Best restaurants in Edinburgh 2025: where to eat and drink
Discover our favourite places to eat and drink in and around Edinburgh, from smart, seasonal restaurants to pop-up gin bars and experimental supper clubs.
Looking for the best Edinburgh restaurants? We've found the best places to eat in the Scottish capital. From the top restaurants in Edinburgh to places for brunch, cafés and bars, we have all of the local favourites here... Need somewhere to stay on your trip? Check out our guide to the best Scottish hotels. For more exciting restaurants and weekend ideas for food lovers, check out our best UK city breaks and also discover our guides to the best restaurants in Dundee, best restaurants in Glasgow, best restaurants in Perthshire and best restaurants in Belfast. Best restaurants and bars in Edinburgh The Little Chartroom – for modern Scottish Chef Roberta Hall-McCarron’s Chartroom embodies Edinburgh’s new wave. Once best known for relatively traditional high-end dining, the city is now abuzz with chefs making clever, creative use of Scottish produce in hip, convivial restaurants. Chartroom dishes of mackerel, kohlrabi broth, hazelnut, apple and lovage; or cod, BBQ maitake mushroom, pea, lettuce, shrimp and nori butter, reflect that thirst for new ideas. Sister wine bar and restaurant, Eleanore, is well liked and, this summer, the Chartroom will open neighbouring café and bar, Ardfern. thelittlechartroom.com Noto – for East Asian inspired sharing plates Actually, make that hot seats, plural. For chef Stuart Ralston’s team has, at big-ticket restaurants, Aizle, and fish-focussed Lyla, been pivotal in pushing Edinburgh forward. Italian Tipo and the New York inspired Noto are the cool, casual cousins in this growing family. At each the cooking sparkles with sharpness and finesse. Noto’s eclectic sharing plates, in which East Asian flavours shine, might run from Arbroath smokie croquettes with katsuobushi to a beef tartare black garlic potato rösti. Its warm crab butter with sourdough is a contemporary classic. notoedinburgh.co.uk Heron – for Michelin-starred cooking This corner restaurant in Leith is very much a contemporary fine dining experience. Its modish styling and warm vibe create a relaxed setting for chef Sam Yorke’s technically deft one Michelin star cooking. Enigmatic menu descriptions, such as monkfish with “Squash ǀ Mussel ǀ Chipotle ǀ Juniper”, barely hint at the creativity, therein. For example, that monkfish tail is first marinated in homemade shio-koji and, amid its many thoughtful elements, is served in a mussel sauce finished with chipotle and juniper butter, also used to baste the fish as it cooks. Staff happily talk curious foodies through this culinary magic. heron.scot Mirin – for a spot loved by locals Formerly Gulp Ramen (and yes, its broth game remains strong), this compact, colourful Leith Walk venue now serves, as well as its much-loved noodles, sandos and dumplings, smartly executed, Asian-influenced small plates. Think barbecued veal sweetbreads with fermented passion fruit and togarashi, or Shetland scallop, black pudding, gochujang butter and Bei Bei pumpkin. mirin.uk Kitchen Table – for brunch Twelve Triangles bakery is renowned for its sourdoughs, croissants and specialities such as its house kimchi and cheddar swirls. Extending that talent into brunch dishes was a natural evolution. Located amid a small hub of indie food action on Easter Road, the menu at TT’s Kitchen Table ranges from ’nduja, taleggio and honey toasties or a green lentil dhal, to fried cardamom and panela cake with bramble compote, toasted buckwheat and yogurt. twelvetriangles.co.uk <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/2/2024/06/KITCHEN-TABLE-BY-TWELVE-TRIANGLESKIMCHI-FRIED-SPRING-GREENS-WITH-HASH-BROWNS-AND-FRIED-EGGcredit-MURRAY-ORR-copy-7f57b1b.jpg" width="5880" height="3920" alt="KITCHEN TABLE BY TWELVE TRIANGLES_KIMCHI FRIED SPRING GREENS WITH HASH BROWNS AND FRIED EGG_credit_ MURRAY ORR copy" title="KITCHEN TABLE BY TWELVE TRIANGLES_KIMCHI FRIED SPRING GREENS WITH HASH BROWNS AND FRIED EGG_credit_ MURRAY ORR copy" /> Spry Wines – for a wine bar and small plates Behind its Georgian façade, Spry is every inch the modern wine bar: a serene, minimalist space specialising in natural wines, whose short produce-led menu delivers deliciousness in dishes of Tamworth pork, chicken mousse and cauliflower; or nettle ravioli, hazelnut and wasabina leaf. Local foodies also treasure Spry’s basement coffee shop, café and bakery, Ante. sprywines.co.uk Café St Honore – for a date night bistro Located down a cobbled New Town lane, this cute bistro rocks a timeless 1920s Paris look. Broadly French in inspiration, its daily menu features some British and European dishes, too. Think game terrine with celeriac remoulade and cornichons to start, then tomato and pea risotto with Corra Linn cheese. A sustainability pioneer, chef director Neil Forbes is passionate about preserving artisan kitchen skills (in butchery, for example) and uses predominantly Scottish and often organic ingredients. Café St Honore also retails ‘at home’ dishes at Edinburgh Farmers’ Market on fortnightly Saturdays. cafesthonore.com Timberyard – for cutting-edge Michelin-starred dining Opened in 2012, the Radford family’s funky warehouse bar-restaurant was a game changer. In its stripped-back aesthetic and foraged ingredients, low-intervention wines and homemade soft drinks, it was an early example of that post-Noma shift away from bells and whistles luxury, to an emphasis on seasonality, simplicity and artisan skills. Timberyard retains that cutting edge and, last year, the kitchen’s inspired use of the Scottish larder (lobster gougère and fermented tomato; aged guinea fowl and bolted greens with smoked yogurt and wild garlic) was rewarded with a Michelin star. Late in 2023, Timberyard opened sister restaurant and bar, Montrose. timberyard.co Harajuku Kitchen – for traditional Japanese recipes with Scottish produce Born into a family of restaurateurs from Fukuoka, chef-owner Kaori Simpson was naturally drawn to hospitality. At Harajuku, this Slow Food supporter applies family and traditional Japanese recipes to Scottish produce, to create winning plates of prawn gyoza, karaage fried chicken, donburi bowls (including the rafute, with slow-cooked Okinawa-style pork belly), stir-fried udon noodles and sushi. Harajuku has a second outlet at food hall, Edinburgh Street Food. harajukukitchen.co.uk The Free Company, Balerno – for farm-to table dining This regenerative farm outside Edinburgh supplies vegetables and rare-breed meats to many of the city’s best chefs. In its handsome restaurant, a former cowshed, chef Craig Turner deploys this stellar produce in an ultra-seasonal six-course menu, unusually priced on a ‘pay what you think it’s worth’ basis (guide £60-70pp including reservation fee). A spring dish of smoked beef fat jerusalem artichokes with sunflower seed emulsion, kohlrabi sauerkraut and skirlie (fried oatmeal) gives you a flavour of Craig’s work. Look out for periodic farm tour and lunch packages, too. the-free-company.com Tipo – for Italian sharing plates In Edinburgh’s Aizle and Noto, chef Stuart Ralston and front-of-house ace Jade Johnston have created some of the city’s most exciting modern restaurants – contemporary spaces with pin-sharp cooking. A soothing mixture of natural materials and neutral tones, Tipo (named after the 00 pasta flour) is their Italian excursion, in sharing plates of ricotta gnudi in shellfish bisque or pappardelle with Scottish crab, chilli and parsley. Exceptional ingredients are paired with simplicity, restraint and, at times, ingenious creativity. Tipo’s savoury zeppole (mini doughnuts) is, explains chef de partie Aaron Mosedale, “a version you can’t really find anywhere else, tossed in paprika and dusted in pecorino”. tipoedinburgh.co.uk Cardinal – for a tasting menu showcasing Scottish produce Chef Tomás Gormley has accumulated experience at some of the Scottish capital’s finest restaurants (Michelin-starred Heron and Skua) to launch his first solo venture. The 13-course tasting menu showcases Scottish produce, focusing on fermentation (think ibérico pork cheek with fermented girolles and hen-of- the-woods) and cooking on the wood-fired BBQ (such as smoked Belhaven lobster with pink fir potatoes and chives). cardinal.scot The Palmerston – for nose-to-tail dishes The Palmerston inhabits a former bank in Edinburgh’s West End, a history that is reflected in the room’s grand dimensions, although dark green painted walls, warm wooden floors and tables and paintings by local artists give the space a more casual neighbourhood bistro vibe. Owners James Snowdon and Lloyd Morse keep things ticking from 9am with a morning menu of fresh pastries and coffee but come lunch and dinnertime it moves into more serious cooking territory. The concise menu changes daily depending on what’s available from local suppliers and cooking is confident and hearty with a focus on nose-to-tail eating. A generous slab of Mangalitsa and rabbit terrine is dense, peppery, porky and mildly gamey served with cornichons and warm grilled sourdough. Courgette salad comes with a piquant lemony, herby dressing and little bursts of crunch and creaminess from toasted walnuts and goat’s curd. Fish cooking is on point – a perfectly pan-fried chunk of monkfish is served on a bed of pretty rainbow chard and charlotte potatoes, then topped with a salty, umami black olive dressing. We manage to fit in a slice of Victoria plum and hazelnut tart at the insistence of our server and it’s a delight – crisp pastry, dense warm frangipane and sweet plums – a memorable end to a faultless meal. thepalmerstonedinburgh.co.uk Ardfern – for Scottish brunch staples and more elaborate plates Husband and wife team Roberta Hall-McCarron and Shaun McCarron (The Little Chartroom and Eleanore) are opening a third restaurant in Leith with a relaxed coastal feel. The all-day service will start with Scottish brunch staples (think homemade haggis with tattie scones), then move into casual plates such as braised beef shin. Come evening, elaborate dishes include shrimp and langoustine potato rosti paired with a match from the 100-strong wine list. Opening spring/summer 2024. @ardfern_edinburgh Dulse – for Scottish seafood Chef Dean Banks puts the spotlight on Scottish seafood at his first-floor neighbourhood restaurant in Edinburgh’s West End. International twists liven up the fish that’s straight off the boats, including lobster crumpet with yuzu brown butter, seared hake with kimchi hollandaise and baked North Sea cod in Goan curry. The wine and cocktail bar downstairs is great for a pre-dinner aperitif, such as the signature pepper dulse and Lunun Gin martini. dulse.co.uk Hawksmoor – for a Sunday roast Bottomless jugs of thick, varnish-like bone marrow gravy, huge fluffy yorkies and a molassey sticky toffee pudding served with clotted cream – that’s what Sunday roast dreams are made of, and probably why this Scottish outpost serves up to 180 of them every week. Founders Will Beckett and Huw Gott say Sunday roasts are really about two things: memories and produce. “We have so many memories of meals with people we love dating right back to our childhood, and Sunday roasts were always a special occasion at our homes. A really great roast needs really great produce and Scotland is probably the best place in the world for that. One of our happiest times was travelling around the country meeting passionate farmers and eating amazingly well – the Hawksmoor Edinburgh Sunday roast is the result!” thehawksmoor.com Twelve Triangles – for pastry perfection This benchmark bakery, which has seven Edinburgh outlets, including its Kitchen Table café, is all about artisan craft. Both in its baking and the way – in homemade pickles, ricotta, cultured butters, ice creams or house condiments – it builds superior flavour into every element of its work. Baking-wise, check TT’s miche-style rye starter sourdough, its twice-baked pain au chocolat (topped with a brown sugar, ground hazelnut and toasted sourdough breadcrumb frangipane) or its croissant dough kimchi swirls. “There’s something about the funky, sour spiciness of kimchi mixed with a strong cheddar that’s truly delicious,” enthuses co-founder Emily Cuddeford. twelvetriangles.co.uk Colonnades, Signet Library – for afternoon tea The ornate creations served within the Colonnades are as dazzling as the interiors of this stunning Georgian library. Bespoke silver tea stands arrive laden with modish savouries, such as a beetroot and goat’s cheese choux or roasted courgette pesto focaccia. Scones follow, but also an array of jewel-like sweet items as varied as spiced apple frangipane tarts and blackberry and matcha bubble tea. thesignetlibrary.co.uk Considerit – for vegan desserts Plant-based, vegan, dairy free: Considerit ticks all the boxes. Grab an iced cinnamon bun or gorgeously gooey Oreo or Biscoff doughnut plus an oat milk latte or vegan ice cream milkshake at this low-key bakery and cafe (all chipboard benches and student vibe) on Edinburgh's Southside. Before you leave, stock up on their hand-crafted chocolate bars (popcorn, chai spice and smoked sea salt flavours). consideritchocolate.com Lannan Bakery – for elevated pastries Stockbridge is a rising foodie hot spot, particularly around Hamilton Place (Smith & Gertrude wine bar, restaurant Eòrna, etc). Darcie Maher’s handsome takeaway bakery, Lannan, is also big news. Expect to queue on Saturdays for its revered viennoiserie or cardamom buns. Lannan’s crème brûlée danish, an upmarket croissant pastry custard tart, is a must-eat if available. “The custard has to be just set, glossy, super-wobbly, and the sugar on top torched a deep, amber caramel,” says Darcie. Lannan’s savoury items are gorgeous, too. Merguez, braised fennel and Monte Enebro cheese sausage rolls arrive in an ornate croissant pastry lattice. Instagram @lannanbakery Kyloe – for the best Scottish steak There are other things on the menu (including spankingly fresh local seafood like scallops with café de paris butter) but steak is the star of the show at Kyloe, sourced solely from great Scottish suppliers including the award-winning Hardiesmill. The grass-fed, dry aged, pedigree Aberdeen Angus steaks are a revelation, expertly cooked and served simply with a choice of classic sauces and sides including bone marrow gravy, beef shin mac n cheese and crunchy dripping chips. kyloerestaurant.com Aizle – for a surprising tasting menu Aizle is set in the beautiful Garden Room at the Klimpton Hotel. The multi course tasting menu changes constantly depending on what is available and there is a real focus on low waste/sustainability with everything from the addictive black treacle soda bread and koji butter to the aged kombucha in the cocktails made in house. Don’t expect to read a menu online, you’ll only know what you are having when you sit down at the table but do expect delicate, refined dishes such as Cured trout, fermented daikon and tomato water dashi and Oyster and shitake mushrooms with parmesan cream and king oyster mushroom jelly. aizle.co.uk Fhior – for innovative seasonal cuisine Scott Smith wowed Edinburgh diners with his first restaurant, Norn, in Leith. Having bagged Edinburgh Restaurant of the Year, the announcement of its sudden closure sent shockwaves across the city. Fans didn’t have to wait long to taste his cooking again, however; his follow-up project, Fhior (Gaelic for true), opened on Broughton Street in summer 2018. In a string of small Scandi-chic rooms, the restaurant serves four- and seven-course tasting menus with a playful element that lets seasonal ingredients sing. Eye-poppingly creative dishes live up to the hype: ‘baby gem lettuce, hogget, pea, goats' curd', for instance, entails warm braised lettuce, tender, torn lamb, sweet peas and puree offset by a tart, tangy goat's curd. fhior.com White Horse Oyster and Seafood Bar – for a classic seafood feast You can't beat 'a buck a shuck', and Oyster Happy Hour runs from 4-6pm Monday to Thursday at the White Horse Oyster and Seafood Bar at the bottom of the Royal Mile. This sleek seafood restaurant, in what was once an 18th-century inn, has a bespoke green marble bar, custom-designed oyster tank, leather banquettes and exposed stonework, and dishes up a smorgasbord of seafood. The smattering of exquisite small plates designed for sharing includes tender octopus with pine nut, mint and basil, moreish monkfish satay, chargrilled mackerel with pickled beetroot and horseradish and crab and crayfish toast with chilli, orange and avocado, as well as traditional seafood platters. whitehorseoysterbar.co.uk Toast – for Edinburgh's first wine café Leith's vibrant waterfront has long been a foodie hub with its jostling of Michelin-starred restaurants and quirky gastropubs. Toast, a cool jazz-filled wine café in an old art gallery on The Shore is a buzzing place for brunch. Think exposed brickwork, a mix of high tables and turquoise velvet banquettes and tables spilling out onto the pavement. Tuck into a creamy bowl of porridge with roasted pistachios, coconut and honey, Mexican inspired huevos rancheros, chilli and lime-infused smashed avocado with sun-blushed tomatoes on sourdough toast or shakshuka, that rich tomato, roast pepper, chilli, onion and aubergine stew baked with two eggs. The wine list is the other draw, of course. Wines by the glass are changed weekly to keep the locals on their toes and around a third of the 100 or so wines on the list are organic, natural or biodynamic. toastleith.co.uk More places to eat and drink in Edinburgh Port of Leith Distillery – for whisky with a view Edinburgh isn’t short of spots for whisky drinking but the views from the Port of Leith Distillery’s bar are hard to beat. Perched on top of an innovative nine-storey structure (the UK’s first-ever vertical distillery), enjoy arresting views of the Firth of Forth and the city while delving into an extensive collection of new-wave whiskies. The bar’s focus is young spirits and it’s amassed a 200-plus selection of spirits all under 10 years old. Not sure where to start? Try one of the whisky flights – Barrel Roll showcases unusual cask expressions. leithdistillery.com The Bearded Baker – for bagels, doughnuts and coffee Rowan Taylor is the Bearded Baker – or bagel man. At this cute little joint in Canonmills you can choose from a range of combinations running from your classic smoked salmon, cream cheese, pickled cucumber and dill to the P.B.B – smooth peanut butter and sliced banana with an optional drizzle of honey. He also makes a mean doughnut, plump and doughy, caked in sugar and oozing fillings from white chocolate and pecan to lemon meringue. thebeardedbaker.co.uk East Coast Cured – for Scottish charcuterie Wander down to Leith to check out Scottish charcuterie producer East Coast Cured. This family business creates a range of cured meats in the store's basement; think earthy venison, pork and sloe gin salami, rare-breed smoked chorizo, Saddleback pork saucisson sec and pungent porcini and truffle salami. eastcoastcured.com Smith and Gertrude – for cheese and wine Whether you want to sink a pint or nurse a peaty dram Edinburgh has more than its share of hipster hangouts, sleek whisky bars, old-world pubs and late night drinking dens. Smith and Gertrude, in perkily pretty Stockbridge with its delis, patisseries, cheesemongers, butchers and bakeries, is a new departure, however, a retro-chic wine bar that’s all reclaimed wood flooring, vintage radiators and a simple concept: wine, cheese, company. The carefully curated wine list features natural, organic and biodynamic bottles, as well as orange wines. It serves daily changing wines by the glass, weekly wine flights and regular tastings. And then there's the cheese – from Ubriaco, an Italian cow's cheese served with aged Balsamic to an Irish Killeen with quince – along with charcuterie platters. smithandgertrude.com Summerhall Distillery – for whisky tastings From public tastings at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society to Saturday tours at craft beer aces, Pilot, Edinburgh is a dream destination for inquisitive drinkers. Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2024, Summerhall Distillery, home of Pickering’s Gin, hosts various tastings and tours led by a dedicated visitor team. Gin lovers can explore the drink’s history, the botanical flavouring process, opt for a hidden, 1920s-style speakeasy experience or learn to make cocktails that pair with Scottish cheeses. summerhalldistillery.com Æmilia – for picking up fresh pasta Clued-up foodies adore this Portobello fresh pasta shop where you can pick up, say, tagliatelle or lemon and ricotta cappellacci to eat at home, accompanied by sauces such as an eight-hour braised beef ragu or chicken broth for tortellini. Æmilia also serves a daily take-out sandwich, such as porchetta on its house focaccia, luxuriously lubricated with a parmesan and pork drippings béchamel sauce. On Sundays, check its chicken and roasted garlic aïoli sandwich. aemilia.online Edinburgh Fermentarium – for kombucha Swing by the Saturday morning farmers market, below the castle, to give your gut a boost. At Edinburgh Fermentarium's stall you can sample tubs of sauerkraut (meadowsweet is mix of lemongrass, lime leaf, carrot, onion, chilli peppers, ginger and salt), kimchi and sauerkraut water or buy a scoby to make your own kombucha. edinburghfermentarium.co.uk Lady Libertine – for cocktails In the dimly lit basement of the Edinburgh Grand, bearded bartenders rustle up mean martinis and bespoke cocktails at hipster hangout Lady Libertine. The ground floor bar has a unique vibe (think fin de siècle European train station) and an extensive sherry menu. Sip a La Gitana manzanilla or glass of Fernando de Castilla Antique Palo Cortado and step back in time. ladylibertine.co.uk The American Bar, Gleneagles – for 1920s prohibition glamour A 45-minute drive from Edinburgh is the five-star, 100-year-old hotel Gleneagles. Tucked away within the hotel is The American Bar. It has a 1920s and 30s opulent interior with stylish touches such as Scottish heather-dyed cashmere wall panels. The bar’s latest cocktail menu, The Book of Berries, is inspired by pocket Observer Books and focusses on the botanical berry. Wanting to create deep bonds within the setting, the bar has creatively used ingredients from the hotel itself. Drinks such as the Cucumber – cucumber ends from the hotel kitchen used to create a cucumber wine which, combined with gin and a jasmine liqueur, results in a bright, refreshing and slightly savoury cocktail. Other intriguing serves include the Bell Pepper made with the cores of red pepper, a mai tai style drink using an orgeat derived from avocado pits, and the Blueberry cocktail created with surplus blueberry muffins baked at the hotel. The signature serve is the martini – using one of three gins created in partnership with South Loch Distillery in Edinburgh. gleneagles.com Lowdown – for cosy chats over coffee and cake Lowdown Coffee is a cool café in the bright basement of a grand Georgian terrace on George Street. Owner Paul Anderson sources his beans from Swedish coffee roaster Koppi, founded by champion baristas Anne Lunell and Charles Nystrand – who also occasionally hold workshops and tastings at Lowdown. The inspiration for the clean, minimalist design was Japanese not Scandinavian, however. Anderson studied furniture designer and his father was an architect and the space feels more like a friend's flat than a café with its kitchen counter-layout. The whole place is designed to encourage social interaction – yes cosy chats over coffee and cake. lowdown.coffee Cairngorm Coffee – for approachable coffee culture The capital is sprinkled, cappuccino chocolate shaker-style, with independent coffee shops and micro-roasteries and Cairngorm Coffee is one of the best. Owner Robi Lambie veered down different design routes for his two branches, setting them apart from the mainstream chains.The Frederick Street basement café with its rustic, rough-hewn wood groove is mountain hut chic. You could hole up here nursing a latte for days amongst the coffee bean sacks. Melville Place, however, is a sleeker, more contemporary option. Think high tables (a bar of wood sandwiched between copper) along with copper angled iPad holder tables and state-of-the-art equipment: the first Sanremo Opera espresso machine in Scotland. And the coffee? Roasted in the Cairngorms, of course. cairngormcoffee.com Twelve Triangles – for slow fermented sourdough and pastries From dough to doughnuts: Twelve Triangles' story began back in 2015 with a spot of experimentation - slow ferment, cold-prove doughs. Now, this tiny bakery just of Leith Walk sells a range of breads – including a dark and devilish charcoal loaf, gourmet doughnuts and pastries. It’s also since expanded to a second branch in Portobello and the Twelve Triangles Kitchen Table, a café, gathering place and the venue for regular fermentation workshops.twelvetriangles.co.uk Foraging with Wedgwood – for a foraging walk and feast Growing up in rural Lancashire, Paul Wedgwood fell in love with the flavour of nettles and has been foraging ever since. For over a decade the chef has led small groups on two-hour foraging walks around an East Lothian loop that takes in farmed, woodland and coastal habitats. It is smoothly planned – guests are given pre-picked and cleaned snack bags of foraged ingredients to eat as they explore. Later they head back to Paul’s Edinburgh restaurant for a tasting menu created using foraged produce. Dates February-August or by request. wedgwoodtherestaurant.co.uk More UK travel guides Best restaurants in Deal Best restaurants in Birmingham Best restaurants in Broadstairs Best restaurants in St Albans Best restaurants in Margate Best restaurants in Bristol Best restaurants in York Best restaurants in Whitstable Best restaurants in Oxford Best restaurants in Cambridge
Whether you want a quick lunch, afternoon treat or blow-out meal, Glasgow's food scene has loads of top restaurants to choose from. Here is our pick of the best places to eat and drink in this vibrant Scottish city
Looking for restaurants in Glasgow? Want to know the best places to eat in Glasgow? We have found the top local neighbourhood restaurants, cafés and bars in the city for a foodie weekend in the Scottish city... Discover more Scotland food guides with our best restaurants in Perthshire, best restaurants in Edinburgh, best restaurants in Dundee and best restaurants in Belfast. Best places to eat and drink in Glasgow Cail Bruich – for Michelin-starred dining Michelin-starred Cail Bruich, led by executive chef and Great British Menu judge, Lorna McNee, serves tasting menu dishes both dazzlingly beautiful and bounteous in flavour. For example, brown crab, Granny Smith apple and Thai green curry or Scrabster turbot sauced with a version of cullen skink. Cail Bruich is part of restaurant group Cultar, which also runs acclaimed restaurant Brett (must-try: mushroom XO linguini), and pub-restaurant The Clarence. cailbruich.co.uk Gamba – for stylish seafood Head to chef Derek Marshall’s stylish restaurant (est. 1998), for well-executed classics such as its fish soup with prawn dumplings, lemon sole meunière with baby crayfish and capers or Scottish lobster thermidor and chips. Gamba is still evolving, too. Newer stand-out dishes include its king scallops and monkfish, steamed with spring onion, ginger, fish sauce, lemon and tamari. gamba.co.uk Sugo Pasta – for handmade pasta An attractive space within the famous Lighthouse building (one of legendary Glaswegian architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s creations), big, buzzy Sugo creates regionally specific dishes using its own handmade, fresh pastas. Think: Ligurian-style tagliolini, pesto, green beans and potato or pappardelle with a Tuscan-inspired beef ragu. Sister brand, Paesano, serves terrific wood-fired pizzas. sugopasta.co.uk Margo – for modern sharing plates In Ox and Finch and South East Asian-inspired, Ka Pao, Scoop restaurants has created several game-changing Glasgow venues. Margo is its latest hit. Rigorous kitchen skills (in baking, butchery and pasta making), underpin on-point sharing plates such as scallops, sobrasada and haricot beans, bavette with chimichurri or whole lemon soul in a vadouvan mussel butter sauce. Margo sits above Scoop’s subterranean Sebb’s, a vinyl DJ and cocktail bar, where the food menu focusses on live-fire cooking. margo.restaurant Gloriosa – for vibrant Mediterranean With its bright interior, large windows and open kitchen, chef Rosie Healey’s Gloriosa has a warm, sunny energy and a Mediterranean-inspired menu of seasonal sharing dishes. Start with Gloriosa’s acclaimed focaccia and olive oil, then dip into its daily pastas (say, rigatoni with artichoke ragu, mint and pecorino), before exploring dishes as diverse as chickpeas and green peppers in a chilli and coriander seed sauce, or roast chicken with potatoes, aïoli and green salad. gloriosaglasgow.com Unalome – for contemporary fine dining Chef Graeme Cheevers’ first-floor, one-Michelin-star Finnieston dining room is a polished experience in every detail: décor, service, flavour-packed food. Scottish ingredients are transformed with deft classical skill and considerable modish flair, in dishes of, for example, langoustine tartare with dashi custard, tomato, smoked eel and crispy langoustine or lightly cured and poached turbot (its skirt stuffed with turbot mousse and barbecued), served with potato scone, sea beet, vin jaune-cooked morels and a seaweed butter sauce. Unalome recently opened a sister restaurant, Loma, at Cameron House on Loch Lomond. unalomebygc.com GaGa – for cocktails and Malay small plates Found just beyond the West End in Partick, this bar and kitchen is a hot tip for good vibes, great cocktails and resonant, zingy Malay-inspired flavours. Co-founder, chef Julie Lin (whose debut cookbook, Sama Sama, has just landed), and head chef Dawid Wieczorek deliver in dishes of, say, nasi goreng with fried egg and greens; tea-brined fried chicken with homemade Sichuan hot sauce; or sea bream with chilli coconut butter, capers and roe. gagaglasgow.com Fallachan Kitchen – for intimate tasting menus Intimate railway arch dining room where – working in an open-kitchen and serving 12 diners seated at a communal table – chef Craig Grozier takes fine Scottish produce to interesting modern places across his tasting menus. Recent dishes have included, for example, John Dory with day-boat squid, salted rhubarb, alexanders and squid-and-pork sausage or Shetland mussels with celeriac, peat-smoked yogurt, cobnuts and pepper dulse seaweed. Artisan skills are key in, say, Fallachan’s charcuterie or its distinctive sourdough made with whisky malt. fallachankitchen.co.uk Sebb’s – for cocktails and fire cooking Cocktails, fire cooking and spinning vinyl make for a major night out, underneath Margo restaurant on Miller Street. Chef Danny Carruthers’ menu features grilled snacks and sharing plates with in-your-face flavours like Carlingford oysters with spiced lamb fat; pakora with Lord of the Hundreds cheese and piccalilli; dips of hot hummus with white onion, parsley and grilled banana chilli. Feasting-style plates like grilled aubergine and cauliflower come with salad, pickles, hot sauce and tahini. Spritzes, sours, shots and slushies bring the fun, while low-intervention European wines on draught show Sebb’s has a more serious side. A viewing window into the mixology room and open kitchen centred around the charcoal grill let you get close to the action. sebbs.com <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/2/2024/08/SebbsDCs-Texan-hotlink-yellow-barbeque-sauce-and-bread-and-butter-pickles-Credit-Connor-Stewart--61a7dd6.jpg" width="2828" height="2001" alt="Sebb's_DC's Texan hotlink, yellow barbeque sauce and bread and butter pickles_ Credit_ Connor Stewart" title="Sebb's_DC's Texan hotlink, yellow barbeque sauce and bread and butter pickles_ Credit_ Connor Stewart" /> Elements – for Scottish fine dining Scottish ingredients, some foraged from Loch Lomond, feature in chef Gary Townsend’s Glasgow venture, along with more global influences. Its dark wood and navy décor creates a warm vibe, a welcoming backdrop to dishes like North Sea cod loin poached in butter and served with cockles, cod dumpling buttermilk and miso; Scottish lamb saddle featuring shoulder, sweetbread, BBQ Gem lettuce, smoked aubergine and chimichurri; and Amalfi lemon and yuzu with Perthshire strawberries, preserved elderflower and basil. elementsgla.com The Gannet – for good value fine dining This brilliantly named restaurant is also on The Finnieston Strip. Great staff, well-prepared and prettily presented seasonal Scottish ingredients (beef, sea trout, mutton…) put it a cut above many others. This is a place for a smart meal out in an unpretentious setting: think pared-down wooden-floor, wooden-chairs and brick walls. The attention and care given to the veggie menu, in particular, is impressive. Vegetarians get their own six-course taster menu (think smoked, pickled and salted heritage carrot with horseradish creme fraîche, and cultivated and wild herbs). For carnivores, a carefully sourced selection of Scottish fish and meat is on the cards. The owners set off on an exploratory tour of the Hebrides, to source produce, before the restaurant opened in 2013 and a wild Scottish edge still pervades the food. It’s also good value. thegannetgla.com Partick Duck Club – for casual comfort food Partick Duck Club offers plates of casual food made with love and skill. Ping pong ball-sized crab doughnuts are a light choux mix of white crabmeat and squishy dough, fried to just-golden. A roast duck and pistachio terrine is a meaty, homely starter of what tastes like confit duck served with toasted brioche and a lovely summer pea salad. Mains include fried chicken with perfect homemade sriracha on a signature bun from local Freedom Bakery, which offers a comforting sweet, salty bite. The shredded sesame duck version with honey, soy and ginger, and crunchy slaw, is PDC’s big hit. A sublime summer pud sings with a pairing of white choc shavings, just-right rhubarb – still in shape but totally tender - honeycomb and a magical sprinkling of home-dried berry powder. It’s casual, and open all day. On Friday lunch, other diners share an end-of-the-week bottle with nibbles, and the cocktail menu entices… someone else is having only soup. If you lived near enough, you’d be in for lunch every other day, and always for a hangover brunch of shakshuka baked eggs, or just a proper Scots roll-and-sausage on Sundays. It’s chilled, friendly, and appealing, like the owners Greig Hutcheson and Ross McDonald (formerly of Delizique). partickduckclub.co.uk Porter & Rye – for steak There are a lot of great places to eat steak and drink cocktails in Glasgow these days, so why choose Porter & Rye in Finnieston? Well, the steaks are excellent, including less obvious cuts like bavette and onglet. The beef is sourced from one local farm: Gaindykehead of Airdrie, with breeds including Belted Galloway, Aberdeen Angus, Charolais and Limousin. It’s also given a final dry-age treatment in-house at Porter & Rye. Other fresh produce is delivered daily by Glasgow company Seasonal Produce or foraged locally by the chefs. They’re always striving to do better since they opened in 2014, and now cure their own meats and sausages. In addition to the careful sourcing, the place has a great atmosphere and the cocktails are well made (try a Forager’s Martini or a Hendricks Orbium Gimlet Gin with lime, cucumber and ginger). There’s a lovely selection of starters, too, like Drumbeg beetroot risotto with goat’s cheese mousse, or pheasant rillette with charred pear relish. porterandrye.com Paesano – for pizza There's stiff competition for who makes the best pizzas in Glasgow but Paesano is definitely up there among the contenders. Its pizza bases are made using a yeast and sourdough hybrid proofed for over 48 hours before being cooked at 500C in artisan-built, wood-fired ovens shipped over from Naples; the result is a moist, light, soft crust. There are just eight toppings to choose from. Our pick is the Tuscan fennel sausage with tomato sugo, mozzarella and extra virgin olive oil. paesanopizza.co.uk Ox and Finch – for varied small plates Another small-plate restaurant in Finnieston that’s more popular than ever, Ox and Finch is casual with timber and tiles décor, large windows, and a mix-and-match menu that’s cooked and prepared with care and imagination. Local venison carpaccio is perfectly seared to bring out its juniper and pepper crust and served with a delightfully creamy Scottish crowdie with hazelnuts, while confit duck leg comes with an original flavour pairing of yellow curry, Thai basil and crispy rice. Gin and beetroot-cured sea trout is soft and delicate, seasoned with sesame and the gentle burn of wasabi nuts. There are plenty of vegan choices, including orzo with courgette, pea, lemon and mint, and bulgur wheat with chermoula, apricots, almonds and harissa olives. Book ahead; this place gets busy. oxandfinch.com Crabshakk – for seafood There’s not much left to say about this Glasgow institution (also on that Argyll St strip), buzzing since 2009. If you love fish and shellfish, go. With Scotland’s shores offering some of the best seafood in the world, this is where to enjoy it. They say, ‘We continue to offer the best fish and shellfish available in Scotland, every day.’ And that’s about it. A straightforward core menu of the best just-caught seafood includes everything you’d expect: scallops, mussels, langoustine, deep-fried whitebait, salt and pepper squid, shellfish chowder, Crabshakk bisque, lobster and crab, of course. There is a single steak dish for the awkward person in your party who doesn’t like fish, plus one veggie dish. Accompaniments are really just garlic or lemon mayo, chips, green salad, or bread and butter, as they should be. There’s also a daily changing specials menu. crabshakk.com Tantrum Doughnuts – for doughnuts The brainchild of Iain Baillie (a former pastry chef at The Fat Duck) and his wife, Annika, Tantrum opened the doors to its permanent site in December 2015 and is a short walk from Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. Fried in rapeseed oil in small batches, the doughnuts are always super-fresh and either filled or topped with homemade custards, fondants and jams; choose from flavours like pistachio custard, chocolate and hazelnut, vanilla crème brûlée or classic raspberry. Grab one to take-away, or settle in with a milkshake or coffee. tantrumdoughnuts.com Cottonrake – for artisan bakes Head to Cottonrake coffee bar and bakery on Great Western Road for freshly-baked cakes, muffins and pastries made daily on-site, or something more substantial like a smoked salmon and celeriac remoulade brioche bun, Stornaway black pudding and pork shoulder sausage roll, or cauliflower and comté quiche. One of the first of a new wave of artisan bakeries to set up shop in a city not afraid to indulge its sweet tooth, this is one of the most inventive. Grab some coffee while you’re there, sourced from Dear Green Coffee, a speciality roaster based in the city dedicated to getting their hands on the very best beans they can (be warned, its Goosedubbs blend is addictively smooth). cottonrake.com Eusebi Deli – for dinner and a deli What started as an Italian grocer shop in Glasgow’s East End back in 1975 has grown and expanded with a restaurant/deli in the city’s West End showcasing regional, seasonal dishes, such as burrata, pea gazpacho and vignarola salad. Click here to try Eusebi Deli's salad recipe at home Eusebi goes to great lengths to source its ingredients – tomatoes and herbs from Calabria, flour from Rome, cured meats from Umbria. The pasta is made from scratch daily in the restaurant’s ‘pasta laboratory’ using different flours, including chickpea, chestnut and grano arso (burnt grain). “We wanted to take the customer out of their comfort zone,” says Giovanna Eusebi. “Italy is more than carbonara and spag bol. Our food is inspired by our Italian grandparents who farmed from land to table. Our concept was to slow things down and return to our heritage. Food made in factories and sold under the guise of ‘artisan’ just won’t wash anymore. People don’t want watered-down versions of authentic, they want the real deal.” eusebideli.com Mono – for a vegan bar Award-winning Glasgow café/bar and music venue Mono celebrated its 15th birthday at the end of 2017, and the team was humbled by the attention the anniversary attracted, according to general manager Ian Crawford, who’s also head honcho of the El Rancho record label. With a menu including tofu ‘fish’ and chips, jerk-spiced jackfruit burritos and vegan mac ’n’ cheese, all food at Mono is free from animal produce, right down to the raw chocolate and avocado cheesecake. “From day one, our ethos was, and still is, to promote an alternative choice to a meat and dairy diet without shouting about it or being exclusive,” says Ian. monocafebar.com More places to eat and drink in Glasgow Foodie classes & events From pasta making-and-lunch-sessions at celebrated Italian restaurant-with-rooms, Celentano’s, to brewery tours at Drygate Brewery or WEST’s handsome Glasgow Green HQ and beer hall, Glasgow offers multiple diversions. Slow Food Glasgow organises various events from speciality coffee classes to food heritage tours. Plant-based Soul Food Kitchen, meanwhile, hosts a busy workshop programme covering everything from food photography to fermenting. Look out for visits from Edinburgh’s Koji Kitchen. Lupe Pintos – for hot sauce fanatics For almost 25 years, this West End deli has been a colourful treasure trove of hot sauces (it sells more than 100), Mexican foods and items from the wider Americas. Whether hunting for a prized mezcal or buying ingredients for birria tacos, browsing in Lupe is always an education as you explore its dried chillies, Mexican-style queso fresco, made by Yorkshire Dama Cheese or fresh tortillas, delivered each Wednesday. Fans travel to stock up on cult products, such as La Carmina from Asturias, a cooking chorizo Lupe Pintos has stocked for decades. lupepintos.com The Clydeside Distillery – for whisky lovers In its heyday, Glasgow’s Queen’s Dock was a key export point for Scottish whisky. In 2017 that association was renewed as a single malt distillery opened on these former docklands. Visitors can learn about that history and whisky production in tours that centre, variously, around chocolate and whisky tastings, creating your own whisky or expert insight from distillery manager, Alistair McDonald. Clydeside’s modern, multi-storey glass still house offers awesome views across the River Clyde. theclydeside.com Explore the West End You could argue long, hard and appetisingly about the relative merits of various Glasgow food hot spots, such as the Southside Strathbungo cluster around Big Counter (see above): Errol’s Hot Pizza, Made From Grapes, cocktail bar Lunar and gelateria La Gelatessa. Or the concentration of restaurants, including Ox & Finch, Porter & Rye, Crabbshack, Unalome and The Gannet, that have turned the Finnieston stretch around Argyle Street into a go-to hub. But the West End, a leafy, bohemian, student-y enclave, loosely sandwiched between Kelvingrove Park and Byres Road, remains a must, particularly for first-time visitors. From chilled riverside beers at Inn Deep to rolling street-food party, Dockyard Social, good burgers (Bread Meats Bread) or wood-fired pizza (Paesano), to the one-Michelin-starred Cail Bruich, all food life is here. Moreover, in the West End, such attractions are contained in an easily navigable pocket. You can go foodie shopping at cheesemonger I.J. Mellis, Lupe Pintos deli, the Grunting Growler beer shop and bar or Valhalla’s Goat for various “liquid treasures”; drink ace coffee (roasteries Black Pine or Papercup); visit great bakery-cafes (Cottonrake, SugarFall Patisserie, Tantrum Doughnuts); or local classics such as deli and restaurant, Eusebi, all within an area that is walkable, welcoming and as architecturally attractive as it is delicious. Words by Sophie Pither, Sarah Kingsbury, Mark Taylor, Tony Naylor and Ellie Edwards Trains from London Euston to Glasgow Central from £60 return with virgintrains.co.uk. For more information see peoplemakeglasgow.com More UK restaurant guides Best restaurants in Deal Best restaurants in Birmingham Best restaurants in St Albans Best restaurants in Bristol Best restaurants in Edinburgh Best restaurants in York Best restaurants in Whitstable Best restaurants in Oxford Best restaurants in Cambridge Best restaurants in Margate Best restaurants in Manchester Best restaurants in the Lake District
Get your burger fix courtesy of Britain’s finest patty purveyors, from Korean brisket burgers in the North West, to beef short rib cheeseburgers in the capital
Looking for the best burger restaurants across the UK? Want to know where to find the best gourmet burgers? Read on for our restaurant guide, or check out our burger recipes here... Best burger restaurants in London… Buster's, Brixton A stone’s throw from Brixton station is potentially the best new burger in London. You’ll find it at Buster’s, effectively a hole in the wall joint, bar a few small tables, serving up delicious wagyu beef and fried chicken burgers. The London restaurant scene is full of spots trying to claim they do ‘simple things, executed perfectly’ but Buster’s is a spot that is actually nailing it. The wagyu cheeseburger is made up of tender meat, seasoned perfectly and cooked to a juicy medium. The green peppercorn dijonaise adds a welcome acidity, and the potato roll it is all sandwiched between is soft and bouncy. The chicken burger is equally excellent, crispy, juicy and served with plenty of pickles. The IPA cheese sauce is aerated and rich, perfect for dipping lots of hot, crispy fries in. We finished off the meal with a chocolate mousse, which was light but decadent. If you’re looking for a great burger south of the river, Buster’s is where it’s at. busterslondon.co.uk Supra Burger, Queen's Park Housed as a permanent pop-up in the cosy rotisserie restaurant Cocotte, Supra does smashed burgers and it does them well. The burger menu is short and the five burgers on offer are a variation on double stacked smashed cheeseburger, to which you can add bacon or salad, or change up the sauce to make it a Supra, truffle or barbecue burger. The burgers are generously portioned but without being too big to eat. There’s attention to detail in the preparation, along with the use of high-quality ingredients, resulting in burgers that are juicy, flavourful and smashed to perfection. The fries are crisp, golden and fresh from the fryer, and a side of chicken tenders were succulent from what we guessed must have been a wet brine. As well as a choice of six sauces (the burnt chilli was our favourite), there’s a short list of desserts. We tried the Mont Blanc, which was a tall sundae of sweetened chestnut purée, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and almonds. There’s a fair few eateries on this stretch of leafy Queen's Park and Supra is now the go-to for burgers. supra-burger.com MEATLiquor, Clapham November marks 10 years since the first MEATliquor restaurant launched. Their origins from a burger van in Peckham, to a pop-up above an abandoned pub in New Cross, couldn' be further from the latest venture — and biggest yet — in Clapham's Old Town. The huge space has two bars, a heated outdoor dining area with TVs and a large projector and photo booth inside. Everything about MEATliquor is full-on — from the graffiti-led design and the music played, to the flavours on the menu, a mix of American diner specials, all with a MEATliquor twist. Burger aficionados will point to the Dead Hippie: a French's-mustard-fried double patty with onions, cheese, lettuce and pickles all within a soft bun that soaks up the good stuff. Buffalo chicken wings are a match for any of those found in the US and the loaded fries on offer are a meal within themselves. There are a range of vegetarian and vegan options — from the Tempeh Tantrum patty to the Black Bean Chilli Dog. The drinks list is a mix of craft beers and cocktails, and that's before you hit the 'Poke For Jäger' button on your table. meatliquor.com Tucka Burger, Shoreditch Andy Gardener and Lachy Brown met at school in Australia, and both moved to London to pursue careers in accountancy and consulting. Lachy says: “We quickly realised our passion lay elsewhere, and so in July 2018 we turned to our burger truck dream.” The beef is a high-fat blend of chuck, brisket and bone marrow, which has been dry-aged for 35 days. Try the signature Tom Tucka American cheeseburger, or the vegetarian What the Tuck (beef is substituted for grilled halloumi). “Our burgers are incredibly juicy and messy,” says Lachy. tuckaburger.co.uk Hawksmoor, London This upmarket steakhouse chain also serves a mean burger – notably the £17.50 beef short rib cheeseburger with kimchi, which was launched in 2010 when the Seven Dials restaurant opened. Inspired by a trip to Seoul, it features Hawksmoor’s own kimchi, the recipe for which you can find in the Hawksmoor at Home cookbook. thehawksmoor.com Bleecker, London What started as a street-food truck by former corporate lawyer Zan Kaufman now has three sites in Bloomberg, Victoria and Old Spitalfields Market. Bleecker serves six burgers with a range of fries, including the “angry” version with hot sauce and blue cheese sauce. The patties are made with native-breed beef, and brand director Liam O’Keefe says the secret blend they’ve created helps the butcher use the whole animal. “We believe we have the best-tasting beef burger possible,” he says. bleecker.co.uk Black Bear Burger, E1 (Shoreditch) This Box Park Shoreditch operation keeps things simple with three classic burger options. Stew Down, who opened Black Bear alongside his wife Liz, says: “We don’t mess around with gimmicks – everything in our burgers is there for one reason: flavour.” Beef comes from grass-fed South West native breeds (Stew’s family are beef farmers in Devon), and the most popular burger is the Black Bear: dry-aged beef, American cheese, bacon, onion jam and garlic mayo in a super-light seeded bun. It’s the balance of flavours that sets these burgers apart – Stew says that they’re keen to avoid overpowering sauces, incorrect seasoning and unnecessary ingredients. blackbearburger.com The Wigmore, W1 (Oxford Cirus) An upmarket pub just off Regent Street and Oxford Circus, The Wigmore serves a mean cheeseburger with grilled ox tongue. It was created by head chef James Hawley, who says the idea came from enjoying ox tongue and English mustard rolls when he was a kid. The Wigmore burger also features a caramelised onion brioche bun, crispy shallots and the same melted three-cheese mix used in the pub’s signature toasties. the-wigmore.co.uk Best burger restaurants across the UK… Bunsen, Belfast Keeping it simple and using high-quality ingredients (such as Black Aberdeen Angus beef minced on site every morning, and homemade soft Amish dinner rolls) is what sets Belfast’s Bunsen apart from competitors. It’s a straightforward choice between classic hamburger or cheeseburger, the latter of which includes a special blend of comté and monterey jack. bunsen.ie Steak & Honour, Cambridge Steak & Honour (which also has mobile burger vans across Cambridge) serves three types of burger: classic, cheese and a veggie shroom. The meat patties are made with 100% hand-minced chuck beef from cattle that graze East Anglian pastures and water meadows. Nothing is added except Maldon salt as they sizzle, and Dovecote Bakery created the brioche bun recipe for them. Order a side of three-cheese mac ’n’ cheese, too, which comes sliced and grilled. steakandhonour.co.uk Patty & Bun, Brighton Eight Patty & Bun branches have opened in London and Brighton over the past seven years. It’s known for impeccable sourcing – beef from HG Walter, bespoke buns from Bread Ahead, cheese from Neal’s Yard and Kupros Dairy – and bestsellers include the Lambshank Redemption: a lamb patty with coriander and chilli, buttermilk baby courgettes, pickled aubergine, cumin aïoli and feta. pattyandbun.co.uk Hills, Brecon A mile outside the town and overlooking the Brecon Beacons, the glass-fronted Hills restaurant is a destination that attracts thousands of diners every month. Owain and Emily Hill showcase Welsh produce in their burgers, with signature options including a chips and gravy cheeseburger, sweet and sour chicken burger, and pulled pork with hoisin and soy sauce burger. Hills uses aged PGI Welsh beef from local butcher Paddy Sweeney, and cooks its burgers using the ‘smashed’ method, creating an incredible crust and flavour. Each burger comes with two 3.5oz smashed patties and a blend of monterey jack and American cheese as standard. hillsbrecon.co.uk Blas Burgerworks, St Ives, Cornwall “Not fast, just fabulous” is the motto at Blas Burgerworks, the tiny restaurant and takeaway close to St Ives harbour. Now into its 14th year, it has become something of a local institution thanks to an unwavering commitment to provenance and sourcing. Beef comes from nearby Trevaskis Farm, Cornish potatoes are used for the hand-cut chips, and all the sauces are made on the premises. Blas Burgerworks also makes a mean vegetarian organic black bean burger, and occasionally serves a special mackerel burger using fish landed in the bay around the corner. blasburgerworks.co.uk Libertine Burger, Leamington Spa Charles Harris of Libertine Burger says that the main reason his patties stand out is the quality of the meat. It’s a mix of double-ground chuck, brisket and flank from 35-day dry-aged Angus beef, supplied by renowned butcher, Aubrey Allen. Hand-smashing the patties to order on a really hot grill lends a great crust. The Warwickshire punters also love the buttermilk fried chicken burger. libertineburger.com Squeezed, Bristol He might be cooking in a tiny shipping container on Bristol’s harbourside but Squeezed founder Alex Hayes was still crowned burger chef of the year at the National Burger Awards 2019. Signatures include the Beetlejuice (double beef patty, smoked bacon, cheese, black garlic, squid-ink aïoli and gochujang ketchup) and the Reverse Cowgirl (beef patty, smoked bacon, peanut chipotle BBQ and charred scallion soured cream). Alex says: “You can taste every element, as well as the overall flavour profile.” bristolsqueezed.co.uk Fat Hippo, Newcastle, Durham and Sheffield “Get ready to sink your teeth into something juicy,” is one tagline at the Fat Hippo, which started life in Newcastle and has since added Durham, Jesmond and Sheffield branches to its empire. The idea is indulgence, messy fingers and a full belly. The Bubba Gump burger, for example, includes a double patty, cheese, popcorn shrimp, smoked bacon and pickleback slaw. fathippo.co.uk The Beefy Boys, Hereford The Beefy Boys are four childhood friends who have always loved cooking burgers at garden BBQs. They’re regular competitors at worldwide burger championships (their next challenge in October takes them to Dallas, Texas) but, following a series of pop-ups across Hereford, the crew now has a restaurant in the city. Co-founder Murf says: “The Beefy Boys are the definition of a drunken BBQ that’s got seriously out of hand... so much so that we now own a restaurant, a food truck and an events business.” Murf puts their success down to local Hereford beef (100% chuck and brisket), toasting the bun with bacon fat, butter or aged beef fat, and seasoning. “We also steam our burgers, a tip we picked up from American diners. You spray water onto the hot plate, then steam the burgers under a cloche – it heats the bun up and melts the cheese, making the whole thing come together in a cacophony of cheesy, meaty goodness.” thebeefyboys.com Free State Kitchen, Liverpool “We serve straightforward American classics,” says Kate Hughes of Liverpool’s Free State Kitchen, whose bestseller after six years of business is still the cheeseburger (served in a locally baked brioche bun). The core menu may stay the same, but Free State Kitchen likes to use its specials board to mix things up on a regular basis. Expect treats such as the Korean brisket burger, made with locally produced kimchi, bulgogi-style beef and a crispy fried egg. freestatekitchen.co.uk Slap & Pickle, Leeds James Tabor and Zoe Perret run Slap & Pickle at Assembly Underground, a street-food hub located in the basement of a Grade-II building in Leeds city centre. The burgers are made from 100% grass-fed Yorkshire beef, and showcase a signature blend of chuck, short rib and clod. James says: “We can serve every item on our menu in meaty, veggie or vegan incarnations, and we make all of it ourselves. We don’t buy ‘science-lab fake meats’, because they’re all horrible.” slapandpickle.co.uk Big Boys, Folkestone Brothers Gareth Attwell and Guy Meurice launched Big Boys in 2014, and have made it to the finals of the National Burger Awards twice since then. Chef Gareth worked in top-end restaurants for 16 years, including spells with Marcus Wareing. The burgers are made with local rare-breed beef (matured for 28 days) and French brioche buns (or even mac ’n’ cheese ‘buns’, pictured). Big Boys are well known for their specials – try the Fat Elvis for its peanut butter, raspberry jelly and bacon jam. bigboysburgers.co.uk El Perro Negro, Glasgow Nick Watkins started El Perro Negro as a kitchen takeover pop-up, but it became such a hit with Glasgow burger fans that it was a permanent restaurant by 2018 (and winner at the National Burger Awards 2019). Using beef from small local farms, specials include the Top Dog, with bone marrow and roquefort butter, bacon and black truffle mayo, and the Black Dog, which adds black pudding to the mix. Nick says: “We don’t attempt to reinvent the wheel, we just use great beef, great bread and great ingredients. Our short rib and marrow patty gives a super juicy burger, with a really intense bovine flavour. The beef should be the star of the show. Anything that goes on the patty is there to complement the beef, not drown it out.” @ElPerroNegroGLA Magu, Bath Magu founder Leon Dunnett makes his own sauces and serves fantastic smashed beef patties in bespoke buns. But his Bath diner has also gained a formidable reputation for the veggie burger with Somerset-made halloumi, roasted Mediterranean vegetables, pickled red onion and mint yogurt. magudiner.com Meat:Stack, Newcastle Following pop-ups around Newcastle, Meat:Stack found a permanent home in the city’s Grainger Market. Its American cheeseburgers are the stuff of legend, especially the Cease and Desist (made with rare-breed dry-aged beef, smoked bacon, mascarpone and black garlic honey). “We are obsessive about simplicity and clarity of flavour,” says co-founder Tom Westman. The beef is cooked on a searing hot grill, then steamed, and you should order a portion of beef dripping fries on the side. meat-stack.com Honest Burgers, across the UK With more than 30 sites across the UK, Honest Burgers has a point of difference from other chains – it’s heavily invested in its own butchery, with each restaurant making burgers from scratch. Co-founder Tom Barton says: “From day one we’ve made the majority of our menu in-house, starting with chips, relish, pickles and sauces. By having our own butchery, we now know exactly where our beef comes from. We also love working with nearby suppliers, whether it’s for a local burger (every branch of Honest has one) or a local brewery.” honestburgers.co.uk Hoof, Cardiff Sibling business to Cardiff’s Dusty Knuckle Pizza, Hoof has a permanent residency at the city’s Sticky Fingers street-food market in the Brewery Quarter. It serves a 100% Welsh beef featherblade patty with Teifi cheese, pickles, cultured cream and sweet chilli herb sauce. One of the secrets of their success, according to owner Phil Lewis, is the fact award-winning Hay-on-Wye baker Alex Gooch provides the buns. “Alex’s organic challah buns are slightly spongy and a bit crusty. They hold together perfectly and are a great marriage with our beef patties, especially when grilled with dripping.” @hoofcdf Original Patty Men, Birmingham “Our tag line is ‘Purveyors of Filth’ and we do our best to live up to that,” says Thomas Maher, director of Birmingham’s Original Patty Men. Five burgers are on the menu, including the Pineapple Express (aged longhorn beef patty, maple-coated bacon, lettuce, roquito chilli pepper, fresh tomato, cheddar and pineapple hot sauce). Thomas says: “Our suppliers list is something we’re incredibly proud of, and the majority supply Michelin-starred restaurants across the country. Our style of cooking is just a bit different to theirs!” originalpattymen.com Words by Mark Taylor Photographs by Justin D Esouza, David Griffen, Ed Sowerby
27 Elliott's, Edinburgh: restaurant review and party menu
Read our review of 27 Elliott's in Edinburgh. Check out head chef and owner Jess Elliott Dennison's impressive flavour-packed recipes
27 Elliott's, Edinburgh restaurant review Founded by cookbook author and food stylist Jess Elliott Dennison, 27 Elliott’s is a small neighbourhood café set in Edinburgh’s leafy Southside (more Edinburgh restaurant recommendations here) that serves seasonal breakfast and lunch, and hosts its own supper clubs. Jess (who previously worked for Jamie Oliver’s food and homeware range) commands the pass, overlooking a space adorned with sharing tables, long benches and a great window seat. Her shtick is using the best produce in an accessible, effortlessly cool way, and serving it all on locally crafted, hand-thrown ceramics. A weekly changing menu, on a blackboard, follows the seasons and embraces local producers wherever possible – sourdough loaves come from a nearby bakery and an Edinburgh roastery provides the coffee. There isn’t much meat on the menu, but those that eat it won’t notice; you certainly won’t go hungry here. Expect moreish breakfast dishes of sage-fried eggs with lemony greens and crunchy sourdough toast, or bay-roasted cherries, strained yogurt, toasted almonds and honey. Lunch plates including red-wine-braised butter beans and herby aïoli, and orange braised carrots, herb-flecked pearl barley, cranberries and walnuts really show off Jess’s creative cookery skills. There are pickles and ferments, too, as well as fresh pasta with homemade ricotta. Flavours are simply but expertly brought together, with vegetables the stars of the show. Fermented ginger beer and homemade sodas, preserved fruit cordials, trendy shrubs, loose-leaf teas, hot chocolates and iced coffees are served alongside great espressos. Breakfast here is too good to ignore – so don’t be bound by traditional mealtimes and make sure you order something from that menu whatever time you arrive for the best experience. Come back later for homemade ice cream and seasonal cakes and bakes, including sea salt and chocolate rye cookies, and roasted berry galettes. 27elliotts.com 27 Elliott's, Edinburgh dinner party menu Sweet potato gnudi, lemony cavolo nero, crispy sage and parmesan Shetland mussels, fennel and white wine Warm buttered Arbroath smokies, roast garlic aïoli, pickled kale and sourdough toast Dark chocolate mousse, macerated blackberries and roasted hazelnuts
Glenapp Castle, Ayrshire, Scotland: Hotel and Restaurant Review
Luxurious rooms, secret spiral staircases, pretty plates of food, panoramic views of Ailsa Craig and stupendous gardens – read our review of Glenapp Castle here
As well as ivy-clad turrets and excellent food, there’s one thing Glenapp Castle has plenty of: fresh air. It sits in 36 acres of grounds, all detailed for guests in a beautifully illustrated map. We spent hours watching birds in the Victorian walled garden, admiring views of volcanic island Ailsa Craig, sniffing the candy floss scent of Katsura trees – and chasing the path of a gurgling stream through a wooded glen, rich with deer and the tallest fir trees in Britain. One of the most romantic spots is by the azalea pond, which reflects the castle’s sandstone battlements in its waters. For lunch, let the team pack you a bespoke picnic (we chose homemade sandwiches and a flask of hot tea) and enjoy it on a bench right next to the pond – if you ask nicely, they might even whisk you down there in a golf buggy. Staff here are friendly and helpful, to the point where they organised a blazing evening bonfire during our wintery stay, laying out marshmallows and hot chocolate for any hotel guest that wanted to join the party. As such, Glenapp Castle felt like home to us. Despite the grand exterior (it was originally built in 1870 as an imposing family residence for James Hunter, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Ayrshire), there’s no intimidating reception hall – just a welcoming parlour, with neat piles of wellington boots for guests to borrow, panelled wash rooms, chesterfield sofas and a vintage telephone to use if you need assistance. Up a carpeted staircase and to the left is the drawing room, with stone fireplace and ceiling-high windows that frame a spectacular view of Ailsa Craig (you’ll find granite curling stones from that island propping doors open around the castle). Guest rooms, especially the master suites, are spectacular. Chandeliers, four-poster beds, huge windows framed by thick drapes, a fireplace surrounded by armchairs and a sofa and, in one case, a curved corner door that leads to a private spiral staircase... follow it down to reach a wooden hatch that opens on to the castle’s forecourt (imagine the trysts!). So big are the suites that guests also enjoy their own walk-in wardrobes, and there’s enough seating for at least a dozen people. There are two intimate dining rooms, both with Mull of Kintyre views, and the highlight here is head chef Tyron Ellul’s six-course tasting menu. Start with a trio of tiny appetisers – including a pearly white scallop with crisp tempura shell – before a cup of smooth turnip velouté, spiked with truffle. Little cubes of beetroot and soft arborio rice made a light and vibrant risotto, and a translucent fillet of delicately grilled west coast cod came with a bright red pepper emulsion. Turbot was cooked just as well and was topped with a wilted spring onion, vegetal seaweed butter and a rich chicken and cardamom jus. Dessert, a puffy, golden passion fruit soufflé with matching sorbet, was well worth the wait. The kitchen also does breakfast (continental or a hot plate including Ayrshire bacon, haggis, Stornoway black pudding and potato scone), lunch and afternoon tea. Plenty of fuel for exploring beyond the castle grounds – we took a stroll through the Stinchar Valley, with its oak woodlands and abundance of pheasants, red squirrels, roe deer and otters. For ultimate decadence arrange for someone from Glenapp to meet you half-way with hot soup and crusty bread… they won’t even judge you if you ask for a lift back in their Land Rover Defender (we did!). Double rooms from £295, b&b (glenappcastle.com) Written by Charlotte Morgan, November 2016
Kinloch Lodge, Isle Of Skye, Scotland: Autumnal Cookery Break Review
We head to the Isle of Skye in Scotland to join a new catch-and-cook break hosted by Marcello Tully at Kinloch Lodge
Midge repellent, waterproofs and Wellington boots: not items that usually make it into the suitcase when you're packing for a culinary workshop. However, at Kinloch Lodge on the mist-wreathed shore of the sea loch Loch na Dal, on the Isle of Skye, the new autumnal cookery breaks involve outdoor activities. You don’t have to sing for your supper but you can catch it – and cook it on the banks of a rushing river. Kinloch Lodge, the seat of the Macdonald clan and once an old hunting lodge, is now a luxury hotel as well as the home of the doyenne of Scottish cookery and author of countless cookbooks, Lady Claire Macdonald. These days Lady Claire takes more of a back seat, and Marcello Tully heads up the Michelin-starred kitchen. Salmon and trout fishing in Skye's lochs and rivers, meanwhile, is under the guidance of Mitch Partridge (skyeghillie.co.uk). Mitch takes guests to the River Snizort which flows into Loch Snizort about 45 minutes away, north of Portree, and the River Brittle where you can catch wild brown trout and sea trout near the loch shore against the backdrop of the majestic Cuillin mountains. I'm sticking closer to home, however, tramping with rod in hand down to the burbling burn that flows from behind the lodge into Loch na Dahl, a prime spot, Mitch tells me, for wild brown trout. I've only tried my hand at fly-fishing a couple of times but Mitch is patient as he teaches me how to cast the line and before long I've reeled in my first wriggling trout – to cook on a fire on the pebbly shore river-to-plate style. You can also take your catch back to the hotel kitchen for a filleting and cookery lesson from Marcello. As far as the hotel kitchen is concerned, however, I've bigger fish to fry. The bespoke seasonal cookery classes and 'catch and cook' options take place in a working Michelin-starred hotel kitchen. But you can also opt for a half-day stint helping to prepare a couple of courses to be dished up in the restaurant that day. The night before I'd savoured a five-course tasting menu at the 'chef's table' perched on a stool looking through a large window at the kitchen theatre unfolding before me. Now grabbing an apron, I was in the thick of it. Not that this even vaguely resembled a heated Gordon Ramsey-style scene – it was more artfully choreographed ballet than Hell's Kitchen. Today we were making pea soup – or rather 'soupcon' to be served in tiny shot glasses. All soups start as purees Marcello tells us. The peas are blitzed then passed through a sieve to remove the skins. Then the onions are chopped and lightly fried and the peas added. Tasting is done at every point. First we taste the pure pea puree. Then Marcello adds a splash of cream. We taste it again. Then salt. We taste it. Then Tabasco. Same again. Then sugar. "This is the chef's skill," he explains, "being able to season dishes well and take them to the next level." He doesn't use pepper in his cooking at all – apart from venison and steak. To get the heat he wants he uses Tabasco. "It has so much more flavour than pepper. It has a vinegar-iness, of course, but the salt takes that away." Finally we get to the theatrical part and put the mixture through 'a gun'. The gas inside the canister aerates the liquid when you pull the trigger. And there you have it: a light green shot of soup –with foam on top. We sip it. It's silky and sweet with a hint of spice: a simple pea soup transformed into a sensory experience, Michelin style. Dinner, B&B at Kinloch Lodge costs from £170 per person per night (kinloch-lodge.co.uk). Fishing (available February to October) costs from £250 per day, seasonal cookery courses with Marcello £99 per person for 2.5 hours, including afternoon tea. Or, sign up for Kinloch’s new Gourmet Getaway experience from £850pp including three nights’ dinner, bed & breakfast, two cookery classes and a tour of the island’s culinary hotspots. Written by Lucy Gillmore, August 2016 You might also like The best places to eat & drink on Skye Grilled trout with Asian dressing Sicilian mackerel with cauliflower puree The best field-to-fork breaks Rosemary and walnut shortbread
Fife, Scotland: best places to eat and drink
This coastal corner of Scotland is known for its award-winning fish and chips but you’ll also find seaweed sorbet, artisan gins and lamb cooked with cockles and sea kale
Over a hundred years ago Bennetto Jannetta packed his bags and left the little village of Atina, south of Rome, for Scotland. In his pocket was an ice-cream recipe. In 1908 he opened a soda parlour and billiards room in St. Andrews. Four generations later, Jannettas pastel-painted ice-cream parlour is now run by his great granddaughter, Nicola, and her husband, Owen. While vanilla remains their most popular flavour, the family makes 54 different varieties in small batches from ingredients sourced locally or from Italy. These range from cranachan (based on the traditional dessert) to tablet (a kind of crumbly, Scottish, version of fudge) and even seaweed sorbet, first created for the Crail Food Festival along the coast. Want to enjoy a taste of Scottish botanicals at home? Try one of our favourite Scottish gins here... Clutching my seaweed-tinged cone (it may sound odd but it works), I have a choice of beaches to comb in this cobbled coastal town in the Kingdom of Fife, a hop over the Forth Bridge from Edinburgh: East Sands down by the harbour or West Sands, the long stretch immortalised in that sprinting-through-spray scene in Chariots of Fire. Famous for Pringle-jumpered golfers and the red gowns and quadrangles of the oldest university in Scotland, St. Andrews has more recently become a foodie hub. Take the Highland Chocolatier. At the other end of the town’s South Street, Iain Burnett’s cocoa-dark den and tasting room offers bespoke lessons in chocolate and gin pairing. Burnett made the chocolates for the Queen’s 90th birthday celebrations and his jewel-like truffles are made with a combination of intense single-origin cocoa from São Tomé and cream from a single herd of Scottish cows. In his tasting room I sip a lime and vanilla-laced Eden Mill Original Gin while nibbling a chilli truffle. Eden Mill is Scotland’s only combined craft brewery and distillery. It opened three years ago in nearby Guardbridge and the young team behind it now produce five main gins: Original, Love, Oak, Hop and Golf (created for the Open Championship, it’s a peppery infusion of lemongrass and hickory wood, the latter a nod to golf clubs). The Oak version, matured in barrels that give it a yellowy tinge and a hint of caramel, is the perfect pairing for a Nigerian ginger velvet truffle that tastes earthy rather than fiery. Love is a pink gin with floral, fruity notes and rose petal, hibiscus flower and gogi berries as botanicals. Paired with a Madagascan vanilla white truffle with crushed raspberries and heather honey, it’s like a rush of raspberry ripple ice cream, the chocolate bringing out the fruitiness of the gin. A few doors down is the St. Andrews Brewing Company, all rough wood, hearty food and craft beer, while just along the coast is another smart new distillery, Kingsbarns (kingsbarnsdistillery.com). For almost 150 years Fife had no distillery, then two came along at once. Wandering down Market Street, via Fisher & Donaldson for a box of its legendary fudge doughnuts, I make it to Scotland’s current fish and chip shop of the year just in time for lunch. Cromars Fish and Chips is a cut above your average chippie. A contemporary space with an industrial vibe, it’s also MSC accredited. All the fish is landed in Scotland, some in St. Monans along the coast. The menu, too, is pretty enlightened: ‘fish and chips and prosecco’ is scrawled on the blackboard along with pints of Pittenweem langoustines. I try the special, crayfish curry and chips. Cooked Thai-style, it’s spicy and sweet and packed with plump shellfish. No wonder Cromars is giving Fife’s famous chippie, the Anstruther Fish Bar, a run for its money. In fact, Fife packs in the seafood highlights as you curve round its coastline, strung with pretty fishing villages. Start in Crail and you can buy lobster from a shed on the harbour before heading southwest, through Anstruther and Pittenweem to St. Monans, where hot-smoked sea bass with apple, peppercorn and smoked apricot relish is on the menu at the rustic East Pier Smokehouse. On Fife’s north coast, current MasterChef: The Professionals champion Jamie Scott has just launched his first restaurant, The Newport while Anstruther’s The Cellar bagged a Michelin-star this year. Young chef Billy Boyter took over here in 2014 and dishes include a delicate East Neuk crab and squid dish with juiced celeriac, pickled cucumber and sorrel, and melting, pink Balblair lamb with cockles, sea kale and sprouting broccoli, the pungent, dark green purée adding to the dish’s soft earthiness. Fife is fertile inland. Fife Farmers’ Market is a regular Saturday fixture for local food-lovers, splitting its time between St. Andrews, Kirkcaldy, Cupar and Dunfermline; look out for Puddledub pork and Seriously Good Venison. There’s no shortage of farm shops, either, from hippy-chic organic Pillar of Hercules in Falkland, where you can also pitch a tent, to chic Balgove Larder outside St. Andrews, which stocks produce from the surrounding Strathtyrum Estate and, alongside a butchery and café, runs a rustic Steak Barn in the summer months; the no-bookings wood-fire BBQ restaurant has communal trestle tables laid out in an old sawmill. For my first night, I bed down at Fife stalwart, The Peat Inn in the village of the same name (it took its name from the 18th-century coaching inn). Now a Michelin-starred restaurant with rooms, owner Geoffrey Smeddle conjures up intricate dishes such as smoked beef tartare, avocado and wasabi purée and coriander in a sleek, contemporary space. The bedrooms, however, are a bit tired and old-fashioned – unlike my second gourmet bolthole. At The Ship Inn, on the beachfront in Elie, new owners have recently added an airy upstairs dining area and six seafaring-themed bedrooms. Beach cricket is played on the sand from May to September, with a cricket festival in mid-August. What could be better than watching a match from the beachfront beer garden, a bottle of chilled Crail Ale from the St. Andrews Brewing Co in your hand, and freshly-caught mackerel and langoustine sizzling on the pub's pop-up BBQ? Words: Lucy Gillmore. Photographs: Alamy, Getty How to do it Double rooms at The Ship Inn cost from £90 b&b and at The Peat Inn from £195 b&b. More info: foodfromfife.co.uk You might also like Edinburgh, Scotland: 10 best places to eat and drink in 2016 Cameron House, Loch Lomond, Scotland: review Skye, Scotland: the best places to eat, drink and stay Best gastro pubs with rooms: The Bridge Inn, Ratho, Scotland Best restaurants for sustainability
Best gastro pubs with rooms: The Bridge Inn, Ratho, Scotland
Our review of The Bridge Inn, Ratho, near Edinburgh, where you can expect understated flair in both the rooms and the food, made with veg grown in their walled kitchen garden.
The 18th-century Bridge Inn, in the village of Ratho on the Union canal is just a caber’s toss from Edinburgh. The field-to-plate concept is an easy one for owners Graham and Rachel Bucknall, who breed pigs and grow vegetables and herbs in the walled kitchen garden. What to eat In season, you can tuck into partridge, pheasant, rabbit and venison. Starters include pulled pork and apple terrine with red cabbage, apple and mustardslaw, salt-baked crispbreads and cider jellies. Mains include Ardgay venison loin and haunch boudin with kale, clotted cream mash and port jus. Star suppliers From Ardgay Game and John Gilmour Butchers, to fishmongers George Campbell & Sons, all meat and fish are from Scotland. The booze You can sink a gluten-free pint of Daura, cask ales such as Dark Island from Orkney and a range of guest ales. The wine list features gems including an Austrian veltliner. Finish with a ‘stickie’ (dessert wine or port) such as a Jerome Quiot Muscat (£3.35) or a dram in front of the roaring fire. Malts on offer include a smoky 10-year-old Laphroaig (£2.90). The bed Bijoux Bonnington, Baird, Bryce and Burke are cosy rooms, all with views. Bonnington has an ornate four-poster bed. Baird has a slipper bath, Bryce a brass bed and Burke is in chic cream-and-striped country style. The breakfast Free-range chickens and ducks from Ratho Hall lay the eggs for breakfast. The full Scottish includes haggis, Stornoway black pudding, a tattie scone and Ratho Hall sausages. Or drizzle honey over a bowl of creamy porridge. The bill Double rooms from £90 b&b, mains from £11. (bridgeinn.com) Written October 2015 You might also like Five of the best places in the UK to eat tapas Waffle On at The Watch House: review Humble Grape, Battersea Rise: wine bar review Bull in a China Shop, Shoreditch: restaurant review