Private dining in Edinburgh combines two of our favourite things; some of the best food the capital has to offer as well as a sense of occasion. Whether you’re celebrating a big birthday bash or have decided to treat your team, private dining really brings something a little bit special to the table (if you’ll pardon the pun).
Some of the best private dining in Edinburgh comes with all manner of extras, like a dedicated host for the evening, your own private bar or even seats that overlook the kitchen so you get a real slice of the action; watching the chefs tirelessly prep and present your plates of food. These ‘chefs’ table’ private dining spaces are some of our favourite private dining rooms in Edinburgh thanks to the additional theatre brought by the live cooking element. You’ll be impressing guests twice over, first thanks to your pretty posh choice of a private dining room and second for providing entertainment at the same time. In these scenarios the chefs are likely to chat guests through each course, ingredients used, and techniques employed, which is a lovely additional touch.
Another benefit of choosing to book a private dining room in Edinburgh is that you often have more flexibility when it comes to the menu you’ll serve to your guests. Typically, you’ll start with a few choices from the chef heading up your event to start from, but these can usually be tweaked or changed in line with your preference. Fancy and extra palate cleanser course? Shouldn’t be a problem. Throwing a birthday party and need a cake? Just let the kitchen know and you might be surprised by just how much they pull out all the stops to accommodate your perfectly laid plans.
Once you have the space and menu sorted all is left to decide is the décor. Sometimes venues might offer flowers or napkin choices, but you may well be allowed to bring your own extras – just ask, what’s the worst that can happen?
When it comes to private dining in Edinburgh it’s never one size fits all, there are all sorts of options. Whether you’re looking for the perfect private dining for two people or want to throw a wedding and hire out a whole restaurant, we’ve got something for everyone. Use the links below to skip to the most relevant section for you.
Best private dining rooms for work events in Edinburgh
When it comes to organising a venue to host colleagues or clients it’s important to strike just the right vibe. You’ll most likely want something fairly smart, a place with attentive service and great food, not to mention an impressive wine list. The below are a few of our favourite private dining rooms for hosting work events in, although that doesn’t mean they’re not great for other things too.
Le Roi Fou
With award winning food and a clean, modern private dining room Le Roi Fou ticks all the right boxes for a smart event. Happily, too, it’s a venue where the food doesn’t suffer when a large table is involved. The French Chef Patron takes the very best of Scotland’s larder and elevates it to new heights. Dishes on the group menu include Orkney scallops with onions, fennel and lemon, lamb loin and belly with garden vegetables and wild garlic gremolata and fudge ice cream with banana bread and caramel sauce.
Maximum capacity: 20
Cuisine: European
Cost indicator: Three course set menus start at £40 per head for a vegetarian and £48 for meat and fish
Wedgwood the Restaurant
If it’s high end food you’re after then Wedgwood the Restaurant is perfect. Chef Patron Paul Wedgwood is passionate about Scottish ingredients, foraging many of the unusual wild elements on the menu himself. A unique atmosphere is created at Wedgwood the Restaurant thanks to their policy of never ‘turning’ tables. They don’t book guests in for time slots, rather a full evening, so expect a leisurely pace and attentive service as you make your way through a menu that includes dishes such as wood pigeon with haggis, neeps and tatties and Inverness-shire Roe dear tartare with salted elderberries, cured egg yolk and sorrel. The private dining area here is semi-private with access to the main room, so something to keep in mind depending on the event.
Maximum capacity: 20
Cuisine: Fine dining Scottish
Cost indicator: Tasting menus are £50 for vegetarian and £55 for meat and fish
Mono
Mono is the perfect spot to impress with if you have people to entertain from out of town. Sitting pretty right in the middle of Edinburgh’s old town, the private dining ‘Bridge Room’ has a gorgeous view over the cityscape. If aesthetics are your thing then the soft grey and inky blue décor and table linens paired with chic crockery and glassware are sure to go down well. Menus are fully customisable so you’re able to create something perfect for your guests, from scratch. Expect homemade breads, silky risottos and perfectly cooked seafood.
Maximum capacity: 30
Cuisine: Italian
Cost indicator: A five course tasting menu costs £50 per person
Best private dining rooms for two in Edinburgh
Hello, hopeless romantics. Looking for a private table for two? The only option we know in Edinburgh, aside from your kitchen table, we’ve detailed below, but it’s a pretty special one. We think this dinky table is the perfect spot for an anniversary treat or a pretty impressive place to ‘pop the question’.
Salon Privee
So, here you have it, the best private dining for two in Edinburgh. This tiny turret room is accessed off a little stone staircase and looks onto a manicured garden of lawns and topiary trees. You’ll be treated to complete privacy with a bell left to call your dedicated waiter on, should you need their services. Expect classics to have been given the all-star treatment, for delicious, solid dishes like beef en croute and guinea fowl pithivier.
Maximum capacity: 2
Cuisine: European
Cost indicator: Three courses from £38 per person
Best private dining rooms for big groups in Edinburgh
Organising a big group for dinner can be a bit like herding cats, so we’ve done all we can to eliminate at least one of the stresses: The venue. All of the below hold a minimum of forty guests and offer a relaxed base to build your get-together from. If you know of a private dining room for a big group that we haven’t listed, we’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment in the box at the bottom and we’ll take a peek.
Otro
There are three different private dining rooms at Otro, which can be hired separately or together to create plenty of space for family and friends. The team here have event managers too, which means there’s a handily helpful process in place already to see you through your planning. Dishes on the set menus can be tailored to your preference and/ or budget but as an idea of style dishes that are menu mainstays are chicken liver parfait with chutney and toasted sourdough, and roasted sea bass with chickpea and chorizo stew and salsa verde.
Maximum capacity: 120
Cuisine: European
Cost indicator: Three courses from £35 per person
The Stockbridge Restaurant
Stockbridge is one of Edinburgh’s prettiest neighbourhoods, and The Stockbridge Restaurant has followed suit in terms of style, with a considered interior and perfectly presented plates. Known for their wine lists as much as their food this Edinburgh hot spot caters for many a party. In fact, thanks to its romantic atmosphere it’s often chosen as a wedding venue. Private dining is on a full hire basis, so you’ll have the restaurant (and its team) all to yourself. The menu by chef Jason Gallagher changes with the seasons but includes indulgent dishes like Aberdeen Angus Sirloin Steak with braised ox-tail tortellini, roasted bone marrow with onion jam, confit potato chip, HP sauce, mushroom ketchup and jus.
Maximum capacity: Up to 40
Cuisine: European
Cost indicator: Three course set menus from £34
Howies
When hiring Howies on a private basis there’s the tough choice between the main dining room, with its impressive interiors, and The Calton Room, which is packed with original features - including its very own fireplace. Once you’ve settled on your space you can get down to the important job of choosing your food. Treat guests to a real classic in haggis, neeps and tatties for starters and baked Shetland salmon with pink firs, broccoli, peas, lemon and dill cream for mains.
Maximum capacity: 32 for private dining, and up to 100 for exclusive use
Cuisine: Scottish
Cost indicator: Two courses from £11.95
The Secret Garden at The Witchery
If you’re willing to take a punt on the Scottish weather then The Secret Garden at The Witchery makes for a truly magical experience. This enclosed courtyard looks onto a private terrace that can be utilised when the sun decides to show its face. Guests will love filing down to the restaurant through a historic Edinburgh close, past the pulpit reception and down the stone steps to find this special dining room. The windows are large French-style ones and the ceiling is intricately painted, just in case you needed more reasons to look into private dining at The Witchery. Expect Scottish shellfish-a-plenty with langoustine, scallops and cod all featuring on their menu regularly.
Maximum capacity: 60
Cuisine: British
Cost indicator: Mains between £20-30
Best private dining rooms for birthdays in Edinburgh
Birthdays demand something a little special, and all of the below offer a bit more than most. Whether you’re looking for an intimate spot with a few friends or are going all-out on an invite-everyone-affair we’ve picked these restaurants and private dining room for their flair. And for added bonus points you could ask the team at any of these spots to rustle up a special pud, dessert or birthday cake to make sure the celebration is properly marked.
Timberyard
Timberyard is a family-run restaurant smack bang beside Edinburgh castle. Having had successful restaurants in the capital city already, the family decided to close their previous ventures and concentrate on Timberyard, with the children (rather than the parents) taking control this time. This brick and stone warehouse has a few different characterful areas to hold a party or wedding. The menu changes regularly, and can be tailored to your requirements, but expect gorgeous treatment of seasonal ingredients. Things to look forward to are: homemade bread, pickles, butters and ferments, and dishes like razor clams with vermouth, herbs and garlic.
Maximum capacity: 74
Cuisine: British
Cost indicator: Four course dinner menu from £56 per person
The Apartment
This cosy neighbourhood bistro serves up delicious classic cooking in a relaxed atmosphere. The menu changes regularly and elevates ingredients like pork belly and lamb meatballs to sublime levels. Happily the restaurant also has a late license, meaning you can stay for drinks (and, very importantly, cheeseboards) until 1am.
Maximum capacity: 40
Cuisine: British
Cost indicator: Three courses from £19
Scotts kitchen
If you’re looking for a good classic then Scotts is the venue for you. From burgers to mac ‘n’ cheese, they serve up tasty traditional fare at a reasonable price point. There’s a terrace looking over the gorgeous old town for drinks, and the interiors are clean and modern for a neutral backdrop to your event.
Maximum capacity: 36
Cuisine: Modern Scottish
Cost indicator: Two courses from £11.95
Gardener’s Cottage
The Gardener’s Cottage is a really special space, set in – you guessed it – an old gardener’s cottage on the edge of a small park. The space has been transformed into two dining rooms with long communal wooden tables. Guests are served a tasting-style menu that focuses on slightly unusual ingredients – sea buckthorn, pig’s head and roe deer at last inspection. It’s the treatment of these ingredients however that produces something really special. This is the perfect spot for self-confessed foodies.
Maximum capacity: 30
Cuisine: Scottish
Cost indicator: three courses from £45
The Gatehouse Suite at Edinburgh Castle
Sometimes you need a spot suitable for a birthday prince or princess, and it doesn’t get more regal than hosting your soiree at the castle. The Gatehouse has access to a private terrace, and along with your dinner you can arrange private tours of the castle. Behold the joy of organised fun. The events team can also sort a piper’s welcome, table décor and dinner entertainment. If this all sounds like your kind of night but you’re holding a bigger bash then it might be worth noting that the castle has various spaces available for private hire, with up to 800 capacity.
Maximum capacity: 24
Cuisine: Scottish
Cost indicator: Packages are bespoke, so pricing varies according to event
Tuk Tuk
Is there anything better than a curry and a few beers? If you’re thinking ‘no’ then we’ve found your perfect venue. Tuk Tuk serves up award-winning Indian food in the form of small sharing plates. There are all your tried and tested classics, like butter chicken and biryani, but also some surprising offerings. Bengali fish cakes are pretty punchily spiced and served with mint chutney, and puri yoghurt bombs made with crispy fried bread, potato, yoghurt and tamarind are a completely moreish alternative to poppadoms.
Maximum capacity: 20
Cuisine: Indian
Cost indicator: Small serve curries from £4.95
Best private dining for small groups in Edinburgh
When looking for a spot for just a few friends it’s nice to know that there are cosy nooks and comfortable corners around the city, that make the perfect backdrop for parties. All of these lovely venues and restaurants host a maximum of twenty people, but some have space for as few as six, so there are options whatever your party size.
The Officer’s Wardroom Leith
Just because you’re plumping for a petite affair doesn’t mean you should lose the option of grandeur. The Wardrom on The Royal Yacht Britannia rings of old world luxury, coming with a white-glove butler service and red carpet no less.
Maximum capacity: 16
Cuisine: Scottish
Cost indicator: Prices for a dinner for 16 start at £4000 + VAT in low season Nov-April and £5000 + VAT in May-Oct. This price includes exclusive use of the whole Royal Yacht
The Whisky Collection at The Whisky Experience
Set in the heart of Edinburgh, The Whisky Collection provides a novel setting for events. Guests will be treated to dining among 3,384 bottles of whisky and a five course tasting menu with courses focusing on food from the field, rivers and seas of Scotland. Each course, as you might expect, is also matched with a whisky.
Maximum capacity: 10
Cuisine: Scottish
Cost indicator: Dining in the 'World’s Largest Collection of Scotch Whisky' starts from £175pp, including dinner, welcome cocktail and a whisky tour
The Lookout
This fairly recent addition to the Edinburgh dining scene is by the team behind The Gardener’s Cottage. The combination of incredible cooking with stunning views is pretty hard to beat. Treat your guests to floor to ceiling windows looking over the cityscape around a private chef’s table.
Maximum capacity: 8
Cuisine: British
Cost indicator: Five courses from £75 per person
The Little Chart Room
Cream wooden clad walls make The Little Chart Room feel almost nautical, and with little else to distract you the focus falls fully to the food. Expect cheffy creations like rainbow carrots, goat’s cheese, cumin, buckwheat, hazelnuts and alexanders, and lamb rump, sweetbreads, labneh, anchovies, sweetheart cabbage and pink fir apple potatoes.
Maximum capacity: 14
Cuisine: European
Cost indicator: Room charge of £200, mains from £20
The Kitchin Restaurant
We’ve got a soft spot for this one as it features on our Gold List restaurants. The Kitchin, by Tom Kitchin, is a standout setting for an intimate dinner. The private room is luxuriously furnished and you’ll be given a dedicated server for the evening. Menus are designed bespoke by Tom himself but expect creations like open lasagne of steamed fillet of North Sea turbot, shellfish and wild garlic, which is a typical evening offering.
Maximum capacity: 20
Cuisine: European
Cost indicator: Tasting menus from £90 per person
Looking to just book a table for two? These top Edinburgh restaurants should be able to help.