10/8/2014: this is a seriously late review that apparently been in my "to be finished" queue for over 4 years. Oops... We had the most amazing time and meal at Strada! We had been strolling around looking for something really tasty in a good venue and we found it. I am a pizza whore and he knew that and conceded even though we had pizza the night before, too. This was real pizza though so it was necessary. We started with my second fave thing on the planet: OLIVES! I cannot get enough of olives. He however hates all things olives but loved me and yet again conceded. We also ordered the onion and tomato salad and three pizzas because 2 isn't enough. I know I ordered the sausage and onion pizza with arugula and he had the magherita and we of course had a pepperoni. Every single one was amazing but I am a huge sucker for sausage and onion pizza. I ate almost all of mine and he helped because it was just so good. We rounded out the meal with dessert but I don't remember what. Knowing me it was creme brulee because that is my must do. During my trip to Edinburgh we ate at Strada 4 times and I love each and every time. So glad they are still open so I can pop in when I return to Scotland this summer! Yay, Strada! read more

Strada. Yelp review. 6 pm. I have truly had a most delicious evening. My evening at Strada was buoyed by a fab waiter. An Ozzie no less. I've actually been served by him before. Not sure why I didn't leave a review. He is well well versed in wines, liquers and spirits. I actually said to him he ought do consulting and training sessions for restaurants. He's quick, he hustles-but more over he's able to be "present" and " in the moment" with your customer.... Though as a waiter you know someone is waiting for their bill, food, water, wine or spoon for their presently appearing soup from the kitchen- this waiter is present. It's like DR Who stopping time. It's a skill!! Needs to be taught!! So I had the risotto -see photo- and i proposed brocoli as a sub for no cheese. And bean greens no butter! Voila! Sooooo moorish and fab. I really take my hats off to places where the chefs' do not have a complete benny at a request which deviates from set menu. All in all a five star visit. My red wine was gorgeous. Great legs. And the brandy I ordered beautifully warm class. Thankyou Strada for a grand visit when I had no plans to eat out. Puppy sat all day..... 2 glasses of nector was earned/allowed me thinks!!! Ps. Try lemoncello liqueur. Out of sight!! read more

Check out those odd shaped balls!! I love Italy. The country has such style and grace, and what's more they make delicious, stomach filling, smile inducing food. Strada might be a chain of restaurants, but I don't care. It has the style and grace I expect when I go to a modern Italian for something to eat. What's more, they have these odd shaped orb lights in the main dining room, which just look wonderful and soften the otherwise sharp lines of the decor. The staff were wonderful, last night looked like it was the night the castle got washed off the mound it was raining so hard, but despite the miserable weather, the place was still busy but that didn't stop the waitress having a big smile and a helpful attitude to serving us. The menu is pretty substantial. Nice starters, I had the mushroom risotto balls. Delicious little bundles of flavour with a soft, gooey mozzarella middle. Yum! Exactly the lip smacking yummy food you want from an Italian restaurant. Do you like Peroni? I do, and they do three varieties; three! They have your common or garden, Nastro Azzurro and Gran Reserva. Naturally I had to try all three, each of which were perfect. Their wine menu was more than acceptable too. For main, I had some twisty little pasta with Italian sausage, ham, a shave of cheese and some chilli butter. Again, food that makes you feel like you've been wrapped up in a warm blanket. I think it needed a little more mositure though, it was a bit heavy going once you were towards the end of the plate, but I suspect that is personal choice. We also had a plate full of spaghetti pomodoro, which is a simple and perfect as it gets, and the reward was scrummy flavours, all of which tasted fresh and well cooked. The rest of the menu was an area of risotto, pasta, pizza and meat and fish. It honestly took us 20 minutes to choose, it all sounded so tasty. We were too stuffed to eat dessert, content with holding our stomachs with delight before being washed away down the street by the monsoon going on outside. You have to go here if you like Italian fodder. Even if it is only to see those wonderful odd shaped balls. read more

The delightfully helpful waitress made Strada 3 star rather than 2 star. The Pizza was ok but the menu stated it was veggie friendly but it had parmesan in the pesto which isn't veggie. The lovely waitress was able to custom my pizza to suit. The cheesecake was delicious. I got 25% off the food bill by joining their mailing list. read more

I first discovered this chain in York, England whilst Hubbie and i were taking a wee break before the wedding. I was really taken back with the food and feel in love with the dishes and was happy to see that it gad arrived in Edinburgh. I know that the branches offer different menus but i was hope that the bruscetta with peppers was at Edinburghs' branch, but it wasn't. However i did choose the Vegetarian Pizza which had goat's cheese, peppers, aubergine and rocket. The base was nice and crispy and the topping was tasty. I had the chocolate fondue which was recommended by the waitress but wish i hadn't - I've had better and it was defo a pre-made out the freezer thing as it didn't take long to reach the table! Service was quick and friendly but it was almost empty on a (last night) Thursday night ... read more

So I understand this is a chain. It looked OK but at 9 PM on a Friday, it was empty. I should have continued walking. Service was slooooooooow. I ordered at about 20 after nine PM and the entree arrives at a few minutes after 10 PM. I then hear a customer seriously griping at the manager over long waits, wrong wines and wrong bills being delivered. The antipasto starter was good with a few cuts of Italian hams, salami and cheese. The rigatoni speck I order which was supposed to be like a carbonara comes out. Its a small portion, a few slices of ham in it, the creamy cheesey sauce lacks much flavor and the rigatoni tastes a little undercooked and chewy. The place was not terrible but I would not go here again. read more

Strada - Italian Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

My husband and I were looking for a place to grab a bite after getting back from a tour of the Highlands. The restaurant was nearly empty because it was pretty late and we were told to sit anywhere. It took quite a long time to get any service from the wait staff but it was well worth it. I had the insalata spinaci which was absolutely delicious and I was surprised at how well the mustard dressing tied it all together. My husband had the vesuvio pizza. The chili oil added a great taste to it but made the pizza look a little greasy. Even with the oily appearance this pizza was wonderful! The crust was done perfectly and combination of sausage, chili oil, peppers and basil was great. The food was wonderful at Strada even though the service was lacking, which could be due to the time of day. read more

Not a bad little Italian restaurant at all. Come in during the fringe and it was not to busy, which I thought was a bad sign. But it started to fill up shortly after I arrived. Ordered the seafood risotto and it was tasty! I was impressed though with the way it was plated with the mussels and the shrimpy. It came to the table looking quite handsome. Had I nice big pint of Peroni to wash it down. As it is stated already in one or more of the reviews for here they have like 3 different types of the stuff. I had the Gran Reserva and it was amazing! I dont know why I had never heard of the other types but I will be going back here just to drink that italian gold. The staff was nice and helped me when I had a wine glass with lipstick still on it. Dishwasher must have been tired or something that day, but otherwise it was a nice pleasant dinner. I will come back at some point in the future especially for the Beer :D read more

Strada - Seafood risotto it was delicious - Italian Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

Having quite enjoyed a couple of the chain's outlets in London I thought, a couple of weekends before Xmas, that I should try out the one in Edinburgh. Whilst not exactly a mistake this turned out not to be one of my better ideas. Service was slower than it should have been (maybe they were a staff member down) although they were as good as their word inasmuch as we were told a table would be available in 20 minutes & were seated fairly promptly when we returned from having a pint across the road. I can also imagine that seating walk-ins rather than taking bookings all night is a bit harder to do although it may well help generate a steady level of profit. Food-wise the £9.95 anti-pasti is poor value for money, being simply three slices of bread, tomato & mozzarella, a dollop of bruschetta topping and a few slices of a couple of meats. The blob of truffle may be what puts the price up but there are plenty of places in the city doing far more varied takes on the dish at keener prices. The wine we chose was a decent drop but on the subject of drinks beware, if using tesco vouchers as I was when they say no drinks they mean absolutely none. Whilst I can understand (but still disagree) that with alcohol I fail to see the point with tea & coffee. Won't be back in a hurry. read more

Strada - Italian Near Me - Edinburgh, EDH

Been to one in England which was fan. Dissatisfied by the lukewarm welcome, food and service. Won't return.

Very nice steak here took my inlaws and they really enjoyed it

Didn't know this was a chain and you couldn't tell. Out looking for somewhere for dinner on a Saturday night (we don't know Edinburgh very well) very glad we found this place. We had a lovely meal and a lovely evening. Service was great, staff were super friendly and just really liked this new restaurant. read more