Luxury Edinburgh

LUXURY TOPIC

10 years ago, Martin Wishart opened his eponymous restaurant in Edinburgh. In 2001, it became the city's first restaurant to be awarded a Michelin star and is now regarded as one of the finest restaurants in the UK. Read on to find out what inspires this brilliant Chef and what ingredients are hot in the world of Michelin star dining.

"Michelin cooking is all about seasonality, so whatever is in-season is en-vogue. At this time of year it's all about game meat such as partridge, mallard duck, wood cock and pheasant. In terms of vegetables - think pumpkin, beetroot, chervil root and parsley root."

We are also coming into truffle season now and Martin is, as always, very much looking forward to his first delivery of white truffles. The quality of truffles is very much dictated by the weather we've had over the year but last year these highly coveted truffles were fetching in the region of £3,200 per kilo. Always used sparingly and shaved or finely sliced, they are a regular feature on Martin's menu at this time of year.

Martin uses local produce wherever possible and has excellent relationships with many local suppliers; all his game is purchased from a supplier in the Lauder Hills - only 30-40 miles from Edinburgh, his leeks and beets come from East Lothian and a pike fisherman over on the West Coast supplies Martin with the freshest Pike. All the beef and lamb served in Martin's restaurants is Scottish, as are the crustaceans.

In terms of keeping up to date with culinary trends - travelling is one source of inspiration for new dishes but, with a young family, Martin and his wife Cecile also still eat out in Edinburgh as much as possible. "Sometimes just having a simple plate of sardines, cooked and seasoned well, can be as much inspiration as you need for a new dish".

Inspiration also comes from the extensive back-catalogue of dishes that have been served in the 10 years the restaurant has been open. It isn't unusual for a great dish to make a re-appearance on the menu, 5 years after it was last served.

Martin loves shellfish such as scallops, langoustines, cockles and razor clams but also enjoys working with slightly different ingredients such as truffles. He has also recently been using an ingredient called sea buckthorn, which he describes as being somewhere between "the sharpness of a cranberry but slightly more citrusy than passion fruit". Martin's suppliers also regularly give him new produce to try, for example, he was recently given some wild boar trotters from a supplier in East Lothian and has been experimenting with those.

"Local produce is also a very important part of our visitor's experience, as people want to try authentic local produce when they come to Scotland. Quality of produce is the key to a great meal every time - breakfast, lunch or dinner. Not every meal has to be top-end, affordable can be just as good. Restaurant Martin Wishart offer a very reasonable lunch menu, which includes all the extras you would expect from a Michelin star restaurant, such as canapés and amuse-bouche, but is only £24.50 per person".

"It's a difficult industry to get right, especially in the current climate but Scotland can proudly showcase its vast array of talented Chefs and Restaurateurs. So much of it comes down to the individuals - from front of house to back of house, from people to produce - the whole process needs to be just right."