The Just Onces

Many travelers have a list of things to do when they arrive at their destination. I tend to be the opposite, as I usually don't even have a clue what a city boasts until I am knee deep in tourists and searching for an escape route. Well, I suppose that isn't totally true, but my list is always the same, search and consume all local food specialties. I can plan an entire day around fish and chips or gazpacho. I throw in a little site seeing for good measure, but the final destination (be it breakfast, lunch or dinner) is always chosen by my stomach. She is a pesky beast, but rarely leads me astray.

My recent excursion was no exception. Scotland, the land of the Loch Ness monster, castles and golf, also is the land of haggis, black pudding and deep fried Mars bars (all of which fall into the category of "you must try them, even if it is just once"). Since I don't believe in Nessie, nor Santa or the Tooth Fairy for that matter, and I have yet to find the idea of golfing appealing, I figured it was a safe bet to head straight to the pub for some of this mystery meat folks are so disgusted by. Ok, so it is a minced mess of sheep's heart, liver, and anything else lying around, simmered in some animal's stomach for a few hours, but how bad can it really be? It just so happened that on the day in question I had done a little hike up to Arthur's Seat and on the way down was caught in a rain shower (I can't really say that this was unexpected, but I was totally unprepared). By the time I made it to the Holyrood Palace I was quite wet and cold. I stopped under a tree to speak to an old Scottish couple, and here I learned that the weather report is just nonsense and you should always prepare for rain. The wife was upset as this was the first day this year she had braved wearing sandals. They were extremely sweet and made some suggestions as to where I should eat lunch. At this point, I was shivering, so all suggestions went out the window and I hit the first pub on the royal mile, Jenny Ha's. It turned out to be a lovely place and served up a nice plate of haggis with neeps and tatties. Not really knowing what any of the three items were other than a vague idea of haggis being something involving a sheep's stomach, I asked our friendly waiter to explain (by the way they also serve vegetarian haggis, but that takes a bit of the fun out of it). Haggis is mostly oats, but essentially mixed with all sorts of animal bits, neeps are potatoes and tatties are, you guessed it, potatoes. I didn't argue, as anything involving potatoes and gravy is fine with me, double potatoes sounds doubly fantastic. So, I came, I saw, and I ate every last bite of that haggis. Turns out that after a day of hiking and rain, haggis is just the ticket. Meat, potatoes, potatoes and gravy, there is nothing wrong with that at all...plate cleaned and I would do it again.

So haggis is checked off, what is next? I actually wasn't really sure what culinary adventure I would have next, so I opted to dine at a very old restaurant called the Cafe Royal. It is a very beautiful spot, close to the Princes street shopping nightmare, but slightly off the beaten path. You really have to know where you are going in order to find it. It was supposedly the hang out for literary celebrities and is a stop on the literary pub crawl (which I missed by one week). Anyway, I sat at one of the side tables beside the bar and surveyed the menu. Immediately, I see Cullen Skink with Arbroath Smokie, and since I can't even begin to imagine what the heck that is, I order it. I soon discover that it is a fish and potato (shocker) soup, bones in, so watch out. For the main course, I ordered the seafood platter as I was making an attempt at eating something healthy. One of the main draws of this place was that they feature an oyster bar, but I was sad to see my three oysters just sitting there sans ice. Lukewarm oysters are not ideal, but then again, just three oysters is not ideal either.

Here I would just like to say that Edinburgh was an amazing trip for me. I stepped out of the train station and could not believe my eyes. I was in a fairy tale, castles, uber green grass, flowers everywhere, the sound of bagpipes, and not an uncastle like building in site. I walked towards my friends' house and couldn't stop giggling. I have never considered myself to be a princess kind of gal, but I suddenly wished that I was wearing a huge ball gown with glass slippers and riding a white horse. I spent those few happy days just meandering through the streets snapping what turned out to be about 300 pictures. That was the most touristy I have ever been, but I couldn't help myself. I almost attempted to go into the big castle at the end of the Royal Mile, but then got my normal twitch once I got to the gate and saw the mass of tourists that I would be forces to walk beside. So, I snapped a pic of myself at arm's length and stamped it a close encounter. I was happy that I escaped the mind fog of castle mania in order to gather myself. I walked until my poor little feet could no longer carry, and then I went home (well to Guillermo and Cecile's home). Each night I was greeted so warmly at the door and stuffed with a homemade dinner courtesy of Cecile. After dinner we would sit and chat (and laugh) over ice cream and herbal tea. I really could not have had a better vacation if I had truly planned it. I can wholeheartedly say they I would choose a quiet evening with good friends and good conversation over drunken nights out till 4 AM any day. I felt so relaxed and welcome, oh and did I mention that I could speak guilt-free English for 4 days. I think I talked more in those few days then I have the entire 2 months I have been in France. I digress...


Anyway, as a thank you to my lovely host and hostess, I took them to dinner at the restaurant of their choosing. They chose Blonde and they chose well! It was like an eater's dream. Warm salads, so many types of local meats, braised, stewed, mashed, all words I like to see. I ordered the warm salad with black (or blood) pudding, raspberries and walnuts for a starter, then the casserole of venison, slowly braised in a red wine, root vegetables and chocolate (yes, chocolate!) and topped with mashed potatoes and parsnip crisps for the main course. Guillermo had the mussels to start and the grilled swordfish for the main course. Cecile had the Aberdeen Angus rib-eye steak, lemon and green peppercorn butter, stir fried vegetables and fries. We shared the raspberry creme brulee for dessert. I highly recommend this restaurant.

To end, this was such an amazing, but too brief, adventure. My only regrets are that I couldn't stay longer and that I failed to find the fried Mars bar. I haven't even touched on all of my adventures, perhaps I'll write a non-food blog. The take home message for this blog is that you should always try the local food, you don't have to like it, but you can say you've done it, even if it is just once.

I'll leave you with a shot of the castle I did explore (almost alone), Craigmillar Castle, and an unreal photo I took of the flower of Scotland, the thistle. Enjoy!!