‘It has been a rollercoaster’ - Inside the lavish launch of Ottolenghi Edinburgh
The restaurateur and author’s first Scottish restaurant is opening soon in Edinburgh.
Yotam Ottolenghi’s first Scottish restaurant will open on George Street in Edinburgh on Friday 2 October, and to celebrate, the foodies of the city - and a few well kent faces - toasted the new restaurant at a launch party on Tuesday 29 September.
Located at 92 George Street, on the site of what was Ragu Pasta, Ottolenghi Edinburgh has been a long time coming, the restauranteur, chef and author told The Scotsman a few weeks ago.
Now the dream is becoming a reality, as a huge crowd descended on the newly renovated space in the city centre. Small plates including: miso butterbean mash, kalamata olive preserve and dill; and wildfarmed flatbread with black garlic butter along with canapes of chicken yoghurt cigars, old bake hake patties and puttanesca ricotta did the rounds of the room, which now has stark white walls with wonderful abstract artwork from creative partners and artists Gilles and Cecilie, red pillars and a large back bar area with funky lighting.
Among the guests were Ian Rankin and his wife, who are huge fans of Ottolenghi’s restaurants and visit them often in London and broadcaster Kirsty Wark.
Halfway through the night, Yotam Ottolenghi and executive head chef Neil Campbell took to the stairs to address the crowd.
Mr Ottolenghi said: “This has been more emotional than I thought it was going to be. It has been a rollercoaster, today and the last few days. Not for me but for the team. It’s amazing to be here in Edinburgh. I spent three months in Edinburgh in the 90s in an exchange programme with Edinburgh University and I fell in love with the city. I came here for a summer and it was the coldest summer I’ve ever experienced. I was freezing but that’s not happening now because of global warming.
“The last few months have been incredible because this place had to have an incredible turnaround and it’s so beautiful. You have to excuse the imperfections, there are still things that are ongoing. I want it to be perfect.
“It has been 25 years since we opened our first shop; that’s a very long time. I never thought this moment would come but here we are. It’s very emotional, beautiful and it’s wonderful to be in this incredible space with you. It’s all to do with our love of food and our love of people. The food that brings us together and the people that we feed. It’s very simple. It’s just food and people but we sometimes forget about all of that. But that’s what we’re all about.
“This space has really lent itself to the incredible transformation that has happened over the last few months. The food of Ottolenghi comes originally from the southern and eastern Mediterranean but we’re also by the sea here. Gilles and Cecilie who worked on all the beautiful artwork on the walls took this and came up with the idea for the space and it’s called we share the same sea, which is all about motifs from the sea. This is also reflected in the produce that we’re going to use and the food on the menus.
“This isn’t about Ottolenghi comes to Edinburgh and does Ottolenghi, it’s all about collaboration with incredible suppliers we work with including The Free Company, Welches, Rise, Company Bakery, Woven and Kestin. This is about us doing something that makes sense here, which we’re very excited about. It’s incredible to come here and work with people who make Edinburgh what it is. They are doing an incredible job.
Chef Neil said: “I’m really excited to bring Ottolenghi to Scotland. I never thought I’d get this opportunity. I’m excited for everyone to try the food and thanks to the team, this is not a one man band.”
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