Bowled over by Cannonball

Today's lunch came from Contini Cannonball on the Royal Mile.

Got points for: Very friendly staff and excellent service
Lost points for: No toilet paper anywhere on the premises!

Cannonball cocktail and Isle of Mull scallops 

It was my perfect Sunday afternoon. Four great pals, three great courses, two fab cocktails and one full belly. Since we ate a lot (!) I'll just give you a quick run down...

Starters

After spotting the shells on the way in, I plumped for the Isle of Mull scallops and Amalfi lemon (an exemplary Contini Scottish-Italian combo). The scallops were huuuge scallops and had a fantastic meaty texture although not a whole lot of flavour, making the big hunk o' lemon necessary.

Wee haggis cannonballs

I was shamelessly envious of pal Hannah's very smooth chicken liver pate with charred foccacia, which was accompanied by lovely sweet whisky figs, a great balance of taste and texture.

I would never say I was a soup connoisseur (ahem) but I do have a lot of exposure to the stuff. I felt the parsnip soup with Gorgonzola and pear compote was a great team effort. Heavy on the parsnip, it was sweet and really needed the other elements to pull it together. It wouldn't work as something you'd have as a main, but as a starter it worked well.

Lastly, the seemingly petite haggis cannonballs had lovely crispy coatings and sat on a tangy mustard sauce blob. They were well complemented by little crunchy shards of celeriac too.

Mains

Lobster thermidore mac n cheese

Everyone was eyeing up the lobster thermidore mac and cheese, and pal #2 Colette went for it. I have to say, I wasn't sold. There was too much mac - all the portions were big for a modern restaurant, but this was a serious pasta fest. It really cried out for something green as a contrast - beans for colour, or lettuce for texture, or spinach for flavour.

I was disappointed that Hannah and final pal Catriona broke one of my cardinal group dining rules and ordered the same thing. But then theirs arrived and I wished I'd got in on the act too. They opted for a warming Sunday lunch-appropriate pork belly, perfectly porky in its meatiness, which was joined by a generous serving of black pudding risotto. It was all very rich and all very delicious.

Wild duck breast

I went for the wild duck breast with celeriac puree, pancetta & cabbage and an orange jus. There was also a mystery purple potato, which was fun to determine what it was. The jus wasn't screaming orange but everything else was very complementary: the pancetta was salty and the celeraic sweet. The duck was perfectly pink too.

Dessert

Banana split

We'd come this far. The rest of the restaurant had left, so we thought we'd take our time and explore the ice cream offering. After all, Cannonball is part gelartaria. So we went for a history-referencing Katie's Ghost chocolate sundae, a banana split and an Amaretto affogato. The texture of the ice cream was fantastic, properly made in the classic Italian style and with lots of flavour, served with generous amounts of cream and sauce.

Cocktails & wine

White wine, red wine. Sure. But the cocktails are where it's at. A fantastic 'Cannonball' with local favourite Pickering's and rosehip syrup is first on the menu for a reason. It's dangerously like a sophisticated alcoholic Vimto and goes down all too easily. I also sampled a 'Victor's Bees Knees:' Edinburgh gin and tonic with lime and a side portion of honey to add at your own discretion. (My advice: go all in.) The honey had a floral quality that offset the lime and quinine.

Final word

The location is great and offers beautiful views. The decor is fresh, friendly and comfortable. The staff were incredible. The food is pitched just right - presentation, price and portion (if, that is, you're a big eater). Take your mum, meet up with your best friends, go on a date. You won't go wrong.