I remember going to Indigo (yard) when it opened in 1996 and being taken with the idea of covering a courtyard and making it a venue, working all the better in Edinburgh with its varied climate. Twelve years on and Indigo Yard really hasn’t changed that much. I have gone through phases of frequenting the place then not going there for quite some time, but this year I have been a few times, and ate dinner there with a large group of friends on Saturday night.
Onion, courgette & taleggio tart
The waitress was rather sharp but efficient in her service, meeting the large group’s requests. The Kiwi started with the Charred haloumi, sun blushed tomato and rocket salad (£4.95) which was tasty although I feel a little overpriced. Friends enjoyed the Mediterranean Platter, which did look tasty.
I decided not to have meat for dinner and from the updated menu I ordered Caramelised onion, courgette & taleggio tart with watercress salad (£9.25) with a side of Zucchini fries with basil mayo. The tart was all I expected it to be, tasty, nicely cooked and satisfying. The Zucchini fries were a little too greasy, but tasty – although we were not served the basil mayo! The Kiwi had Confit of Duck leg with puy lentils & red wine jus (12.50) and found the duck was tasty but the lentils were not cooked through enough and required more chewing than he desired.
Others dined on steak, which was a successful favourite among the group, and the burgers pretty much hit the spot.
I decided to have a dessert – surprise, surprise – and ordered a disappointing Sticky gingerbread & syrup pudding with clotted cream. What arrived was a dry square brick of gingerbread with a wee squirt of artful syrup on the plate and a splodge of lovely clotted cream on the top. I expected the gingerbread to have been cooked with syrup to give it a lovely gooey consistency, something of a sticky toffee pudding style. This wasn’t a dessert, it was a cake which would have better served with a cup of tea and butter spread on it, as my friend suggested, and on tasting the Kiwi agreed. My friend’s Banoffee cheesecake was also a disappointment.
Gingerbread dessert
We had a voucher for 2 for 1 mains, so for the price paid I feel I can’t really complain. The mains all seemed to satisfy, but maybe miss out the dessert to avoid disappointment. With Sygn next door successfully competing for business in a more polished environment, and Montpelier group, of which Indigo forms part, competing hard in the current climate I would like to see Indigo Yard try a little harder and maybe finally get round to giving their restaurant area a face lift to rejuvinate and step into 2009.
Dined – 15th November 2008
