City Of Edinburgh Restaurant Guide

This year-old venture in a converted bank – restaurant, bar, bakery, coffee shop and butchery – “has taken Edinburgh by storm” with its “very unfussy and robust cooking, relaxed atmosphere” – and its excellent in-house baked goods. The “shabby-chic premises belie stunning prep and cooking” from ex-Spring chef Lloyd Morse, who has teamed up with ex-Harwood Arms GM James Snowdon. Top Tip – “on no account depart without buying one of their loaves”.

“A superb location, where the chef's culinary skills are effectively displayed” – Dean Banks is succeeding where others have failed in this plush and “romantic” dining room, dating from 1925. Culinarily speaking, it’s in a similar ambitious vein to his St Andrews venture, Haar, and even a reporter who thought it is “maybe a bit pricey” concludes that “the quality of food and the high standards effectively make this a no-brainer to visit”.

The Radford family’s Victorian warehouse conversion remains “relentlessly inventive and delicious”, a decade after they were among the first to bring the lessons of ‘new Nordic’ cuisine to Scotland, with foraged or pickled ingredients presented in industrial-style premises. Head chef James Murray (ex-Lyles, Le Manoir & Nur in Hong Kong) joined the team last year. Natural and low-intervention wines are also an important part of the experience. Even a diner who felt “the food is overhyped” said “what an amazing place!”

“Everything is spot-on” at this “lively” and “inventive” gastropub from a top-class chef – “we love it, and it’s great to take international visitors as it showcases Scottish produce”. With its “good pies and loads of local beers”, the place “doesn’t forget it’s a pub” – but the “wonderful, skilled cooking” makes it “more than just that”. He might not like to hear this, but “we enjoyed this far more than Tom Kitchin’s main restaurant”.

“Amazing Italian cooking using Scottish produce – impeccable – and with outstanding service” inspires excellent feedback on this stylish and moodily decorated New Town site. It was opened in mid 2021 by Stefano Pieraccini of the Rocca Group in premises vacated by Martin Wishart’s The Honour (RIP).

This “busy and atmospheric” restaurant with “reliably excellent pasta dishes” (plus, unusually, ‘full Scottish breakfasts’) was opened almost 20 years ago in a former banking hall by Victor Contini, whose family has brought their Italian heritage to bear on the Scottish food scene for more than a century. The venue’s success has led to further openings, at the Scottish National Gallery and in Cannonball House, next door to Edinburgh Castle.

“Beautiful Thai food just off the main Stockbridge thoroughfare is well worth a detour”, according to fans of this “friendly and professional” operation in a seventeenth-century townhouse. Since late 2020, it has also had a sibling near the castle.

“Definitely an experience” – James Thomson’s “glorious” 40-year restoration of a 1595 merchant’s house next to the castle makes a “totally unique and intimate location” for a candle-lit meal, either in the wood-panelled dining room, filled with leather furnishings and hung with tapestries, or in the ‘Secret Garden’. The “atmospheric setting” is “perfect for a romantic dinner” so long as you “don’t expect too much gastronomically” from the traditional menu – and there is a “killer wine list – sorry, Wine Bible”.

“Tucked away in a back street off George Street” you’ll find a little corner of “Left Bank Paris preserved en gelée” – serving “divine French bistro food” that’s “just right for a romantic tryst”. “This long standing restaurant continues to show others that great ingredients well prepared shine through”, while demonstrating “outstanding commitment to local small suppliers”.

“Every course is delicious and made with meticulous care” at Paul Gunning’s small venue in a Stockbridge basement. In the evening the choice is between a 5-course and 7-course tasting menu, and it provides “excellent value (especially at lunchtime with the set 2-course and 3-course menus)”.

“A stand-out for Thai food in Edinburgh”, this well-run operation has now clocked up two decades serving “absolutely delicious food with some more adventurous choices than in your standard Thai”. The “very efficient service” shines in the “cosy modern dining room”.

An “excellent choice of fish and shellfish” again wins applause for this long standing sibling to the original, near the Leith shore, which occupies a converted warehouse handy for the National Gallery.

“Excellent food and service” win all-round approval for this chic New Town venue from chef-owner Stuart Ralston: a follow-up to his Aizle which is inspired by his time in NYC (and named after his roomate there). There are strong Asian influences in the cooking, and a “front-of-house bar for a pre-dinner drink, sadly a rarity these days”. Top Menu Tip – “the sesame prawn toast is a favourite (as is the North Sea crab!)”.

This “buzzing and reliable” home-grown homage to New York-style pizza sells its “great” versions by the slice – “the slices are enormous and one will suffice most people” – in four outlets with a “quirky vibe and music (American rock and hip-hop)”. “Their motto is branded on every cup and menu: ‘Death Before Dominos’!”

“Top-notch oysters, shellfish and fish” make Roy Brett’s “superb restaurant” a “must-visit when in Edinburgh” – and a more frequent “treat” for those lucky enough to live nearby. In a new departure last year, selected cuts of British meat were added to the menu, ‘simply grilled to perfection’.

“Such amazing value for a six-course, themed, tasting menu” that changes every six weeks – that’s the USP of Nico Simeone’s national chain, which, over five years, has grown from its Glasgow base to number nine in total (with London having two: in Fitzrovia and Canary Wharf). Of course it’s “slightly gimmicky”, but on the whole it’s “a good effort at a budget experience”: “you get what you pay for, and while not all dishes hit the mark, and service can be a bit hit ’n’ miss (particularly at busy times), it is innovative, has a great buzz and is a lot of fun”.

“A lovely little place” – “the sort of bistro you would like to have in your neighbourhood”, with “a very nice menu of French dishes and excellent service”. It’s also “very cheap at lunchtime and reasonable in the evening, especially for central Edinburgh”.

With its attractive and convenient setting overlooking St Andrew’s Square, this iteration of the Ivy generates a reasonable number of reports but somewhat limited enthusiasm – “fairly average food which tends to be expensive for what is now a chain restaurant”.