decide on the Death by Chocolate cocktail - it was fabulous, rich and decadent and definitely fit what I was looking for!

After the cocktails arrived, our cake tower was paraded out to us. It was a beautiful array and selection. I think it's a general feature that the sandwiches at an afternoon tea are usually a let-down. The vegetarian versions we had were fine, but nothing stood out. We then moved on to the scone tier. The scones were tasty, but could have been a bit more fluffy and fresh. Itchycoo did very well with the cakes, though, which are always meant to steal the show anyway (let's face it). We had a banoffee pie, a fruit pie, meringues and carrot cake. I liked them in that order, too, with the meringues and the carrot cake both being fabulous. I was a tad disappointed that there was nothing chocolate included in the cake range, but then again my Death by Chocolate cocktail helped make up for that!

We really enjoyed sitting by the lovely windows in the lounge rather than in the dark bar area. However, since we opted to sit farther away from the bar we were a bit neglected by service and had to ask three times for some tap water. However, that could have been because of the location we chose. Still, I wasn't thrilled in the service because I had originally made the reservation for 3pm but then tried to move it later to 4pm but was told that they were completely booked out for afternoon that afternoon so weren't able to let us come later. This was disappointing, especially because the whole time we were there it was extremely quiet with plenty of space at other tables, so they easily could have accommodated us an hour later. The online service was excellent, though, because the Radisson Bleu Edinburgh's social media people are really on it and were excited to have us come (as they should be!).

Delicious Japanese restaurant with a solid menu and very nice decor. Was unfortunately seated in their small downstairs area which is quite cramped and echoey so best to request seating upstairs. Staff were friendly and the food was very tasty.

Excellent Tomahawk Pork Chop and accompanying vegetables. Strong whiskey selection, as was expected. Actually paired a double Oban 14 yr. neet with a St. Giles (local) Scotch Ale at 5.5 ABV. It was outstanding! Our entire party said it was the best dining experience we enjoyed in Scotland.

We spent a very nice moment at itchycoo. The waiter made the expérience even beter. He was pretty kind and professionnel.

Quiet comfortable with a good selection of drinks and food

Itchycoo is a friendly, modern place that serves a broad range of drinks and dishes. The staff have been friendly in my experiencing and provide sound recommendations. The noise can be a bit loud but it is a nice place for a casual drink with friends. Worth a visit if you are in the area.

Itchycoo is a restaurant bar with a new food menu that focuses on fresh local produce. We started with deep-fried softshell crab and a mixed salad (featuring dried cranberries, walnuts, and blue cheese). For mains (which we both particularly enjoyed) it was pan fried sea bass and rump of lamb. Dessert was a dark chocolate tartlet and something called "munch" (which turned out to be many little tasty desserty things on a plate). Many items on the menu can be ordered as either main or starter portions, which I thought was a lovely idea. I ended up having 2 starter-sized portions (for both courses), and it was more than enough to fill me up. Oh, and they have a lot of cocktails. The cocktails, which are well-done classics for the most part, are about average-priced for the city. I've tried several, and I think the raspberry mojito is my favorite so far. Service was extremely friendly and knowledgeable, if a tad slow at times. Disappointments: 1) None of the vegetarian mains looked particularly exciting (though to be fair, I haven't tried them - perhaps they are absolutely thrilling to eat). 2) No local beers on tap. Would love to see these added someday - I could definitely see us spending a sunny afternoon at one of their outdoor tables on the Royal Mile sipping beer and people-watching.