The Best Christmas Menus for a Festive Night Out in Edinburgh

Want to pair your dinner with some dancing? Tiger Lily’s Eat, Drink & Be Merry midweek offer serves up two courses from their Christmas menu, with a bottle of beer or glass of sparkling on arrival and entry into Lulu or Eastside nightclubs all for £30 per person. You can tuck into a classic turkey dinner, with sage and shallot stuffing, honey glazed root vegetables, duck fat roasted potatoes, button sprouts, pigs in blankets, cranberry and port sauce, followed by Christmas pud, as well as lots of other tasty options. The glitzy George Street restaurant also offers Festive Afternoon Teas and Festive Boozy Brunches for groups wishing to start their work’s day out early. And if you’re commuting into the city from a little further afield, you can book an overnight stay in Tiger Lily’s boutique hotel, just a flight of stairs away from the main restaurant.

Well located for the city’s financial district, Dine is a sophisticated after-work choice, found above the Traverse Theatre. Its festive party menu includes the classic Crimbo main with a twist: roast turkey, cranberry and pistachio roulade with brussel sprouts and pancetta, duck fat roast potatoes, cranberry jelly and bread sauce. Vegetarians can sample the Masala roast vegetable and mushroom strudel. And while you could order the figgy pudding for afters, we love the idea of their continental Brie de Meaux for dessert (toasted ciabatta, black olive tapenade and roast grape chutney). Dine gives you the option of either two or three courses, so it’s ideal for those who can’t manage the full works, or want the option to move elsewhere after a couple of courses. There are various prices for the meal, depending on the time and day of the week that you visit. However, they range from £18.50 to £34.50.

Combine your festive feed with some molecular potions, at this brand new bar in the recently opened St James Quarter. It’s part of a wider chain, renowned for imaginative and visually stunning cocktails, and celebrates high days and holidays with special menus. The Christmas menu ‘All That Glitters’ has taken on a glam rock, nostalgic theme. Diners can enjoy two or three courses (at £30 and £35 respectively), along with a cocktail like Bickie Pop (Appleton Signature Blend Rum, Briottet Coffee Liqueur, Bristol Syrup Company Vanilla, sea salt, and butter biscuit air). Your turkey will be served buttermilk style, in a basket, along with pork stuffing bonbon, festive slaw and seasoned fries. We’ve not spied any mince pies on the pudding list. Instead, it’s a choice of sticky toffee pudding, brownie and tempting gelato flavours such as bubblegum and blood orange.

Christmas doesn’t have to be traditional. If you’d prefer something with a Mediterranean feel and would rather enjoy small, sharing plates rather than individual courses, celebrate at Cafe Andaluz. Now with two restaurants in the city, you can choose from the original George Street venue and another in the Old Town. There are three options here. Menu Navidad is £24.95 and provides a Spanish sharing platter, followed by tapas to have with individual desserts each. It’s available Sunday to Thursday all day and Friday and Saturday from 12noon to 4:45pm, so if you’re dining out with these times, you’ll be on the Menu Navidad Reserva, priced at £27.95. As you might expect at a tapas restaurant, these feature lots of carne. However, there’s also a Veggie Navidad at £19.95, that includes plenty of delicious plant-based goodness.

Another non-trad option is this elaborate Asian inspired restaurant. It provides sophisticated versions of your favourite Chinese dishes, served with a flamboyantly theatrical presentation. There are four sharing menus on offer for festive parties of six-plus — Classic Tasting, Modern Chinese, Emperor’s Choice and Vegetarian (whichever you go for, have your camera at the ready as it’s as much art as it is food). There are no courses at Tattu, rather ‘waves’ of food, served under a thick canopy of indoor cherry blossom.