The Good Food Guide caught up with Fin & Grape to find out, amongst other things, how they have been celebrating winning Scotland’s Best Local Restaurant.
You are Scotland's Best Local Restaurant, but where’s your favourite local restaurant?
My wife and I love Mirin on Leith walk. It's our very close friends who own it but as much as we love to go to support them (which we do regularly), our main reason for going is that the food is absolutely delicious! They do so much in such a small space and they are very deserving of the strong support they have.
How have you been celebrating your win?
Honestly, we've barely had a chance yet, things have been so busy! We closed on the Sunday after the news came out and had a bit of a staff lunch but other than that it's just been full speed ahead at the restaurant. There's a couple of very nice bottles of wine earmarked for a celebration at some stage though so we'll certainly enjoy them when we get the time.
If money was no object, where would you book a table?
Generally, I would have to say that I'm less interested in high end, formal dining experiences these days so the answer to this probably changes a bit. If it was for a genuine splash out though and I had a blank cheque, at the moment it would be restaurant Jordnaer in Copenhagen. The food just looks sensational!
Where is your favourite cheap eat?
We love Chorrito Cantina in Leith. Again, it's friends of ours but it's such good value for money. They serve really great hand made tacos & other Mexican food too (with cold beer & great margaritas). It's super busy but it's completely understandable at the price. We should actually visit much more regularly!
If you came in to eat at your own restaurant, what would you order?
I would always order a big bit of fish cooked on the bone, it's our thing and I believe it's the most representative in terms of the sort of restaurant we want people to see us as. We really encourage people to share food, it's how we prefer to eat & it feels like the most social way to eat. There's nothing better than tucking into a nice generous piece of fish with some delicious butter or sauce and some nice sides. Although our menus are designed to be very flexible, I often feel that people are missing out if they don't go for a large fish.
Tell us something people don’t know about your restaurant.
A lot of people still don't know that we have a speakeasy wine bar in the basement below the restaurant. We have a very simple menu with a focus on tinned fish (inspired by a lot of time spent in Spain and Portugal) and a great drinks selection. It's there for anyone who isn't in the mood for a full meal in the restaurant and just wants to pop in for a quick bite and a couple of drinks.
Where are you most excited to try in your neighbourhood?
We actually don't stay in the same area as the restaurant, so we don't spend a lot of time on this side of town. We have been trying to find the right time to try Eorna in Stockbridge though. It's 5 minutes from where we live and looks fantastic.
What is your go to post-service treat?
Food: peanut butter on some form of bread
Drink: glass of wine, usually something white and on the richer side
