THE GARDENER’S COTTAGE, EDINBURGH

Last night, within ‘spitting distance’ of Monkfish Towers The Gardener’s Cottage opened it’s doors for the very first time…. Lucky enough to bag a space at one of the 3 shared tables Ms Monkfish (plus one) settled in for the night to take in the food, the atmos and the amazing venue. After months of preparation and pop-up appearances at various events Ed and Dale were finally in their own kitchen and about to entertain 30 hungry guests.

The Gardener’s Cottage concept is simple – shared dining tables each seating 10, an open kitchen so the diners can see the chefs in action, and a set four course menu (at a set price, £25 per head) consisting of locally sourced produce alongside various foraged ingredients (courtesy of Ben the forager). There is an excellent wine list to accompany your menu including a very tasty dessert wine to quaff with your pud.

 The cottage interiors have been cleverly thought out, old church seats, lights and table tops salvaged from a ship, an old record player spinning vinyl and vintage crockery and place settings. This is a home from home for Ms Monkfish, she’s in her element!


We ate….
nibble – home baked sourdough with herbed butter

to start – Oysters, crudites with fresh mayonnaise

for mains – roe deer, chanterelle mushrooms, heritage potatoes, asparagus and a blueberry sauce
 cheese – sheep’s cheese served with home baked fennel crackers and cherries
 for dessert – elderflower cream, gooseberry puree, hazelnut meringue and wild strawberries

Having toured around the City’s various supper clubs we are big fans of communal dining and the cottage fits in nicely to this more ‘underground dining’ scene that is developing in Edinburgh.

For us it’s perfect (in case you were in any doubt…. ). Some of you may not like the set menu approach but you should give it a go. The way that Ed and Dale present the dishes is very exciting, you won’t have eaten anything like this anywhere else in Edinburgh. It’s new, exciting and above all interesting. You’ll be talking about it for days, trust us…

The Gardener’s Cottage
London Road, Edinburgh
For bookings use Twitter @gardenersctg 

For more photos go to mymonkfish on flickr – CLICK HERE
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