September 13, 2010: Edinburgh Castle

After rediscovering our pub-club mojo at The Fox, we managed to muster up a good sized group of pub enthusiasts for a trip to The Edinburgh Castle in the far reaches of Brunswick. It's a nice big pub, and has a bustling but not annoyingly full vibe on a Monday evening, meaning we had no problems finding table space for our substantial posse.

The menu is well served with veg options, vegan-adaptable items, and gluten-free possibilities (including a g-f bread that impressed our coeliac companion). I considered the sweet potato pot pie, but was eventually lured in by the Sydney Road burger, which sounded mind-blowingly good - falafel patties on Turkish bread with rocket, haloumi, tomato, pickles, hummus and minted yoghurt, with chips on the side ($15).

It didn't disappoint - the falafel patties were scrumptious, the haloumi and pickles providing salt and bite, while the rest added some much-needed moisture. If anything I'd up the sauce quotient a bit and maybe add something with a touch of spiciness to the mix, but these are minor quibbles in the face of a truly delicious burger.

Having had a pretty good shot at my chips, Cindy settled for an entree sized meal: salt and pepper tofu ($8.50). This didn't quite live up to expectations, with no sign of the puffy batter or silken centre we've enjoyed elsewhere.  It was closer to her our own recipe for tofu cubes. Still, a pub offering salt and pepper tofu at all is a small victory - hopefully they can figure out a way to make it work a bit better.

The Edinburgh Castle was a mixed performer - a crackingly good burger and a slightly disappointing tofu dish. The vego options on the menu are so substantial though, that we'll be sure to return in future to test their performance on some other dishes.

Address: 661 Sydney Road (cnr Albion), Brunswick
Ph: 9386 7580
Licensed (duh, it's a pub)
Price: Vegie food: $7 - $16 ($21 for a tasting plate)
Website: http://www.myspace.com/edinburghcastlehotel