Continuing our attempts to get to know Edinburgh a little better, last week P and I decided to visit Biblos for a quick bite to eat.
Biblos is a kind of relaxed, easy going bar and restaurant that doesn’t take itself to seriously. It’s popular with students (possibly because of the discounts on offer) and a younger crowd and has a good range of choices on its food and drinks menus. I could just as easily see myself popping in here for a few cocktails as I could ordering dinner.
When we arrived at about 8 pm on a Friday it was busy, but not heaving. I was glad we’d booked a table, but I get the feeling that the place is big enough to handle the crowds that show up – if you hadn’t booked you might just have a short wait. There was a little light background music playing but Biblos does become a live music venue as well, so perhaps that’s when things get really busy. It’s probably worth looking ahead at their website to see if there’s anything going on.
Our friendly, helpful waiter showed us to our table, got menus and water for us and left us to deliberate. Actually, I should say here that, even though there was some mild confusion when one waiter’s shift ended and another’s started – all the staff were fantastic all night.
We ordered a bottle of the house red (eh, I won’t have a job soon and besides, it was lovely). I selected the flamed chorizo with crumbled feta cheese, fresh tomato and basil dressing to start. P went for the sauteed calamari which came with sweet peppers on a bed of rocket with soy sauce and tabasco dressing. The chorizo was tender, flavourful and satisfying. Honestly, I think if they’d doubled the size and added some fries I would have been happy with this as my main.
Instead, I went for the peppered lemon chicken served with broccoli and baby potatoes. P chose the lamb chops marinated in cajun spices, which came with crushed potatoes, broccoli and slow caramelised garlic. He then spent the rest of the night asking, “why don’t we marinate things more often?” So I’m guessing it worked for him. My main was light and tasty – the perfect thing to eat on a warm summer evening. That said, I admit a little food envy over his caramelised garlic. On reflection, if anything let them down, it was the presentation of the food which was a bit slapdash. The flavours more than made up for this, however.
The whole lot came to just under £50 which for two courses with a bottle of wine in the Scottish capital ain’t half bad. I’d definitely be back. It’s in a good part of town, close to the station, handy for other interesting bars and, as I mentioned, I’ve an eye on their cocktail list.
In Becky's Head 
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