Toma T.

We had an incredible seven course tasting menu experience at Number One tonight. Their decor was truly fantastic and the service was outstanding. This place came highly recommended by several food enthusiasts and we were really happy that we chose to dine here on our first night at Edinburgh. Every dish surprised us with an amazing flavor profile. We cannot say enough about how incredible the food and the entire experience was. Keep up the amazing work, Number One!

Ben Y.

American Tourist here. This restaurant is located inside/adjacent to The Balmoral hotel. The entrance is to the right and downstairs of the main hotel entrance. This is a fancy restaurant, with multi course meals, excellent service and a price tag to match. We ordered the tasting menu and 1 drink each and the total came out to around 230 pounds. The smoked salmon and Scottish hogget (lamb) were the two stand outs for me. I mean it was an enjoyable meal but to be honest as far as high end dining experiences go it was not particularly memorable ymmv. If you are in Edinburgh and can stomach the prices than it's a good option, if you can't, you ain't missing all that much Solid but not amazing, which to to be honest is a lot more than you can say for many other high end restaurants :P

Erin M.

This was our first dining experience in Edinburgh Scotland. I think after a 10 hour flight from San Francisco any place that I ate would have been the best food in the world. First on our list was to try Scotland famous dish, haggis. It was such a hype built around this that we couldn't wait to try it. It was surprisingly good and if you were blindfolded what it tasted like was a peppery stuffing at Thanksgiving. We also ordered the Sunday special which was called Gammon. That's ham in America. It was served with sweet cabbage and these balls that look like hush puppies and that is what Scotts call stuffing. It's always a little bit wobbly learning how the service works and how tipping works but we managed to get through it....with the help of a local dark Stout ale.

Jonathan C.

I would seriously fly across the ocean just to eat here again. The atmosphere was amazing, the service was excellent, and the food was beyond incredible. I don't care what your budget is, you need to find a way to get the Chef's Tasting Menu because it will bring you to tears. It's easily one of the top 3 restaurants I've eaten at in the world. I've been to probably 10 different Michelin starred restaurants in the past year or two and this one could quite possibly be "number 1" ;)

Paul M.

Great service, an exquisite meal and a really nice atmosphere. A wonderful venue for a "special occasion" dinner. This swanky restaurant is located on the B1 level of the Balmoral Hotel. Pre-appetizer "tastes", appetizers, mains & desserts were all perfectly executed and deliciously tasty. The petit fours topped off the meal... A dining extravaganza! Highly recommended. Beware, top notch dining comes at a top notch price but OK to splurge for that special occasion. Just be sure to check that you have a sufficient credit line on your card before attempting to pay :) Dinner for 2 with gratuity came to £ 240.

Mike K.

In my opinion, there are three key areas that work together to make a dining experience what it is: the setting, the service and the food. Normally scoring highly in any two of those three areas will give you a better than average dining experience, but every now and then you are lucky enough to experience all three at a their peak and that results in a truly remarkable experience, and this is exactly what happened when we had dinner at Number One. From the moment you step into the space you enter a tranquil ( not boring) space that is ideal for a romantic dinner, or any special occasion. The music is excellent and never intrusive, the perfect soundtrack to your evening. The service is attentive and exacting, and the staff are engaging, welcoming and extremely knowledgeable, which makes you feel right at ease. As for the food - whether you go for the a la carte menu or the tasting menu I don't think you can go wrong. We had the velouté and foie gras to start and the lamb and grouse for mains, and I won't bother to detail the dishes other than to say that they all were detailed, complex (in the sense that there were many components working together) and utterly delicious. Seriously well put together food. And I didn't even mention the complimentary amuse bouche or the deserts which were of the same standard and are a delight for the senses. All in all I can honestly say that our dinner at Number One was easily one of, if not the, best meals we have ever eaten. Now, you get what you pay for and it isn't cheap, but if you find yourself in this amazing city and want a truly exquisite dining experience, I cannot recommend this enough.

Chantelle T.

My partner and I are in mutual agreement. This is the best meal we've ever eaten in our lives. Let me take you through this epic culinary journey from start to finish. I booked a place three months in advance for my partners birthday just to secure our place. Upon arrival, we walked down a flight of stairs to get to Number One. We were greeted by one staff member who took our coats, then another who led us through the dining room than another who say us down. Oh and another serving water and another serving canapes. I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive before going in because ultra fancy is usually not my style. I was worried whether I was dressed well enough and whether I'd know which cutlery to use and when. Well, I didn't need to worry about that at all! Despite its five star status everyone was welcoming and friendly. Not an air of doucheyness or pretentiousness in sight. So we were provided three canapes each upon sitting and offered aperitifs. When my partner asked for the selection of whiskey, well, they just bought the whole tray over! So after some general chit chat and a brief look at the menu (as if I didn't check beforehand!) we ordered the 7 courses with tasting wines. So our seven course dinner became a four hour event where we ate, laughed, and learnt about an array of amazing wines, each perfectly paired with our meals. The amuse bouche to start was a small amount of lobster, perfectly cooked and seasoned with grilled cucumber which blew my mind. Next came the balmoral smoked salmon with lemon curd, caviar and a quail egg. My partner has named this "the best dish I have ever eaten." Enough said, even of you don't go with a 7 course meal just coming for the salmon will change your life. Next up the heritage beetroot. Sweet, soft, salty and crunchy this was a curious dish topped with a dijon mustard icecream. So by now we were three glasses of wine in a safe to say, I'm feeling pretty giggly by this point. Then came the wild halibut atop boiled potatoes. Seriously the best fish I have ever eaten in my whole life. It was perfectly cooked and seasoned, really delicate and perfectly paired with the Ataraxia Chardonnay. Then the main: aged beef fillet with mushroom and a truffle jus. This meal was quite strong in comparison to the others had, but was cooked to perfection and was so tender. We were then offered the selection of cheeses which we gladly accepted. We were quite full by this point, but who am I to pass up cheese and fortified wine? We then had the pre-dessert, which was a mix of strawberry and watermelon to cleanse the palette. Dessert was a caramel souffle cooked to perfection with pecan and banana. Paired with an amazing port with undertones of toffee which paired well with the dish. This was truly an amazing experience I would do again in a heartbeat. The cost of this meal was not cheap, but if you can spare the ££ then this is a must try. The dining room was spacious with ample room, far enough from other diners so you can fully immerse yourself in all these culinary delights. The staff were do professional and friendly and at times it was like watching a dance- the timing and graceful way they moved around the dining room seemed effortless. Our sommelier was extremely knowledgeable and each wine complimented each dish perfectly. I cannot reccomend Number One highly enough, it was a truly unforgettable experience.

Jason H.

Likely the best meal I have ever had, and a deserving member of the Michelin star level of restaurant. Wine, exceptional. Service, hard to find less than perfect. If there is one night in Edinburgh, this is where you want to eat. Very, very well done. And well worth the money.

Cheryl C.

Number One is the Balmoral Hotel's Michelin starred restaurant, which in itself gives you an indication that the food here is going to be far greater than your average hotel restaurant fare. Michelin Star handouts in Edinburgh are few and far between, so if you get the chance to have a culinary experience in any such starred establishment, I would free up a space in the diary. Number One sits quietly in its prime Princes Street position, not doing anything too outlandish or showy, but making a classy impression, which mixes tradition with style. The consistently tasty dishes are classic in execution, but with a modern twist, so you're not in danger of those unimpressed looks some dining companions give to modern, tiny food, which is sometimes almost unidentifiable because it's been so artistically tampered with. The ambience here is smooth and relaxed, and there's very little chance you'll be disappointed.

Mariana M.

A really lovely dinner for two from start to finish. We had the set tasting menu with wine pairings, all of which beautifully complemented each course they were served with. Waitstaff also shared a short bit of information on the background of each pairing beyond the usual types of flavors, acidity, etc... one could expect. When I ordered I asked if it was possible to replace one course with a John Dory (with langoustine and smoked bacon) I saw on the a la carte menu, because I hadn't had excellent John Dory in a while. Easily accommodated and as expected that course was outstanding as well. My personal favorite courses were foie gras (perfectly seared, silky and buttery), the aforementioned John Dory and beef, which was easily among the best I'd ever tasted in terms of quality and ideal level done-ness. If you enjoy cheese courses, Number One has top-notch cheese offerings, including many Scottish varieties. Try as many as you can! It was a lovely, memorable evening thanks to the excellent food and service and I hope to return soon.

Amy G.

I was lucky enough to eat here as part of a Youth Food Week run by Michelin starred restaurants in Edinburgh. Two of our university lecturers took 9 of us here for dinner (they didn't pay) and it was a very memorable experience. The menu was a set three course menu at £27.50 a head with wine pairings for each course. I doubt there will be many times I will eat at a Michelin star restaurant for such a low price with as much wine as we wanted included in the price! The duck starter was heavenly and for the main course I had the most amazing steak I have ever eaten. Of course it wasn't just a big lump of sirloin, it was all fancied up in ways I didn't understand, but it was out of this world. The only downfall was the dessert which was a chocolate pudding thing which was far too sweet for me. I normally munch down a dessert in record timing, but I couldn't eat it all because it was too much for me. I felt jealous of my neighbours interesting cheese board! Despite the fact we were eating on the cheap in such a fancy restaurant, the staff couldn't have done enough for us and treated us like we were normal paying customers. The Chef even came out for a chat. The restaurant is beautiful and comfortable. I really would love to eat here again and again and again.