The top line: Located on South Street in St Andrews, the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant draws inspiration from some of Scottish chef Dean Banks’ favourite destinations across Greece, Italy, Portugal and the south of France. Banks is the founder of the Dean Banks Group, whose portfolio includes Dulse Leith and Dulse West End in Edinburgh, Haar in St Andrews, Temple Lane in Dundee and Restaurant 1925 – the relaunched version of his flagship Pompadour restaurant at Edinburgh’s Caledonian Hotel.
On the menu: Amber’s menu centres on simple Mediterranean dishes and opens with bar bites including padron peppers, Manchego cheese and focaccia, followed by ‘plates for the table’ such as scallops in the shell with morcilla and red pepper sauce; filo-wrapped feta with honey and sesame; and patatas bravas with spiced tomato and roast garlic aioli. Larger plates are divided into seafood, meat, and pasta and rice. Seafood dishes include lemon-baked cod with ratatouille and basil; and king prawn saganaki with feta, alongside meat options such as Greek beef kokkinisto pie with potato wedges and honey carrots; and steak frites with roast garlic and chimichurri. Pasta and rice dishes include vodka rigatoni with burrata; spaghetti carbonara with pecorino; and crab linguine. Desserts feature Amber tiramisu; vanilla panna cotta with roasted peaches, toasted almonds and amaretti; and Basque cheesecake. The wine list is predominantly French, Italia and Spanish, while cocktails include the Paper Plane, made with whisky, Amaro, Aperol and lemon; and Amber Version 1, combining tequila, triple sec, peach, lime and prosecco.
The vibe: Amber has a warm, Mediterranean-inspired aesthetic aided by a floral display that runs up one side of the entrance, while large open windows include a front-facing ‘tiramisu window’ - a glass container displaying boxes of the dessert available to purchase. Inside, warm lighting, woven fixtures and hanging plants sit alongside velvet and wooden chairs with terracotta cushions. The space also features olive trees and boho-style decorations with wooden chevron flooring. Towards the rear is an arched bar, backed by St Andrews white sandstone with backlighting and finished with olive-green counter chairs.
And another thing: Amber occupies a former BrewDog pub and Banks has documented its opening on his Instagram page and has sold off some BrewDog branded fittings to his followers.
159 South Street, St Andrews, KY16 9UH