Special Dining Edinburgh

If intimate and special is what you’re looking for, look no further. The Table rarely has a spare booking going, you need to get in there quick when they open up bookings at the beginning of the month. Owner and Chef, Sean Clark has had over 10 years training under the tutelage of some of the best Chefs in the world, including Martin Wishart, Gordon Ramsay, Anthony Garlando, and Adriano Cvagini. His menu changes all the time, and they don’t cater to any dietary requirements, so make sure to go with an open mind and an empty stomach. Their sample menu (at £80/90 depending on when you book) has dishes such as Dr Zoidberg (remember him?) which is lobster with persimmon and lime, and Golden Wonder Cheese and Onion – Isle of Mull cheddar raviolo with onion broth. Get booking this special dining experience in Edinburgh.

Opened in 2006 by Tom & Michaela Kitchin, and awarded a Michelin star only six months after opening, The Kitchin is one of Edinburgh’s most stylish waterfront restaurants. The philosophy, from nature to plate, shapes the menu, with dishes including ingredients from oysters from loch fyne, to hand-dived orkney scallops, to crispy veal sweetbreads from Inverurie. There are other special menus to choose from such as the Chef’s celebration of the season and the Chef’s surprise tasting menu.

This is one of my personal favourites on the list, after I reviewed it last year, I’ve been raving about it to everyone that’ll listen. Warm, inviting, tasty, and special, it’s a great place to hide from the crowds on the royal mile who don’t know about this gem of a restaurant. The wine list is second to none, and the food is just indescribable. When I went I had the best buttery fried sage I’ve ever eaten, and the sticky toffee pudding sent me to some kind of STP nirvana. Get booking.

Another Leith restaurant, but this one really blazed the trail in Edinburgh when it gained a Michelin star in 2001. You can try the 6 course or the 8 course tasting menu, or just go for the a la carte menu. Dishes include Shetland squid, ceviche of gigha halibut, and calvados ganache served with a dill parfait and granny smith apple sorbet. If you head to their website, you can also try making some of their famous dishes yourself if you click on their recipes/events section. If you’d rather leave it to the professionals, we don’t blame you, but best to book as it’s one of the most special dining experiences in Edinburgh, it has been for many years, and I’m sure it will be for many more.

An extremely exciting partnership of The Gardener’s Cottage (surely you’ve heard of it) and Collective (the organisation that redeveloped the City Observatory site on Calton Hill), has led to this restaurant on top of Calton Hill. Enjoy panoramic views across Edinburgh while dining on their £70 set menu (get the matched wines for £50 for a really special dining experience in Edinburgh). Dishes include oysters and charcuterie, crab tapioca and scurvy grass (tastes better than it sounds), and rhubarb, ginger, and chamomile. The food is tasty, the view is amazing, and the service is impeccable, a pretty special experience.