Detailed review by Vodkaboy
Vodkaboy
Somewhere Over Here98%
So we were up in Edingburgh for a short break. Having spent the day walking up and down the Royal Mile what seemed like half a dozen times we retired to the hotel to think about dinner. It was our first time in Edinburgh and we realised we didn't have any idea where to go.
We looked through some adverts on our map and and settled on Wildfire as it promised Scottish food and was less than ten minutes' walk from the hotel. And what a great choice it was.
Located on a quiet street just behind Princes Street, it seems quite small with about 8 or 9 tables, seating no more than about 30 people. We were the first that evening and as we walked in we were greeted cheerily and seated at a table by the window. Drinks orders were taken and we were presented with the menus.
The menu promised fine, Scottish food using top quality local produce. As well as the regular menu, a blackboard offered the soup of the day and 'veg of the day'.
For a starter, I opted for the Creamed Haggis & Drambuie, which was served with some oatcakes. It was absolutely delicious - lightly spiced, with the subtle Drambuie flavour blending perfectly with the rich taste of haggis. We also had a Scottish Seafood Chowder, which was creamy and full of flavour and similarly rated very highly. One of the younger diners had a portion of West Coast Mussels in a white wine, herb and garlic sauce which kept him quiet for a while as he polished off the lot.
For my main course I chose a Steak and Ale Pie, which was equally satisfying. A fair sized portion with tender steak and a rich ale gravy that was tasty throughout. We also had a Fish Pie, generous chunks of haddock and salmon in a lovely, gooey, cheesey sauce, and a steak which was tender and full of flavour.
The wine list gave a reasonable selection of wines. We chose a bottle of red, which complemented the food nicely. By the end there wasn't a lot of room left for dessert though we did sample a couple of simple desserts which didn't disappoint.
The service throughout was friendly, efficient and cheerful, attentive without being intrusive. We were offered children's portions, advised knowledgeably on our selection and the empty plates were cleared promptly, but not before everyone had finished. As we progressed through our meal the other tables began to fill up and, by the time we finished, there were only two tables empty. However we didn't feel any less well attended.
Starters were priced from GBP3.95 for soup of the day to GBP6.95 for the seafood chowder; main courses from GBP12.95 for fish pie, with steaks from GBP16.95 to GBP25.00. Wines were priced from GBP15.95. For us, the bill for four adults and two children, with a bottle of wine, came to GBP137 (Euro162) which, for a fantastic meal in a city centre restaurant, is good value. The friendly, family atmosphere lent itself to a relaxing dinner and the food was excellent in quality and taste.
The only negative, for me, was that in a cosy, family environment, paper napkins felt a little inadequate - specially with kids dribbling mussel sauce, or big kids spilling seafood chowder. Proper, linen napkins would have felt more in keeping with the setting. Otherwise, full marks. Thank you Wildfire for such a pleasantly memorable first dinner in Edinburgh!
Wildfire Scottish Steak & Seafood Bistro9
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