I went in here for a cheeky little mid-scout cakey treat. Should've read the sign properly. This…read moreplace isn't a little cakey treat shop (they sell them in their bakers two doors down). It's a professional cake designers, and the designs are pretty spectacular. They have examples of their work in the shop, ranging from castles to cars, torsos to tennis and all things inbetween. The one cake that really caught my eye was a huge place of fish and chips covered in ketchup (can't think why I noticed that one). It looked revolting in a paradoxically appetising way. The great thing about the Edinburgh Cake Shop is design your cake yourself (if you want to) and they create it for you. Your imagination is the limit. Obviously a service like this costs, but the results are impressive. I never did get my cakey treat though. Probably for the best.

A great place to start your day with a fantastic breakfast. Open early and located conveniently in…read moreOld Town Edinburgh. Excellent pastries and sandwiches. Very friendly staff and spotless cleanliness.

Great little place in Edinburgh for coffee, pastries and breakfast selections. Had a croissant and…read morecoffee here with my friend while we were visiting the city. Absolutely delicious and will keep it on our list next time we head out that way!

A high quality bakery only open a few days a week. Small offering, but looks so picturesqe. Looks…read morepretty and tastes good! Gooseberry + Vanilla Cake: I don't see gooseberry very often, so this piqued my interest. Loved how it had a nice fresh tartness, which was a good complement to the sweet and creamy frosting. The cake itself was good too, very fluffy. Jammy Macaroon: Another intriguing offering. I've had many macaroons, but never with jam inside. It made the whole thing a bit unstable, falling part easily, but the moisture and fruit added a nice new dimension. Pain Au Chocolat: Standard, but done quite well. Nice chocolate bits in the center and flaky all around. Vegan Cinnamon Bun: Decent for vegan. The real thing feels moister and fluffier though. Chocolate, Sea Salt & Rye Cookies: A fine cookie. Nice big chocolate veins. Nice cookie dough too.

Cute bakery/cafe located in the Haymarket area of Edinburgh!…read more It was just a few blocks from our hotel and was conveniently open for a quick breakfast before a day of sightseeing throughout the city. They have a selection of coffees and teas, pastries, and small bites available which seem to be baked fresh each morning. Bites include grilled cheese sandwiches, egg roll, granola bowl, bacon rolls, and they also have sausage rolls and sandwich/toasties available for lunch. I ordered the bacon roll and mocha and my husband got the sausage roll and tea. We opted to eat in as they had a few tables inside and no other patrons in the shop and so she quickly prepared our drinks and brought out our rolls which were both toasted nicely. The mocha was ok, not like the heavily chocolated version I'm used to back in the states, but I found this to be the common theme throughout our trip to Europe. The bacon roll was delish! Do note that their bacon is more like a ham around these parts and a bit more salty, but the bread balanced it out quite nicely. If you're really hungry, I'd recommend getting two. I also enjoyed my husband's sausage roll. Overall, it was a great way to start our day and the prices are pretty reasonable. We had ourselves a nice breakfast for less than 20£ and would recommend a stop here.

Great little bakery filled with Gluten free goodness. I took a cupcake to go which traveled many…read morewalking Km before reaching my destination and it was no longer picture worthy but oh so delicious. I also had a pinwheel filled with caramelized onions and goat cheese which i will definitely try to re create. Delicious and worth the trip!!

We have three kids with EXTREME anaphylactic shock reactions to Wheat, Dairy, Egg, and Nuts. When…read morewe are on the road, we assume that there will be no baked treats and. Or many options for eating out. While that's the case we always look online. While in Edinburgh, we saw the website for Sugar Daddy and thought about stopping in if we happened by. While driving, we saw their smaller shop, quite by chance and so I double parked while my wife ran in to check things out. She was impressed by how diligently they worked to prevent any cross contamination of the different items... so she grabbed a sampling of products (4 or 5 of them actually) and she and the kids divided each of them in four to taste test them. Well everyone was BLOWN away by how tasty everything was! Our intent was to possibly come in the next day and grab more of what we liked... IF we liked anything. Our intent was to possibly come in the next day and grab more of what we liked... IF we liked anything. We didn't think they'd like EVERYTHING! That night after doing our sight seeing, we were SUPER bummed when Google told us that Sugar Daddy's was closed on Monday and Tuesday (Monday was our last day in town) and wouldn't be open again until Wednesday. We left for the Scottish Highlands, and while visiting Loch Ness she and the kids were lamenting about their missed opportunity to partake in more of Sugar Daddy's baked goods. They were so disappointed that I decided to alter our travel plans and to divert our route and drive an hour out of our way to hit Edinburgh SOLELY for the purpose of visiting Sugar Daddy's again. We swung through Edinburgh and visited the larger location... met the owner who explained the passion that he and his wife have for baking, and for "doing it right"! This passion translated into the variety of products they bake on site as well as those that they carry because they acknowledge that there are other artisans that can produce some superior products to their ability. They bring in loaves or bread and naan bread, and bake all the sweets. My wife and kids proceeded to by over $75 worth of sweets (donuts, cupcakes, brownies and cookie sandwiches) which they had tried before as well as loaves of bread, and multiple packs of naan bread based on the owner's endorsement of them. Unlike my wife and kids, I can eat anything... and do! And I have a sweet tooth like no other, and will frequent a variety of bakers wherever I go. Based on their enthusiasm, I decided to order a pumpkin cookie sandwich (pumpkin cookies with sweet frosting in the center). I didn't ask for one of each of the other things for myself, because frankly, I was a bit skeptical. Let me tell you that cookie sandwich compared to ANY product I've eaten at a gourmet patisserie or restaurant! Over the past three days, it's been my turn to lament as I have watched them eating those incredible sweets each day as we come back from sightseeing and going to shows in London. We can't recommend Sugar Daddy's enough... and have a standing offer to open up a franchise in VA! We LOVE Sugar Daddy's.. oh and by the way... the Roseneath location is open every day!

Ahhh my new love. I love love love Coco chocolate!…read more If you're around the area its well worth stopping by to try the free samples. There is a large variety of chocolate on their shelves, each bar lovingly made and with such creative flavours it'll be hard to choose just one. Highly recommended- lavender chocolate. And their chocolate almonds are pretty fantastic too. I will say it's quite pricey but it's worth it. There are also truffles available as well as stunning gift boxes that make a great gift idea (this was my Valentine's day gift. Loved it!) It's a very small space with a few seats. My reccomendation would be to buy 3 bars for £12, go home, and prepare to have your mind blown by the sheer awesomeness that it Coco chocolate. Or give it away as a gift or share it or something.

Yyyyyyyaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!…read more *runs around house in delight* I was so darn excited when I noticed this little shop had opened, that I nearly dragged a visiting family member into traffic just to peer through the window. One quick little search will prove: I really really like Coco. In fact, I quite recently wrote about the Bruntsfield location and true to form, this little Stockbridge spots lives up to the artisan reputation. So why did this little place get the coveted five stars over Bruntsfield's four? Because it's LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES FROM MY HOUSE! Wheeee!! Pre-warning: it is tiny. I wouldn't plan to stay here for a beverage, though Caz is right and they have a chair or two in the window. However, if you have more than two people in the shop, you'd be near elbow to elbow, so I don't see it being a relaxing coffee stop any time soon. BUT they've got a beautiful wall of chocolate bars with every flavour under the sun, a small glass shelved collection of their infamous hand painted chocolates and informal bags of squares, nut clusters, etc, perfect for grey Mondays or "get me through this week" Wednesday afternoons. Between this and Patisserie Madeleine across the road, I see a new waistline in my future...

My wife and I stumbled into here on our trip to Scotland and absolutely loved it. It was…read moreimmaculately decorated and was in such a beautiful location. Not to mention the latte and chocolate croissant were both superb. Definitely try and make your way in!

Let's call this: a hopeful three star…read more I've only been into Noir once for a brief 30-minute coffee meeting alongside Caz H, so this is very much a first impression review. The most striking thing about the place? It's HUGE! There seems to be at least two rooms off of the main one cafe with plenty of big windows for natural light and more than enough space that you'll easily find a quiet spot to work. So far, so good. As Mihali pointed out, the menu is limited, which for a coffee newbie is appreciated. However, on this go round, because i'm stuck with the sniffles, I opted for tea instead and that's where things delve into a "I don't know what to make of it yet" zone. The tea came with a timer and a tea pot, which is always a nice touch - a little fancier presentation than just a big ol' mug of tea. But when I dutifully waited for the timer to run out before pouring, I found my tea was only luke warm. The tea (the oolong) was a nice flavour, but it's really hard to be enthusiastic about luke warm tea. A few other tidbits to add to my hesitation - 1. they don't seem to have wifi (though I could very likely be mistaken on this... it's not easily found if anything), 2. they don't take Amex (which is common but always a bit of a disappointment) and 3. I also bought a tiny bottle of juice for £2. Now I don't mind paying for good juice... I don't bat an eye dropping £5 on something fresh, but £2 for a bottle that I can pick up at any shop for half that? That's a big mark up. The orange juice they have is tropicana and again, can be picked up at any store for much less. So i'm very much on the fence... it's rare to come across a space like this, especially for a gal who works from home and so I wanted to walk away enthusiastic. Instead, I left not unhappy but definitely a little puzzled. However, I have hopes that this newly opened spot will iron out the wrinkles and suspect that their cake selection will sway my rating on the next visit.

Very tasty cheesecakes in the heart of Bruntsfield! After hearing a lot of good things from…read morefriends, I finally popped into Artisan Cheesecakes at the weekend for a slice of cheesy heaven. First of all, the place smells great, as they have scented candles lighting around the shop (which you can also purchase, if you so fancy!). The place is very small, with seating for a maximum of six people, but this doesn't seem to be an issue, since most people take their cheesecake away. Approaching the counter, we saw the tremendous-looking cheesecakes. A selection of types. A plethora of colours. A feast for the senses. Inevitably, this meant I spent ages moping around, unsure what to choose. "Oh, I'll have a raspberry ripple." "No problem!" "No, wait! Make it a classic New York." "You got it!" "Actually, let's go for strawberries and cream." "....." I won't bore you any longer. In the end, I chose a Strawberries and cream, and Mary had Apple Strudel (which literally consisted of a big chunk of cheesecake, with a big chunk of apple strudel on top. Massive portion). Both were simply divine. We also had a latte to wash it down and compensate for the sweetness in the cheesecakes. Both slices were dense and rich, so although we both finished the slices, we were full up afterwards. Excellent! Prices are a bit higher than I'd like, especially for sit-in, but it's really the only negative. Great place with great cheesecake, but don't plan on getting a seat in the place, especially if you're in a group.

Yum, yum, yum! After…read morethe twitter feed reading of 'Day 46, Cheesecake watch, still not open', Artisan Cheesecakes have finally opened in Bruntsfield (as of Wed). The good people of Bruntsfield have been spoiled. Within a couple of months, Cuckoo's and Artisan Cheesecakes both opened in Bruntsfield Place and being the cake fiend that I am, I hit up both in the same day. Previously Cafe Grande had the monopoly on cheesecake but at a fiver for sitting in, it was an expensive treat. After sit in at Cuckoo's (multi-tasking by working and having tea and cake), I popped into Artisan to see what was on offer. I struck gold with not one but two types of gluten free cheesecake to choose from as I was informed by my cheery server. I appreciated having an option, never mind two as I had been preparing for disappointment with there being nothing available. Tablet or millionaires, decisions, decisions! Tablet won and it is delicious. A decent size piece was £3 to take away - topped with lovely chunks of tablet, a light but fairly solid based cheesecake, it is absolutely divine! The base for gf is a biggie as gf sometimes is overly crumbly but this all holds together very well. So, the shop - It is a small space, all creams and pastel shades with only a few seats but lots of fridge space full of cheesecake so takeaway may be the predominant option. To be honest, I wasn't paying attention as I was too busy deciding on the gf options but I believe there are around 16 options to choose from on a daily basis!! I'll definitely be back soon and hoping to try a fruity gluten free option next time. Well worth a visit! :-)

Ive never actually been here, i was searching for ice lab coz i was fancying some chemicals. but…read morewhen i searched you came up! i think its fate, maybe one day ill eat from here affogato, three stars for the fab name xoxox

"I love to love, lalala.....love the ice cream that is sold by newly opened parlor Affogato!…read more The ice parlor is located on Queensferry Road not far away from the hustle and bustle of Princess Street - West End, House of Fraser. In the front of the establishment you are served various luscious flavors of ice cream and in the back you can relax and enjoy. They have very comfortable couches where you can lie back and day dream, read or chat with another. When I recently visited I got the Banoffee and Caramel Flavors. My friend ordered some fruity scoop ...... They also sell Salted Caramel, Amarena, Gingerbread, Yoghurt, Pistacchio........about 18 flavors in total. The ice cream is creamy and just the right amount of sweet. Just luscious. You get a lot of ice cream for affordable prices. 1 scoop = £2.50, and the portion is massive. They offer even two or more flavors in one scoop. Next time I will try and get an "Affogato", a mix of coffee and ice cream. I learned that Affogato means drowning, so clearly the idea behind ice cream drowning in coffee :-) Also beware! The parlor is closed on a Sunday night after 18.00, what is a shame, as it would be nice to enjoy some delicious ice cream before bed time.

This is a hidden gem, in an excellent location between Lothian Road and the Meadows. Angelo (not…read moresure if Marcella is a surname, or somebody else's name) runs the place by himself, so you might be waiting a while for your order, depending on how busy it is, but you won't be disappointed. The food is authentic, delicious, and extremely good value! We visited for a meal before a concert on Lothian Road, and were one of only two couples at the place initially. (A much larger group arrived just as we finished, so I'm glad that timing worked out!) I wanted pasta, so ordered a simple spaghetti bolognese. Mary ordered a pizza with a variety of vegetables. We brought our own bottle of wine, after reading previous reviews that suggested free corkage. BYOB is absolutely fine, but the corkage is NOT free. It cost £2 for the bottle of wine. However, it's fine, because the rest of the meal was very good value. That said, I am a little confused about the corkage cost, because I did not see any alcohol for sale on the menu... The food, when it arrived, was excellent. The portions were generous, everything tasted great. We also had garlic bread as a starter and apple pie for dessert. The decor of the place is very simple, nothing fancy here. There are nice pictures from Italy (mostly Sicily), and some AC Milan decor. Angelo certainly isn't very talkative, but he's welcoming, and makes good food. Recommended.

This is something of a hidden gem. It wouldn't fare well if you were to judge on looks alone. It is…read morerun by a slightly grumpy Italian man who I assume is Marcella, he is never to be rushed so if you are eating in it may seem he has forgotten your order but he hasn't! The interior is decorated in plastic flowers, plastic fruit and blue tiling. However, I urge you to look past this as it all adds to the unique experience of Marcella and, if you are anything like me, you will learn to love the quirks of this establishment. Serving big plates of hot, tasty, filling food at budget prices is my go to place after a long, cold, grey Edinburgh day. A huge plate of pasta, garlic bread and a drink will set you back £5. If you want to splash out on a three course feast you won't be out of pocket by more than around £12. As well as great pizza and pasta you should also try one of the many sweet pies and pastries he erves. Rather than going to one of the many coffee shop chains around, head to Marcella and get yourself a pie and cappucino for the same price as a skinny latte in a certan multi national coffee chain that shall remain nameless!

Got two 6 packs of cupcakes today to take to different folks in the city. They were a big hit…read morewith the folks we gifted them to and I even held one back for myself and it was delicious. The staff was very nice and helpful.

Naked Bakery's deep purple flower walls and golden cutlery may be an instagrammer's dream, but the…read moreall-vegan cafe is good for more than just pretty pictures. The location, tucked away on a side street away from the hustle and bustle of Prince's Street, means that you won't be fighting with people for a table, as although it can get busy around lunch, you likely wouldn't find it unless you knew what you were looking for. The staff is extremely helpful and nice and helped make the whole experiance very pleasant. I will note that the prices are a bit high, although that's expected when all vegan ingredients are used. Their signature brunch item, pink-hued waffles, make for a lightly crispy meal with a delicate spongy interior, and comes with a generous helping of fruit on the side. The espresso is good, with a impressive custom coffee machine and a wide selection of milk alternatives - although the chai latte was a bit weak in spice and flavor and could've been more thoroughly mixed. Another interesting item they do is an all-vegan version of the Scottish Breakfast. As that is traditionally an almost all meat meal, this a quite impressive feat, although I've never been a huge fan of imitation meats. If you're looking for a healthful brunch/lunch meal, especially if you are vegan or vegetarian, I recommend Naked Bakery! They also produce a selection of cakes and pastries which customers were coming in for throughout our meal.