Edinburgh: Seen, drank, ate & did
Discussion
Hello PH from Mrs Dibble (First post!)
Thanks for all your suggestions for mine and Dibble's weekend love fest in Edinburgh.
I thought I'd sign up to PH to see what all the fuss was about, and to give you some feedback on your Edinburgh suggestions.
Time 4 Thai: Very nice surroundings and service, good value. Food was ok, but nothing exceptional. The starters were better than the main courses - there wasn't anything wrong with the mains, they just weren't anything special. Maybe we were unlucky.
Cafe Royal - a decent "proper" boozer. We're going back there to eat on our next visit.
The Grassmarket wasn't that great by comparison - although there was one pub there (again, a "proper" boozer) that was good. We think it was the White Hart. Some of the others had been done up a bit too much, and were basically chain pubs. Nothing particularly wrong with them, just a bit antiseptic and not ouc cup of tea.
The best meal we ate was at Valvona & Crolla Caffè Bar and VinCaffè, just behind Harvey Nicks. A really nice Italian, with excellent service. If you happened towalk by in the evening, you'd think it was a closed cafe, but if you look up, there's a great restaurant on the first floor.
If you want to try a really expensive wine, they have a machine that pumps nitrogen into the bottle, so you can just get a £25 glass instead of spending £100 on a bottle.
The World's End was fine, and we liked the look of the Waverly round the corner, but didn't get chance to visit.
Edinburgh Castle? Invaded by Americans. "George, George, take a picture, George!" And trying to pull stones out of the walls to take home as souvenirs... Apart from that great views, and the one o'clock gun made everyone jump, although we were all expecting a loud bang!
The hotel we stayed in was the McDonald Holyrood, down by the Parliament, so a few minutes walk into town. We got upgarded to the "private" 6th floor, although it took us 24 hours to work out! We just thought it was nice hotel, but worked it out with the turn down service and using the room key to get up there in the lift!
Thanks for all your suggestions for mine and Dibble's weekend love fest in Edinburgh.
I thought I'd sign up to PH to see what all the fuss was about, and to give you some feedback on your Edinburgh suggestions.
Time 4 Thai: Very nice surroundings and service, good value. Food was ok, but nothing exceptional. The starters were better than the main courses - there wasn't anything wrong with the mains, they just weren't anything special. Maybe we were unlucky.
Cafe Royal - a decent "proper" boozer. We're going back there to eat on our next visit.
The Grassmarket wasn't that great by comparison - although there was one pub there (again, a "proper" boozer) that was good. We think it was the White Hart. Some of the others had been done up a bit too much, and were basically chain pubs. Nothing particularly wrong with them, just a bit antiseptic and not ouc cup of tea.
The best meal we ate was at Valvona & Crolla Caffè Bar and VinCaffè, just behind Harvey Nicks. A really nice Italian, with excellent service. If you happened towalk by in the evening, you'd think it was a closed cafe, but if you look up, there's a great restaurant on the first floor.
If you want to try a really expensive wine, they have a machine that pumps nitrogen into the bottle, so you can just get a £25 glass instead of spending £100 on a bottle.
The World's End was fine, and we liked the look of the Waverly round the corner, but didn't get chance to visit.
Edinburgh Castle? Invaded by Americans. "George, George, take a picture, George!" And trying to pull stones out of the walls to take home as souvenirs... Apart from that great views, and the one o'clock gun made everyone jump, although we were all expecting a loud bang!
The hotel we stayed in was the McDonald Holyrood, down by the Parliament, so a few minutes walk into town. We got upgarded to the "private" 6th floor, although it took us 24 hours to work out! We just thought it was nice hotel, but worked it out with the turn down service and using the room key to get up there in the lift!
Dibble said:
Why's no-one talking to you?
Because she's female but attached ??? 
Glad you enjoyed Edinburgh although it sounds like you followed the tourist trail. Want a typical Scottish pub then you need to go slightly out of the centre tbh.
Edinburgh Castle ... also a disappointment to me. Stirling Castle is far more interesting and not that far away.
time to 'search' the forums my friend...Mrs Dibble said:
Hello PH from Mrs Dibble (First post!)
Thanks for all your suggestions for mine and Dibble's weekend love fest in Edinburgh.
I thought I'd sign up to PH to see what all the fuss was about, and to give you some feedback on your Edinburgh suggestions.
Time 4 Thai: Very nice surroundings and service, good value. Food was ok, but nothing exceptional. The starters were better than the main courses - there wasn't anything wrong with the mains, they just weren't anything special. Maybe we were unlucky.
Cafe Royal - a decent "proper" boozer. We're going back there to eat on our next visit.
The Grassmarket wasn't that great by comparison - although there was one pub there (again, a "proper" boozer) that was good. We think it was the White Hart. Some of the others had been done up a bit too much, and were basically chain pubs. Nothing particularly wrong with them, just a bit antiseptic and not ouc cup of tea.
The best meal we ate was at Valvona & Crolla Caffè Bar and VinCaffè, just behind Harvey Nicks. A really nice Italian, with excellent service. If you happened towalk by in the evening, you'd think it was a closed cafe, but if you look up, there's a great restaurant on the first floor.
If you want to try a really expensive wine, they have a machine that pumps nitrogen into the bottle, so you can just get a £25 glass instead of spending £100 on a bottle.
The World's End was fine, and we liked the look of the Waverly round the corner, but didn't get chance to visit.
Edinburgh Castle? Invaded by Americans. "George, George, take a picture, George!" And trying to pull stones out of the walls to take home as souvenirs... Apart from that great views, and the one o'clock gun made everyone jump, although we were all expecting a loud bang!
The hotel we stayed in was the McDonald Holyrood, down by the Parliament, so a few minutes walk into town. We got upgarded to the "private" 6th floor, although it took us 24 hours to work out! We just thought it was nice hotel, but worked it out with the turn down service and using the room key to get up there in the lift!
Really glad you had a nice time up here and are considering a future visit. The tourists can be off-putting - we've lived here 5 years and are yet to officially visit the castle - but it is a great city with many hidden wonders and curiosities.Thanks for all your suggestions for mine and Dibble's weekend love fest in Edinburgh.
I thought I'd sign up to PH to see what all the fuss was about, and to give you some feedback on your Edinburgh suggestions.
Time 4 Thai: Very nice surroundings and service, good value. Food was ok, but nothing exceptional. The starters were better than the main courses - there wasn't anything wrong with the mains, they just weren't anything special. Maybe we were unlucky.
Cafe Royal - a decent "proper" boozer. We're going back there to eat on our next visit.
The Grassmarket wasn't that great by comparison - although there was one pub there (again, a "proper" boozer) that was good. We think it was the White Hart. Some of the others had been done up a bit too much, and were basically chain pubs. Nothing particularly wrong with them, just a bit antiseptic and not ouc cup of tea.
The best meal we ate was at Valvona & Crolla Caffè Bar and VinCaffè, just behind Harvey Nicks. A really nice Italian, with excellent service. If you happened towalk by in the evening, you'd think it was a closed cafe, but if you look up, there's a great restaurant on the first floor.
If you want to try a really expensive wine, they have a machine that pumps nitrogen into the bottle, so you can just get a £25 glass instead of spending £100 on a bottle.
The World's End was fine, and we liked the look of the Waverly round the corner, but didn't get chance to visit.
Edinburgh Castle? Invaded by Americans. "George, George, take a picture, George!" And trying to pull stones out of the walls to take home as souvenirs... Apart from that great views, and the one o'clock gun made everyone jump, although we were all expecting a loud bang!
The hotel we stayed in was the McDonald Holyrood, down by the Parliament, so a few minutes walk into town. We got upgarded to the "private" 6th floor, although it took us 24 hours to work out! We just thought it was nice hotel, but worked it out with the turn down service and using the room key to get up there in the lift!
May want to try the Festival in August, but that is pretty manic and the city's population almost doubles. However, it's a great buzz, hundreds if not thousands of shows and superb fireworks from the castle every night. Many famous people wandering the streets too.
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