E.S.I. Brasserie: Gluten-Free in Trendy Leith
Leith is the quintessential ‘up-and-coming area’ beloved of estate agents and marketing folk. Previously, this was a forgotten zone of the city, abandoned to furniture warehouses, scrapyards and car dealerships. All kinds of human flotsam and jetsam would wash up on its now-stylish Shore but Leith was a case of out-of-sight, out-of-mind for most Edinburgh dwellers (apart from Irvine Welsh).
In the last few years, however, Leith has become increasingly trendy, full of fashionable eateries and bars, a haunt of foodies and fashionistas alike. Two out of Edinburgh’s three Michelin-starred restaurants – The Kitchin and Martin Wishart’s – are in the area, either on or near The Shore. I can’t say I’ve eaten at either of them, largely because you need to book weeks in advance and the fear cheile and I tend to be spontaneous in our dining habits. Booking a dinner a month in advance involves far too much commitment and planning for my liking.*
This weekend was just such an occasion where we had a minor milestone to celebrate but didn’t want to go to a fussy place. So we decided to try somewhere and something new and booked a table at esi:brasserie in Leith, online via www.5pm.co.uk. The change of scene was refreshing. Being so close to the water makes Leith feel almost Dutch at times, with quaint Victorian commercial buildings and old fisheries warehouses dolled up for the new Leithers. E.S.I. is in one such renovated old building but is simple enough on the inside, a mix of white paint and exposed brickwork.
In case you’re wondering, the name stands for englishman, scotsman and irishman, which are the nationalities of the three chefs who run the brasserie. Whatever the old jokes might say, it seems they can all cook equally well. The menu offers a simple but diverse range of foods for meat- and fish-lovers with a couple of vegetarian options thrown in. There is a special steak range where you can have your rib-eye, sirloin or fillet steak cooked English, Scottish or Irish style. Those choices alone would be enough to meet many diners’ needs. The menu was very reasonably priced with our bill coming to £50 for two of us, including steak and a glass of red wine for one of us (coeliac foodie eating and drinking more than the fear cheile, as usual /blush/) and the portions were hearty.
My main reason for reviewing E.S.I. though is to comment on how well they managed the provision of gluten-free alternatives. I had noted in my online booking that one of us was coeliac. Often when I eat out, I either don’t notify the restaurant of my dietary needs or don’t have an opportunity to because we rarely bother to book in advance so I was interested to see whether advance notice would make much difference. In the past, it often didn’t matter as chefs were generally flummoxed at the mention of ‘gluten-free’ and tended to just assume you couldn’t eat anything – fish, fowl, meat, nuts, dairy or eggs – like some kind of nutritional oxygen tent dweller. This could often ruin a meal as I would have things taken off my plate – like cheese – that I actually love and thankfully am able to eat. As a result, I often would just show up and take my chances with the menu, a habit I’ve found it hard to break.
E.S.I. reminded me just how out-of-date this thinking is. They made no excessive fuss at all over my diet and let me take the initiative on deciding what suited me. For the starter, I quite liked the sound of the Earl Grey and blue flower smoked salmon but it came with a Yorkshire pudding so I was assured I could choose anything else off the menu instead. I opted for the rocket, parmesan and pine nut salad from the side dish options, which actually tasted great with the salmon. The waiter clearly thought it sounded good too as he said they’d consider adding that as an option instead of the Yorkshire pudding in future menus. For the main course, I chose the sirloin steak – Irish style – not out of patriotism but purely out of coeliac-ism as the Irish-style steak came with mushrooms, fried onions, colcannon and peppercorn sauce, all of which are gluten-free (yes, even the sauce). I haven’t eaten such a good steak in a long time. The meat was high quality and was cooked just the way I like it (medium, with a hint of charcoal but tender on the inside). The colcannon was to die for, with bits of real bacon and fresh cabbage. It made me wonder why I don’t cook it more often as a side dish myself.
What most surprised me, however, was being offered some homemade gluten-free bread before our starters arrived. Normally this is the part of the meal I dread as I sit there, hungry, watching my dining companion(s) nibble guiltily on fresh-baked designer bread with oil and vinegar or gourmet butter before the food arrives. I can’t help but feel schadenfreude if the bread turns out to be some Seventies throwback like a white roll with cheap butter and a plastic crust. Ha! Serves the non-coeliacs right!
At E.S.I. I had no such issues, however, getting to enjoy my very own fresh-baked bread with aioli, balsamic vinegar and a pat of butter before our food arrived. I would give top coeliac-friendly marks to the restaurant for this touch alone. For dessert, we just had some Earl Grey tea as the portions were so generous that we didn’t have room for more. Not to worry though as we’ll definitely be back to Leith again soon for another slice of E.S.I. cooking so will hopefully make it to dessert next time around. And I might remember to bring my camera too.
* Not to mention the eye-watering prices in these places…
Overall marks: 5/5
THE FOOD:
Wholemeal bread with aioli, balsamic vinegar and butter for ‘normals’; homemade, gluten-free bread for me
Starters: Earl Grey and blue flower smoked salmon with rocket, parmesan and pine nut salad; clam chowder
Main: Sirloin steak with colcannon, peppercorn sauce, fried onions, mushroom and a tomato; lamb shank with savoy cabbage, roast vegetables and jus
‘Dessert’: Earl Grey tea
