Edinburgh Larder Bistro

The 2013 edition of The List's Eating & Drinking Guide is out now – only £5.95 (+p&p).

This review is taken from the current (2013) edition.

For anyone with even a passing interest in good Scottish food, the Edinburgh Larder Bistro’s menu reads like a reassuring promise of things to come – and if you’re a tourist, you’d be hard pressed to find a better showcase for this region’s produce. Indeed the first question that springs to mind is how on earth they can dish this lot up for such reasonable prices, and why others don’t. The price question is answered to some measure by delicate portion sizes, but that simply means you’ll be able to fit in three courses, and with the prospect of a meal made up of velvety tea-smoked venison loin with beetroot jelly, spiced rump of lamb, all pink and tender, and hibiscus-poached apple slices with Thistly Cross cider granita, you’re going to want to. Of course these are simply examples, as things are so seasonal here that the menu will have changed a hundred times by the time you visit. They’ve worked wonders with an often dodgy basement space as well – decked out in olive green, with a clever outdoor-indoor space that adds interest.

• High point: Is this the best brunch menu in town?
• Low point: A slightly over-soft side of very seasonal veg