Edinburgh restaurant recommendations

[cajunmom]

My mom, sister, and I are going to Edinburgh in November. I have been to Scotland twice already, they have never been. Despite having been there twice, we never spent a lot of time in Edinburgh so I'm looking for recommendations for some casual spots and maybe one nicer dinner place. On our last trip we went to the Witchery so I don't want to go there again.

Recommendations for any other under-the-radar activities welcome, too! We will have four full days plus one afternoon.

[Vespasia]

Feb 15, 2019 11:52:04 GMT -5 cajunmom said:

My mom, sister, and I are going to Edinburgh in November. I have been to Scotland twice already, they have never been. Despite having been there twice, we never spent a lot of time in Edinburgh so I'm looking for recommendations for some casual spots and maybe one nicer dinner place. On our last trip we went to the Witchery so I don't want to go there again.

Recommendations for any other under-the-radar activities welcome, too! We will have four full days plus one afternoon.

Some places we really liked when we were there two years ago were:

La Barantine Victoria - French bakery convenient to our apartment
Oink
Gurkhas - Indian
Graze on Grassmarket - great value breakfast sandwiches convenient to our apartment
Whiski Rooms
Chaophraya Thai


We did a day trip to St. Andrews one day by train and really loved it. We played on the Ladies Putting Green, walked around town/ruins, had a fantastic lunch, and then went on a tour at a brewery/distillery. You may have visited on your previous trips but if not I highly recommend it!

[mrsukyankee]

We enjoyed:
-Graze on Grassmarket
-The Auld Hoose
-Makars Gourmet Mash Bar

[dutchgirl678]

I visited Edinburgh for a work trip last year and we went out to dinner to a great place called Spoon. It wasn't super fancy but the food was really good. For more casual pub fare, BrewDog has really good beer and they have pizza.

[mcsangel2]

We also ate at Whiski Rooms, on the Royal Mile, and I thought it was *really* good. It's on the Royal Mile, so there's a lot of tourist traffic, but it should be better in November.

[Pibs]

We went to England -> Scotland and felt like we had our first great beers of our trip in Edinburgh. We stumbled upon The Hanging Bat which was a fun place with local craft brews. We did do lunch at The Elephant House where JK Rowling supposedly wrote some of the Harry Potter books. I had a great caramel brownie and latte there. It's kind of a HP pilgrimage place at this point -- the bathrooms are covered in graffiti and the drawers in the table we sat at were packed full of notes HP fans have written to JK Rowling. And I agree with dutchgirl678 that BrewDog is worth a visit.

[mrsukyankee]

Pibs, you missed out on good beer in England if Scotland had your first good beers after vising England! We have amazing craft beers in this country.

I do agree with you on the Hanging Bat - I've gone there multiple times in my trips to Edinburgh.

[Pibs]

Feb 16, 2019 7:17:39 GMT -5 mrsukyankee said:

Pibs , you missed out on good beer in England if Scotland had your first good beers after vising England! We have amazing craft beers in this country.

I do agree with you on the Hanging Bat - I've gone there multiple times in my trips to Edinburgh.

Hey, I said great!    We had plenty of good beers in England.  I don't feel like we got really good craft beer recs from anyone.  So, clearly, we'll need some so we can come back! 

[mrsukyankee]

Feb 17, 2019 1:00:48 GMT -5 Pibs said:

Feb 16, 2019 7:17:39 GMT -5 mrsukyankee said:

Pibs , you missed out on good beer in England if Scotland had your first good beers after vising England! We have amazing craft beers in this country.

I do agree with you on the Hanging Bat - I've gone there multiple times in my trips to Edinburgh.

Hey, I said great!    We had plenty of good beers in England.  I don't feel like we got really good craft beer recs from anyone.  So, clearly, we'll need some so we can come back! 

I wish I had known before you came to England. I have TONS of recs. I will tell you to come when the Great British Beer Festival is happening in London - usually the second week in August. I both work at it and go to it. You can then find out where all the best craft beers are in Britain (plus drink lots of good beers - you can buy them in thirds, aka a third of a pint). Or you just go to What Pub (run by Campaign for Real Ale) and find out what craft beer pubs are located wherever you are going.

[jennybee1018]

We've been to Edinburgh twice, and it's still one of our favorite cities!

Most of these recs came from our Edinburgh resident pittpurple, and they're awesome! :-)

Oink - This place rocks! It was on the way to our Airbnb so we'd stop and pick one up for dinner. They have a few locations, so you can find the one closest to you.

The Cambridge Bar - Great burgers and ambiance

Brew Dog - Great local brewery! They have more beer than food, but I think they have pizzas and stuff.

The Pie Maker - Omg, this place amazing. It's on the South Bridge - SO good and great deal. DH liked the pasty, and I loved the macaroni cheese pie. Super cheap too!

Mademoiselle Macaron - if you like macarons, this place is great!

Lebowski's - They have a Lebowski themed bar - food and drinks were great!

Holyrood 9A is another must - lots of beer on tap and the food is delicious.

We hung out in pubs a lot - some of our faves are the Blue Blazer, The Bow Bar, Halfway House. We liked a lot of the pubs on the Grassmarket too, even though they're owned/run by Nicholson's.

Definitely head up to Calton Hill - beautiful views of the city, and if you're feeling adventurous, hike up Arthur's Seat! The castle is amazing, but sometimes overwhelming :-P

There's a cat cafe if you're into cats. We love cats so we had a lot of fun! www.maisondemoggy.com/

We did the Whiskey Experience on the Royal Mile, and while we thought it'd be cheesy, it was actually a lot of fun, and they have a extensive collection of limited edition Scotch bottles. You can also do a tasting afterwards in their tasting room.

We did a day tour with Rabbie's and loved it if you're looking to get out of the city but don't want to drive!

There's probably more - I'll add to this if I think of it!

[pittpurple]

cajunmom, yup, I live in Edinburgh so happy to help!
Where are you staying and what sort of food do you like?

As a starting point - I've been here a couple times and it's great. Lovely admosphere and the walk down is super fun, down one of the closes off the Royal Mile
devilsadvocateedinburgh.co.uk/

This is a super cute bar. I've only had snacks but they were all really good and their cocktails are fun - it's in a great location too
underthestairs.org/

What do you have planned already? Is it part of a bigger Scotland trip or are you staying in the city the whole time? Up for a day trip somewhere?

[cajunmom]

Feb 18, 2019 3:24:11 GMT -5 pittpurple said:

cajunmom , yup, I live in Edinburgh so happy to help!
Where are you staying and what sort of food do you like?

As a starting point - I've been here a couple times and it's great. Lovely admosphere and the walk down is super fun, down one of the closes off the Royal Mile
devilsadvocateedinburgh.co.uk/

This is a super cute bar. I've only had snacks but they were all really good and their cocktails are fun - it's in a great location too
underthestairs.org/

What do you have planned already? Is it part of a bigger Scotland trip or are you staying in the city the whole time? Up for a day trip somewhere?

Hi!!

We are staying here  . 

I'm willing to try most foods but my mom and sister are far less adventurous when it comes to eating. We pretty much need to go places where there are some things they recognize on the menu. They did say they're willing to try the main traditional Scottish dishes, though. They also don't drink so that's not really a factor.

We don't have much planned yet. My sister is a big history buff so she's just wanting to see as much as she can in the city. We're pretty much staying in the city. Like I mentioned, I've been twice before (12 days in 2017 and 1 week in 2018) and on those trips we went all over, including the NC500 and Skye. This time we don't have as many days and I don't want to rent a car. We are planning on doing a day tour, we were thinking of this one but haven't booked yet Rabbie's . I greatly prefer small groups but cost is a factor so we can't go too $$$ on that. Do you have any different ones you'd recommend?

[cajunmom]

Feb 17, 2019 8:58:35 GMT -5 jennybee1018 said:

We've been to Edinburgh twice, and it's still one of our favorite cities!

Most of these recs came from our Edinburgh resident pittpurple , and they're awesome! :-)

Oink - This place rocks! It was on the way to our Airbnb so we'd stop and pick one up for dinner. They have a few locations, so you can find the one closest to you.

The Cambridge Bar - Great burgers and ambiance

Brew Dog - Great local brewery! They have more beer than food, but I think they have pizzas and stuff.

The Pie Maker - Omg, this place amazing. It's on the South Bridge - SO good and great deal. DH liked the pasty, and I loved the macaroni cheese pie. Super cheap too!

Mademoiselle Macaron - if you like macarons, this place is great!

Lebowski's - They have a Lebowski themed bar - food and drinks were great!

Holyrood 9A is another must - lots of beer on tap and the food is delicious.

We hung out in pubs a lot - some of our faves are the Blue Blazer, The Bow Bar, Halfway House. We liked a lot of the pubs on the Grassmarket too, even though they're owned/run by Nicholson's.

Definitely head up to Calton Hill - beautiful views of the city, and if you're feeling adventurous, hike up Arthur's Seat! The castle is amazing, but sometimes overwhelming :-P

There's a cat cafe if you're into cats. We love cats so we had a lot of fun! www.maisondemoggy.com/

We did the Whiskey Experience on the Royal Mile, and while we thought it'd be cheesy, it was actually a lot of fun, and they have a extensive collection of limited edition Scotch bottles. You can also do a tasting afterwards in their tasting room.

We did a day tour with Rabbie's and loved it if you're looking to get out of the city but don't want to drive!

There's probably more - I'll add to this if I think of it!

We did the Whisky Experience on our last trip, it was fun. 

I'm hoping to have good enough weather to hike Arthur's Seat, but I'll probably be doing it alone. My sister MAY feel up to it but I know my mom won't. I think they will both be able to handle Calton Hill, though.

We're planning on one day tour and are looking at one with Rabbie's. We will be deciding on one and booking that soon.

Thanks! I'm going to look up the restaurant's you recommended. 

[Vespasia]

Feb 18, 2019 6:50:35 GMT -5 cajunmom said:

[lWe're planning on one day tour and are looking at one with Rabbie's. We will be deciding on one and booking that soon 

We did two day trips with Heart of Scotland tours. I liked their itinerary better than Rabbbies. They're also a much smaller company. Neither tour was completely full, the drivers were amazing, and we managed to see both major and smaller sites without crowds.

[cajunmom]

Feb 18, 2019 6:57:32 GMT -5 Vespasia said:

Feb 18, 2019 6:50:35 GMT -5 cajunmom said:

[lWe're planning on one day tour and are looking at one with Rabbie's. We will be deciding on one and booking that soon 

We did two day trips with Heart of Scotland tours. I liked their itinerary better than Rabbbies. They're also a much smaller company. Neither tour was completely full, the drivers were amazing, and we managed to see both major and smaller sites without crowds.

Do you have a particular itinerary you'd recommend? I definitely want to get them into the highlands as much as possible in one day.

[Vespasia]

Feb 18, 2019 11:32:13 GMT -5 cajunmom said:

Feb 18, 2019 6:57:32 GMT -5 Vespasia said:

We did two day trips with Heart of Scotland tours. I liked their itinerary better than Rabbbies. They're also a much smaller company. Neither tour was completely full, the drivers were amazing, and we managed to see both major and smaller sites without crowds.

Do you have a particular itinerary you'd recommend? I definitely want to get them into the highlands as much as possible in one day.

These are the two we did:

www.heartofscotlandtours.co.uk/best-of-scotland
This was the itinerary that sold me on them in the first place. It seemed to hit most of the places I was interested in and really give us some time out in nature. We skipped the interior at Blair Castle and walked the grounds, which were gorgeous. Lunch in the castle cafe was actually really delicious as well. 

www.heartofscotlandtours.co.uk/monarchs
Stirling was a must see for me. We had considered doing it ourselves by train but once we did the first tour with them we signed up for this our last day in Scotland. 

We loved both but if I had to pick I would lean towards the first one, especially if the people with you don't drink. 

[wise_rita]

Feb 17, 2019 8:58:35 GMT -5 jennybee1018 said:

Holyrood 9A is another must - lots of beer on tap and the food is delicious. 

Cannot recommend this place enough!  Great food and beer selection.  Literally 1 block off of the Royal Mile but somehow hidden from the crowds (at least several years ago when I lived in Edi).

Also you mentioned Brew Dog on Cowgate.  How can you pass it by after reading this?!

As mentioned Oink is definitely required if you're a pig eater.

I'm surprised Mosque Kitchen hasn't been brought up yet.  Cheap and cheerful!  Not worth trekking across town for, but an Edinburgh institution if you're in that area.

If you're into Indian I highly recommend Mother India for Indian tapas.  It's great but admittedly I am exceedingly nostalgic about the place because I lived on top of it (and could smell it from my bathroom).

Also my favorite Indian I found is Kismot.  If you bring a candy bar they will deep fry it in naan bread for your dessert.

On that note, it's surprisingly difficult to find places that do deep fried Mars bars because it wrecks the oil so a dedicated fryer is needed for that purpose.  Expect to find it only in heavily touristed areas.

If you're looking for fancy I don't think anywhere is fancier than The Dome.

[candreco]

Feb 17, 2019 2:36:06 GMT -5 mrsukyankee said:

Feb 17, 2019 1:00:48 GMT -5 Pibs said:

Hey, I said great!    We had plenty of good beers in England.  I don't feel like we got really good craft beer recs from anyone.  So, clearly, we'll need some so we can come back! 

I wish I had known before you came to England. I have TONS of recs. I will tell you to come when the Great British Beer Festival is happening in London - usually the second week in August. I both work at it and go to it. You can then find out where all the best craft beers are in Britain (plus drink lots of good beers - you can buy them in thirds, aka a third of a pint). Or you just go to What Pub (run by Campaign for Real Ale) and find out what craft beer pubs are located wherever you are going.

As an aside, I once had a work trip to London line up with the GBBF and it was amazing, I still have my glass from it!  Also a very nice woman in the food line politely informed us that we were saying "pasty" wrong, lol.  

[Waffles]

Seconding under the stairs and devil's advocate!

Whiski rooms is also nice.

For fancy though very well priced dinner (Michelin star): castle terrace.

Steak: chop house.

[pittpurple]

cajunmom, The flat is in a great location - not in the midst of the chaos but near plenty.

For tours - I like this one better (my parents have each done it) www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-tours/from-edinburgh/day-tours/west-highland-lochs-castles-day-tour - Loch Lomond is way, way prettier than Loch Ness IMO.

The Dome is fantastic - I would go for lunch as it's particularly pretty when the sun is out or it's at least a bit brighter. Or just pop in for a coffee / drink (for you!) - www.thedomeedinburgh.com/

Looking around where you're staying -

We go back here often - www.apiaryrestaurant.co.uk/menus/

If you fancy a splurge, or afternoon tea, you really can't beat this place, walkable from your house - www.prestonfield.com/dine/rhubarb
(It's owned by the same people who have the Witchery but the location and setting are unbeatable. If it's nice out, they do afternoon tea on the lawns which is just spectacular)

This is right near Apiary and we've been a few times - www.southpour.co.uk/ I personally like Apiary better for food, but Southpour does nice lunches, and brunch which is my favourite thing.

If you want to stop for a coffee on the Royal Mile, this is my favourite - mimisbakehouse.com/ (they also have vegan / gluten free cakes that are delicious, just in case that's relevant)


In town, I always like

Elements - www.elementedinburgh.co.uk/ (to be honest, mostly because of their cocktails, but the food is yummy too and it's a cute little place)

This is a small chain - there's one on George IV bridge as well. But if you want a break from Scottish food - www.cafeandaluz.com/

If any of you are seafood fans, my husband swears by this place (I'm allergic to shellfish so less keen!) - www.mussel-inn.com/

Happy to look in other neighbourhoods if you'll be anywhere else, I tried to hit the main areas that people would usually go.

And you can do a day-trip to Stirling castle really easily if you'd prefer self-travel instead of a coach.

[cajunmom]

Thank y'all SO MUCH for all of the amazing recommendations! I'm going to look up all of the restaurants and see which ones would be the best bets for us. Can't wait!!

[mcsangel2]

Feb 20, 2019 8:55:10 GMT -5 pittpurple said:

For tours - I like this one better (my parents have each done it) www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-tours/from-edinburgh/day-tours/west-highland-lochs-castles-day-tour - Loch Lomond is way, way prettier than Loch Ness IMO.

We did this day trip, it was really wonderful. Uuuuuuuggggh, I really want to go back now...

[cajunmom]

Feb 22, 2019 11:34:30 GMT -5 mcsangel2 said:

Feb 20, 2019 8:55:10 GMT -5 pittpurple said:

For tours - I like this one better (my parents have each done it) www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-tours/from-edinburgh/day-tours/west-highland-lochs-castles-day-tour - Loch Lomond is way, way prettier than Loch Ness IMO.

We did this day trip, it was really wonderful. Uuuuuuuggggh, I really want to go back now...

I definitely agree that Loch Lomond is much prettier than Loch Ness. I'd really love for them to be able to see the Glencoe area, though. Ideally I'd love to find a tour that sees Glencoe, maybe Ben Nevis, and Loch Lomond. I haven't found one like that, though.

[krystee]

I have an Edinburgh question too, so I will add it here instead of creating a new thread. My mom and I have six days in Scotland in September. We wanted to do two in Edinburgh and four seeing other areas. Should we book four single-day trips and stay in Edinburgh or find a tour company that takes you places for four straight days? My mom is not a planner at all, so I kind of just want to let the tour company figure out a lot of our plans for us. We don’t want to rent a car because we are both nervous drivers when driving the opposite direction we’re used to, in an unfamiliar place.

[jennybee1018]

Feb 24, 2019 1:02:53 GMT -5 krystee said:

I have an Edinburgh question too, so I will add it here instead of creating a new thread. My mom and I have six days in Scotland I’m September. We wanted to do two in Edinburgh and four seeing other areas. Should we book four single-day trips and stay in Edinburgh or find a tour company that takes you places for four straight days? My mom is not a planner at all, so I kind of just want to let the tour company figure out a lot of our plans for us. We don’t want to rent a car because we are both nervous drivers when driving the opposite direction we’re used to, in an unfamiliar place.

I think I'd definitely do a 4 day tour so you can see more of Scotland. Here are some of the 3/4 day options from Rabbie's:

www.rabbies.com/en/tour-search?deppoint=*&tourdate=MAY&length=%5B2+TO+4%5D&search-tours=

I'd totally do the Outlander tour, ha ha. But the Speyside is beautiful and I've yet to get to the Isle of Skye, so that one would be awesome!

[cajunmom]

Feb 24, 2019 1:02:53 GMT -5 krystee said:

I have an Edinburgh question too, so I will add it here instead of creating a new thread. My mom and I have six days in Scotland in September. We wanted to do two in Edinburgh and four seeing other areas. Should we book four single-day trips and stay in Edinburgh or find a tour company that takes you places for four straight days? My mom is not a planner at all, so I kind of just want to let the tour company figure out a lot of our plans for us. We don’t want to rent a car because we are both nervous drivers when driving the opposite direction we’re used to, in an unfamiliar place.

Oh, I think in your situation I would do a 3 or 4 day tour through Rabbie's or similar. If you could get to Skye I'd highly recommend it. Oban and Ullapool are two of my favorite smaller towns on the west coast so I'd also recommend checking them out if you find a tour that includes either one or the other of those. I understand the driving hesitation, believe me. On our previous two trips we rented cars but H did all of the driving. Since he's not going this time I don't want to get a car. I'm sure I could do it but I'd rather avoid that stress if possible.

[pittpurple]

Feb 24, 2019 1:02:53 GMT -5 krystee said:

I have an Edinburgh question too, so I will add it here instead of creating a new thread. My mom and I have six days in Scotland in September. We wanted to do two in Edinburgh and four seeing other areas. Should we book four single-day trips and stay in Edinburgh or find a tour company that takes you places for four straight days? My mom is not a planner at all, so I kind of just want to let the tour company figure out a lot of our plans for us. We don’t want to rent a car because we are both nervous drivers when driving the opposite direction we’re used to, in an unfamiliar place.

I would definitely recommend a 3 day tour - come to Edinburgh, spend a couple nights, go on a tour and then have a night in Edinburgh before heading home just in case of any issues with the travelling. 

This one looks lovely - www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-tours/from-edinburgh/2-4-day-tours/isle-of-arran-adventure-scotland-in-miniature-3-day-tour
The other ones I like are 4 days and I think that's pushing it for a 6 day trip. 

Normally I'd suggest Skye but recent reports from friends say Skye is just overwhelmingly touristy nowadays. This tour gets Loch Lomond and Arran which is gorgeous. Culzean Castle is one of my favourites as well.