Kublai Khan Mongolian Restaurant

Back in the day Leith was a thriving port buzzing with industry, but by the time the nineties rolled around it had become a shadow of its former self. Since then it has revived its beleaguered image by recasting itself as a trendy night spot with restaurants, cafés and bars running down Commercial Street and along the beautiful waterfront. Kublai Khan’s Mongolian Restaurant is part of this burgeoning restaurant scene.

Today, Kublai Khan is famed as the third Great Khagan of an empire inherited from his granddaddy that stretched from Kiev to Korea. The Leith restaurant that his reputation has spawned plays fast and loose with political correctness, traditional cuisine and racial sensitivities.

Kublai’s distinguishes itself from the pack by its exotic and at times pretty weird cuisine. After a tasty Mongolian starter, the diners are let loose on the buffet to end all buffets. Unlike other, lesser, restaurants, what you eat here is your own decision right down to the smallest detail. You prepare your food from a smorgasbord of ingredients which are cooked to perfection and brought to your table by a friendly “floor slave”.

Every herb and spice that you can think of is represented here as well as every animal. Such is the variety that Kublai’s buffet resembles less a hokum butchers’ window than it does the Garden of Eden – except that everything is dead and, for money, you can eat it. If, for example, you believe that Indian cuisine is held back by its tradition of eschewing llama meat, then unlimited refills will let you test your theory to destruction here. In the materials represented, there seems to be a slight orientation towards Thai-style dishes, possibly reflecting the tastes of the proprietor who lives in South East Asia. However, there is so much diversity on display that it’s possible to create almost any dish you can imagine.

Bottom line: if you feel any urge to consume all of God’s creations, Kublai Khan’s Mongolian Restaurant is the perfect place to indulge your perversity. However, vegetarians will most likely be thrown on the barbecue.