The Beach House, Portobello

The Beach House
(c) Lynn Sheppard

A number of years ago, on a rare sunny Edinburgh day, I thought that if I had the capital, I would open a yummy mummy café on Portobello Seafront.  At the time, the building that became The Espy was up for rent and this had set me dreaming….  I went back to the 9-5 and in the meantime, the Beach House was opened.  The idea must have been a good one, as I have never seen the place empty.  Having said that, I normally only pass on those rare sunny Edinburgh Sundays….

The Beach House is set in the ground floor of a relatively new apartment block at the foot of Bath Street, right on the seafront.  It has a kind of Scandinavian seaside décor – all blonde woods, whitewash and driftwood and has a sunny disposition even on a cloudy day.  The management’s ethos focuses on as much local and organic produce as possible and the menu covers breakfast and lunch, featuring Scottish staples such as porridge, soups and sandwiches as well as slightly more exotic dishes such as the mezze platter we chose (£7.95), which made a flavoursome lunchtime sharing snack with a coffee each (£2.40 for a latte/cappuccino).

mezze platter
(c) Lynn Sheppard

The café is absolutely child friendly, with high chairs, a changing table and small organic drinks and smoothies for thirsty kids.  For the promenade stroller seeking afternoon tea, there is a wonderful display of homemade scones and cakes – many of them produced by local mums – served with a selection of teas and award-winning organic coffees.

cakes made by local mums
(c) Lynn Sheppard

From inside (or outside should weather permit), customers can watch dogs and kids on the beach, the local yacht club members and the lulling waves of the Firth of Forth.  No stroll along the prom is complete without a restorative break at the Beach House!

before you ask, yes this *is* Scotland!
(c) Lynn Sheppard

The Beach House
87 Bath Street, Portobello, Edinburgh 15

Tel: (0131) 657 2636

The Espy, Portobello

Portobello Beach

It’s great to finally have a choice of cafes, pubs and restaurants on Portobello seafront and the renovation of the pub now known as The Espy has played a major role in the renaissance of Porty Prom and the area more generally.  I lived in Portobello as a teenager and my mum still does, so I have been watching recent developments with interest.  In an effort to contribute to the local economy, we booked at the Espy for dinner on Christmas Eve.

The Espy’s standard fare is burgers and pub grub, but they had an appealing Christmas menu which we decided to try.  The starters were promising.  My mum enjoyed the duck’s liver pate and my Goat’s Cheese, Apple and Walnut Spring Rolls with Beetroot and Chilli Relish were tasty, although personally have called them borek and I didn’t appreciate crunching on a bit of star anise and a clove in the relish.

However, the mains served to persuade us that the chef at the Espy should stick to pub grub.  Both were seriously overcooked.  The sweet potatoes served with my gnocci with chestnuts in a leek and mushroom sauce were disintegrating before my eyes.  The dish had a good, comforting winter flavor, but it had spent too long in the oven/pan.  My mum’s main, however, was inedible.  The venison pie had been reheated once too often.  The meat was overcooked and non-descript although the pastry was undercooked.  It’s good when greens haven’t been boiled to death, but her savoy cabbage was almost raw.  The root veg mash was bright orange but had an overpowering taste of parsnip. We sent it back after only a few mouthfuls.

Our waitress promised to provide feedback to the chef, and was keen to seek an acceptable solution.  My mum was no longer hungry, so we settled on complementary after-dinner drinks and coffees. 

The best thing about the meal was the wine – a very tasty 2011 Los Gansos Sauvignon Blanc from Chile (which I’d ordered before I’d spotted a Chablis for under twenty quid on a blackboard).  Made by those clever Cono Surfolks, it ticked all the right new world Sauvignon boxes – a complex and well-rounded combination of green apples, gooseberries and a little citrus.

Los Gansos 2011

With the wine at £20 a bottle and despite free digestif and coffees, the bill still came to £50 for the two of us, which to my mind for a mediocre to sub-standard pub Christmas supper is stretching it.  The mains were £10.60 each (although how you can justify charging the same price for veggie gnocci and ‘venison’ pie is beyond me).

The Espy – which is Australian-run – has definitely brightened up Porty Prom and is a great gathering point for locals and those strolling along the beach.  They have all sorts of gigs and activities in the evenings and so it’s definitely an asset for Portobello.  For those reasons, I want to support it.  I’d think twice about eating there again, though.

© Lynn Sheppard

Malecon Matinee, Portobello

 

Over the last few years, Edinburgh has become an unexpected hot spot of Cuban culture.  Glasgow may have it’s own Cuban dance school and company – Descarga Dance – and significantly more salseros y salseras than Edinburgh, but no where are the locals more loyal or the fiesta more friendly than at Portobello’s Malecon Matinee.  This was proven at its 4^th birthday celebrations on Sunday 20 November.

Lily and Alejandro demonstrate Son

The Malecon Matinee is inspired by the late afternoon concerts and dances common in Cuba and Havana’s famous Malecon seafront promenade.  Edinburgh band Salsa Celtica have a song called ‘El Portobello Malecon’, so it is entirely appropriate that the Matinee is held in the Beach Lane Social Club in Edinburgh’s seafront suburb.

The Malecon Matinee is all about expanding the appreciation of Cuban culture, beyond a knowledge of salsa and into the beauty of Son.  Son is the music of Buena Vista Social Club and the rhythm is similar to salsa, although often slower and more elegant. What makes it tricky to dance, but all the more appealing, is that Son music and dance is “contra tiempo” – literally “across the beat” or syncopated.  Unlike in salsa, the emphasis is on the 4th (and 8th) beats, although few Cubans will explain it in this way – they will refer to the rhythm of the clave, the provider of the all-important heartbeat for Cuban salsa and Son.

 

A Malecon afternoon kicks off with a class by Edinburgh resident Cuban dance teachers (usually an intermediate Son class, but occasionally cha-cha-cha or another Cuban style) and continues with social dancing.  The teachers are normally on hand to help out with tricky moves and to call a rueda or two.  (Rueda is a Cuban salsa style where several couples dance in a circle, with the ladies being passed around from partner to partner – think of a progressive Gay Gordons only faster and unpredictable, as the dancers respond to calls, ie the set moves are constantly changing.  Rueda can end in a big mess if dancers don’t know their moves, but it’s great fun!) See this rueda lesson from a previous Malecon Matinee.

Fancy Son styling!

The welcome is as warm as the Caribbean sunshine and all are invited to come for a drink, to listen, dance, watch, or chat.   

Malecon Matinee,Beach Lane Social Club, Portobello, Edinburgh.
Every 3^rd Sunday of the month – starting Feb 2012.
Info at: http://www.salsaceilidh.com/malecon-matinee.html