On a corner between Princes Street and Haymarket, previously home to tenants including a high street bank and low-key cafe, The Palmerston is a terrific all-day restaurant that leaves diners with the sense that the chefs constantly obsess over the details of land and sea. The menu changes with each service, with ingredients sourced from local fishermen and farmers, including organic, no-dig The Free Company, located in the fields below the Pentland Hills. So there could be extremely good ox’s liver or fish stew, but equally, it might be a more challenging crispy pig’s head or pickled tripe salad.

In the brutal depths of a cost-of-living crisis, when some people still have money for the cream on the top and far too many do not even have enough for the basics underneath, going for dinner in a space that was once a bank could be spun as brutally symbolic. Here is a former financial institution, still servicing those with enough filthy lucre to invest in a rich return, only in different ways. There’s a joke in here somewhere about pork-based restaurants trading mammon for gammon, but I do have my pride.

Opened in 2022, The Palmerston has quickly become the name to drop in this city. Also awarded a Michelin star, there is an old-fashioned, comfortable energy to the experience, akin to a classic bistro in Paris. The space also has the kind of rustic elegance familiar to classic European restaurants.

Named after its location in the heart of Edinburgh’s West End (Palmerston Place), The Palmerston is a chic eatery and bakery, with a European bistro vibe. Sourcing quality ingredients from land and sea – by building relationships with suppliers – is key to the restaurant’s modus operandi, with menus changing daily based on availability and ensuring the freshest food. The day begins with house pastries and coffee, then with two and three-course set lunch menus (available Tuesday to Friday), followed by à la carte dinner service, when you can enjoy plates such as rabbit and prune terrine with rhubarb chutney and toast; or lumache, with braised peas, chilli, mint and pecorino fresco accompanied with wine from their incredible wine cellar.

Our favourite has to be the bakery at The Palmerston, open from 9am Tuesday to Sunday for bread and pastries using Wildfarmed flour and Edinburgh Butter Co. cultured butter - the daily-changing bakes fly off the counter, so we’d recommend getting in there early to avoid missing out. You’ll find Twelve Triangles dotted around the city, where the focus is on slow fermented sourdough and pastries, from the fan-favourite kimchi and cheddar swirl to baklava buns studded with pistachio nibs. There’s also Babyfaced Baker for OTT brownies, cruffins and traybakes on Leith Walk and The Bearded Baker for brilliant buns - including many a vegan option, if you’re so inclined.

The Palmerston is a Michelin Guide restaurant that caters to allergens while offering a large number of naturally gluten-free dishes. Founders Lloyd Morse and James Snowdown set out with a 'whole animal cooking' ethos and a seasonal approach to sourcing ingredients to create what is now the incredibly cosy eatery, The Palmerston, located in the West End. You'll find a sage green dining room sporting abstract portraits and plenty of natural light casting over diners tucking into the likes of hispi cabbage with mashed potato and harissa yoghurt, lamb crépinette or slow roast cockerel alongside chips and a Caesar dressing, with plates ranging from £4 to £36 each.

Not surprisingly, Edinburgh has an excellent track record when it comes to exceptional local eateries, with high-flyers such as The Palmerston and L’Escargot Bleu still pulling in the votes. However, we’ve been drawn to several other venues, notably Leftfield on Barclay Terrace – a cracking seafood specialist that sets out its stall as a neighbourhood bistro that hums with vitality and chatter. This year’s top billing in Scotland, however, goes to Fin & Grape in Edinburgh’s Bruntsfield district; here is another fish restaurant performing as a bistro, but we feel this place has the edge on its competitors by virtue of its flawlessly executed cooking.

The Palmerston inhabits a former bank in Edinburgh’s West End, a history that is reflected in the room’s grand dimensions, although dark green painted walls, warm wooden floors and tables and paintings by local artists give the space a more casual neighbourhood bistro vibe. Owners James Snowdon and Lloyd Morse keep things ticking from 9am with a morning menu of fresh pastries and coffee but come lunch and dinnertime it moves into more serious cooking territory. The concise menu changes daily depending on what’s available from local suppliers and cooking is confident and hearty with a focus on nose-to-tail eating.

This grand Victorian bank building (formerly a Starbucks) has been reborn under the skilled hands of James Snowdon and the Aussie chef Lloyd Morse, who has worked at the River Café in London and the Timberyard in Edinburgh. Seamlessly blending tradition with modernity, the Palmerston is like an old-school Parisian bistro but with striking contemporary art, upcycled cutlery and chunky wooden tables. Buzzy, welcoming, it has a warmth that hits you the moment you step through its heavy wooden entrance on Palmerston Place.

There are lots of pretty parts of England, and one of the most attractive has to the be the South Downs, which, after all, is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Situated between Haywards Heath and Horsham, with striking views of the famous nearby chalk hills, this 19th-century country house hotel is a true haven, just an hour out of London. Old meets new inside South Lodge, with the traditional grandeur of dark wood panelling and chandeliers in the restaurants and lounges contrasting with the contemporary spa.

Set in a former bank building, The Palmerston boasts a sleek interior with an unfussy, unpretentious vibe. The kitchen staff mostly uses ingredients that hail from within Scotland and they also acquire only whole animals and then butcher in house. The menu changes with the availability of seasonal ingredients, but expect dishes like grilled veal sausage, slow-roasted Shetland lamb, a half grilled lobster with chips, a hearty saffron-kissed fish stew, and, for dessert, elderflower panna cotta.

A panel of distinguished judges, including Ross Sneddon, executive pastry chef at The Balmoral; Darcie Maher, owner of Lannan Bakery; Kayleigh Turner, head pastry chef at the two Michelin-starred The Glenturret Lalique; author of “Britain’s Best Bakeries”, Milly Kenny-Ryder and Director of Edinburgh Butter Company, Chloe Black, evaluated the pastries from some of Scotland’s best bakeries. Each entry was carefully assessed based on shape, colour, pastry development, texture, and taste.

Consistently fresh, bold, interesting food – forthright but beautifully balanced and absolutely delicious, and a decent wine list too” inspire nothing but high enthusiasm for this emerging star of Edinburgh’s dining scene – a ‘Restaurant & Bakery’ from Lloyd Morse and James Snowdon with traditional looks but a forward-looking menu of “simple seasonal food” delivering “outstanding” flavours. Top Menu Tip – “crispy lamb belly and sausage on mustard lentils”.

A restaurant and bakery in the city centre, The Palmerston is open from 9am for coffee and pastries, then onto lunch and dinner. Working closely with local farmers, growers and fishermen, the hearty, wine-friendly European menu changes daily according to whatever is in season. The wine list is where things get especially interesting, making this one of the top lists in the UK for a restaurant of this size and style.

Sorry, you need to accept cookies from Instagram to view this content. It’s all well and good to say that a restaurant prides upon seasonal produce but it’s knowing what to do with that produce, and knowing how to bring out the best of each and every ingredient that finds its way into the kitchen, that shows the real talent of a brigade. The Palmerston is somewhere where the chefs really understand the assignment.

want to eat delicious and seasonal food, why not check out the Palmerston, the impressive menu changes daily and their allergen knowledge is impressive. For gluten free they can amend virtually anything and all of the bread is made in a kitchen downstairs away from the main cooking area. I really recommend the roast chicken, swap the chips for potatoes and you’re in for an absolute treat.

The Palmerston is your go-to for homemade bakery goodness and a commitment to whole animal cooking that minimizes waste and celebrates the care that goes into raising the animals, with a constantly changing menu to suit each season. Inside their grand 1868 building with stone steps and the Royal Bank of Scotland's emblem, they've cultivated a relaxed and welcoming vibe.

The Palmerston only opened last year, and this bistro and bakery has already claimed a very loyal following. Expect hearty dishes like confit pork belly, Jerusalem artichokes, chard, sage and marsala, or lamb, turnip and potato gratin, anchovy and hispi cabbage. Large pies designed to share make regular appearances on the menu and the wine list is delightful.

Fhior, which means ‘true’ in Gaelic, is the new city-centre venture from chef Scott Smith, formerly of the acclaimed (but short-lived) Norn in Leith. Inside, it comprises an intimate main dining room plus a relaxed café/bar area for drinks and snacks, while the focus is on modern, seasonal cuisine based on Scottish ingredients (some of them foraged).

The Palmerston isn’t a wine bar, it’s a restaurant with a seriously impressive wine list. It’s housed in an old bank, so you assume that it’s super traditional, but the wine list is mostly low-intervention, they’re just not the obvious, funky label kind. They’ve got a great Burgundy selection, and some wonderful Italian wines.

It’s just always what I wanted to do, so I left school and started work. I think I’ve stayed true to the things I like, in the sense of design and what we make,” she says. “We’ve worked by not expanding, doing things on quite a small scale and giving freedom to the staff to make things of their own.

This former bank makes a formidable dining room, complete with original marble, soaring ceilings, ornate wooden doorways and huge, slender windows. Run with personal charm and good humour, it’s an upbeat place that knows how… Read more. 1 Palmerston Place, Edinburgh, Lothians EH12 5AF

In a retooled bank building in Edinburgh's Haymarket district, the Palmerston makes a virtue of the decorative style of yesteryear. Lots of dark wood, an uncovered floor and bentwood café chairs create an atmosphere of old-… Read more. 1 Palmerston Place, Edinburgh, Lothians EH12 5AF

With its well-heeled locals and a bevvy of independent shops, Stockbridge is one of the prettiest places to spend an afternoon. Drink up the orderly and elegant Georgian architecture and make plenty of stops in bookshops and coffee shops to pleasantly while away your time.

Pared-back plates of just a few gorgeous ingredients sum up The Palmerston’s signture style. With an in-house bakery, bread and sweet treats aren’t to be missed, and thanks to an ever-evolving seasonal menu, there’s always a reason to revisit.

Inspired by her aunt’s cafe in Malaysia, Julie Lin has turned dinky Julie’s Kopitiam into a mighty force on the Glasgow scene, packed to the rafters on most evenings with hungry punters feasting on laksa and nasi goreng.

Excellent pastries in the morning, inventive and considered cooking in the afternoons and evenings, and a grand but not-too-grand setting whenever you arrive. Photo above, by James Porteous