The Orchard

Amazing incredible service!!! I still think about the gorgeous beef cheek and mash meal. The sticky toffee dessert was to die for. And the deep fried haggis just delectable. Highly highly recommend!

Pretty standard looking pub from the outside but one that has a pretty good menu with something for everyone. Never been disappointed when we have had food here. Family and friends are regulars here also for a bite to eat.

Best food in Edinburgh. The Orchard is quite simply my favourite restaurant in Edinburgh and I would urge everyone to try it. The food is exceptional from modern roast dinners, to souffle, to venison in chocolate and cherry gravy. All with a modern take and all very, very good. The staff are really helpful and the ambience is great, very chilled. There's a good range of types of spirits, beer etc. The place itself is bright and sunny, but for me the real winner is the food. In a city with so many excellent restaurants, the Orchard stands out as one of the best. I'm reluctant to let others know because it will get over-run once it's more widely discovered but it deserves to be. No one I have taken there has ever been disappointed. A real gem.

Food perfection with service to match. Originally reviewed on www.edinburghspotlight.com

The Orchard Bar is a fabulous bar and restaurant near to the Botanic Gardens and Canonmills. It's stylish and welcoming and the best the premises has been over the years of changed ownership.
Although it's primarily a bar, I attended for the restaurant quality food at reasonable prices, having sampled its sister restaurant, Avoca in Stockbridge, on many occasions.
What I love about the Orchard is that you never have to leave your seat (apart from bathroom breaks) as everything, including drinks are brought to your table.
We were in no rush the day we dined, had left the car at home, and ready for 3 courses. After ordering our food, we saw a neighbouring table being served one of the sandwiches on a slate plate which looked delicious, so also a place for a quick business lunch.
For start, my dining partner opted for the Arbroath smokie pate, with seasonal leaves and toast (£6) whilst I opted for the grilled goats cheese on toasted brioche with seasonal leaves and red onions, confit and pesto dressing, £5.
Both of the starters were beautifully presented, a theme which occurred for the rest of the meal. The pate was extremely flavoursome and the toast, a perfect accompaniment along with the salad.
The goats cheese was melt in the mouth quality over the hot brioche with the red onions making a wonderful combination.
I drank a lovely glass of pinot grigio at £3.75 whilst my dining partner sampled a few of the ales and lagers on offer. For main course, we both opted for the Cockburn's black pudding with Ayrshire bacon, poached egg and hollandaise sauce (£10).
The black pudding was extremely flavoursome and the combination of the bacon salad and poached egg was delicious. Throughout our meal, the service was attentive and we were asked if everything was to our liking and replied 'yes, it's delicious'. Our drinks were refilled smoothly and enough time left between courses.
For dessert, we opted for the chocolate and marscapone cheesecake with Baileys ice cream and the pear and almond tart with vanilla pod ice cream, both £5.
Again, both of the dishes were beautifully presented and tasted as good as they looked. The cheesecake was nothing short of perfect with the ice cream and fruit compote refreshing on the side and a break from the chocolate high. The pear and almond tart was served warm and beautifully baked with the almond flavour wonderful. Both of these desserts were simply divine, as did the the others on the menu look.
More drinks followed after dessert and we were never rushed to leave. I can't recommend the service and quality of food in this place enough and beats its' sister Avoca in my eyes.

The Orchard had long been on our list for a visit when we were reminded of it, recently, when asked if we knew places that served Cockburn’s of Dingwall haggis. As far as we could work out, this is the only place to do so, in Edinburgh, so if that’s your haggis of choice, this is the place for you.

The Orchard’s interior is lovely, with elegant stained glass windows, delightful cornicing, and stylish lighting features. It’s a lovely pub environment.

Their menu is in gastropub territory. Their version of steak pie is steak and merlot, for example. I opted for their soup of the day, which was cauliflower, parsnip and honey, then followed with a pork and chorizo burger.

I’d been toying with the idea of cauliflower and parsnip as a combination, the other day, but shied away from it, as I really liked both flavours, separately. This soup was very well made, but I’m not sold on the flavour combination. Still, this was accomplished cooking.

The main course burger was similarly good. For a chorizo burger it lacked the expected punch, but it was lovely and juicy and the roll had good integrity. The accompanying cheese and salad were a bit of a non-event, but again, it was a good quality item.

The accompanying chips, in the chip shop style, were the highlight of the meal, with just the right balance between crispness and softness.

So overall, The Orchard was rather good. It didn’t quite wow me, as I couldn’t help but feel that some of the corners had been unnecessarily smoothed, bringing refinement where gutsy boldness would have been a better fit. Only with the chips, where flavours were left to run free, untrammelled, did things really hit home. But I admire what they’re doing, though, so I’d be happy to point you in their direction, next time you’re looking for a good pub feed.

Scores
Blythe scores the Orchard
3.5/5 for food
3.5/5 for presentation
4/5 for setting
3.5/5 for service
giving an overall 14.5/20

I ate: cauliflower, parsnip and honey soup; chorizo burger

I drank: Schiehallion

I wore: rainwear

Total bill: £15.65

We had the fish sandwich, the steak sandwich and the fantastic onion rings. The food was good, but the service from Christopher was great.

We had a great time in The Orchard. The food was good and the service professional. I liked the atmosphere of the place, cozy, old and new at the same time. The staff was kind and chatty. I'd like to return to this restaurant for another meal and cask ale. Bye

Perfect. Genuine homemade taste, fabulous ingredient quality, great drinks and local atmosphere. Absolutely 12/10 no complaints whatsoever

I really enjoyed my experience here. The waitress was really nice, and she recommended the steak pie. I enjoyed the meal along with my pint of coke.

Good straightforward menu, not much in the way of vegetables, but I understand that's because most people don't eat much in the way of vegetables. Service was great. Was rather loud, partly because of table behind us, clearly that was just or bad luck, but then they put the rugby on and it felt loud to us. So that was Saturday night, maybe try another time if you want a quiet meal where you can hear each other.