16 FOOD AND DRINK
THE RISE OF “POSH” BAKERIES
and specialty coffee places in
Edinburgh seems inexorable.
When we think of bakeries and
cafés in Edinburgh, we might
immediately associate them with
fashionable suburbs such as
Bruntsfield, Leith, Abbeyhill, and
Stockbridge. In Stockbridge, Lannan
bakery has become something of a
media sensation due to the
incredibly long queues and the strict
limits that the bakery now has had to
impose on quantities per customer.
We rarely associate the fringes of
the city with such places. One
exception is Patina at Edinburgh
Park Central. While the nearby Gyle
Shopping Centre has chain coffee
outlets, Patina offers good specialty
coffee and high class baking in a very
pleasant setting, a world away from
the narrow streets and crowded
pavements of the city centre.
While Edinburgh Park is primarily
a business-focused area, on a
Saturday morning Patina was
particularly busy with a steady flow
of customers ordering coffee, bakery
and sandwiches. What they offer is
similar to places such as Twelve
Triangles, with its seven branches
across the city (plus one in Melrose)
offering ‘Bakery, Coffee, Provisions’.
Edinburgh Park has tried to avoid
sinking into corporate blandness by
adding a cultural aspect to the area
as well as a natural feel. It’s described
as ‘a natural space to flourish’.
Particularly attractive is the area of
water, which makes creative use of
the Gogar Burn, which has been
formed into three narrow but
ornamental lochans.
Around the water stand statues of
a selection of Scotland’s greatest
poets, including Hugh MacDiarmid,
Norman MacCaig, and Liz
Lochhead. For each of them there is
a short selection from their work,
contemplative and thought
provoking words to absorb as you
wander around - or sit on the many
benches, or at picnic tables. While
fairly busy during the week (though
some of the office blocks remain
unfilled - the long-term effects of the
pandemic and shifts in work
culture), on a Saturday morning it
was a quiet and relaxing spot.
Patina is very accessible, only a
few yards from Edinburgh Park
Central tram stop and with good bus
connections, plus ample parking.You can see why people might come
here as a bit of a break from busy city
centre places.
The other customers included
several who were treating themselves
after exercising: running, having a
gym session or playing padel at the
nearby courts. Though it was early
July, it was a day of sunshine and
heavy showers, with threatening
clouds swirling around. Inside tables
were at a premium, but fortunately
there are plenty of sheltered tables
outside.
From these, you get a very
pleasant view over the curving
tramline up towards the Pentland
Hills. That view may disappear as the
area develops the Arena.
Patina has its roots in the
Newcastle restaurant and pottery,
Kiln. Pottery is available to buy as
well as coffee making equipment.
Kiln has been going for over ten
years and Patina is clearly a place
which is the product of experience of
the sector and considered thought.
The bakery is just one part of the
business, with a high end restaurant
next door the main business. The
bakery was inspired by a trip to
Copenhagen and the quality pastriesPatina has surfaced in an unlikely but most accessible spot
44 44 2 44 3 44 4 44 44 44 5 447 44 844 44 44 44 44 4444 1144 44 44 44 44 44 4413 44 1444 44 44 44 44 44 44 4416 44 17 18 44 1944 44 44 44 44 44 44 44 4421 44 22 23 2444 44 44 44 44 44 4444 2644 44 44 44 44 4444 2844 44 44 44 44 44 44 44444444444444444416101244152025279CAFÉ SCENE: PATINA By Charlie Ellis
ACROSS
6 RAINYBLOT (anagram) (4, 5)
8 Biblical song (5)
10 Tusk substance (5)
11 Amuse, regale (9)
12 Estimated, speculated (7)
14 Proof of purchase (7)
15 Seat (5)
17 Molasses spirit (3)
19 Speak, say (5)
20 Plentiful (7)
22 Staggering (7)
25 Unending, not temporary
(9)
26 Unclear, imprecise (5)
27 Tight, taut (5)
28 Remarked (9)6 ACROSS is a famous person born in Edinburgh..DOWN
1 Cord, twine (6)
2 Do as one’s told (4)
3 Table of dates (8)
4 Author (6)
5 Devil worshipper (8)
7 Hangman’s rope (5)
8 Skydiver’s equipment (9)
9 Ogre, brute (7)
13 Substitute, replacement (9)
15 Pilot’s compartment (7)
16 Evident, clear (8)
18 To do with shipping (8)
21 Oration, address (6)
23 Block of metal (5)
24 Avaricious (6)
26 Swerve (4)Café on the tracks
CROSSWORD By Aldhelm
SOLUTION6 Tony Blair, 8 Psalm, 10 Ivory, 11 Entertain, 12 Guessed, 14 Receipt, 15 Chair, 17 Rum, Across:19 Utter, 20 Copious, 22 Reeling, 25 Permanent, 26 Vague, 27 Tense, 28 Commented.1 String, 2 Obey, 3 Calendar, 4 Writer, 5 Satanist, 7 Noose, 8 Parachute, 9 Monster, 13 Down:Surrogate, 15 Cockpit, 16 Apparent, 18 Maritime, 21 Speech, 23 Ingot, 24 Greedy, 26 Veer.the owners, Rich and Geffen, found
there.
The beans Patina uses are roasted
by St Martin’s coffee of Leicester and
they also serve coffee by local
Edinburgh roasters Cult - whose café
at the east end of the Meadows is one
of the very best in the city. They were
using St. Martin’s Magpie blend
which includes beans from Brazil
and Rwanda, which produces coffee
that is ‘sweet, fruity and leaves a long
aftertaste’.
The coffee I was served was,
despite the long queue of customers,
well made with satisfying nutty
characteristics and good depth offlavour. Or perhaps the nuttiness
came from the excellent almond
croissant I had to have!
On the edge of the city, Patina is a
bit of a surprise. It’s an excellent
destination for those wanting to
escape the city centre on a busy day,
such as during the Festival and
Fringe. Here you may find respite
from traffic, tourists - and the
lengthy queues that you tend to find
for the best coffee places and
bakeries.Patina
3 Airborne Place, 1 New Park Square,
Edinburgh Park EH12 9GRThe café is light-filledCoffee gets the thumbs upGoodies from the bakery Patina outdoors