On Monday 9 February, Edinburgh restaurants Sotto and The Palmerston will swap restaurants to raise money for Motor Neurone Disease charity ‘My Name’5 Doddie Foundation’.
For one night only, Sotto and The Palmerston will swap keys, with their teams staging restaurant takeovers. On offer will be Lloyd Morse (The Palmerston) and Frank Ascrizzi (Sotto)’s interpretations of one another’s menus, served up by their front of house teams. The menus will be à la carte, and all profits will go to ‘My Name’5 Doddie Foundation’.
The swap follows an event hosted by Sotto in 2024, where its chefs and waiters swapped roles for the night to raise money for charity. The event is supported by Sotto and The Palmerston’s suppliers who have generously donated produce for the evening, including Poppelvej, Fruttivendolo, Ochil Foods, John Vallance and Enotria.
Bookings are available from 6pm, with last sittings at 8:30pm. To book to eat at Sotto, guests should email info@sottoedinburgh.co.uk, while tables at The Palmerston can be reserved at hello@thepalmerstonedinburgh.co.uk
Of the event, Sotto’s owner James Clark said: “‘We did something similar at Sotto last year and it was such fun, not just for the customers but for us as a team. We showed them that waiters undoubtedly have it harder than chefs generally, but I think this time around the change of environment will be a much bigger test for the chefs!
I love the Palmerston, it’ll be a lot of fun trying our best to recreate what they do. Only perfectly al dente pasta leaves the pass at Sotto, I trust Lloyd and his brigade will be up to the task! It’s for such a wonderful cause, so choose your poison and book one of the venues…”
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James Snowdon, co-owner of The Palmerston added: “I was inspired by Sotto actually going through with their word and swapping rolls last year – and I thought let’s take it to another level! Swapping restaurants is something I’ve been training for for the last 15 plus years, which is more than I did for our cycle to Rome in 2023 in aid of My Name’5 Doddie, so this should be a piece of cake…”
Paul Thompson, Director of Fundraising at My Name’5 Doddie Foundation said: “What a great idea! We never cease to be amazed and humbled by the creativity of our supporters. Doddie’s outlook was about bringing people together and what better way to do this than over a good meal. We are hugely grateful for all the support that The Palmerston and Sotto give the Foundation and I hope everyone who goes along on the 9th February has a great night!”
My Name’5 Doddie was set up by Scottish rugby legend Doddie Weir who was diagnosed with MND in 2017, and later passed away in 2022. The charity is committed to a world free of MND and has already raised over £19.5m to support research projects and treatments – and ultimately work towards finding a cure. They also focus on raising awareness of the disease and being a voice for people with MND and their families.
