Edinburgh Restaurant Guide

With its imposing facade, stained glass, corniced ceilings, polished wood and brass, we maintain a listing for this busy Victorian institution (est. 1863 and nowadays run by the Metropolitan Pub Company) as much as a cultural experience as it is a culinary one. Seafood dishes and platters are the best choices here.

The grand hall of the former Bank of Scotland HQ provides a dramatic setting for this northern outpost of the famous London-based steakhouse chain. As with last year, feedback on its menu of native-bred beef and Scottish seafood remains surprisingly limited, hence we’ve removed a rating for the time being.

2022 Review: Launched in July 2021, Scotland’s largest food hall (and Edinburgh’s first) features a range of chef-led food stalls and restaurants. These include The Gannet East, Creel Caught, Erpingham House, El Perro Negro, east PIZZAS, Broken Clock, Joelato, Salt & Chilli Oriental and CHIX. Also houses Inverarity Morton’s boutique bottleshop.

“The fun and lively Indian street food is always reliable” according to all reports on this northern outpost of the phenomenal chain – inspired by the Parsi cafés of Mumbai – which occupies a large three-floor site dating from the 1920s. But while popular, it hasn’t perhaps been the sell-out sensation it’s proved in London, although there is one constant… “that bacon naan, with unlimited chai latte = breakfast heaven!”

These “lively, colourful” Mexican street-food joints are, say fans, “great for a quick bite” – “the food remains pretty good (if not where it was several years ago)” and “you can’t complain at the prices”. That’s the majority view anyway, although there is a small minority who feel it’s “very average” now (and its ratings risk heading that way). Founded by MasterChef winner Thomasina Miers in 2007, the group hit the buffers during the pandemic and halved in size to 10 sites in London, with Dick Enthoven of Nando’s taking a controlling stake.

As per its siblings, this offshoot of Richard Caring’s brasserie format woos diners with its “lovely surroundings” and location in a “handy spot” overlooking St Andrew’s Square; also as per its siblings, there are critics of the “disappointing food, service and ambience”, for whom this endlessly expanding empire is “a chain taken too far”.

Promising ‘dynamic interiors’ plus an ‘outdoor terrace with sweeping views of Edinburgh’s skyline’ from the 10th floor of W Edinburgh in the St James Quarter – this heavily trailed third branch of the super-glossy US chain at long last is set to open in November 2023. The London Sushisambas blazed a trail on opening, and the heady blend of Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian cuisine has the potential to be a major addition to the Scottish capital (if, likely, not an especially affordable one).

“A stunning setting in a former banking hall” – the former HQ of the Bank of Scotland, complete with eye-catching cupola – provides a hard-to-beat setting for this year-old spin-off from the world-famous sporting estate: the first-ever extension of the brand (a property with 33 bedrooms). The focus of the (less reviewed) à la carte is on posh brasserie fare – the dedicated brunch menu is the most commented-on feature here (“amazing crab omelette”). Prices could be much worse given the level of grandeur. It’s also tipped for a “good business venue”.

2022 Review: MasterChef: The Professionals winner Gary Maclean opened his first restaurant in summer 2021 on the fourth floor of the Bonnie & Wild Marketplace: Edinburgh's first food hall in St James Quarter. The menu champions sustainable Scottish seafood, with the ‘award-winning Arbroath Smokies’ a signature dish.

2021 Review: David Howie Scott’s flagship venue at the foot of Calton Hill celebrates its 30th anniversary last year as a purveyor of inexpensive Scottish classics. The odd reporter feels that it’s “nice enough, but not the stand-out it could be”, but that’s within the context of pretty solid ratings overall. There are two spinoffs in Edinburgh and one in Aberdeen.

Jean-Michel Gauffre is the mastermind behind this “pleasing, modest French establishment”, in the Old Town; a firm fixture since its launch in 2001, it turns out hearty Gallic cooking with a particular focus on the Languedoc, alongside an excellent value lunchtime ‘Menu du Jour’.

2021 Review: Owned by the Crolla family (who started Valvona & Crolla, Scotland’s oldest deli and Italian wine merchant – see also), this sixteenth century fine dining spot is a beacon on the otherwise touristy Royal Mile owing to its “well-cooked and well-seasoned” Scottish fare and “good value Sunday lunch”; for a truly intimate dining experience, try ‘Halo’, upstairs, which seats just four.

“Really enjoyable experience (apart from the walk in the dark on icy paths to reach the place from the Royal Terrace!”) – few restaurants can match the location of this dramatically cantilevered structure, whose floor-to-ceiling windows ensure superb views over the city from Calton Hill. On limited feedback this year, some “outstanding” results were reported from a no-choice, four-course menu for £85 (shorter and cheaper at lunch). On the downside, in March 2023, Chitra Ramaswamy in The Times had an up-and-down trip: it “ha[d] everything going for it: fabulous taste, music, service and ingredients in a world-class setting” but was “simply too expensive for what you get”.