The Suburban Pantry

Wouldn’t recommend the Suburban Pantry for breakfast. Had traditional cooked breakfast with two slices of soggy toast balanced on the side of the breakfast plate. Had to ask for a side plate, more butter and some marmalade (no extra knife provided for toast and not enough marmalade provided). Generally felt very frugal and stingy, like the sort of breakfast that might be served up by a slightly inadequate housewife! Not the relaxed Saturday breakfast treat that I’d hoped for.

This was my second visit to the Suburban Pantry and only my first review, the shame of it. Being out of the town centre, this place has turned in to the office lunch venue to choice for my colleagues. It has a nice bistro like feel to it with lovely wine around the walls and cheese in the display cabinet, which is complimented by its tidy menu.
The great thing about Suburban Pantry is that their portions are MASSIVE. Expect a moment of disbelief when your plate is placed in front of you while you wonder if all this can be for you? My choice of meal was a steak sandwich with caramelised onions, rocket salad and HUGE potato wedges on the side. I was slightly disappointed that they didn’t have any horseradish sauce for the steak but happily settled for some mustard. From then on there was silence, no talking just the sound of contented munching. The meal was delicious though it totally destroyed any kind of afternoon productivity as we all fell in to food comas trying to digest all the yummy food.
It’s obviously a bit out of town for most people but it’s well worth a visit if you’re passing by.

As Brad G mentioned, Blackhall is a wierd place. There is a small conglomeration of shops, cafes and pubs at a busy Edinburgh junction. It all feels a little… incongruous. But, there are a few gems in the rough here, and one of them is the Suburban Pantry. We had a minor SOS going, trying to figure out how to make the Scotland England rugby game from Blackhall, which the charming lady at SP tried to help us figure out.
The SP looks like a café, a deli and a restaurant — I am not sure what it is really. But it does serve some rather pleasant food. I had the cullen skink, which was presented very prettily and was delicious to boot. My sister tucked into cream of tomato soup… for me, it paled in comparison. We also each had the prawn, apple and gin marie rose sandwich. Nice bread, somewhat tasteless sauce though — I did like the idea of combining apple and prawn though — nice idea! All washed down with a nice Chardonnay, what better a way to spend a Saturday afternoon?

Tucked away in a very strange little corner in Blackhall you’ll find a hidden gem, you could almost call The Suburban Pantry a local general store.
Stocking a great selection of wine, jams, chutneys and cheese that can be purchased over the counter, its a great accompaniment to the sit in and takeaway hot and cold foods on offer.
Really friendly and chatty staff who make a mean latte (using Illy Coffee… bonus mark awarded!), this is a place worth stopping by.