Cheap Food in Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh*

Corner eateries, quick bites and the local chippy

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Cheap Food

• Forest Cafe and anywhere around that area for that matter... A lot of the pizza/fish&chip shops at the bottom of the Mile are fantastic...&cheap! :) The Mosque Kitchen - tasty tasty curry for so very cheap! It's kinda between Potterow&Clerk St.
• Dougie's Cafe!!!!! Best fry-up's ever and late night snack.
• i am begging to differ from previous comments, hard rock cafe is pricey but the food is so good, EVERYTHING they sell is made is house, it's fresh, tastes amazing and there's plenty of it. for the price, it's well worth it, and let's be honest, it's not that expensive really. plus you eat in the shadows of some of rock and rolls greatest memorabillia, chilli peppers drum above me and a plate of nachos, yum.
• DAVID BANN is a decently priced, hip, very yummy vegetarian restaurant. It is one of our favorite places to go in Edinburgh and we are definite carnivores. Don't ignore it just because you eat meat, you'd be missing out!
• Mussel & Steak Bar Grassmarket New restaurant not been opened long good lunchtime deals. Free wine
• Burger King
• check out bonsai on east nicolson street, its a little japanese place (so little that i advise you to book!), their sushi is heavenly and the staff are ace. a meal for 7 including sushi to share, maincourses, and sake, only cost 8 quid each. bargainous!

• Mosque near edinburgh university, just off the same street with blind poet, central, avalanch etc £3 for a huge place of rice and curry! Also Phenicia on the corner of the same road! Palmeria for pizza and fallafel!
• Most residents rake in the garbage bins as once they've paid their mortgages for their pokey wee hooses (estate agents must have seen you fannies comin')they cannae even afford to shop in Kwik Save. Ye cannae get much cheaper than that.
• The Tapas Tree in Forth Street is the best tapas restaurant in Edinburgh and this is coming from someone who has lived in Spain. There is a live guitarist on Wednesday nights.
• Stac Polly - scottish food, french chef. Excellent combination
• brilliant rolls @ the EAT INN in portobello next to first and last pub
• subway. a well tidy aussi lady works there. ooooh i love u
• The food is Sportsters is well worth it. You get american sized portions. I still haven't managed to eat a house burger yet even with a hangover!

• subway on hanavar street has to be good for a snack or lunch while on the move
• The Himalya, Bruntsfield is the best Indian in town and the Gurkha also does some Indian-like food but it is actually a Nepalese resturant. Highly recommend them all!
• The Tijuana Yacht Club on Hanover Street has to be the best mexican restaurant in town. Food is fantastic and don't start me on the cocktails. They also have a good selection of foriegn bottled beers and tons of tequila.
• The Mermaid chippy on the top of Leith Walk. Legend has it sum guy took a knife chopped off his man hood and asked for it battered, I kid u not. Carlo's Pizzeria in Portobello is amazing, Portobello has not had nearly enough mention on this site. The Beach rocks!!!
• pizza hut on cockburn street
• The best restaurant in Edinburgh has to be the Buffalo Grill on Chapel Street, near the Peartree. It is one of the few places I have ever eaten where every part of every course is totally delicious!
• macdonalds!if you wanna get food poisoning.
• Too many good places to eat to mention. Get 'The List' eating guide.
• Hendersons in the New Town for veggie food. Nearly thrown by the fact there are two entrances. Make a beeline for the basement where it's canteen style and more spacious. Was unbelievably busy at lunchtime. Food is tasty and portions good. Why are there more places like this in Edinburgh? Maybe I missed them...
• If you like steak try McKirdy's in Morrison street near haymarket station.They do a cheap menu 5pm-7pm except fri/sat. great value!
• The Marrakech in East London Street (off Broughton Street) is excellent. It's in the basement of a small, family run hotel. The food is great (and cheap), the family have a little living room off the dining room so you can watch TV in arabic if you want to, and BYOB - no corkage charge. A hidden gem.
• For all those poor vegetarians out there: London has several branches of Crank's - one in Leicester Square & another around the corner from Goodge Street Station nr Bloomsbury. I think the Covent Garden Crank's is closed now. If all else fails, try Holland & barrett - a health food store chain throughout England - they have take away & munchies
• The bast mexican restaurant I have ever been to - Mariachi on the shore in leith.
• Parrots restaraunt on Viewforth is the BEST restaraunt I've ever been to! This place is nice and intimate, the staff are extremely friendly, Roger's choice of wines is fantastic, the food is brilliant and very reasonably priced. I cannot praise that place enough! You MUST go there!
• the witchery is SO overrated.
• The chippy just past the Odeon is does excellent deep fried Pizza!!!
• Pigs Bistro. BYOB. Beautifully sensuous food. Across the street from the Pear Tree. Call ahead as it is a wee place.
• Siam Erawan in New Town, Erewan express in Rose street and The new fancy one (Erawan Princess or something I think) on Lower St Andrews street just off the Square are really good for authentic Thai food. If you are going for usual pub food; Nachos,buffalo wings etc the Filling Station on the High Street( Royal Mile) is always a good laugh. The cocktails are pretty good and they don't get arsey if you get loud
• Indian: Suruchi. Chinese: Good Will. Pub: Fire Station or Bennets.
• Rapido - one of the world's only chip shops to stock EXCELLENT veggie food, cooked in veg. oil. Check out the Veggis Cruncheez. Open til 3am.
• Well there is the famous "Mr Bonis" which deals in sweets and the best ice cream in the world. There are three of these that I know of, one on Cockburn Street, one just off the Royal Mile and one up TollCross past the Cameo cinema. They also stock those little sugar mice with the string tails that my mummy used to buy me. Ahhh!
• Try the new Watershed in St Stephens Street, Stockbridge.
• Patisserie Florentine (where I work :}) in St Giles Street and North West Circus Place, Stockbridge. The croissants are excellent (usually), the cakes good but expensive, the service OK (unless I'm on), don't touch the food though.
• City Cafe, THEE original trendy cafe in Edinburgh, quiet during the day.
• Iguana, Bristo Square. Nice interior, good place to relax, WHEN you get served.
• Internet Cafes
  • Cyberia - Frederick Street.
  • Electric frog - Cockburn Street.
  • Web 13, Morrison Street.
  • There is a fourth "cybercafe" in Edinburgh. "Connections" at the top of Colinton Road (Holy Corner end). I'm not too sure about the Cafe bit, but they advertise Doom & Quake.
• Gay
  • Cafe Kudos, Picard Place.
  • Blue Moon, Broughton Street.
  • Eat Out, Broughton Street.
  • Over The Rainbow, Broughton Street.
• Coffee Houses
  • Common Grounds - top of the mound, open till 11pm most nights, very rad atmosphere, go in at nights and if the boss isn't there they will let you play a choice of your CDs. More types of tea than anybody else I've seen, down stairs is rad when nobody is smoking.
  • Negotiants - trendy, sycophantic, atmosphere but if you can suffer beautiful people it can be nice. Banofi pie is a monster - plus it is just opposite Bristo Square and bang next door to Iguana - opens late till 2am on Sunday mornings
  • The Elephant House - George IV bridge - this is nice, sort of a queue rather than be seated and served. Nice interior, nice seats rad - doesn't stay open too late though (10pm I think) but worth a visit.
• Restaurants
  • Nicholsons - Just up the road from the festival theatre off Nicholsons street (walk up north bridge and keep going, on your left). Very rad place to eat if you can suffer the waiters/waitresses (not that they are slow) - they think they are extras from a drama show. Lovely interior, yellow/ blue motif. Food is super nice - try the home made lemonade and limeade. Squid and onion with sea salt tastes good. So does the chicken breast with stuffed Taragon... mmmm
  • Iguana - during the day the food can be rad - go for the pan fried chicken every time. Get pitchers of drink (the pink stuff is nice)
  • Ciao Roma - rad food. Nice place. Nice people.
  • Dial - on the George IV bridge again. This place is fresh. Oooh it's nice. rad furniture - nice food. Staff can be stuffy.
  Now we go up-market
  • The George - do a rad carvery - try Saturday night, one of eat as much as you like - beautiful dining hall, be nice to the maitre de and he'll be nice to you. Posh(ish) The food is a bit hotelly but quite nice for a change. On George Street (the Jenners End).
  • The Brassery - Part of the Forte Caledonian, one of Edinburgh's 5 star hotels. This place is ok but a bit over rated. Nice staff (well you would expect it) but have eaten better... a la carte menu and table dotre. Ok, go once. Your best bet is to go for afternoon tea (or high tea) in the tea room at the Caledonian on a Saturday afternoon, lovely victorian tea hall with a harpist and fresh fruit summer salad (summer only).
  • Carriages - is at the other end of Princess Street from the Caledonian and is part of the Balmoral Hotel. Big HUGE red building can't miss it. Food is still that old hotel food but nice never the less. Don't let the staff intimidate you. Puddings are a bit weak.
  • You will find that the Caledonian Hotel is actually the big red building, while the Balmoral the grey sandstone at the opposite end of Princes Street above Waverly Station. Neither of these do as nice a tea as the Roxburgh Hotel, on George Street. off Charlotte Square.
  TOP SECRET - THESE NEXT TWO RESTAURANTS ARE EXCLUSIVE AND ROCK BUT THEY COST BUCKS
  • Little known and highly exclusive are two restaurants at the top of the Royal Mile. These are just beside the castle. One is called The Witchery and the other is the Secret Garden. Basically they are one restaurant with two rooms (in separate buildings). The Witchery is candle lit and has pentagrams on the wall and a really eerie feel to it but the food (as with both restaurants) is excellent. Probably the best restaurants in Edinburgh. The atmosphere is amazing.
    [But:] I'd correct your bit about the Witchery. We took the suggestion and were terribly disappointed. A waitstaff by the name of "John" had a sucky attitude because we did not order a bottle of wine. My mother-in-law (age 74) ordered an Irish coffee and he copped a big attitude! Then when I wanted a glass of wine he got ANOTHER attitude. It was my birthday and the whole mood he gave us wrecked my day. My first trip to Scotland too. (I'm from Chicago, where people are MUCH cooler... I think our bill was something like £150+, not worth it for the shitty service!)
  • Total contrast is the Secret Garden which is a beautiful place with a large conservatory-like structure with plenty of light and a different but still rad atmosphere. Make a special effort to go to these places and you won't be disappointed.
• Other excellent restaurants (known mainly to locals) are Skipper's Bistro and The Waterfront Wine Bar, both in Leith, and The Doric Tavern (above the Hebrides Bar around the corner from Waverley Station, next to the City Art Centre, which is also very good).
• The cafe in the Flower Market Gallery (I think) does the best baguettes with goat's cheese and aubergines and the like.
• The Terrace in the Sheraton Grand hotel is good if your feeling a bit rich and hungry. Good for students if you haven't eaten for a whole week because for two courses it costs about £14 and you can eat as much as you like, and that means go back to the buffet/carvery as many times as you like and that means having everyone of about six different main courses on offer and either, starter or sweet (lots to choose from) I had about five different types. It's fairly casual but you'd look better in a nice pair of pants lads and a nice shirt. Go in a big group and happy eating!!!
• The Grain Store on Victoria Street is ace if you're feeling flush. Impresses the Mums and Dads when you forgot to make a reservation at The Witchery for the graduation meal. Staff are friendly, and scatty in a nice way. For a top Chinese meal, go to The Orchid (off Lothian Road) and get the banquet for 4. Couldnae beat it wi' a big stick. The City Cafe does excellent Hot Chocolate....AND you can get a Tunnocks Caramel Wafer to go with it. Bliss.
• The Witchery in Edinburgh is indeed a rare find. I have long admired it, from afar, in my student days. Although my groom booked our honeymoon night into Malmaison, Glasgow (very good food also), I got my wish the second night - eating the Witchery Secret Garden & staying in the Witchery suite. Food & service was wonderful. Witchery suite was well worth the price ! Try the multi-way shower.

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