Sunday Herald

Joanna Blythman

The Stockbridge Restaurant is in an imaginatively decorated basement. The black walls, gold satin drapes, and bright modern art produce a surprisingly swanky environment.

You can tell a lot of thought and care is going into the cooking. The bread, for instance, was home-made and arrived with a palpably fresh, lemony, herby dip. Some of the cooking is really excellent. I could not fault the creamy asparagus soup with its tiny croutons, crisply fried off in butter, and its restrained overlay of white truffle oil.

My grilled halibut was also a well-conceived, well-executed dish, the moist, fleshy fish topped with a crab crust which added a rich marine flavour. The fish sat on a few strands of pasta tagliatelle of courgette, the whole thing moistened by a sharp lemon beurre blanc and the sweet/ sour juices that flowed from confit cherry tomatoes.

This was a dish that would pass muster in top restaurants.

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