8 Best Edinburgh Restaurants Offering Takeaways

A visit to Edinburgh isn’t complete without indulging in some delectable food. As the city begins to find its way through the coronavirus epidemic, Edinburgh restaurants rise to the challenge of social distancing, getting creative with takeaway menus and collections. We’re thrilled to be teaming up with local food and restaurant guide Bite magazine to share some of the best Edinburgh has on offer for summer 2020.

Kirsty, please… take it away!

When we welcomed the start of a new year, who could have imagined that it would turn out to be so incredibly difficult? Businesses, including Edinburgh’s restaurants, have had to keep up with quickly changing circumstances by offering takeaway menus, for one.

This adaptive trend is taking off across Edinburgh and we’re certainly pleased to enjoy meals from some of our local favourites at home. So, without further ado, here are eight to enjoy from the comfort of home.

1. Merienda

Located: 30 North West Circus Place, Edinburgh EH3 6TP

Website: eat-merienda.com

Stroll the cobbled streets of North West Circus Place and you’ll come across Mediterranean-inspired eatery Merienda. Part of the ethos of the restaurant (pre-lockdown that is) was communal dining: the ability to pick and choose small plates to share. This allowed you to try a few things on the menu rather than one main meal, in a sense creating your own tasting menu. Right now, however, the restaurant is offering full-sized options from a specially curated social distancing menu, including wine from European producers and artisan cheese from IJ Mellis.

2. Wedgwood the Restaurant

Located: 267 Canongate, Royal Mile, Edinburgh EH8 8BQ

Website: wedgwoodtherestaurant.co.uk

When founder and chef Paul Wedgwood started Wedgwood the Restaurant in 2007, it may have been tricky to imagine creating his French- and Scottish-inspired dishes for home deliveries. Along with his wife Lisa, Paul set up the fine dining restaurant (hidden on the Canongate towards the bottom end of the Royal Mile) with the idea of creating the perfect night out in Edinburgh. But, given current circumstances, that perfect night out is now actually a night in. The menu, which focuses on using fresh and seasonal ingredients, is updated every week and launches at 5pm on Mondays for delivery or collection over the weekend.

3. The Gardener’s Cottage

Located: 1 Royal Terrace Gardens, London Road EH7 5DX

Website: thegardenerscottage.co

Normally, this Edinburgh restaurant is based in what was previously a – you guessed it – gardener’s cottage, which dates back to 1836. In line with its name, veggie patches outside provided ingredients for the dishes, while inside, guests sat on either side of long communal tables seating up to 10.

Fast-forward a few months into 2020. In a twist on the standard takeaway menu, you can now order boxes of ingredients, including fruit, vegetables and eggs, to recreate the meals at home (there’s an online journal for recipe ideas). And, if you don’t fancy cooking, the constantly changing menu is available online. After all, as Diane Spencer explains of the ingredients boxes for Bite magazine: “the combination of flavours worked well, but the dish seemed to be lacking something, a Michelin-recommended chef perhaps.” 

4. Harajuku Kitchen

Located: 10 Gillespie Place, Edinburgh EH10 4HS

Website: harajukukitchen.co.uk

Harajuku Kitchen, the Bruntsfield-based Japanese bistro, is a sushi staple in the city and, to their credit, was one of the first eateries in Edinburgh to adapt to the takeaway trend. The online menu includes a variety of sushi, noodles, set mains (with miso soup and rice), sake and Japanese beer. The team’s focus is very much on respect for the ingredients used as well as their flavours.

On a side note, Harajuku Kitchen has teamed up with Social Bite to help feed those who need a meal. If you’d like to get involved, all you need to do is add £2 to your bill and it will go towards a food pack for Scotland’s vulnerable.

5. The McLarens Market Corner

Located: 8 Morningside Road, Edinburgh EH10 4DD

Wedsite: mclarensonthecorner.co.uk

This newcomer on the Edinburgh foodie scene is a collaboration with some of the Edinburgh restaurants: Cold Town House for pizza, Copper Blossom for cocktails and craft beer, Cold Town Beer, Kyloe for Sunday roasts and The Huxley (scran including burgers, loaded fries and dogs, served from a silver trailer). While they recommend you order online first, you can also show up at either collection point – one for drinks and the other for pizza – or the “Scranavan” for your choice of takeaways. Wooden benches are spaced out in the courtyard in anticipation of the beer gardens reopening and are ideal for a casual lunch one summer day.

6. Mia Italian Kitchen

Located: 96 Dalry Road, Edinburgh EH11 2AX & 394 Morningside Road, Edinburgh EH10 5HX

Website: mia-restaurant.co.uk

The ethos of family-owned Mia Italian Kitchen is simple: welcoming service is essential, along with fresh food, great coffee and a carefully selected wine list. The pizzeria, usually open in Dalry and Morningside, has now crafted an online menu for delivery in the city, including Italian favourites such as focaccia, risotto and of course, pizza – we’re eyeing out the Vegetariana along with a bottle of pinot grigio. And go …

7. Contini

Located: 103 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 3ES

Website: contini.com

In 2004, third-generation Italian duo Victor and Carina Contini saw the potential to open a restaurant on George Street, drawing on their Italian heritage in the process. “Our grandparents were great friends and lived very close to each other in two tiny hamlets … between Rome and Naples,” says Carina of her and Victor. Both families moved over to Scotland in the early 1900s, selling ice cream, fish and chips (not necessarily together), as did many Italian migrants at the time.

“These cafes became the hubs and the meeting places for local communities. We are very proud to continue this tradition, with the same values and sense of community.” That includes using local, sustainable ingredients. The couple can call on a little black book of Scottish suppliers, while their garden keeps the kitchen in herbs, vegetables and berries. And, keeping up with the current climate, this George Street eatery is now offering an online menu, serving Italian- and Scottish-inspired dishes to try at home, including a ravioli menu and a cozze menu, or you can compile your own.

8. Keep Edinburgh Thriving

Delivered to your door

Website: keepedinburghthriving.com

Aside from the move towards takeaways, it’s become even more important to support local businesses, given the current financial insecurity for owners. Because of this, founder Robbie Allen set up Keep Edinburgh Thriving to support independent stores during lockdown. Essentially, Robbie collaborates with shops and the hospitality industry to compile gift boxes, which are then delivered free of charge every Friday and Saturday across the city. 

Take the Quarantini Box, as an example: working with revolving bars and restaurants, each consists of one beer and two cocktails, or two beers and six cocktails, plus sweets from The Little Parlour in South Queensferry. Read more about the concept on the Bite website.

If you’re staying in a Dickins home, you can enjoy these Edinburgh restaurants and many more. Our self catering apartments are fully equipped to enjoy a meal or take away from home and with delicious dining mentioned above, you may never want to leave!

A summer exclusive self catering home

A big thank you to our guest blogger

Kirsty Wilkins is a freelance reviewer for Bite magazine and an account executive, writer and editor. The Capetonian moved to Edinburgh in 2017 and considers herself both proudly South African and a self-proclaimed Scot. She’s also a fan of reading, photography, travelling, Etsy, red lipstick and Edinburgh restaurants of course.