I BRAVED THE horrible weather to walk into town for
a bite of lunch after a visit to my barber in Stockbridge. My initial choice
was L’escargot Blanc at the West End, but upon arrival I found it was
fully booked. My bad for not booking, but thankfully I had a back-up organised
in the form of Noto on Thistle Street and they had a table free with my
name on it.
Noto is the new-ish venture from Stuart Ralston, the man
behind the excellent Aizle – a season-driven casual fine dining
restaurant in the St. Leonards area. While it’s sister establishment serves a
surprise set menu, Noto offers a range of tapas-style small plates
alongside a smattering of medium-sized options that are inspired by New York
with an Asian influence. Stuart spent some time working in the Big Apple and
his second eatery is named after his mate Bob Noto.
While it was cold outside with a brutal wind
blowing, the welcome I received was warm and extremely friendly. I like Thistle
Street; It has a certain coolness to it and it’s just far enough away from Princes Street to ward off throngs of tourists. The interior is minimal to
say the least, with just a few branches decorating the white dining room walls
and a feature lighting structure that verges on hipster.
The menu was awesome. I really fancied the game
sausage roll but opted for the Berkswell cheese croquettes (£6) for my
“starter”. Berkswell is an English ewe’s milk cheese that was always a
favourite of mine when I worked at Mellis. My plate arrived and I was chuffed
to find three nuggets absolutely smothered with Berkswell. Executed perfectly,
my knife cracked the crispy coating to find a bechamel filling wonderfully
rippled with black truffle. I have to say the combo of the tangy, nutty cheese
with the earthy truffle was truly inspired. I would wolf down a hundred of
these easily. 
Now, I had it on good authority that the buttermilk
chicken katsu sandwich with kimchi is a must-try dish. Priced at £13, I
knew I was having that before I even sat down. This was a cracking piece of
cooking. Technically flawless, the
crunchy chicken pieces had been fried at a suitably high temperature, meaning
the inner thigh meat was moist and the coating, like my first course, wasn’t
greasy. The kimchi brought a freshness and a touch of fermented goodness and
there was a lovely saltiness to the whole thing. The bread that housed
this delightful filling was light as a feather.
Show stopper of a dish.
The sole waitress did an excellent job and was
impressively knowledgeable about the menu. She was able to tell me what
dishes contained nuts without consulting the kitchen, which is all too rare.
Extremely impressive stuff going on at Noto. I'd love to sit and talk food with Stuart one day; this is truly unique and creative cooking, different to Aizle, but clearly done with the same passion for food and desire to feed people well. I don't think Sarah appreciated me waxing lyrical about it later that evening!
Web: notoedinburgh.co.uk/
Phone: (0131) 2418518
Address: 47A Thistle Street, Edinburgh, EH2 1DY
Opening hours: Sun-Thurs 12-9. Fri-Sat 12-10 (for food)
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