For those of you with siblings, you’ll know that as you get older your relationships with them change dramatically.
My baby sister, Elise, is 10 years younger than me so I found growing up and forming a really strong bond with her a bit more challenging initially.
While I was a university student she was still at primary school, but now that she’s pushing 21, I am no longer the uninterested, “too busy to hang out” big sister.
Not only do most people mistake her for me when she’s working in Markies, but our mannerisms are very much the same. We’re two peas in a pod.
We also have similar tastes in food and when I wanted to take her out to celebrate passing her exams I knew just the place.
Braided Fig
I had the day off so booked us a table at Braided Fig on Summer Street in Aberdeen for 12.30pm.
The unassuming front didn’t seem to impress her at first (she’s of the Instagram/TikTok generation when aesthetic is everything), but walking in she couldn’t help but comment on the tree that resides inside this establishment.
“It’s dead?”, she said about the tree, unable to envision what this magnificent centrepiece once looked like. It was still decked out in fairy lights and the restaurant looked no different to the first time I visited in 2019.
Lucy Castle, who owns Braided Fig with her husband Steven, greeted us and showed us to our table. We were handed a menu each and placed our drinks order.
I noted many worthy contenders for the starter so convinced Elise to share two. The thing about being the big sister is you learn all the tricks of manipulation pretty quickly – although I promised her it was in her best interest.
The food
We decided on the Korean fried chicken (£8.50) and Coronation crab crumpet (£9).
She’d ordered the honey chilli chicken wontons (£15) for main, oblivious that she had picked a staple must-have dish from Braided Fig. It’s a dish that has followed Lucy and Steven since he first served it many moons ago.
I picked the 6oz flat iron steak (£18) in the end after a toss-up between it and the pulled brisket chilli.
I’m a big fan of Korean fried chicken (KFC) and I knew when she tasted it my sister would be too.
The wait wasn’t long and as we were earlier for lunch the venue was still relatively quiet.
“Oh my God,” she said closing her eyes. “That’s incredible. Do you think if I signed a NDA (non-disclosure agreement) that they would give me the recipe?”. That was enough to tell me she was enjoying the KFC.
I could taste the gochujang and knew the sweet ingredients – most likely brown sugar or honey – were working beautifully with the sesame oil and garlic. The sauce was incredible and the chicken, which was crisp on the outside and juicy in the middle, was lathered in the stuff. There were six pieces, so luckily it was an equal split.
The mayo dip provided a cooling sensation, however, we didn’t eat much as we wanted to savour every flavour of the sauce.
Topped with kimchi slaw, thinly sliced spring onion, red chillies and sesame seeds, there was a nice fresh crunch.
The crumpet was nearly as brilliant but not quite. It too was a good portion size and there was plenty of succulent crab on it. It was a work of art, presented similarly to some of the top fine dining establishments in the city.
On top of the soft, toasted crumpet was a pile of creamy, slightly curried crab which was then topped with fresh thin slices of radish and dots of avocado puree.
Charred corn salsa had been sprinkled across the dish and other dots of the puree were present on the plate.
The crockery isn’t to be overlooked here. The plates were stunning and really helped each dish pop.
Other diners had began to trickle in as our table was cleared and we awaited our mains. City workers were meeting for lunchtime meetings while the odd duo would pull up a chair.
Placing our dishes in front of us Lucy checked if we needed any further drinks or condiments, we politely declined and as she turned, stuck in.
My sister’s tempura chicken pieces were layered with wonton pastry and flash-fried veg. This was a food Jenga tower and I so desperately wanted to snatch a piece of chicken just to remind myself how good it is.
Luckily for Elise, my steak distracted me. Cooked medium rare it was served with broccoli, soft potatoes, crushed roasted peanuts that had been thrown on top, and a big mound of basmati rice.
Some of the Massaman curry sauce had already been poured over and I had a full jug of the stuff, too.
It was rather filling so I focused on the protein while polishing off my veggies and the crushed peanuts when I could.
I played with the rice more than I tried to consume it as I knew it would fill me up too much and I had my eye on a dessert.
My sister also ordered a side of parmesan chips with truffle aioli (£5). They were huge skin-on and fluffy inside. The parmesan was well melted but it was the truffle dip that made these almost impossible to stop eating.
We were both struggling at this point and decided if we were to see the dessert menu, that we needed to surrender the rest of our mains for the greater good. That said, there wasn’t much to surrender.
For dessert, I turned to Lucy for her expertise. “You have to try the strawberry Eton Tidy” (£8), she said.
And so we did. A mere 10 minutes later and here it was. Fresh and macerated berries, marshmallows, meringue, Chantilly cream and strawberry sorbet, this deconstructed version of the popular Eton Mess was a sight to behold.
The marshmallow had been toasted and all I could smell was the burnt sugar. Dehydrated strawberries featured on the crisp meringue which snapped as we tucked our forks in, and the tangy, fruity sorbet helped put the breaks on the sweet high.
It was delectable and we wiped the plate clean.
Unable to possibly eat one more thing, I paid the bill before we could be tempted to order another dessert.
The verdict
When it comes to the food at Braided Fig it really is faultless. The value for money and the portions of high-quality food you get should be reason enough to visit.
Every time I am asked to recommend a restaurant this establishment is one that consistently lies near the top of my list.
The key to the success of this family-run business is very much down to the resilience and skill of the people behind it, and I’m already teeing up my other sister for a trip as a result.
Information
Address: The Braided Fig, 39 Summer Street, Aberdeen AB10 1SB
T: 01224 620333
Price: £67.50 for two starters, two mains and a side, plus a dessert and a pint of Diet Coke. An optional service charge of £6.75 was added to the bill, too.
Scores:
- Food: 5/5
- Service: 4/5
- Surroundings: 4/5
Julia Bryce is the head of food and drink at DC Thomson. She works across titles including The Press and Journal, Evening Express, The Courier and Evening Telegraph.
She has been reviewing restaurants for around a decade be that for her former award-winning lifestyle blog or for the titles she works for now.
Julia was named Food and Drink Writer of the Year at the 2021 Scottish Press Awards.
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