Edinburgh's most exciting foodie events this July, including 12 restaurant openings

There’s a flurry of happenings in July, including 12 restaurant openings. Don’t miss any.

HERON

It’s an understatement to say we’re very excited about this place, from young chefs Tomas Gormley and Sam Yorke, who between them have experience at Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, the Bonnie Badger and their excellent lockdown pop-up, Bad Seeds. The new place at The Shore is taking reservations from July 14, and we suggest booking your spot tout suite. Their a-la-carte menu will feature dishes including duck, honey, lavender, mustard leaf, and cod, potato, cod roe, courgette, preserved lemon.

87-91 Henderson St, The Shore, Leith (0131 554 1242, www.heron.scot)

SUPERICO BAR & LOUNGE

Although it’s not due to open until July 23, this place has already bagged its designer, Ja!Coco!, a nomination in the Bar, Club & Lounge category at the Hospitality Design Awards, which takes place in New York this September. Their bar manager will be Mike Lynch, previously of Edinburgh’s Bramble and the Devil’s Advocate. He’ll be serving up aperitivo-style drinks, as well as speciality wine and martinis served straight from the freezer. For South American food, visit their Superico Restaurant, a few doors up at 83 Hanover Street.

99 Hanover Street, www.superico.com

RICO’S RISTORANTE

Bonnie & Wild

The former premises of The Honours will be filled from Friday July 9, when the 56-cover Rico’s Ristorante, part of The Rocca Group, opens its doors. It’s owned by Scots-Italian restaurateur, Stefano Pieraccini, and will offer cicchetti, antipasti and dishes including risotto with East Coast crab and shellfish bisque, black-faced lamb with violet artichoke and carpaccio of Tweed Valley beef fillet, smoked onion and truffle.

58a North Castle Street, Edinburgh (www.ricosristorante.co.uk)

HARAJUKU KITCHEN

Kaori Simpson, owner of Edinburgh’s much loved Japanese restaurant Harajuku Kitchen, has opened a street food version of the Gillespie Place restaurant on the capital’s Little King Street as part of the new St James Quarter development’s grab and go offering. Expect sushi burritos, Japanese poke bowls, yakisoba noodles and kara-age chicken, among other things. It’ll be parked up along this side street for at least 12 months.

Heron's cod, courgettes, buerre blanc dish

www.harajukukitchen.co.uk

THE SMIDDY BBQ

This popular takeaway has launched a Night School, so you can learn how to cook ribs and brisket US-style on their offset smokers, Helga and Bronson. It costs £120pp and takes place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 6-9pm, and Sundays from 10am-1pm.

www.smiddybbq.com

L-R: Rico's Ristorante Paul Barber (Executive Chef); Stefano Pieraccini (Director, Rocca Group); Sébastien Weber (Restaurant General Manager) and Francesco Ascrizzi (Head Pasta Chef, Rico’s Ristorante & Rico’s Pasta Bar at the new Edinburgh St James Quarter food hall).

ANTOJITOS TRUCK

Track down this veggie and vegan Mexican street food truck, which will be popping up at The Pitt throughout July (follow them on social media for updates). They were the very proud (and tearful) winners of the Scottish Street Food Awards 2021, with their smoked seitan vegan quesadillas. Try these, and other signature dishes, like grilled elote, beer-battered vegan fish tacos or guacamole and chips.

Instagram @antojitostruck

TWELVE TRIANGLES

Don’t hit the hut, as these sourdough (and brown butter blondie) specialists have extended their offerings into pizza bases. You’ll find them every Friday and Saturday in their Easter Road shop, where there are also ingredients including East Coast Cured meats, Phantassie Organic’s veggies, cheeses, anchovies, olives and rocket.

22-24 Easter Road, Edinburgh (www.twelvetriangles.co.uk)

Fresca Pasta truffle dish

FRESCA PASTA AT HEY PALU

We’ve enjoyed drooling over the menu for this Thursday pop-up, which runs through July. Dishes include spaghetti with pesto Genovese, nduja or truffle butter, and puddings including almond panna cotta, with honeycomb and raspberry. Wash it down with one of this bar’s banana old fashioneds, or a coco Alexander. You can also order two-course specials to cook at home every Friday from Fresca Pasta’s website, www.frescapasta.co.uk.

47-49 Bread Street, Edinburgh, www.heypalu.com

BONNIE & WILD

There are so many restaurants and producers going into this food hall, part of the St James Quarter development, that we’re not sure how they’ll fit. It’s due to open mid-July, when we’ll get to visit Gary Maclean's Creel Caught, The Gannet East, Salt and Chilli Oriental, Erpingham House, Rico's Pasta Bar, EAST Pizza, CHIX, Joelato, MacDuff 1890, Broken Clock and Inverarity Morton. Phew.

www.bonnieandwildmarket.com

COCO

This upmarket Edinburgh-based chocolate business has just launched a range of vegan sweets and biscuits, with packaging by artist Marcus Walters. The sweetie flavours, £3.50 per bag, include Sour Jelly Watermelon Slices, Sour Octopus Foam Sweets and Juicy Fruit Jelly Sweets. Their biscuits are £7.95, with Orange Melt, half dipped in milk chocolate, or Lime Melt, in dark chocolate, with illustrations by German artist Sebastian Konig.

www.cocochocalatier.com

AFTERNOON TEA WITH ROSE AT SMITH & GERTRUDE

A delivery of Afternoon Tea with Rose’s creations made lockdown much more bearable. Now this baking wunderkind has teamed up with Stockbridge wine bar, Smith & Gertrude, to offer an afternoon tea with a matching wine flight, £55pp. It runs on Sunday July 18, with two sittings at 12-2pm and 2.30-4.30pm. If that’s sold out, follow @afternoonteabyrose on Instagram for later afternoon tea dates.

www.smithandgertrude.com

HOUSE OF GODS

This glamorous hotel - a cross between Chateau Marmont and nightclub Studio 54 - is opening a restaurant at the end of July (exact date tbc). It’ll be serving theatrical dishes including wagyu burger with gold leaf in a black bun, with a DJ playing music until the wee hours. Interestingly, their owner, Mike Baxter, says that most of their residents are Edinburgh locals, who just want a glamorous night away from their own gaff.

233 Cowgate, Edinburgh, www.houseofgodshotel.com

SABZI

Visit this restaurant, formerly a pop-up, in its launch month. If you make it on the first weekend in July, everything is a fiver. If not, you can still eat goodies like their black pudding pakora, the puffy bread that is bhatura or watermelon chaat, all washed down with a mango lassi.

162 Ferry Road, Instagram @sabzi_2021

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