The Rutland - Modern European
(Date of review: November, 2008)
The Rutland Hotel
1-3 Rutland Street
Edinburgh
EH1 2AE
Scotland
0131 229 3402
The Rutland has been a fixture at the West end of Edinburgh’s Princes Street for as long as I can remember. However, until its recent extensive makeover it was not the first venue that sprang to mind when pondering which of the Capital’s many restaurants should provide dinner on a typically wet and windy November weekday evening.
In our haste to escape from the office we arrived too early for our table booking. Fortuitously this gave us time to investigate the cocktail list in the stylish yet welcoming ground floor bar where table service is the norm - ideal for those of us who would rather recline on a comfortable banquette than queue at the bar. My companion and I sadly only had time to down one delicious cocktail each before heading up the mirror-walled staircase for dinner.
We were shown to a generously sized table with, as promised by the Rutland’s website, fabulous views of the Castle and Princes Street. After fussy S had interrogated the waitress on the gluten free content of the menu we opted for starters of grilled baby leeks and shredded duck spring rolls with an oriental salad and chilli dip. The spring rolls were delicious if slightly difficult to eat with a knife and fork while S decided that the leeks tasted better the more she ate.
Our main courses of free-range chicken on a sweetcorn pancake with a creamy sauce and grilled Entrecote with béarnaise sauce swiftly followed. The chicken put me in mind of a posh version of the chicken Maryland my mother used to make but was delicious none the less. Fussy S had requested her steak cooked medium-well and was disappointed that it arrived as what could only be described as well done. Still, she declared the béarnaise to be ‘very good’ and I can vouch for the potato wedges which accompanied the steak.
If you do visit the Rutland and can tear yourself away from the cocktail list long enough to have dinner make sure you leave plenty of room for dessert. Despite having already eaten far more than was good for us the three chocolate puddings and the mixed nut and butterscotch tart brought a lull in conversation and were wolfed down with only the aid of the remains of a bottle of smooth New Zealand Pinot Noir. Sadly after such gluttony even S couldn’t find room for another cocktail before heading home.
The Verdict? Definitely a welcome addition to Edinburgh’s West End. We particularly liked the atmosphere in both bar and restaurant and the very comfortable seating, wide spacing of tables and the long fringe-like panels used as screens in the restaurant. More comfortable and original than many of the clones on Edinburgh’s George Street the Rutland has come a long way from its previous incarnation as cheap Friday night bar cum backpacker’s hostel.
D. Adam, Mcgrigors LLP
