Review: L'escargot Blanc, Edinburgh

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I’D TRIED a couple of times to get a reservation at L’escargot Blanc recently without success, but today I was in luck.  I’m a huge fan of Fred Berkmiller’s classic French food with a Scottish nod and his dedication to sourcing the best produce is hard to rival anywhere. It’s often easy to build things up only to find that expectations are not met.
Blanc’s sister restaurant – l’escargot Bleu – once served me a beef tartare starter that remains in my top three of all time; and I eat out a lot.  Situated on Queensferry Street in Edinburgh’s West End, the downstairs area is a dedicated wine bar, with the upstairs used as the brasserie. A bustling atmosphere was uplifting and light seemed to pour in what was a rather convivial dining room. 
I must begin with our hilarious waiter. “French butter, French wine, you are living the dream right now, madam” he tells the table next to us.  It turned out he’s as entertaining as he is efficient, like he knows you’re going to be well fed. Worth mentioning that the restaurant holds an AA Rosette for excellence with most of their vegetables coming from Fred's walled garden in East Lothian.
The lunch menu is a very smartly priced £12.90 for two courses or £14.90 for three. Sarah skipped the starters in favour of a pudding, but I went for the trusty pork, ham and wild garlic terrine with espelette mayo. Sure, a terrine might seem old school but when done well as in this instance it is still a thing of beauty.  Wonderfully seasoned, it was apparent the meat was of exceptional quality judging by the richness and long-lasting meaty flavours. A lovely hint of garlic elevated it, too. The key factor to its enjoyability was that it was served at room temperature and I loved picking pickles out of a big jar table side. “You’ll need a couple for later on, my friend” said our server as he fired a couple on my side plate. The mayo was light with a well-judged pepperiness and there was a very good dressed salad to boot.

My main was duck leg confit with haggis, lentils and thyme sauce.  I could eat this dish every day it was so delicious.  I started with perfectly dry duck skin and would have been happy to stop right there.  Again, the meat quality was top drawer and the wedge of smoky bacon just rounded off the whole dish. The potato terrine was nutty and buttery with the lentils still maintaining their dignity. Big hunks of carrot ensured it was a generous portion and a beautiful thyme flavour just finished it off to a tee.

Sarah opted for the venison haunch skewer with confit pear and jus. The deer kebab benefitted from the barbequed flavour imparted by the method of cooking and was enjoyably tender.  She loved the contrast and refreshment brought by the fruit and that the peppery rocket acted as more than just a garnish. As I’d expect in any French restaurant worth their salt, the sauce was bold and silky with a robust wine flavour to it. 
Dessert was a trio of mousses which consisted of dark chocolate, coffee and vanilla.  All had a distinguishable flavour and were light as a feather, as well as combining well to create a great plate of food. The shortbread element was to die for and thankfully not too sweet. 
Absolutely beautiful lunch, worth well more than the price and a solitary AA Rosette. Cooked with skill and care using excellent produce, I realised why it had been so hard to get a table previously.  The Auld Alliance at its best. 

Phone: (0131) 226 1890
Address: 17 Queensferry Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4QW












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