The Wild Bergamot

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• What are these?

• Average price 2 courses: £35 (set dinner)
• House wine: £18 per bottle

• Hitlisted
• High point: Outstanding quality at reasonable prices
• Low point: Locals don't seem to appreciate this gem
• Food served: Wed-Sun 7-9.30pm. Closed Mon/Tue.
• Private dining: Up to 10 covers
• Open since: 2005

The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 is now in the shops.

This review is from the 2007 edition.

The Wild Bergamot is compelling evidence that some of the best restaurants appear on the fringes of Scotland's biggest cities, whether here, northwest of Glasgow, or in Leith. Owner and chef Alan Burns has turned an unassuming 24-seat setting (our 2006 Restaurant of the Year) into a foodie's dream, thanks to specialist suppliers, expert balancing of flavours and a bit of culinary derring-do. Cumin duck and halibut fish-cakes are enticing canapés that precede an amuse bouche of sprightly carrot sorbet covering cardamom panacotta. A starter of seared scallops with slivers of fennel plays up the peppy purée of pickled pear, while tender and earthy ginger-seared beef contrasts with the crunch of artichoke crisps. A pork main course brings pliant roasted fillet together with a crispy croquette of braised shoulder, not to mention ceps, lentils and curried lime emulsion on the side. Chicken wings and thighs, with a tinge of Gewürztraminer sweetness, slide off the bone alongside a fillet of seared John Dory. The menu changes with the seasons, but customer demand ensures that the bitter chocolate tart, with Earl Grey ice-cream and cocoa and coffee bean crunch, is a constant feature. A puff pastry peanut butter sandwich - with wobbly passion fruit jelly and a piping-hot, tottering banana soufflé - proves that quality need not be elitist (ditto, the down-to-earth enthusiasm of helpful annotations on the exhaustive wine list). A £45 eight-course taster menu is also available.