Sam Yorke and Tom Hagger's Henderson Street kitchen in Leith Edinburgh, Michelin-starred from 2024, an open-pass small-plates room on the Water of Leith.
Must order: Whatever is landed at Scrabster that morning; the menu changes daily.
Tip: Counter seats face the open pass; ask at booking. Bar counter takes four walk-up seats from 18:00.
Address: 87-91 Henderson Street, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6ED
Stuart Ralston's 14-seat tasting counter on The Shore in Leith, opened 2024 and Michelin-starred within twelve months, a fixed-sequence kitchen.
Order: The tasting menu is the only option; no a la carte, no choice.
Tip: Counter seats numbers 1 and 14 face the open pass directly. Booking opens 60 days ahead at 10:00 GMT.
Stuart Ralston's 14-seat tasting counter on The Shore in Leith, opened 2024 and Michelin-starred within twelve months, a fixed-sequence kitchen.
Order: The tasting menu is the only option; no a la carte, no choice.
Tip: Counter seats numbers 1 and 14 face the open pass directly. Booking opens 60 days ahead at 10:00 GMT.
Conor Toomey's Marchmont neighbourhood tasting kitchen on Salisbury Place in Edinburgh, Michelin-starred since 2020, a no-choice seven-course menu in a 20-seat.
Order: The fixed seven-course tasting menu; the only option, the only ask is dietary requirements.
Tip: Bookings open 60 days ahead at 10:00 GMT; the whole month sells in under an hour. Set a calendar alarm.
Mark Donald's basement dining room at The Balmoral on Princes Street, Michelin-starred from 2003 to 2024 and still running fine-dining service.
Order: The seasonal tasting menu; the chef's table takes six guests by 14-day request.
Tip: Lunch sittings include a four-course at GBP 55, half the dinner price. The Bollinger Bar upstairs takes walk-ins.
James Thomson's heritage dining room at the top of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, opened in 1979 inside Boswell's Court, the city's grand-occasion fine-dining.
Order: The Witchery Theatre menu of three courses at GBP 50 before 18:30 or after 22:00, the only value play.
Tip: Ask for The Secret Garden, the second dining room down the stairs; the candlelit version of the experience.
Scott Smith and Laura Smith's Broughton Street kitchen in Edinburgh, opened in 2018, a foraging-led set-menu room running 7 or 10 courses on Scottish wild produce.
Order: The full Discover ten-course tasting menu; the Taste shorter version is half the courses at two-thirds the price.
Tip: Non-alcoholic pairing is house-fermented juices made in the kitchen; one of the best in the city.
Stuart Ralston's Garden Room kitchen inside the Kimpton Charlotte Square in Edinburgh, opened 2014 and relocated in 2020, a no-choice market-driven tasting.
Order: The six-course harvest tasting menu changed weekly; lunch is GBP 45 for four courses.
Tip: The hotel terrace takes walk-ins for a glass of fizz before service; smart casual.
