Restaurant and Takeaway Reviews

Browsing the newest of 1462 reviews on EdinburghMenus.com.

Dolce e Salato

101/102 Dalry Road, EH11 2AX, Edinburgh

from ddcook (61%) on October 10th, 2007 (1 year ago)

The best Italian cafe this side of Rome, well having never been to Italy I can't personally vouch for this but anyone I know who has visited or lived in Italy says this.

Dolce and Salato is a fantastic Italian cafe opposite La Partenope - another fine example of Italian cuisine in Dalry. When Dolce first opened it was a bamboozling array of snacks and cakes that I had never heard or seen of on my life, no fairy cakes and custard slices here- it is (I believe) traditional Italian treats on offer. Of course there is the traditional slices of pizza and mini calzone, my personal favourite is Panino, which is sort of a halfway house between a pizza and calzone, very very tasty with a wide range of toppings (or should that be fillings) available every day - the ham and ricotta and the pepper and salami, all are good though.

Sandwiches, also excellent as are the calzone and other Italian treats, none of which I know the name of!

On the sweet front, donuts and croissants are good - the the croissants are more bread than pastry like in construction and are best in the chocolate croissant format rather than plain.

As for the cakes, it makes for a lame review but I don't know the name of any of them because it is not the sort of bakery treats we have grown up with, I know what I like by look rather than name, I can recommend the ones that look like pastry horns and are filled with ricotta cheese, or the things that look like a slice of swiss roll but 10 times tastier.

Liquid treats - well the coffee is great and self confessed coffee aficianados whom I frequent Dolce with assure me it is some of the best in Edinburgh, which is good enough for me. To top it all off Dolce represents excellent value for money, much more so than any of the chain coffee shops.

Downsides, well it is so small that it can often be a struggle to get seated, and despite advertising opening at 8am I have been past well after that looking for a morning coffee and they are still shut. BUT the food and service is so good I can look past that for a perfect 5.

(+2) (0) (0)

Sushiya

19 Dalry Road, EH11 2BQ, Edinburgh

from ddcook (61%) on October 10th, 2007 (1 year ago)

This is the best Sushi restaurant in Edinburgh, to be fair it is not exactly overwhelmed with competition challenging for the crown but even with a little more competition in the marketplace it would take some beating.

The surroundings are small without being cramped, I had heard a lot about the general atmosphere of Sushiya though on the evening we went there was neither any of the promised Japanese videos or pop music over the stereo, slightly dissapointing. We opted for a Sashimi and Nigri platter to share for starter, which was a great start, all fresh, good for fish v rice and plentiful for the price we paid for it. I accompanied this with a mug of green tea, which was rather large but little more than tepid, which soon turned to cold before the starter was out. For main I opted for the eel which was fantastically cooked, boneless and coated in a bbq sauce which was very tasty without overpowering the fish in any way, perfect. My dining partner had Ramen with chicken, the chicken was fairly average but the soup and noodles with it were very very very tasty and the whole dish was very plentiful and even with me helping we were unable to finish it off.

Add in 2 beers and we only just squeaked over £30 for the 2 of us, which is excellent value. Definitely one to go back to.

(+1) (+2) (0)

The Three Coins Cafe

19 Home Street, EH3 9JR, Edinburgh

from mdavidson (91%) on October 10th, 2007 (1 year ago)

I have experienced many unmemorable meals from the 3 coins. This is not a result of bland food but due to the establishment having a 3am licence and my rather advanced stage of inebriation upon ordering. My days of visiting kebab houses at 3am are pretty much at an end but in my student days I was a regular customer of the 3 coins, such that the proprietor would occasionally take my orders through the window from the back of the queue – not cool.

I did visit more recently at a more reasonable hour and in state of sobriety and I was pleasantly surprised. The service was friendly, the chicken shish was tasty and the garlic mayo was, as I vaguely remembered, very good indeed.

(0) (-1) (+3)

Sportsters Bar and Diner

1a Market Street, EH1 1DE, Edinburgh

from mdavidson (91%) on October 8th, 2007 (1 year ago)

I did not go here through my own choice - I never would. The menu was as expected for a chain pub in Edinburgh. The service was awful. Firstly it took the waitress around 15 minutes to fetch us menus then it was a further 15-20 minutes before she took our order and then there was a further 30 minute wait for our food. The waitress took our request for sauces but then failed to appear with any, which left us scavenging for condiments from other tables. When the food did arrive it was poor quality. I had a burger which tasted a lot worse than an effort from Burger King or McDonalds. It reminded me of the tasteless, greasy burgers that my school canteen used to serve up (this was obviously before Jamie Oliver stuck his slightly smug oar into the mix). Yuk.

Following our wait for menus, orders to be taken, food and sauces the staff saved the best delay for last - we requested the bill at least 4 times but still had to wait 45 minutes for it. Then when we did get the bill we were given one for a table that was not ours - this lead to a further delay of 10 minutes. The staff were useless but I doubt they get paid enough to care.

The diners at the next table were three members of the Scotland rugby team who were set to play the All Blacks a couple of days later - I saw them tucking into plates of chips, surely these professional sportsmen should have been on pasta instead?

(+2) (+1) (+2)

The Standard

24 Howe Street, EH3 6TG, Edinburgh

andy's image

from andy (100%) on October 8th, 2007 (1 year ago)

I live on the other side of town, but have walked past The Standard lots of times and always thought it looked like quite an inviting place. So when we were in the neighbourhood and in need of a quick lunch on Sunday it seemed like a good choice.

We weren't disappointed. Their "Not The Standard Burger" lived up to its name. The burger was excellent. Cooked perfectly - a bit pink in the middle which left it very juicy and tasty. Makes a change from over-done tasteless and dry burgers you get elsewhere. And it was in a really nice soft bun. There were the usual extra toppings (bacon, mushrooms etc) for 50p each. The salad was also better than you'd normally get with a burger in the pub. Really tasty dressing and not too much onion. The chips were very average, however.

My dining partner had a chicken club sandwich which was good, apparently, but she conceded that I had chosen more wisely.

Service was very efficient and friendly. Not really any reason why it shouldn't have been though as the pub was pretty quiet.

Two meals, a soft drink and a pint of IPA came in at under £20.

I'll certainly go back if I'm in the area again and in need of a feed.

(+2) (+2) (0)

Sabor Criollo

36 Deanhaugh Street, EH4 1LY, Edinburgh

from mdavidson (91%) on October 8th, 2007 (1 year ago)

A lovely little restaurant. I think I might have mentioned chips in another of my reviews but I can honestly say that this restaurant has the best chips I have ever eaten in Edinburgh - they are hand cut and cooked to perfection. Slightly surprising really, seeing as this is a Latin American restaurant (mind you, potatos originate from that continent so maybe not that strange). The menu features a couple of steak options, fajitas and plenty of other tasty stuff. It is excellent value too, with 2 courses available for around £12-ish.

I can also recommend the pitchers of mojitos - very tasty.

(+1) (0) (0)

Nile Valley

6 Chapel Street, EH8 9AY, Edinburgh

rachybaby's image

from rachybaby (84%) on October 5th, 2007 (1 year ago)

This is a good place to go if you want lunch - they do filling sandwiches at a good rate.

However, I went here for dinner a couple of months ago and I found it to be quite expensive and the food wasn't very good. It could do with a good lick of paint also.

I expected dinner to be quite cheap considering it was in the heart of student territory but I struggled to find a decent main course for under £12 - which I think is over-priced considering the location and the kind of place that it is.

The only good point is that it is bring your own.

Nile Valley is good for a tasty sandwich at lunch-time but I would not recommend going here for dinner.

(+1) (-1) (0)

The Links Hotel

2-4 Alvanley Terrace, EH9 1DU, Edinburgh

rachybaby's image

from rachybaby (84%) on October 5th, 2007 (1 year ago)

Links Bar is a distinctly average sports bar.

It's good if you want to go to watch some sport or are part of a stag do - that's it really.

Food is OK but basic.

Instead of the Links I would recommend going to the Golf Tavern which is also a sports bar and only two minutes further down the road - it is ten times better in terms of food, service and atmosphere.

(0) (+1) (0)

Ignite

272-274 Morrison Street, EH3 8DT, Edinburgh

from ddcook (61%) on October 4th, 2007 (1 year ago)

One of the many Indian restaurants in the west end of town and one of the ones I would recommend.

For a start surroundings are pleasant, with a comfortable contemporary feel to the restaurant. Service has been mixed on my visits, during quiet weekdays it is fine, on a busy weekend it can be slow, obviously to be expected on a busier day but at times it has proven to be frustratingly so.

Starters, well to be honest I am normally just a mixed Pakora man when I am out for an Indian, every visit here has been the same, and it is good pakora, but really how do you go wrong with Pakora.

Mains, well over the course of my visits I have tried many, Pathia, Jhalfreizi, Ceylon, all have been good, tasty, not too overpowering in spices, chilli or salt, the veg in the sauce is always nicely cooked, not the overcooked floppy stuff that can often accompany your meat. All the usual trimmings to your usual Indian are done well if not mind blowingly, rice, breads, dahl.

Downsides? I dont find the price particularly easy on the wallet, looking through the menu there is nothing sticks out as being immediately horrendous but once some popadoms, starter, main and a couple of beers are thrown into the mix it always ends up the wrong side of where you would expect it to be, and where other places in town would be in the final bill. Foodwise, no faults, a good solid choice.

(+1) (+1) (0)

Khukuri

8 West Maitland Street, EH12 5DS, Edinburgh

from ddcook (61%) on October 4th, 2007 (1 year ago)

A small and fantastic curry house hidden away in Haymarket, very unassuming from the front, in fact very unassuming from the inside, but great food. I first went here a couple of years back however cannot remember what I had, just that it was a great meal. I recently went back again for a 2nd helping and it was just as good as I remembered.

The (apparently) traditional Nepalese Bara we had was a very tasty lentil pancake served with more than its fair share of condiments, in fact enough for two. Onto the main and the rice and naan bread were good, nothing mindblowing but both tasty.

The main dish I went for Kukhura Nepal and damn tasty it was too, perfectly spiced with all flavours that should have been present coming through, the meat was also succelent and well cooked. Not only that but it was a plentiful serving and reasonably priced (takeaway menu).

There are plenty of Indian restaurants in the west end of town but this is certainly the best all rounder, especially given the high prices of some of its nearby competitors.