From a new speakeasy style cocktail bar to fine dining and pizzas, we take a look at some new bars and restaurants that have opened in Edinburgh recently.
(4 Hope Street, Edinburgh EH2 4DB)
Encore Edinburgh opened recently on Hope Street in Edinburgh, beneath the bustling Parisian-style West End Brasserie restaurant. The new late-night speakeasy has a cocktail menu inspired by the Bohemian style of Paris.
The flamboyant interior creations take inspiration from Paris's Moulin Rouge and La République district.
As guests enter, they will see a'Je Ne Sais Quoi' lighting installation in the entrance hall and the bar lounge features chic red velvet sofas, rich textile upholstery.
Booth seating has "Press for Cocktails" buttons and mini TV screens. The venue also features a quirky photo booth for guests to capture their experience.
Encore also has a food menu of Scottish and French classics including petit croque madame, goats cheese and beetroot crostini, potatoes and caviar, dry aged beef carpaccio, French onion soup dumplings and a charcuterie boards to share.
(W Hotel, 10th floor, 1 St James Square, Edinburgh, EH1 3AX)
Sushisamba has opened in the W Hotel Edinburgh. On the menu you’ll find Japanese tempura, sushi, Brazilian churrasco and moqueca, Peruvian anticuchos and ceviches plus Sushisamba signature dishes.
The open kitchen and fiery robata grill offer roasted and flavoured meats, vegetables and fish, while Sushisamba’s small plate style of service encourages a shared dining experience.
Complementing the menu is a cocktail list, which includes a curated collection of premium sake and a Scottish and Japanese whiskies.
(Montrose House, 1-7 Montrose Terrace, Edinburgh EH7 5DJ)
The owners of one of Edinburgh’s best restaurants, Timberyard have opened this new restaurant and wine bar in the city. The site of a former public house in Abbeyhill, built around 1880, is the location for the latest venture, which is split over two levels - with the downstairs section a plush wine bar and the upper level an intimate dining area.
The menu features a selection of European-style small plates, put together by Timberyard head chef James Murray.
(3 Royal Terrace, Edinburgh EH7 5DX)
Chef Stuart Ralston recently opened Lyla, a new 28-cover seafood focused tasting menu restaurant opening on Royal Terrace, Edinburgh - the site of the late Paul Kitching's 21212 restaurant.
Lyla is an ode to produce from the Scottish Isles, focusing on ingredients from the coastline and earth.
Diners can look forward to the 10-course tasting menu which is an expression of Stuart's cooking style, focusing on surprising flavour combinations with low to no manipulation of ingredients.
(33 Newington Road, Edinburgh, EH9 1QR)
This Edinburgh pizzeria opened its third site, on bustling Newington Road, at the end of November.
Matto Pizza opened its first pizzeria in Edinburgh’s Meadowbank in 2020, quickly gaining huge popularity for its authentic Neapolitan-style pizzas and becoming one of Edinburgh’s top takeaways on Deliveroo.
In 2021, its second site opened in Morningside, a 44-seater restaurant with a large outdoor terrace, in one of the city’s most sought-after neighbourhoods.
The new site is the largest of their three restaurants, seating up to 66 people.
The spacious restaurant has vintage-style interiors, such as intricate wallpaper designs, with green, pink and gold accents throughout.
A blanket of vibrant flowers decorates the ceiling, and large skylights flood the venue with natural light.
The centrepiece is a gold mirrored pizza oven, and an open kitchen for diners to watch the chefs at work. The interiors have been designed by the Matto team, to create a dynamic and engaging space.
(36 Broughton St, Edinburgh EH1 3SB)
While not a new venue, there’s a series of supper clubs available at Fhior this month.
Titled Mixtapes, these supper clubs will take place each Saturday evening in the restaurant’s revamped private dining room.
They will be available for up to 10 people and can be booked for individuals or groups.
As the name suggests, the monthly changing menu will be a compilation of classics, new releases, and one-hit seasonal wonders - the exclusivity of seats at the table allows menus to feature rare, more unique ingredients that are in too short supply for the restaurant’s main menu.
Each set menu, that will vary in number of courses each month, will be paired with a collection of wines, beers, cocktails, and infusions.
The full menu will be revealed during each supper, with only an ‘Ingredients List’ being released in advance, featuring some of the produce, drinks, as well as a few of the artists on the playlist for the evening to give the diners a flavour of what to expect.
Current December dates are as follows: Saturday 9, 16, and 23 December 2023.
(49 St Stephen St, Edinburgh EH3 5AH)
One of the UK’s most innovative young chefs, Tomás Gormley, has relaunched his Edinburgh small plates and cocktails concept, Skua, as an intimate fine dining restaurant serving a four or eight course tasting menu and drinks flight.
Since opening in March, Skua has garnered outstanding reviews from food writers and in November it was added to the Michelin Guide and Good Food Guide, with inspectors citing the halibut as ‘one of the best fish dishes I've ever tasted' and commenting ‘cooking is impressive from the get-go’.
Tomás was also shortlisted in the “Chef to Watch” category at The Estrella Damm National Restaurant Awards this year, after being awarded a Michelin Star while working at Heron on The Shore in Leith.
New beverages manager, Ben Mansour, formerly of Timberyard, is already making additions to the drinks list. Highlights include the Edna Daiquiri, an ode to the flirtatious Simpsons teacher Edna Krabappel, as the cocktail uses foraged crab apples.
The restaurant will be open Wednesday to Saturday, 5pm - 10pm for dinner only.
The Skua Four Course Menu is £65 per person, and the Eight Course Tasting Menu is £85 per person, with Drinks Flight £65 per person.
(126 Easter Road, Edinburgh EH7 5RJ)
Independent pizzeria, Pizza Geeks have launched a gaming and film experience pop-up.
The brand-new pop up features an arcade and gaming room for pizza lovers throughout the city. This will be their third site in the city as the brand continues to grow.
Pizza Geeks, well known throughout the city for their handmade Neapolitan inspired pizzas and their ‘Pizza for the People’ initiative, with restaurants in Haymarket and Leith, launched the brand-new space, located on Easter Road which is their largest venue to date.
Their latest venture is inspired from 80s nostalgia, encompassing everything from gaming to movies, featuring 8-bit graphics, blockbuster vibes and a nod to iconic 80s inspired shows like Stranger Things.
Pizza Geeks collaborated with well-known graffiti artist Francis Carty from Artisan Artworks to bring their vision to life for the new space.
(Cold Town House, 4 Grassmarket, Edinburgh, EH1 2JU)
Scotland’s world champion curling team has launched a new winter wonderland experience on the rooftop bar of Edinburgh’s iconic Cold Town House.
Team Mouat has joined forces with the country’s only Scotch malt whisky cream liqueur brand, Magnum, to unveil the new festive pop-up being staged throughout Christmas and Hogmanay.
The ‘Magnum Apres Ski Terrace’ will offer stunning views of Edinburgh Castle and a magical setting to raise a glass to the festive season with family and friends.
Hundreds of sparkling Christmas lights will illuminate a specially crafted Santa sleigh, giant Magnum bottle Christmas tree, as well as fur blankets and cushions to keep people cosy on dark winter evenings.
The team of mixologists at Cold Town House have also created a choice of three Christmas cocktails with Magnum to help keep guests warm from the inside out this winter, including ‘The Night Before Christmas’, ‘Polar Express’ and ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’.
The drinks brand is now the only cream liqueur exclusively crafted and bottled in Scotland using single malt Scotch whisky from Speyside, so people are able to raise a glass to the nation's only Baileys rival.
The new ‘Magnum Apres Ski Terrace’ is now open seven days a week from 11.30am until late on the rooftop bar of Cold Town House, 4 Grassmarket, Edinburgh, EH1 2JU. Closed Christmas Day only.
Coming soon…
Pizza Punks announced that they will be expanding into Edinburgh, as well as Manchester, Cardiff and Birmingham in 2024.
