Lunch with friends on a Sunday. Historical bar ..lovelt inside, stain glass panelling. Food was delicious, seafood especially. Our waiter was great. Is attached to thr main Cafe Royal bar which is buzzy, a great rendezvous place and also serves food.
On a cold wet night approaching 10pm when so many of the restaurants were closed - we retraced our path from 30 years ago - and found the Cafe Royal still open.
Amazing ambiance, excellent food, knowledgable staff - this was a special experience.
Introduced to a new whisky Glengoyne 10 year old by our waiter.
Highly recommended - we will return next time we are in the city
We arrived into Edinburgh thirsty and famished and stopped in for a pint. Very busy on the pub side, but finally found room at the bar and decided to order dinner there. Fast service. Seafood (oysters, fish cakes) were superb. Burgers good too. Lively atmosphere. Can't go wrong. Popular place, a bit out of the way.
Really nice atmosphere; cool high ceiling bar, good drinks, great staff. Hard to describe; like a pub, but better. Really nailed the cafe concept & culture. Go get some oysters down you!
Love it. I love this place. I've been coming up to Edinburgh for a year now and always try and go by for a drink or the excellent mussels. Even though it's right in the centre of town you don't see tourists, just lots of locals looks for a good drink and somewhere nice to eat.
Delicious scottish seafood was our first meal in Edinburgh. Great service too!
Once again first night in Edinburgh and headed here straight off the boat (or bus in my case) after a recommendation. The place was very busy which boded well. Only stayed for a few drinks but it was nice to see a good selection of local ales. Unfortunately can't remember the one I had however it came from a bartender recommendation. I requested a lighter ale and it was spot on.
Impressive service and a really nice venue. Will be back to try the food before I leave.
Cafe Royal is within a couple of hundred meters from Waverly station, but tucked away in a side street and easy to find if you are looking for it. The place was quite crowded when I went there around 9pm on a weekday. There was a wait to get to the bar, and seating was difficult to find, but the restaurant section was relatively less crowded. They have an extensive selection of beverages and the restaurant served up some excellent food. The oysters, seafood platter, scallops and the steak were excellent and worth the visit.
Gorgeous place full of character and in a beautiful building.
We shared the seafood platter which was great and then had fish and chips and seafood pie.
Service was a little slow but they were very busy and staff maybe a little under trained but other than that the place was wonderful.
If you're lucky enough to attend on a Sunday for a session, Grace will be behind the counter waiting to serve you with a smile, her friendly happy disposition will put you at ease, nothing is a trouble for her. As you sit back with a pint of your favourite you will bask in the beautiful surrounds that takes you back in time, this is the Cafe Royal, do not miss this place. It is a must on your travels. Highly recommend.
Really like their mussel. It's has a very nice flavour excited by the combination of herbs but not covering the original taste of the mussel itself. I also ordered some oyster, it's fresh and tasty, the price is not too high since the portion is large.
Had a great experience here! Stood around awkwardly for the first 5+ minutes after arriving for our reservation, waiting to find someone to greet us. Once seated, service in the Oyster Room was great and food was lovely. Oysters, red wine topped Bloody Mary, crab bisque linguini (sadly did not detect even a hint of crab though), and haggis sandwich with chips.
Great atmosphere. Not eating shellfish I thought there would be nothing for me. But there was a selection of delicious vegan and vegetarian dishes. So you can enjoy the special decor and eat very well even if oysters mussels and other crustaceans are not for you.
We had arancini, vege burger and spinach snd peas barley risotto with vegan ricotta. All superb.
We were recommended this place and it did not disappoint. It is on the more expensive side but not too bad. Loved our server, he was friendly, gave us meal recommendations and was able to have a little chat.
We both got the fish and chips which was good. Came with a pickle ketchup, tartar sauce and peas liquor but I also asked for regular ketchup. You could tell the food was freshly made. and we ordered the sticky toffee pudding- this was to die for! It’s pretty sweet but that’s my jam so if you like sweet things- get it!
On top of the food and friendly staff dressed impeccably, you have the look of the pub which is so richly decorated and adorned. Since it was Rugby weekend and the game was on, the bar the front area was full and we were almost seated at the bar but in the end we were seated in the back and it was quiet there with just a couple tables filled. Very beautiful.
Good looks, good food, good service, good times!
Excellent Fish and Chips, with freshly fried chips (fresh, not frozen) and also cheaper than other pubs.
Do yourself a favour, do not waste your time by going to Bertie's. Come here instead and treat yourself!
This restaurant is located in a quiet side street in the city centre. The building itself is also historic, and opulently decorated inside. The staff are polite and very well-presented. The food is classic British/European, with an emphasis on fresh seafood options. The portions were very generous, with two of my party unable to finish their starters or mains. The drinks menu is interesting in that, rather than having a cocktails list, they have a huge list of spirits and mixers, from which you can create your own drinks. Many of the options were interesting varieties/flavours I hadn’t seen elsewhere before. It’s not a cheap restaurant, but certainly worth it for special occasion meals.
Our favorite meal in Edinburgh! Delicious seafood tower and oysters. The sandwiches were amazing as well. This little gem is tucked away and the interior is classic and gorgeous.
What a beautiful pub! I have never seen the like. Beautiful stained glass everywhere. Wonderful back bars. The place was quite inviting and very comfortable. However, our Server was very curt to us. Whenever we asked her for anything she would make a face like we were bothering her. All the other servers were pleasant. That's why I'm giving a 5 star review. When the bill came our server said that the tip was included. I said "oh well that makes sense you don't even have to be nice and you still get a tip." Haha! Food was good but very mild in flavor. I would go there again.
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