The wine list does a good line in meaningless babble, but at least the main menu made sense. One of the reasons why the Apartment has flourished – as has its even more successful sister establishment, the Outsider – is because it has stuck to the core values that helped it make a splash in the first place. That it is still thriving was clear as we walked in on yet another dreich summer day.

The Apartment is particularly full during the Festival, but there had been a cancellation and so we were quickly squeezed in. It says much for the appeal of the place that it is almost always stuffed to the gunwales in a town that now has more restaurants than a mangy dog has fleas. One reason for that is almost certainly its relaxed ambience.

The other reason for a full house is a menu that has long fused good food with prices that still constitute pretty good value. That is, in part, thanks to the 'chunky healthy lines (CHLs)' – dishes designed for sharing that are generally ordered as starters. Personally, I prefer to have a starter of my own, but as that option's not available, we made do with a skewer of roast monkfish, bacon, tomatoes and onion, which came with a spicy coriander dressing and a slice of pitta bread stuffed full of the house's apple, beetroot and raisin coleslaw. This is without doubt the best coleslaw I've eaten – though I never thought I'd get excited by shredded veg.

Looking at the choice of CHLs was the point at which I was thankful I was out with the only bacon-eating vegetarian I've met (otherwise, I would have been doomed to share a skewer of roasted fennel, aubergine, artichoke, courgette and feta cheese, which would never have worked). Not that Lucinda ate any of the fatty, flaccid coils of bacon we were served, which was understandable – I'm an ardent carnivore but I didn't like the look of them either. The monkfish was, however, perfectly cooked and nicely complemented by a subtly piquant coriander yoghurt sauce.

If we were fairly ambivalent about the starter, then the same was true of our main courses. Lucinda's sea bass was a little overcooked, although the excellent rocket and plum tomato salsa helped retrieve the situation. My five slices of pan-seared duck breast were cooked to perfection, although no matter how succulent they were, the effect was ruined by a gloopy spiced-peach-and-sweet-sage sauce that also contained wilted spinach and red chard, but which had a consistency that strongly suggested the presence of MSG.

I rounded off with a spongy chocolate brownie that I believe may be the worst example of the genre I've ever tasted (even if it did come with a half-decent raspberry shortcake ice-cream, which unfortunately was damned by association). Lucinda opted for a glass of natural yoghurt with fresh raspberries and honey, topped with pistachio amaretto crumble. It was good enough, but so simple that it could easily have been made with the contents of her own fairly empty fridge.

This was by no means a dreadful meal, but much of it was worryingly mediocre. We still had an enjoyable evening – largely because the service was excellent and the atmosphere lively. I wonder, however, just how long this will last if the food is always this hit and miss.

Vital statistics

The Apartment

7 Barclay Place, Edinburgh (0131 228 6456)

Out of pocket

Starters (to share) £9.90-£12.90; main courses £9.90-£13.60; salads £8.10-£8.90; puddings £3.10-£3.75

Rating 6.5/10