Edinburgh restaurant review: 'One of the most authentic and pleasurable Italian meals' at Cafe Domenico, Leith

Kayt Turner tried out a Leith institution - and here's what she found...

It’s that time of year when thoughts are turning from the feasting and frivolity of Burns Night and the long ago festive period towards seriously considering the sun, sea and sand of summer holiday planning.

To put ourselves in the mood, we thought we would sample some real Italian cooking. We wanted proper check tablecloths, but we most definitely did not want the comedy pepper grinders of some so-called Italian restaurants.

Nearly 15 years ago, my old colleague, Richard Bath, declared that Cafe Domenico in Leith was one of the best restaurants hed ever eaten in.

Nearly 15 years ago, my old colleague, Richard Bath, declared that Cafe Domenico in Leith was one of the best restaurants he’d ever eaten in. Had time been kind to this hardy annual?

Or had they suffered at the hands of the very many upstart Italian chain restaurants which have arrived in the intervening years?

Well, the people of Leith certainly don’t seem to think so. The place was going like a fair when we arrived for a late lunch. It is an admittedly small restaurant with approximately 30 covers – but they were all taken and the wait staff were run off their slingbacks.

However, at no point did we feel rushed or harried. It was made clear that we were enjoying an Italian lunch and should absolutely take our time over the experience.

It was made clear that we were enjoying an Italian lunch and should absolutely take our time over the experience.

Mr Turner had been drooling, erm, gazing, at the dishes being served around him, and opted for the duck confit terrine with honey nuts and cranberries (£7). He found it to be an excellently hand-crafted dish, where the flavour of the duck punched through and was perfectly complemented by the nuts, with the accompanying cranberry sauce just sweet enough to give it a lift.

A nice touch was the pea shoot garnish which added a promise of summer and led to a lengthy discussion with our knowledgeable server on where you could obtain them at this time of year.

I went for the goat’s cheese bruschetta with spicy red chutney (£5.50) which was a simple dish, but raised to heights of greatness by the quality of the ingredients.

I particularly loved how the spicy chutney cut through the creaminess of the cheese so beautifully.

There are a lot of things that float Mr Turner’s boat. And Italian porchetta is one of them. Barely had our server got the first syllable of the day’s special out, and Mr T cut in to reveal that he’d be having the porchetta with all the trimmings (£17).

Porchetta has – quite rightly to Mr Turner’s thinking – been classified by the Italian government as a dish of national cultural significance. Cafe Domenico’s take on the classic consists of a large slice of slow roast pork stuffed with liver, fennel and all manner of traditional herbs. The outside was crispy and the meat meltingly soft.

I, however, chose to venture into the unknown. I have to admit to never having heard of nduja before – and did have to ask how to pronounce it. It’s a spicy sausage from Calabrese – soft and with an almost spreadable consistency, it melts into dishes. The chicken nduja came with béchamel sauce, green beans and sweet potato wedges (£15).

We found it reminiscent of some of Mr Turner’s favourite Roman specialities. Indeed, like the porchetta, it is typical of the cooking of the Lazio region. It was certainly good enough to transport me back there and would not have been out of place in a traditional eatery located close to the Colosseum.

This had been so good and authentic, we decided that we might just be chancing our luck with desserts. Although the panacotta being served at the next table did look utterly delicious, when it came to ordering, I found that I was really and truly far too stuffed to contemplate eating another thing. Instead we opted for coffee and liqueurs. I had some of the black sambuca, a recent discovery, and Mr Turner opted for the grappa – well actually both of them as he couldn’t possibly decide between the two on offer. The coffee, in our experience so often the downfall of many establishments, was anything but. A good strong and flavoursome roast that had – as with everything else we had tried – been treated beautifully. Again as good as we have tasted in Italy and a perfect full stop to a lovely lunch.

Mr Bath was not wrong. This was by far one of the most authentic and pleasurable Italian meals we have tasted without having to leave these shores. With the huge added benefit being that they don’t charge Roman prices to boot.

Cafe Domenico

30 Sandport Street, Leith

Tel: [phone],

www. cafedomenico.co.uk

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