A new, relaxed restaurant run by a multi-national team and in a tourist hotspot in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle, Whirlybird is proving to be a huge success.
Whirlybird is the new restaurant which opened in mid-May on the site of Maison Bleue, which was an easy-dining institution on the Edinburgh restaurant scene but closed when owner Dean Gassabi retired after 31 years in the hospitality business. At the heart of Victoria Street on a road which is one of the most visited tourist spots in the country, Whirlybird has a vast amount of passing trade, and already seems to be continuously full.
Although the listed spiral staircase has been retained while velvet and leather banquettes add a contemporary flourish, in truth the new owners have done little more than spruced the place up and given it a new coat of paint. But then this rambling, multi-room, multi-floor historic building was already an iconic venue, so that’s really all it needed.
The new name derives from the Scots nickname for the spinning sycamore seed, but the team behind Whirlybird is a United Nations of hospitality. The head chef is Slovakian Lucia Gregusova, formerly the head chef at Hawksmoor, The Raeburn and part of Duck & Waffle’s opening team; the head of drinks (and the man responsible for their signature Whirlybird Highball) is Australian Jono McDowell, who is backed up by local lad Matt Donaldson; the guy pulling it all together is South African Ash Bairstow, who helped create the successful Herringbone franchise.
Credit Alix McIntosh
Whirlybird is a 100-cover all-day venue that’s open for seven days a week, with coffees and pastries from 9-12, lunch from 12-5, and then a dinner menu from 5 until last orders at 9.30pm. We popped in for dinner and found a large but nicely balanced menu that’s largely designed for relaxed, informal dining.
We kicked off with their signature Whirlybird Highball cocktail – a decadent segue which we both loved – and an amuse bouche of excellent haddock croquettes, and moved swiftly on to the starters. I’m a huge fan of mackerel – which, when freshly smoked, is Scotland’s answer to tuna – so immediately chose the smoke mackerel with marinated new potatoes, sherry vinaigrette and smoked almonds (£9), which was good without ever threatening to bring the house down. The pescetarian chose the East Coast seafood chowder with sourdough, and waxed lyrical about a dish that was packed with different flavours.
The fish eater was similarly ecstatic about her main course of beautifully moist pan-fried hake with a Champagne veloute, asparagus, basil oil and confit tomato (£22). My half-roasted chicken with garlic, rosemary and apple and fennel saw (£22) was a recommendation from our waitress, and was a solid option but sufficiently run-of-the-mill that I probably wouldn’t order it again.
Credit Alix McIntosh
We rounded off with date and brown butter madeleines with toffee sauce and ice cream (£8.50) and a chocolate, caramel and hazelnut tart (£8.50), both of which were decent. With the benefit of hindsight, however, I’d have chosen extra sides for the mains instead of having pudding – the grilled aubergine with rose harissa and cashew cream, and the buttered rainbow chard the people on the next door table had looked glorious, and our neighbours confirmed that that impression was spot on.
Whirlybird haven’t reinvented the wheel, and have thankfully retained (and even enhanced) the environment that made Maison Bleue such a longstanding success. Gregusova’s light, relaxed dishes of comfort food are well conceived and confidently and competently delivered, and backed up by a friendly waiting staff. There’s a semi-private room for 16 people, and there’s a buzz about the place which will ensure it’s constantly busy during the Festival and beyond.
Whirlybird, 36-38 Victoria Street, Edinburgh EH1 2JW.
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