Timberyard

Dos melhores restaurantes da minha vida, se não o melhor! Adorei todos os pratos e o facto de, muito simpaticamente, os empregados terem deixado uma nota escrita na mesa a meu pedido.
Fui agradavelmente surpreendido por tudo, mesmo na casa-de-banho, onde se ouve um som de tempestade que relaxa e ajuda a “desaguar”.

I'd bookmarked Timberyard for a very long time and we finally visited the restaurant for lunch one day. I was very taken by the industrial and minimal decor as well as its earthy feel - I believe the place was a timeberyard in the days gone by. The service was friendly and very attentive. We chose the plaice and quail for our starters and they were beautifully presented and exquisite in taste. The attention to detail was spot on. For our mains, I chose the hake and husband went for pork. Again, incredibly tasty and perfectly cooked. We shared dessert which was the cherry, meadowsweet and crow die creation - absolutely stunning. My cocktail was truly amazing too. I know I've used so many cliches in this review but it simply cannot be helped when you are served some amazing food and drink. An Edinburgh must do!

I am in love with the deco of this place, rustic barn like feel. The service was on point and so kind on understanding I couldn't eat any pork or ham. I tried and 8 course set and it went from me okay to amazing especially the main course and desserts.

I've come over all pink for Timberyard - this food is heartbreaking stuff, and I'm smitten. DO NOT leave Edinburgh without visiting - although do book in advance, as I'm afraid the secret's out.

On a Friday evening the place was buzzing. The staff are lovely – knowledgeable and enthusiastic. We tuck into the 4 course set menu featuring small, medium and large courses and desert. For £22 this is very good value. On a lunchtime, the place was quieter and my guest and I opted for two dishes from the a la carte. All the dishes we ate were fresh and delicious. Firm favourites were definitely the jellied ham and the beetroot. The list of drinks is very tempting. It reminds me a little of the drinks menu at Mark Hix in Soho. He too features local ingredients and local drinks. I was very impressed by a non-alcoholic cocktail devised for me.

It’s early days, and the heating is being sorted out, but what’s not to love about a place that has warm Scottish blankets to snuggle up in. I was rather disconcerted by the sounds in the loos which I took to be a dungeon with dripping water – apparently not so, just fermenting wine. One thing I hope will change is the black type on brown paper for the menus, rather difficult to read!

If you’re looking for a friendly welcome and great food. You know where to go!

The Preview

There are some places you walk into and just feel comfortably at home. Walking into Timberyard there’s also a palpable sense of excitement. Just a week before the soft opening, Andrew Radford shows me round his new restaurant.

Those of you with long memories, might remember the wood shop on Lady Lawson Street, and those of you with even longer memories may know it was once prop store for the Royal Lyceum Theatre. The building, dating back to 1895 is now being transformed by the Radford family – literally. There have been sightings of Andrew bustling about the neighbourhood dressed in his “blues” and all the family has been pitching in with the refurbishment. It’s a real family affair.

The focus for the new venue is quality local produce, traceability, simple delicious food and the highest standards of service. It will be open all day, from morning coffee, through a casual lunch to a late supper.

I suppose it can be a kind of cliché for a restaurant these days to emphasise they will use small local producers and sustainable fish. But don’t forget the Radfords were pioneers back in 1993 when they opened the Atrium to great acclaim in 1993. They quickly gained a reputation at the forefront of the revival of the Scottish restaurant scene. Awards included frequent prizes for Edinburgh’s best restaurant and the industry’s Catey for newcomer of the year. Andrew himself who started out on the Royal Scotsman train, won Scottish Chef of the Year, Egon Ronay’s Chef of the Year and a second Catey for Restaurateur of the Year. Blue was opened in 1997 to offer a more informal dining experience.

The kitchen is large with a huge amount of natural light, which will be the envy of many a professional chef in Edinburgh. It will be run by Ben Radford. He and his team have worked in many of Scotland’s top restaurants including Monachyl Mhor and Andrew Fairlie. Ben’s also recently done a stint at St John’s in London. His team will do all the butchery in house and bake all their bread. Ben is joined by brother Jo who will be running the bar and assisting with management and sister Abi, responsible for social media and photography.

Andrew shows me the courtyards where they will in time, grow their own crops and smoke their own produce. In fine weather, guests will be able to sit out at and enjoy the sun whilst supping. There’s also a private dining space for 12 just off the terrace. There are lovely touches throughout, here some items salvaged from the Atrium and Blue, wooden doors and windows that harmonise with the old brick; there wood burning stoves which will toast us nicely – all very relaxing. I think long Sunday brunches there will become a great favourite.

One Blue regular summed it up

“Blue was the sort of place you could eat in as a singleton or go with a crowd or the family, you always felt welcome”

Welcome back the Radfords.

Timberyard is such a niche place sort of hidden away up the west end..behind the castle.

I love places that shows off it's unique style and family run. This place used to be a garage and was tranformed into a stylish urban restaurant. It is quirky and so enjoyable to dine in. They use candle wax and melt them doing designs of cool features.
Their menu is great and it seems to have some seasonal changes. You just got to try it for yourself. I highly suggest booking in advance as they are busy from lunch time through to closing.

Their open plan layout gives you a great hustle and bustle feeling but doesnt mean you cant do intimate dinner. :)

I cant wait to go back again

My boyfriend and I visited TIMBERYARD in August for a 30th birthday celebration. It was our first experience eating in a Michelin star restaurant and it did not disappoint. The service was impeccable; friendly, knowledgeable and not at all pretentious. We had a slight time limit as we had a Fringe show to get to. We informed them of this and they ensured we had the full tasting course experience, without feeling rushed at all. They helped us choose a fantastic bottle of wine from their extensive menu, giving us tasters of a couple after we provided our taste preferences. The food was a unique combination of flavours that worked incredibly well. Each dish had a clear theme, all locally sourced and considered. They adapted the tasting menu to our preference (I don’t eat shellfish and my boyfriend is allergic to chocolate) without any fuss. The flavours were still spot on. We were recommended TIMBERYARD from a few people, and now will share the recommendation! We hope to visit again in the future. Thanks to all the staff who made our experience so special

Friday 21st July. Thank you very much for the experience. My tongue and palate rejoiced. The kitchen certainly excelled. The paired soft drinks were a surprise. The service made me curious to look behind the scenes. Wishing you long lasting success.

The venue is stunning and has a warm and cosy atmosphere. The outside doesn't look like much but then it's surprisingly grand inside. Really appreciated the log burner and real candles, felt very welcoming. The food was incredible; my favourite course was the scallop course, closely followed by the dessert. Each course was a delight. What I did not appreciate was that we had to wait 45 minutes until we had a drink on the table. We were even served our first course before our wine. We were early and there weren't many guests at that time either. I would expect better service from a Michelin star restaurant. Lastly, it would have been nicer if we had one allocated waiter and not 7 different ones for each time someone attended the table. Hopefully, this will be taken as the constructive feedback that it's meant to be.

Amazing fine dining in an openly hewn setting with a focus on local Scottish ingredients. The chef elevates and layers flavors beyond their simple menu descriptions. The set-menu is perfectly sequenced to balance the light and heavy flavors with portions that do not overwhelm your sense of appetite. You will remember what you ate at Timberyard, not how much you ate— which is a sign of a confident and skilled chef. And another sign of skill and confidence is the available soft pairing; which takes as much skill to do properly as any wine pairing. I do recommend both the soft and wine pairings to complement the full set-menu. A must-try if you are in Edinburgh. Reserve well in advance.

Had an amazing special occasion dinner including the paired softdrinks. The experience was great and service on point. Food was so good with interesting seasonal combinations. One small negative point, most of the staff are very soft spoken and the music on the loud side so could only hear part of the explanation for each dish.