Review: Cafe Saint Honore, Edinburgh

I COOKED MY socks off over Christmas, which my injured back reminded me of in the days that followed, but the pain was worth the satisfaction of knowing you did a good job. When you are a trained chef, you naturally find yourself behind the stove everywhere you go. So, in the name of balance, it’s essential you eat out often. In that lull between Christmas and New Year, we found ourselves in the city centre returning clothes that didn’t make the cut for the big day. Chef needed a good feeding and was not in the mood for our usual go-to casual spots – only somewhere special would suffice so we rocked up to Café Saint Honoré in the hope they had a free table.

This little oasis opened back in 2008 and is nestled just off Thistle Street, a stone’s throw away from the hoards of shoppers on the main Edinburgh thoroughfares. Its timeless interior somehow brought an air of calm from the outside storm and really does transport me to a back-street Parisian bistro that reminded me of a drunken January trip to the freezing cold French capital with my chums in our late teens, many, many moons ago.

Now, I really resonate with chef Neil Forbes and his food philosophy.  We both have a passion for organic farming and supporting local, which is abundantly clear on the menus here at Café. This restaurant is a real leader in sustainability and often picks up awards to recognise this.  Of course, none of that – most importantly – guarantees that the food will be any good.

Our chirpy waiter didn’t show any signs of being worn out by the festive madness as he led us to the back of the restaurant with a table near the kitchen. Goody.  The Café Classics menu was ultimately what drew us in from the cold, especially the beef hotpot on the sample menu outside. This option will set you back £30 for two courses or £38 for three with a full à la carte being priced at mid-teens for starters, £30-£35 for mains and desserts at around the £13 mark.  Not the cheapest around but you know the produce used here will be of optimum quality. Besides, we need to get into the mindset that good food should not be cheap, neither should skilled labour.

Now, my cauliflower soup is a staple on my Christmas menu, so much so that I didn’t bother making my usual two starters this year because everybody just wanted the damn soup. Said vegetable was also the starter option here, also in soup form, so I just couldn’t avoid it. Cauliflower is actually one of the few foods I just can’t stand, mainly because it reminds me of the time my brother Steve was sick all over the dinner table when we were young, which I put down to the horrible stench of mum's radically overboiled offering. Anyway, Cafe St Honore's version it was absolutely divine.  Rich and indulgent yet nourishing, the pickled mustard seeds were a revelation that I’ll be stealing for next year’s dinner. The contrast in texture and that subtle vinegar note elevated the dish from homely to ‘restauranty’ in the flick of a spoon.  I must mention I had to omit the hazelnut element due to my nut allergy, but you can imagine how that would further enhance the dish.

The hotpot had been substituted with a pork belly dish, which isn’t an easy one to get right.

Achieving  perfect crackling and melt-in-the-mouth meat requires top quality pork and skilled chefs - nothing is more devastating than pork belly that doesn’t reach its potential. But it was in capable hands here, thankfully. The perfect pig was accompanied by delicious apple sauce that we know is the ideal foil for it. New potatoes were nutty and suitably roasted and I particularly liked the addition of chorizo, which just added a bit of personality to what is essentially a classic roast dinner. 

I was stuffed to the brim at this point but Sarah and I agreed we couldn’t not split a chocolate fondant,which turned out to be a wise decision. Quality dark chocolate is after all an Achille’s heel of mine. Suitably gooey inside, it came with another fave of mine in the form of mint choc ice cream that pleasingly kept its dignity without being so frozen that you need to leave it for 10 minutes before eating. That hot and cold contrast just seemed to perfectly mimic the dynamic of the outside temperature and cosy restaurant.

Now you can have great food but it won’t be all that memorable without first class service and that’swhat we got here from all three of our servers.  Clearly the staff know their product and buy into the ethos of the restaurant, which makes all the difference.

We began our year eating out with a sublime meal at Condita so it seemed fitting to bookmark the year with an outstanding meal here at Café St Honore. The set menu was indeed great value, where the honest cooking, warm service and conscious ingredient sourcing made you feel like you'd just had a big hug from an old friend. Chef felt truly rewarded for his efforts and Neil and his team deserve a pat on the back too. 

Web: cafesthonore.com                                                                                      

Instagram: @cafesthonore                                                                                    

Phone: (0131) 226 2211

Open: Thurs - Mon 12 noon - 2 p.m (lunch) and 5p.m. - 9p.m. (dinner)