Promising craft beer, curry and communal dining, VDeep – Scotland’s first craft beer and curry bar opens today and we loved it! The bar is located in the former premises occupied by The Vintage in Leith. The bar is a brand new partnership between celebrity chef, comedian and TV presenter, Hardeep Singh Kohli – and the team behind the award-winning Vintage Leith. VDeep seeks to bring together the nation’s two great loves – craft beer and curry – in one Scottish first.
A craft beer destination with a twist, VDeep offers drinkers and diners a mouthwatering menu of 10 craft keg beers, 3 craft cask beers, over 20 bottled craft beers and 21 contemporary Indian dishes.
Hardeep and Head Chef Ruairidh Skinner have dreamed up a fabulous menu for VDeep featuring original recipes such as ‘Bangras & Mash’, ‘Cauliflower Cheese Curry’ and ‘Pork Cheek Vindaloo’; all inspired by Hardeep’s childhood, craft beer culture and classic British cuisine. We had the opportunity to try a few of the dishes last night and they were all amazing. Really tasty mixed bean dahl, a fabulous beef and potato curry is also highly recommended as are the wings and dipping sauces.
Hardeep recalls the ‘light bulb moment’ that lead him to create Scotland’s first craft beer and curry bar: “My whole life I’ve heard people saying ‘I’m going out for a beer, then for a curry’ but nobody has ever put them in the same room. “I was always nervous at the prospect of trying to reinvent Indian food while remaining authentic. Then I began to question ‘what is authentic?’ Food has developed and changed for centuries. VDeep is the next dynamic change in Indian food. Ruairidh’s ability to devise revolutionary dishes is just inspiring.”
Communal craft beer and curry pairing will be at the core of the VDeep experience, with craft beers from other 30 different breweries used to complement and contrast the flavours of the curries on offer. Vindabrew – a limited edition guest beer brewed by Hardeep, Ruairidh and Operations Director Darren Blackburn – has been specially created for the launch of VDeep. The 5.5% cardamom-infused IPA is the first in a series of small batch craft beers designed to pair with curry and created by the team behind the restaurant.
Hardeep hopes the communal dining aspect will encourage visitors to engage in conversation and even share one another’s curry and beer choices:
“When you go to the pub, you always end up having a chat to the people next to you; that’s the pub experience. At the heart of Punjabi dining is a shared experience too.
“We don’t have food served to us on individual plates, we have empty plates and bowls of food for sharing. Everyone just gets piled in. VDeep is very similar. It isn’t just about craft beer and curry, it’s about a real shared experience.”
The restaurant seats 80 covers and is open Mon – Thur 12pm – 10pm, Fri 12pm – 1am, Sat 11am – 1pm and Sun 11am – 11pm.
Dishes range from £5 – £7.50 and designed to be shared.
Bookings taken via phone – 0131 563 5293 – and online via www.vdeep.co.uk
Carol loves writing about food, drinks and events in Edinburgh, and sharing the wonderful places we have on our doorstop. Read her reviews of places new and old and let us know what you think by commenting and sharing your favourite places.
