The selected restaurants have been divided into five categories: Gourmet, Business, Trendy, Budget and Personal Recommendations. The restaurants are listed alphabetically within these different categories, which serve as guidelines rather than absolute definitions of the establishments.
The restaurants below have been classed into four different pricing categories:
$$$$ (over £50)
$$$ (£35 to £50)
$$ (£20 to £35)
$ (under £20)
This is for a three-course meal per person, including half a liter of wine or equivalent. Tax and tip included.
GourmetThe Kitchin
Tom Kitchin only
opened his eponymous restaurant in Leith in 2006, but it already boasts a well deserved Michelin star and rumours abound of a second in the offing. On the menu are the likes of langoustine tails with pig’s head and a crispy ear salad. Service is sublime and the wine list is exceptional. Seasonality and sourcing of fresh ingredients are as important to Kitchin as intricate sauces. As perfect for business lunches for those looking to impress a client as it is for couples looking for a culinary treat that is up there with anything you can savour in most European cities.
78 Commercial Quay, Leith
Tel: (0131) 555 1755.
Website:
www.thekitchin.com Price: $$$$
Number One
At the heart of Edinburgh’s restaurant renaissance in recent years has been Number One. Using world-class ingredients, skillfully handled by homegrown chef Jeff Bland, within the dramatic setting of the landmark Balmoral Hotel, this is serious destination dining. The divine poached beef fillet with turnip slaw, parmentier potato and red wine jus is indicative of the type of creative and satisfying cuisine on offer. The wine list is also superb and the service flawless.
The BalmoraI, Princes Street
Tel: (0131) 557 6727.
Website:
www.thebalmoralhotel.com Price: $$$$
Restaurant Martin Wishart
This acclaimed Leith restaurant well deserves its Michelin star. The décor is simple and cool with plain walls, although the real star here is the food. Popular with business diners and local celebrities, the restaurant serves mouth-watering epicurean creations such as turbot and langoustine with truffle butter with a firm nod across the sea to France. A real taste extravaganza are the five-course or six-course tasting menus. Add in a glass of wine to go with each course for the ultimate epicurean treat.
54 The Shore, Leith
Tel: (0131) 553 3557.
Website:
www.martin-wishart.co.uk Price: $$$$
BusinessTower Restaurant
With wonderful views over the city and an open-air terrace for rare sunny days, the Tower is the sort of restaurant that people want to stay in all afternoon. Situated on top of the National Museum of Scotland, the restaurant offers contemporary Scottish cuisine in a strikingly modern and stylishly opulent interior, with furnishings incorporating aluminum, velvet, tweed, oak and leather. Oysters are a specialty, while on the main menu sturdy dishes like rolled suckling pig sit alongside lighter touches like sea bream in olive tapenade.
National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street
Tel: (0131) 225 3003.
Website:
www.tower-restaurant.com Price: $$$
TrendyAbstract
Fresh from being just about the best place ever to appear on Gordon Ramsay’s ‘Kitchen Nightmares’ TV program, the owners of Inverness’ best restaurant have brought their considerable skills south to break into the notoriously fickle Edinburgh restaurant scene. There are no kitchen nightmares here though, with culinary classics well handled and creative twists like foie gras ice cream spicing up a menu that diners will want to pour over. Look out too for excellent tasting menus and the chef’s table - touches that even Ramsay would surely approve of.
33-35 Castle Terrace
Tel: (0131) 229 1222.
Website:
www.abstractrestaurant.com Price: $$$$
Khushi’sA big name on Edinburgh’s Indian restaurant scene since 1947 (well it was the city’s first Indian restaurant), Khushi’s has recently moved to impressive new premises on one of the most charming cobbled streets in the old town. It has moved upmarket and looks more like a style bar with multiple dining spaces than a restaurant spread across the various floors of this historic building. The food thankfully remains as good as ever, with a few creative tweaks the only nods to the revamped décor and ambience.
9 Victoria Street
Tel: (0131) 220 0057.
Website:
www.khushis.com Price: $$
IgluLovers of healthy and creative food should make a beeline for this real breath of fresh air on the Edinburgh dining scene. Since opening in 2005 Iglu has really shaken things up by meticulously sourcing fresh organic produce and doing inventive things with it that have brought them a string of awards. Unusual combinations and ingredients that you would never have dreamt of help to keep up-for-it diners on their toes.
2B Jamaica Street
Tel: (0131) 476 5333.
Website:
www.theiglu.com Price: $$$
Orocco PierThis chic restaurant/bar/hotel by the water’s edge in South Queensferry offers unbeatable views of both the Forth Bridge and the Forth Road Bridge. The old inn was totally refurbished in 2003 and now boasts sweeping windows, an outdoor terrace and plenty of stylish hard wood. Waiting staff are friendly and attentive and the menu covers everything from traditional Scottish through to Asian fusion. In 2005 a new outdoor terrace opened, really opening up those stunning views of the bridges and the Firth of Forth and there are plans for further development by 2010 including an oyster bar.
17 High Street, South Queensferry
Tel: 0870 118 1664.
Website:
www.oroccopier.co.uk Price: $$$
Thai Orchid
If it is Thai cuisine you are after in chic surrounds then this is the place. It looks like it could have opened last month, not in 2005, with a bright and thoughtful décor scheme that makes dining here a pleasure. The menu covers all of the usual Thai classics with particularly good green curries and pad thai. There is Singha beer too for those with a Thai curry thirst to quench.
5A Johnston Terrace
Tel: (0131) 225 6633.
Website:
www.thaiorchid.uk.com Price: $$
BudgetBar Roma
In the West End of Edinburgh, Bar Roma is one of the city’s most reliable restaurants, not only for its tasty Italian food but also for its lively atmosphere. It always seems to be busy here and the food is fresh and of good quality - pizzas, pasta dishes with rich tomato and cheese sauces and a great tomato, mozzarella and avocado salad. The interior is light and bright with large windows, polished wood and chrome fittings. It does get busy at weekends and diners should book if they want to visit on a Friday or Saturday night.
39A Queensferry Street
Tel: (0131) 226 2977.
Website:
www.bar-roma.co.uk Price: $
Bell’s Diner
Small and popular Stockbridge restaurant where yearnings for burgers and steaks are easily satisfied. The burgers are the real highlights in a buzzy place that is not ideal for cosy couples but is great for no nonsense affordable food that fills people up before another round of sightseeing.
7 St Stephen Street
Tel: (0131) 225 8116.
Price: $
Cafe HubIn the heart of the Old Town, Cafe Hub is housed in the headquarters of Edinburgh’s International Festival. This lively cafe is modern and arty with modern artworks on the wall. While it serves coffee, sandwiches and snacks throughout the day, it also offers more substantial dishes at night. The food is good quality and the menu features dishes such as saffron risotto and the freshest of salads. The atmosphere is generally relaxed - except during the festival, of course.
Castlehill, Royal Mile
Tel: (0131) 473 2067.
Website:
www.thehub-edinburgh.com Price: $$
First Coast
This is not the cheapest place to eat in the city as such, but is probably the best place to head for those looking for affordable modern Scottish cooking. The emphasis is on sourcing fresh natural ingredients (something the owners are keen on having been brought up in the Outer Hebrides) which works well with the well executed, but not overly fussy cooking. A relaxed and warm venue for couples or for a night out with a small group of friends.
97-101 Dalry Road
Tel: (0131) 313 4404.
Website:
www.first-coast.co.uk Price: $$
Kalpna
Situated in the area of Edinburgh dominated by the university, Kalpna is an Indian restaurant that even has Indians queuing to get in. It is small, simply decorated and unpretentious inside, but the food (all of which is vegetarian) is delicious and inspired. Specialties include spicy Kashmiri dishes and lots of pistachios, and the
kulfi (Indian ice cream) is especially creamy.
2-3 St Patrick’s Square
Tel: (0131) 667 9890.
Website:
www.kalpnarestaurant.com Price: $
Personal RecommendationsThe Boat House
Sublime little retreat in a lovely old stone building right down by the water’s edge in the postcard pretty suburb of South Queensferry. Unsurprisingly, given its proximity to salty water, the emphasis is on seafood, with a great range of Scottish catch, but also some interesting interlopers from more distant shores. Under the expert stewardship of owner and head chef Paul Steward the Boat House rarely puts a foot wrong in terms of service or cooking. Book a seat by the window for sweeping views of the Firth of Forth and the famous Forth bridges. In 2007 they opened a more informal bistro next door as well as a well-stocked deli upstairs at street level.
22 High Street, South Queensferry
Tel: (0131) 331 5429.
Website:
www.the-boathouse.info Price: $$$
Le Café St Honoré
There is a really romantic feel to this cosy French restaurant tucked away down a central side street, making it often quite hard to find. With crisp linen cloths, heavy mirrors and black and white marble floors, it is almost like being in Paris itself. Food is traditional French. Dishes include venison wild berries and mushrooms or
boeuf bourguignon with mash.
34 North West Thistle Street Lane
Tel: (0131) 226 2211.
$$$
The Mussel Inn
If you love seafood then this is really the only place to be. The owners have their own boat so the produce on offer here is as fresh as can be. The bright, modern space is handily located on central Rose Street and as such booking ahead is essential. The massive portions of mussels are delicious, but for a real treat opt for either the seafood platter or the catch of the day, which will be cooked simply but perfectly. Limited wine list, but well-chosen whites to go with the seafood.
61-65 Rose Street
Tel: (0131) 225 5979.
Website:
www.mussel-inn.com Price: $$
Restaurant at the Bonham
This chic dining space in the West End boutique hotel of the same name is a real retreat. Away from the city’s center crowds you can enjoy a relaxed ambience and some decent cooking. Service is unobtrusive and the menu happily criss-crosses between Scotland and France. Decadent French desserts are a highlight.
35 Drumsheugh Gardens
Tel: (0131) 623 9319.
Website:
www.thebonham.com Price: $$$
Suruchi
Opposite the Festival Theater, Suruchi serves solid northern Indian vegetarian cuisine but also features mouthwatering dishes from across the Indian subcontinent. The menu is bilingual: it gives the Indian name of the dish and a description in Scots, the language that many Scottish people speak, a language which is recognized as more than a dialect but does not feature on many menus around town.
14a Nicolson Street
Tel: (0131) 556 6583.
Website:
www.suruchirestaurant.com Price: $
Nightlife:The days when Edinburgh’s nightlife was a bit tame and local punters went through to Glasgow for a decent night out are long gone. Edinburgh is booming and its nightlife is following suit with well-heeled locals fuelling a scene that is bolstered by a steady stream of tourists throughout the year. There is no one set area for nightlife with George Street in the New Town, the High Street area of the Old Town, the university sector and the Grassmarket all popular haunts.
Broughton Street tends to attract a ’mixed’ clientele, while the seaside quarter of Leith is popular with the trendy set. The city’s pubs range from traditional taverns with hundreds of years of history behind them, to slinky modern style bars. After pub closing time, Edinburgh’s club scene offers everything from easy listening to the latest dance music, via 1970s and 1980s revival evenings. Live music can be heard everywhere from intimate pubs to the huge Murrayfield Stadium.
Some clubs may require smart dress and alcohol can normally be purchased until 2300, though many pubs and bars are open until 0100, or even 0300 (and until 0500 during the festival). The legal drinking age is 18. Drink prices vary enormously, depending on the venue - beer varies between £2-3 per pint.
Note: Smoking in enclosed public spaces is banned throughout Scotland.
Bars: Some good traditional pubs are
Bow Bar, 80 West Bow, and
Café Royal Circle Bar, 17 West Register Street (which also features great seafood). There are plenty of pubs lining Rose Street (a pedestrianized road behind Princes Street), but the Victorian grandeur is often blighted by hen and stag parties. Also worth trying is
The Canny Man’s, 239 Morningside Road, with its highly unusual bric-a-brac décor - beware as cameras are banned. More stylish places to hang out include the
Malmaison Hotel Bar, 1 Tower Place, Leith,
Ricks, Frederick Street, the
Opal Lounge on George Street, and
Indigo Yard, Charlotte Lane.
Depending on your favorite tipple, go to the
Malt Shovel, Cockburn Street, or back to the
Bow Bar, to sample whisky and the
Cask and Barrel, 115 Broughton Street, for real ale. A popular trendy meeting place is the
Villager, 49-50 George IV Bridge. Leith offers everything from raffish old pubs like the
Port o’ Leith, 58 Constitution Street, that are not for the faint-hearted through to bright style bars like
Bar Sirius, Dock Place. The
Oxford Bar, Young Street, is an essential stop for fans of Ian Rankin as both the author and his fictional Inspector Rebus are regulars.
Clubs: Edinburgh’s club scene is lively and clubs quickly fall in and out of fashion.
Espionage,
4 India Buildings, Victoria Street (website:
www.espionage007.co.uk), offers five fun-filled floors of clubbing action, while
Cabaret Voltaire, 36-38 Blair Street (website:
www.thecabaretvoltaire.com), is more hip and exclusive. The
Opal Lounge,
51 George Street (website:
www.opallounge.co.uk), and
Po Na Na,
43B Frederick Street (website:
www.eclecticbars.co.uk/ponana), are also popular, the latter with an emphasis on funky beats. Indie kids should head for the studenty
Citrus Club, 40-42 Grindlay Street (website:
www.citrusclub.co.uk). During the festivals in August a number of impromptu events spring up.
Live Music: The
Royal Oak, 1 Infirmary Street, is an unpretentious folk bar, while
Sandy Bell’s, 25 Forest Road, also has informal folk sessions.
Eighty Queen St, 80 Queen Street and
Henry’s Jazz Cellar, 8 Morrison Street, both feature live jazz while
Bannermans, 212 Cowgate, regularly features new bands.
Whistlebinkies, 4-6 South Bridge, is a well established live music bar, with bands playing every night.
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