A new all-day café and restaurant with a distinctly Irish accent has opened on the harbourside at Newhaven in Edinburgh – just in time to welcome visitors to the Edinburgh Festival.
Norah is the debut venture from Dublin-born chef Claire Hanrahan and her partner Andrew Ainsley – and is named after Claire’s late grandmother Norah from Co Mayo, a legendarily generous figure who sparked her love of food and hospitality. Claire arrived in Edinburgh seven years ago, and has worked in top independent restaurants including Fhior, Ardfern and the Palmerston, where she was sous chef.
Irish soda bread is a recurring theme on the menu, available to take away by the loaf, served alongside breakfast and lunch dishes, and cropping up again for dessert in the form of soda-bread ice cream. Breakfast includes a bowl of porridge at £3.50, offering an “accessible” option for local regulars, while pork sausage, eggs and chips keep the Irish theme going at both breakfast and lunch. The signature dish is a smoked haddock chowder with mussels, while the rest of the menu looks further south in Europe with ‘cheffier’ options including the likes of San Marzano tomatoes, tartiflette, and spinach and ricotta gnudi.
Andrew, whose own career background is in retail menswear, said: “After moving to Newhaven three years ago we were instantly taken with the community, as we knew half of our street on a first name basis within the first week of moving in. We knew that creating a community-focused neighbourhood restaurant was the direction we wanted to go – taking inspiration from spaces like Sonny Stores in Bristol and Assassination Custard in Dublin.
“The space has been host to a number of venues over its long history – from the Market Buffet cafe which stood under numerous owners for well over 40 years, to a Thai restaurant Port of Siam which is still remembered with fond regards by the locals of Newhaven. Prior to becoming Norah, the space at 3 Pier Place was The Harbour Bistro.
“After taking over the premises our main focus was to turn what was previously a cavernous, romantic bistro into a light-filled, welcoming and homely space. Without any major backing behind us, the build of Norah was a labour of love. We spent six weeks painting, sanding, tiling and building a space that we ourselves would want to spend time in. What we hope is to have created a place that feels refined and is clearly built with our love and consideration.”
Norah is open for breakfast and lunch from Thursday to Monday, with pop-up dinners from guest chefs booked for every second Monday evening from the end of August, to be followed by set dinners presented by Claire on Friday evenings.