Restaurant review: Yummy Tori, Lothian Road, Edinburgh

Published on 30/06/2012 12:00

OPEN since the beginning of June, Yummy Tori is trying to bring something new to Edinburgh with Japanese cocktails and Japanese tapas nibbles.

Presented with the Japanese delicacy of raw white cabbage and miso sauce, we ordered a Coke (£1.90) and a Lychee Surprise (£5.90) from the innovative cocktail menu. I almost always veer away from items with “surprise” in the title, and should have in this case as I found it watery and slightly lacking in flavour.

From the brief Yakitori menu, we selected chicken meatballs (£3.70) which were delicious with strong flavours of coriander and lemongrass. Asparagus rolled with shaved pork (£3.70) came next – nice if a touch salty – and prawns rolled in seaweed and shaved pork (£4.50), again with a touch too much salt.

From the briefer Japanese tapas menu, we had prawns in a creamy wasabi sauce (£4.90) which were battered and deep fried, and the sauce was mayonnaise with a dash of wasabi. We also had the salmon in a ponzu sauce (£4.90). Always a fan of salmon, we struggled to eat it. Sent over the house speciality dumplings with pork and vegetable (£3.90), we circumspectly bit in. I would go back just for them. Beautifully cooked and bursting with lemongrass and garlic and so many yummy flavours, they are definitely a winner.

The Yummy Tori ramen (£7.50) was OK. The sauce was nice, and the veg and pork cooked well, but it was a touch uninspiring overall.

The staff are enthusiastic and well versed on all the foods and spirits. They are also still developing and are eager to receive constructive criticism, so Yummy Tori cannot be written off yet.

Yummy Tori, Lothian Road, Edinburgh, 0131-229 2206, www.yummytori.org