{"id":402628,"date":"2025-09-06T12:28:17","date_gmt":"2025-09-06T12:28:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/402628\/"},"modified":"2025-09-06T12:28:17","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T12:28:17","slug":"the-new-darling-of-the-neighbourhood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/402628\/","title":{"rendered":"The new darling of the neighbourhood"},"content":{"rendered":"

What with the Fringe, a god-daughter\u2019s wedding, the set-up and derig of the Edinburgh 900 exhibition at St James Quarter, and caring responsibilities for my elderly mother, I\u2019m a bit late to the party in visiting Stockbridge\u2019s newest addition. <\/p>\n

The Captain Darling opened in May at Hamilton Place, but I finally made it there last Friday.<\/p>\n

\"\"The Captain Darling \u2013 Blackadder fans will get the reference!<\/p>\n

This gastropub is the latest venture from the Edinburgh-based \u00d2ir Group, the independent hospitality company behind local favourites like Bodega and Lucky Yu. Already a fan of these restaurants, I\u2019d been hearing excellent things \u2018on the street\u2019 \u2013 and it promised to be a good evening. It didn\u2019t disappoint.<\/p>\n

For those of a certain age, the name references Captain Kevin Darling from Blackadder Goes Forth (1989). But it\u2019s also what our group of friends affectionately dubbed my bestie\u2019s new boyfriend back in 1992, when he joined us on holiday and liberally used \u2018darling\u2019 for his new beau, much to our amusement. The nickname stuck \u2013 he\u2019s still called that to this day!<\/p>\n

My good intentions of a leisurely stroll were scuppered when I realised I\u2019d forgotten my iPhone \u2013 not ideal when photos were expected. As someone known for being fashionably early rather than late, an Uber was quickly summoned to preserve my reputation!<\/p>\n

Walking in on a Friday night, the place buzzed with an appealing mix: young singles, date-night couples, uni students enjoying one last decent meal with parents and grandparents. It\u2019s dog-friendly too, though I didn\u2019t spot any four-legged diners during our visit.<\/p>\n

The d\u00e9cor features striking dark green walls, with a dedicated bar space for those wanting leisurely drinks and snacks seven days a week from lunchtime until late. Adam, the general manager, gave us a warm welcome and ushered us to the separate dining area up a couple of stairs, securing us the best table in the house \u2013 window-side and perfect for people-watching.<\/p>\n

\"\"The interior dining area<\/p>\n

The all-day brasserie-style menu offers starters including Cumbrae oysters, prawn cocktail, Caesar salad and haggis croquettes, while mains feature handmade savoury pies and meats cooked over coals.<\/p>\n

Our waiter Daniel \u2013 charming and young enough not to know the gastropub\u2019s Blackadder origins \u2013 had hospitality absolutely nailed. He struck that perfect balance of engaging banter while respecting two \u2018old birds\u2019 needing a long-overdue catch-up, looking after us admirably throughout.<\/p>\n

We started with margaritas \u2013 one spicy, one original. Though served in non-traditional tumblers, I\u2019ll forgive this transgression as they were simply the best margaritas I\u2019ve ever tasted: a refreshing combination of sweet, sour and salty with perfect lime tartness.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

For starters, I chose the charred tenderstem broccoli salad with braised hispi cabbage, pickled shallots, roasted sunflower seeds and black garlic vinaigrette \u2013 a brilliant combination of textures and earthy flavours delivering a light, healthy opener. Fellow food influencer Margi opted for the haggis croquettes with smoked Dunlop cheese, pickles and 9.5 brown sauce, which I was rather pleased about given her sharing tendencies. These delivered crunchy exteriors giving way to silken interiors of unctuous, oozing Dunlop cheese and sharp pickles \u2013 pure delight when dunked in that brown sauce.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

For mains, I was torn between the rare-breed pork chop but eventually chose the Scottish beef Denver steak with Koffmann chips. For the uninitiated (like I was), a Denver steak is a tender, richly-marbled cut from the shoulder, prized for its deep flavour \u2013 and it was delicious.<\/p>\n

As for Koffmann chips, which I keep noticing on menus across the city, they\u2019re premium frozen chips developed by three-Michelin-starred chef Pierre Koffmann \u2013 triple-blanched and specially coated for that perfect crispy exterior and fluffy interior. Frankly, who cares about the provenance when they taste this good?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Margi chose the grilled sea trout with broccoli and blood orange dressing, sharing my not-so-healthy chips. We cheekily ordered the baked cauliflower cheese with Connage Gouda, Isle of Mull Cheddar and mustard, having been tipped off it was rather special. Sadly, it didn\u2019t quite live up to expectations \u2013 certainly not matching my own version, which has been praised as the best cauliflower cheese ever tasted!<\/p>\n

We skipped desserts but indulged in another bottle of the spicy plum and blackcurrant Electric Bee Primitivo \u2013 full-bodied yet as smooth as our flowing conversation in such ambient surroundings.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The word on the street was spot-on. Captain Darling delivered on all fronts: great food, excellent hospitality and wonderful atmosphere. <\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard their Sunday roast is exceptional \u2013 so much so that two fellow foodie friends (aka the Social Bitches) returned twice in two weeks. With so many establishments offering this staple, that speaks volumes.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t wait to return, perhaps on my bestie\u2019s next Edinburgh visit, when she can see what all the hype is about her husband\u2019s namesake.<\/p>\n

The Captain Darling<\/strong>
16-18 Hamilton Place, Stockbridge, Edinburgh EH3 5AU<\/strong>
www.thecaptaindarling.com<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Like this:<\/p>\n

Like Loading…<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What with the Fringe, a god-daughter\u2019s wedding, the set-up and derig of the Edinburgh 900 exhibition at St…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":402629,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8816],"tags":[748,1102,138823,4155,4884,138824,712,138825,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-402628","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edinburgh","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-edinburgh","10":"tag-edinburgh-gastro-pubs","11":"tag-edinburgh-news","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-restaurants-in-stockbridge","14":"tag-scotland","15":"tag-sunday-roasts","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115157356553039648","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402628","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=402628"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402628\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/402629"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=402628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=402628"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=402628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}