Peter Simpson

1 week ago | theskinny.co.uk | Peter Simpson

Opening the box on a new pair of shoes, peeling back that weird plastic film from your mobile phone, confidently slapping your hand against a piece of freshly-finished wooden furniture; there’s something very satisfying about the brand new. As we step into Corner Shop, a new wine bar/restaurant on Old Dumbarton Road, that feeling is there in spades.

1 month ago | theskinny.co.uk | Anahit Behrooz |Peter Simpson

New Music? From Scotland? Is that right? Sounds wild but it's true – the fine folk behind the Wide Days music convention are back with New From Scotland, a pair of very exciting gigs in Edinburgh bringing together some of our favourite new bands from across the country. Thursday 1 May features atmospheric Glasgow trio her picture, excitable dance duo KuleeAngee (pictured), indie songwriter Theo Bleak and the captivating Indoor Foxes at La Belle Angele.

1 month ago | theskinny.co.uk | Peter Simpson

If you’ve been out and about in Edinburgh’s cafes in the last wee while, you’ll have seen them. Maybe they’re front and centre on the counter, or maybe they’ve been on a little plate sat next to someone’s coffee. They tend to move in packs, geometrically arranged and always catching the light. This is the canelé; a squat, ridged little cake with a varnished mahogany exterior and a powerful aura. Can a small, brown cake have an aura?

2 months ago | theskinny.co.uk | Peter Simpson

It’s Sunday in Shawlands, and spring is in the air. With the national football team’s latest calamity occurring just down the road, it’s fairly quiet in Phillies, the jumbo-sized bar and venue on the corner of Pollokshaws and Kilmarnock Roads. When we say jumbo, we mean it; this place is huge, with velour booths, a nicely zoned layout, lots of deep red paintwork, a comically long bar and some frankly enormous windows to take in the early evening sunshine.

2 months ago | theskinny.co.uk | Peter Simpson

There might be a global coffee shortage (OK, OK, there definitely is a global coffee shortage), but for now, there’s no shortage of cafes making great coffee. Across Scotland you can find excellent espresso, great beans sourced from around the world, and latte art starring the most majestic swans you can imagine. And yet there is a prevailing coffee shop style that, with some notable exceptions, dominates our imagination.