Restaurant... Coconut Grove
I ALWAYS have a slight feeling of anxiety whenever I venture out in the search for somewhere that serves decent Mexican food.
After all, the skill needed to blend the right mix of chillies and spices without leaving your tastebuds scorched to a c
risp is a rare talent.
In a world full of volcano-hot fajitas and bland guacamole, it’s a treat to find somewhere intimate and inviting that cooks this type of food perfectly.
The Coconut Grove in Tollcross is about the best example of this type of place you are likely to find in Edinburgh.
Like an oasis in a desert of mediocre restaurants, it is one of those special places that you tend to stumble upon when you least expect it and one that leaves you amazed at how affordable and exquisite it actually is. From the moment our trio of expectant diners entered the sleepy little building, it was clear that the usual rules of consumerism had been thrown out of the window in favour of a sense of tacit simplicity. Any hint of sombreros had been mercifully scrapped, leaving just a simple yellow and red motif on the walls.
Furthermore, the staff appeared to have taken the sleepy Mexican ideology to heart, which meant that even on a busy night there was no hint of being rushed to order or hurried to finish eating.
But the real star attraction here was the food. We opted for two starters to share whilst we sipped a surprisingly well-priced Chilean red wine, and about 15 minutes later were presented with steaming hot spicy chicken wings and a chilli-laced plate of nachos.
Admittedly, with good soups and a home-made guacamole salad also on the menu, it was a little bit of a cop-out, but both were cooked so well that it certainly wasn’t the wrong choice. The nachos were piled with succulent beef chilli and with lashings of cheese, sour cream and salsa to provide a sensory explosion.
For the slightly less gluttonous amongst us, the starters alone would have provided a hearty meal on their own. But then again, if we’d been thinking of our waistlines, the true delights of the main courses would have been left undiscovered.
Alongside the typical Mexican fare of fajitas, enchiladas and burritos, Coconut Grove has a fairly extensive range of unusual specialities that will set the taste buds of the slightly more adventurous diner tingling.
The chocolate chilli "Lomo" pork cutlets, for example, were a joy to taste, thanks to the hint of coriander and spices that had been expertly blended into the rich sauce.
Likewise, the Camarone king prawns in a zesty green tomato sauce was a discovery that was greeted with ecstatic slurps of approval from more than one of our party.
What was incredibly surprising about the restaurant, however, was that even the standard-fare Mexican cuisine was nothing short of a speciality too. Rather than just having simple, bland burritos and fajitas on offer, Coconut Grove actually revels in making each variation of the "tortilla and filling" dish fabulously different and mouthwatering.
In addition, the homemade guacamole was acknowledged by one of us as "the best thing I’ve tasted all year".
Whilst other restaurants may leave you feeling heavy and bloated after a meal, Coconut Grove manages to leave your stomach contented rather than incapacitated. With a vast selection of tequilas on offer to whet the appetite or finish the night, it’s perhaps the most enjoyable Mexican experience you’re likely to find in Edinburgh.
Given its location near to the King’s Theatre and Cameo cinema, it also provides a perfect pre or post-show meal. Likewise, it’s a perfect place for couples to find a chilled-out environment for an early date - offering an intimate, unthreatening ambiance for the budding romantic who doesn’t want to appear too cheesy.
With decent Mexican food so difficult to come by these days, the fact there is such a superb little place right in the city centre is nothing short of a revelation. And the fact that three people can dine so well for just over £50 makes it one of the most affordable, intriguing prospects on the map.
Coconut Grove, 3 Lochrin Terrace, Tollcross, 0131-229 1569
The Bill
Mexican chicken wings £4.75 Chilli beef nachos £4.95 Chicken fajitas £10.75 Chocolate chilli Lomo £11.25 King prawn Camarone £12.25 Bottle of house Chilean merlot £7.95
Total £51.90
Takeaway... Noor
LEAFING through our ever-multiplying pile of takeaway menus, one caught my eye: Noor in South Clerk Street. Anything non-Indian had been ruthlessly rejected. "Once tried never forgotten!" is the promise on the front of the menu, together with a woman playing the sitar and the caption "Striking the right chord".
As well as promising the finest, freshest ingredients, the tantalising blurb inside reads: "Our emphasis is on quality, our aim is to enlighten. Travel with us to the Indian subcontinent." Yes, please.
But much as a ten-hour flight and a meal waiting for us upon our arrival in Delhi was tempting, our bellies couldn’t wait that long.
I asked the friendly man on the other end of the phone to describe some of the regional specialities to me, before plumping for Rajputt jaipuri (£7.95), lightly browned king prawns off the skewers with mushrooms, fried onions and green peppers with tomatoes and herbs in a thick sauce.
My companion went for the Noor special chicken korma (£5.25), described as "a delicious preparation of coconut, cream, ground almond and selected spices. Mild to medium". We also ordered a portion of pilau rice (£1.45), a peshwari nan (with coconut, sultanas and cashew nuts, £1.75) and aloo bindi (potato and okra cooked with onion, tomato, herbs and spices, garnished with coriander and ground herbs, £2.40).
Half an hour later, not one, but two delivery men appeared smiling at our door - one not much higher than my knee, giving a family touch. Noor, I was told, meant "light from the heart".
My king prawn jaipuri was medium and very flavoursome, the rice was aromatic and perfectly cooked and the peshwari nan was as tasty as they come. As well as the aloo bindi, which was spicy and flavoursome, they threw in delicious mango chutney and minted onion mix.
My partner’s Noor special korma really was delicious. It was the best korma either of us has tasted - the sauce was thick and delectable rather than bland, extra creamy and overly coconutty.
It certainly struck the right chord with us.
• Noor, 56 South Clerk Street, Edinburgh, 0131-667 0404
MIRANDA FETTES
