The first thing you have to know about Cottier's, is that it is in an old church. It is as beautiful on the inside as it is on the out. The main doors lead you into the pub area. There is plenty of tables and booths for dining on the pub menu. The pub menu is quite varied. It would suit those that wanted a quick sandwich, or a full three course meal. I, however had my table booked in the main dining room upstairs.
The first thing you will notice about the dining room upon entering is the ceiling. The ceiling is vaulted and completely covered in gold leaf. The lights in the iron cages hanging from the ceilings cause the gold to shimmer slightly. It's quite beautiful. There are two fireplaces in the room, but neither work. They are beautiful focal points though.
We were give our menus and with them the wine list. The list is a bit disappointing. There is not a lot of choice, but it is a small place after all. My husband chose the wine, red of course. Sadly I cannot remember its name, as it left no lasting impression on me. The menu itself is of Scottish cuisine.
When it came time to order I was bit torn in my choices. Luckily, when it came to the starters my husband ordered the option I opted out on. I had the Guinea Fowl and Pistachio Terrine as my starter, and my husband ordered the Cullen Skink Veloute. For our mains I was torn between the Butternut Squash Gratin and the Pan-Fried Salmon Fillet. I went for the Salmon in the end. My husband ordered the Braised Shoulder of Lamb, though he was also tempted by the gratin.
As we waited for our starters we were brought bread with an olive oil and balsamic dip. The bread was delicious, but there was too much oil in the dish to actually reach the balsamic. This disappointed me, as I love balsamic and could just have it on my bread, no oil. Shortly after we finished out bread our starters appeared. My terrine came with confit red peppers and I think an avocado mousse. The terrine was nice. The peppers sweet and the mousse delightful. The flavours complemented each other nicely. The terrine contained bits of guinea fowl breast which was perfectly cooked. It was well enjoyed.
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| Guinea Fowl Terrine |
My Husbands Cullen Skink veloute came with a pan fried haddie fishcake with herb oil. It smelled amazing. It was one of the best cullen skinks I have ever tasted. The fishcake was amazing. The entire bowl, which was of a very generous size, was finished. It actually made me regret my choice. So I know what I will be having the next time I am in.
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| Cullen Skink Veloute |
As we waited for our mains I noticed that you could hear the kitchen quite well. Personally this does not bother me, but I know it can bother some diners. One must keep in mind that it is a small area. The kitchen itself is tiny, so it's not surprising that the sounds can be heard in the dining room. The noise itself was rally only noticeable as the staff were coming in and out, and the fact that the dining room itself was mostly empty and very quiet didn't really help either. I'm sure once the restaurant begins to make a name for itself, and the dining room fills up, the kitchen sounds would hardly register.
Our mains appeared piping hot. My salmon looked delicious, and my husbands lamb...well I dislike lamb, but the veggies that came with it looked amazing.
My salmon was described on the menu as, Pan-fried Salmon fillet, marinated tomato salad with lemon and dill creme fraiche. It was very pretty to look at. Though at first I thought it looked quite small. Silly little me. The salmon itself was perfectly cooked. The skin was so crispy and perfectly seasoned. I usually only eat salmon skin when it's in my maki rolls, but this skin was too good to pass up. The creme fraiche was very tasty, and went so well with the salmon. The tomato salad tasted almost like it had been just slightly roasted. It was lovely. There was also a salad of rocket and watercress sitting on the fillet. Though shortly after my thoughts of the dish being small, I began to feel quite full. I tend to forget that, though I love salmon, it does not love me. Salmon is just too rich for me, and I always forget this. I just love it so. So, unfortunately I was unable to finish my meal.
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| Pan-fried Salmon fillet |
My husbands lamb was described as a, Braised shoulder of Lamb with roast pumpkin puree and roast parsnips. I ate one of the parsnips, and it was delicious. Parsnips are one of my favourite vegetables. I love them cooked in almost every way. I wished to try the pumpkin puree, but it had been touched by the lamb jus. The lamb was perfectly cooked. It was very tender, and flavourful. The pumpkin complemented the meat nicely, and the jus was perfect.
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| Braised shoulder of Lamb |
Now we were both terribly full after our mains, but there was one dessert that caught my eye. I wanted very much to try it, and so did my husband. So we decided to get one to share. I also ordered a white coffee to warm me before going out into the cold. We ordered the Chocolate, Orange and Glayva Creme Brulee. When the brulee appeared it was huge. It also came with a ball of a berry(?) ice cream in a brandy basket. The ice cream was quite nice, and the creme brulee was perfect. We were unable to finish it though. It was just too rich after the meal.
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| Chocolate, Orange and Glayva Creme Brulee |
I am very pleased to have finally eaten at Cottier's. It was a very enjoyable evening, and I do hope that the word gets out and business picks up. The staff are wonderful, the food fantastic, and the atmosphere cozy.
M.
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