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Alba Bistro

3.8 (19 reviews)
InexpensiveBistros

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Traditional Scottish meat pie and Fish & chips

The staff are so friendly and helpful. We came here around 8pm and we were able to grab the last table. Food is excellent. Large portions and very reasonable prices. It was across from our hotel, Apex which is so convenient. I ordered the traditional meat pie and fish and chips. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Scotland cheeseburger
Erica C.

4/7/2023. Starting at 3 stars. They have sitting inside and outside. Decided to hit a place that had a little bit of everything. Pizza, burgers to UK specials. More to come. We ordered 2 Scottish beef cheeseburgers and 1 Scottish Beef Pie with Mash. Everything was very good and were surprised. The Beef Pie was very flavorful and super hot to eat. Out for less then $45 pounds for 3 persons and an apple cider. Enjoy the photos. Also, there are no heaters outside if you eat and will freeze after 6pm. Eat inside.

Brian R.

Meat pie and haggis burger rock. Kebab slathered in sauce a fail. Pizza a big fail. Open later than most which was its appeal. Won't kill ya, won't thrill ya.

Mixed kebabs

Came to Edinburgh for 10 days and have eaten here three times. We tried the Fish and Chips, Pizza, and kebabs. The restaurant is clean, food is amazing and the service could not have been better. Berçem took excellent care of us each time. 10 out of 10.

Gurleen K.

Great experience here! I got the Scottish breakfast and although I've never had one before, I thought it tasted great! The atmosphere was nice and the service was fantastic!

Scottish salmon and fish and chips.
Lard Belly E.

For the amount of bars and bistros on Grassmarket it was surprisingly hard to find a place to eat that was comfortable and served food. We found a table outside and were promptly sat and watered. I ordered the Scottish salmon which was grilled and served with chips and salad. Sister ordered the fish and chips. We both really liked the meal and service. At about 10PM the chairs were getting stacked and the ground swept, but the manager was assuring us we could take our time. It's some kind of law that outside eating had to end at a specific time. As for the food I really enjoyed it, and found the salmon to be perfectly grilled and still moist. That's the toss-up with places, you're never sure how well they cook seafood. My sister's fish was nicely breaded and fried, not overdone. We were pleased and went on our way. Wikipedia says the salmon was farmed, which was a first for me. Being from AK I've been very fortunate to have only wild salmon, whether it's fresh or frozen. Would still recommend the dish since I thought it was very well prepared and tasty.

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3 years ago

I would recommend another of the many grass market restaurants. The food was not comparable to other good bistros in the area.

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Review Highlights - Alba Bistro

We went with the Mediterranean theme, enjoying the lamb kebabs, hummus, and feta salad.

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Bell's Diner

Bell's Diner

(31 reviews)

££

Stockbridge, New Town

This was a fun and tasty stop on our journey. We arrived a little before 6 pm on a Friday evening…read morewithout a reservation. We were greeted warmly and the hostess was able to just fit us in before a crush of reserved tables. Lucky for us because our meal was delicious and un-rushed.

I really would have loved to write a better review, but if I did I'd be lying, and I just can't…read morelie. Came in on a Friday night super excited for a burger- my partner and I had been waiting for this all week! At 7pm the place was already full, but we were told if we could wait a few minutes a table would be available. So after some back and forth debtate, we decided to wait it out. This establishment is small, I don't think it could seat more than 20 people. There are about 6 tables, all in close proximity. Service was decent and we both just opted for the classic burger and fries combination. The food came out not long after and it really wasn't anything to be amazed by, I could have made this burger at home. Fried were good but you know, fries are always good. Nothing proprietary here. What I absolutely hated was the communal sauces concept- the whole idea just seems unhygienic and gross to me. There were a variety of sauces given to each table on a large platter, shared from table to table to have with your meal. One of the tubs was a tiny scraping of mayonnaise the other table had but we were given the rest of to finish- ugh, gross. Overall quite underwhelming and did not hit the spot. I'm sure there are better burger joints around where you don't have to share the sauce. I wouldn't return and I'm really disappointed- I was hoping to add this one to the list of local faves.

Buffalo Grill - A must try, steak with the killer blue cheese sauce.

Buffalo Grill

(5 reviews)

££

Newington

I came back and had to try the steaks, after watching them go by last time I was in. Coll, my…read moreaffable host for the evening suggested I try the blue cheese rump steak, and boy am I glad I did. I'm normally not one for long reviews, but in this case it's merited :) It has to be one of the best steaks I have had in Edinburgh, and almost matching up to Black and Blue in Vancouver (a compliment I would toss out lightly), I just managed to resist the urge to lick the plate to get the last of the rich blue cheese sauce. Totally worth checking out next time you have the urge to eat steak :) Was out and about looking for somewhere to check out for dinner, and Yelp suggested dropping in here. Very glad I did :) Burger deliciousness, they are giving Bread Meats Bread and Burger Meats Bun a run for their money. They recently renovated I was told. Very nice, friendly service, and a great burger, will have to stop back to check out the steaks I saw going by :)

Being so close to the main University campus, I'd walked past the pre-revamp Buffalo Grill many…read moretimes, but had always been put off by the shabby decor. Now though, the place looks fantastic with a relaxed Southwestern vibe, some quirky accessories and enough cool grey paint to keep the whole thing from feeling too kitsch. We ate the ribs and wings to start which were great (particularly the wings - perfectly chargrilled) and then both had the Boss Hog burger as our main, myself on a chicken fillet, my partner on a traditional beef burger. Both were great - well cooked and with just the right amount of juiciness. The service we received was attentive without being overbearing - no mean feat as the restaurant was deserted when we first arrived. Overall a great experience, and it's definitely worth checking out if you're in the area!

New York Steam Packet - from official website

New York Steam Packet

(13 reviews)

££

New Town

Love this place have eaten here more than a dozen times in the last year. Its BYOB…read more If your an American longing for a taste of home you have to have the burger it is as good as it gets. Personally my normal order is Mussels (amazingly fresh, im told they delivered for each service fresh from the Shetlands), Steak (great sirloin) with garlic butter, its served with chips and salad and unless I miss lunch i struggle to finish. For desert theres three sugar rich options of dime bar cake, pecan pie or chococlate fudge. Im a chocolate fan so my decision is easy :) Try it its worth it :)

Whoa. What a place. I honestly didn't think Edinburgh was cool enough to have places like this…read moretucked away down back-alleys. You just keep surprising me, Edinburgh. I was desperate to try this New York Steam Packet for months, mostly because I pawed my way through the photo album of the elite event hosted here back in 2011 and I was jealous of how good the night looked. Thems burgers! Theys tater skins! That staircase! I've been a few times now. I say again, what a place! The first few times I was just blown away by the food, the price and the atmosphere, but now I know New York Steam Packet's glorious hidden secret: they have a Mariokart Nintendo 64 hooked up to a projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Mariokart. Nintendo 64. Projector. Yep, this now my FAVOURITE restaurant in the entire United Kingdom. The staff were SO nice they let me win every race in the Mushroom Cup. The food was SO good I didn't even gloat too hard when I won every race in the Mushroom Cup.

Filling Station - Entrance

Filling Station

(7 reviews)

££

New Town

This was the most disgusting food I've ever had in my entire life. The fried chicken on my sandwich…read morelooked like a foreign blob because the fried part was dripping in grease and fell off of the chicken when I picked it up. I don't generally write yelp reviews but had to come on here and warn everyone to stay away from this restaurant. I ate half of my sandwich and threw it up when I arrived home. My mother also got very ill from her wrap which consisted of 99% of a strange cheese and 1% lettuce and peppers. The fries were freezing cold (which doesn't really bother me but I just wanted to add that in here in case it would bother you.) The Mac and cheese was also disgusting and inedible. I planned to throw it away but gave it to a homeless man instead. He said it was horrible and he hadn't eaten in three days so that really says something.

After seeing the horrific wait for a table at Nando's down the hall (queue out the door!) We…read moredecided to venture down to the slightly dodgy end of the Omni to visit Filling Station. The waitress who took us to our table was friendly and chatty and our waiter (Jaime) was great. I had fish and chips and it was a massive portion! It was pretty expensive (£12) but I got a 20% discount with my cinema ticket. Not bad considering the meal was good. To drink I had Pepsi which was good but a little bit watery from all the ice in the glass. The only real negative about the experience was that our table was next to the toilets and it was not busy so we could have been seated elsewhere. While Filling Station is pretty pricey, the cinema discount is good and if you take part in their survey you get a £10 discount!

Bar Brig

Bar Brig

(4 reviews)

Leith

A lovely little bar. For Edinburgh it boats fairly cheap drinks and cocktails and even keeps…read moreprosecco on tap. The interior is country and makes the place really homey. The staff are great and the food delicious. Originally I came here with a groupon which was a great deal (platters and cocktails for 4 for £22). But they have their own deals like £5 meals and drink discounts. This place is a go.

I've been wandering past this bar loads on my way to and from work. It's one of Leith Walk's *new*…read morebars. Someone has taken a classic (possibly read dodgy as fuck) 'spit and sawdust' (for the blood) bars and turned it into a trendy new thing. Initially what drew me to Bar Brig is its big Heverlee sign! It's a delicious beer and I don't find a lot of bars serving it in Edinburgh, and it's not very far from my house which helps of a week day night! I feel it's a confused little bar. They've a very well stocked bar, loads of interesting beers and gins and such, very much ticking the things that are in right now boxes, but the guy serving us (on a friday night) didn't really have much of a clue about anything. They bar clearly has a found objects thing going on, all the furniture is made of driftwood or something similar, which normally I find pretty annoying because it's uncomfy, but they've adorned the place with throws and cushions which actually makes it really cosy. A big plus for me, but the bar is really weirdly lit. Huge BRIG sign that floods the bar with LED light, and generally I feel they would be suited both turning the brightness down on that sign, and just generally going for warmer lights in the bar. I haven't tried the food yet, so there might be more to come from Bar Brig, but it's not massively charmed me...

Alba Bistro - bistros - Updated May 2026

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