Edinburgh

Most visitors to Edinburgh spend their time on the Royal Mile, Princes Street and George Street. All three are worth your time. But if you want to understand what Edinburgh actually feels like to the people who live here, you need to come further down into the New Town and find Broughton Street. Broughton Street runs northeast from the heart of Edinburgh's Georgian New Town down towards Leith Walk, and it has a character that is entirely its own. Independent businesses, a str

Edinburgh has a weekend reputation that is entirely justified. The city fills up on Friday and Saturday with visitors, locals out for special occasions, and the kind of energy that makes it one of the best nights out in the UK. Everyone knows about that version of Edinburgh. What fewer people talk about is how good this city can be on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday evening. Quieter, more personal, easier to get a table, and often significantly better value. The venues that

Greek food has a reputation problem in the UK that it does not entirely deserve. For a lot of people, the reference points are the same. A chicken gyros from a late-night takeaway, a bowl of hummus on a supermarket shelf, maybe a taverna meal from a holiday in Crete fifteen years ago. None of those things are bad. But none of them are the full picture either. Authentic Greek cooking is one of the most underrepresented cuisines in British cities, considering how rich and varie

Edinburgh is one of those cities that almost does the work for you when it comes to romance. The cobblestones, the candlelit closes, the way the castle catches the last of the light on a clear evening. Even a quiet Tuesday can feel like a special occasion if you end up in the right place. I have spent the last eight months running Nectar on Broughton Street, and before that several years eating and drinking my way through this city with genuine curiosity. I know what makes an

Edinburgh has no shortage of cocktail bars. Some focus on theatre, some on classics, some on atmosphere. Over the years, working behind bars and visiting many more, I’ve started to notice that the places people remember are rarely defined by one thing alone. When people ask me what makes a great cocktail bar, the answer is never just about the drinks. It’s about how everything comes together. The room, the menu, the service, and the feeling you walk away with at the end of th