AH DUNDEE, THE City of Discovery, or, with the opening of the V&A, several new restaurants and a handful of modern hotels, the City of Rejuvenation. Sarah and I were spending the evening at the Hotel Indigo, which has seen the old Baxter Bros’ jute mill transformed into a trendy new space. Most of my evenings in this fair city involved gigging with my old band before the transformation began. The people made those night memorable, but unfortunately, life on the road meant food usually involved a quick pizza or a dirty kebab. The hotel restaurant, Daisy Tasker, is named after a jute worker from this old factory known for organising social events, so it seemed rather apt to check out the ‘modern’ Dundee.
With a proud nod to Scottish heritage, the hotel is decked out with reminders of our achievements with a cool gaming wall, in particular, catching my eye. The theme continues in our first-floor room with local art, curtains and a mini bar stocked with Scottish goodies such as Irn-Bru and a Caramel Log proudly taking pride of place. Our spacious abode, complete with brickwork coves, really allowed you to let your hair down in style. A giant comfy bed, muckle TV and a kick-ass power shower tick all the boxes for me; my hotel bug bear is a piddly water flow.
After settling in we slip down into the dining room to find that it’s full, despite only being 6.30 p.m. The kitchen is run by former Masterchef contestant Stewart Macauley, previously of The Adamson in St. Andrew's, who won two AA rosettes not long after Daisy Tasker opened. There’s an industrial vibe going on with high concrete ceilings, pipework and large lights hanging from the roof. A bright bar occupies the far side of the room with cocktail shakers going a dime a dozen. To the right there are a few velvet-clad booths, and a bustling brasserie atmosphere suggests the locals are out to try the city’s latest casual dining offering.
The menu is a bit of a mish-mash of Scottish and European dishes featuring the likes of Arbroath smokies, chicken balmoral and a rather intriguing Dundee marmalade souffle. We fancied the home comforts platter (£85) from the ‘share the weekend’ section, which started with a tray of whisky-glazed chicken wings, haggis bon bons and Arbroath smokie sliders. The main would be an ever-irresistible côte de boeuf with trimmings followed by rhubarb and custard crumble for dessert. Oh, and there was a bottle of prosecco flung in for good measure, although we substituted it for Malbec. Sounded like a pretty good deal to me.
I couldn’t wait to dive into the mini smokie burger. A spongy brioche roll wasn’t packed with smoked haddock, but that wasn’t a bad thing as too much would have overpowered the crisp lettuce and fresh tomato rather than lightly enhancing their respective flavours. The little spheres of haggis had a real peppery whack and a pleasingly rough texture. The chicken fell from the bone and was still moist, but I didn’t detect any of the whisky glaze, unfortunately.
A platter arrived with a beautiful slab of carved pink beef atop of potato puree, purple sprouting broccoli, kale and a professionally made potato terrine. Then came a stack of the sexiest onion rings I’ve laid eyes on, a pot of red wine jus, tomatoes, a sole Portobello mushroom and skin-on chips; I had no idea how we were going to eat all of this ... but we tried.
It can be surprisingly hard to find good beef, but this was mighty fine and matched by the chef’s meat cookery skills. The greens were in season and expertly dispatched to maximise flavour and texture. I loved the slab of potato (terrine), as it was buttery and accurately seasoned. The mash was smooth as you like, and the chips were seriously moreish. The red wine jus was a little odd; not that it tasted bad, it just had an unexpected oriental taste as opposed to a classic red wine sauce. Competent cooking with top-notch produce is a winner all day long.
We were completely stuffed but the rhubarb (forced, I’m guessing) and custard crumble was the perfect winter warmer to round off the evening. The fruit still had bite, thus avoiding that horrible stringiness that can occur from overcooking. The custard was slightly on the thin side but was suitably flavoured with vanilla while the crumble top brought a comforting biscuit taste rather than a whack of unwanted sweetness.
I have to say I read one ridiculous review on TripAdvisor criticising waiting staff for wearing jeans. What a twat. Just for the record, staff were attentive and very professional throughout. It was good to see the presence of a front of house manager conducting the orchestra and getting stuck in, too. What one wears does not dictate the standard of service and casual dining is a welcome change from stuffy up-yer-own-arse service. The team even remembered us when we returned in the morning for a rather delicious Scottish breakfast. Again, the intent to use quality ingredients was commendable and the staff genuine and confident in their roles. 
Web: daisytasker.co.uk/
Twitter: @daisytasker
Phone: (01382) 472114
Address: 3 Lower Dens Mill, Constable Street, Dundee, DD4 6AD
Opening hours: Daisy Tasker runs several menus throughout the day - see website for full details.
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