Edinburgh's Farmer's Market

It was cold, it was windy, and it looked like it was going to rain or snow any minute.  But that didn't stop me from checking out the Edinburgh Farmers' Market on our recent weekend getaway to Edinburgh.

Farmers' Markets are my catnip.

Every Saturday, rain or shine, The Market is held from 9:00-2:00 on Castle Terrace in down town Edinburgh with the impressive Edinburgh Castle looming in the background.

On the day we visited, there were about 30 vendors lining both sides of the street.  It was jam packed with customers despite the nasty weather.  Halfway along, shivering in the cold, I asked two local men  if the weather was typical for this time of year.  They laughed and replied that I mustn't be from Scotland.  Apparently it was considered a balmy, rather pleasant day by the natives. They were both wearing kilts.

Root vegetables, baked goods, breads, fruits, chocolates, meats, whisky, and excellent cheeses where on offer.  As always when I visit Farmers' Markets I wished I had a kitchen  in my hotel room so I could cook up and enjoy some of their products.

Whisky and oatmeal.  Who knew?

If I had to chose my favourite vendor, it would have to be the Stoats Hot Oatmeal stand where you could chose among 12 different flavours of hot oatmeal, "Balvenie Double Wood Whisky and Honey" being one of them. How cool is that?  I bought two boxes of their plain oats to enjoy at home.  Close second was the Standhill Cheese Stand where we sampled and bought some of their skilfully made, buttery cheeses.

Hubby's favourite was the Pig's Nose Whisky stand where curiously, he lingered for quite some time, tasting all that they had on offer.   We bought one of their mugs when he couldn't decide which of their whiskies he preferred.

A close second was The Chocolate Tree stand, specialists in hand crafted, organic chocolate, where we shared a  delicious, creamy hot chocolate.

After about an hour or so, we could take the cold no more and quickly made our way to the Scottish National Gallery to warm up and take in their fabulous collection.

I hope to visit Edinburgh's Farmers' Market again or hopefully another one of Scotland's Farmer's Markets but I  think I'll wait until the weather warms up!

The Edinburgh Castle as a backdrop

A wee dram on a cold day

Sophie and her smokin' squeeze box

The Chocolate Tree

Stoats' excellent oatmeal

The Castle Terrace Restaurant, Edinburgh

Chef Patron Dominic Jack, front row centre, choreographing the pass

Last Saturday night I dreamt of the circus.

Not the kind of circus with poodles jumping through hoops and pretty girls riding ponies around a ring but of  Le Cirque du Soleil with its sophisticated staging and awe inspiring acrobats performing stunts that leave you gasping for breath and wishing the show would never end.

I'm certain that  my dreams were inspired by dinner hours earlier at Edinburgh's  Castle Terrace Restaurant.

A spring sprout in toasted cumin earth

In October, Chef Patron Dominic Jack added a Michelin star to his trophy shelf, already  overflowing with nine other culinary awards so since we were in Edinburgh celebrating hubby's birthday, I insisted that we eat there.  I'm so glad that we did.  In fact, it was the highlight of our visit.

Wherever we travel, we love to dine in elegant restaurants but it's rare to find one with  decent vegetarian food.  So when we learned that along with its regular menu, Castle Terrace offered a vegetarian à la carte menu and a multi-course  vegetarian tasting menu, we could hardly wait to get there.

As it turned out, our dinner was even better than we'd hoped.  Chef Dominic combined several cooking techniques like Molecular gastronomy, sous vide and traditional French, deliciously and unpretentiously.   This was quite a treat for demanding vegetarians like hubby and I.  Oh, and for a few more pounds, they would have paired each course with wine.  How fabulous is that?

Our humble thanks go to Chef Dominic's sister and mother, both vegetarians, whom he told us inspired him to offer vegetarian options. 

If I had to sum it up in one sentence, the dinner was a  mix of delicious seasonal and local food, creatively and passionately prepared, served with skill in sophisticated, and  soothing surroundings.

And even with his brilliant credentials and a busy dining room, Chef Dominic was incredibly down to earth and generous with his time,  showing us his well stocked wine cellar and then inviting us to sit at his chef's table while we watched his harmonious kitchen in action and sipped Lemoncello.  It was an unexpected and unforgettable evening for the birthday boy, me, and our guest Alex too.

What more could you ask for?

I can hardly wait to return.

Ravioli of fresh herbs and Highland Crowdie cheese