City Guide: Edinburgh

Earlier on in the year Dan and I booked our trip to Edinburgh, it was my first time ever going to Scotland and in the past I think I've only ever been as north as Yorkshire! I'd been scouring Pinterest and lots of blogs over the last few months to find all of the best places to go, plus whilst we were there we made some discoveries of our own! I really love putting these city guides together so I really hope you enjoy this, I'd love to hear if you had any recommendations for me to add for a possible future trip too. 

Civerinos:

It'll come as no surprise that I love pizza, so of course I had to try what Edinburgh had to offer and I was not let down. We ordered a Margherita and a big bowl of fries, both of which were super delicious and fuelled us for the rest of the afternoon. The whole menu was mouth watering, not only do they have big tasty pizza's but salads, pasta and sides galore! The people on the table opposite us had little pillows of cinnamon doughnuts covered in icing sugar, with Nutella and freshly whipped cream on the side. They looked incredible, but we were just too full to fit them in! If I ever go back to Edinburgh I'll be sure to try them.

Paradise Palms:

This was the last stop of our trip before heading back to the airport to go home. A completely bonkers bar, serving a fully vegetarian menu throughout the day. The ceiling was covered with stuffed toys and old school camera's hanging down, every nook and cranny was filled with something completely random. Don't let the idea of a vegetarian menu fool you into thinking it's healthy because it was filled with all of your junk food favourites! Nachos, burgers, Sunday roasts and as many indulgent sides you can think of. I can imagine that this place gets pretty wild once the sun has set...  

The Pantry:

Dan and I both agree that The Pantry might have been one of our favourite places to eat during the entire trip. It was perfect for me as there were lots of vegetarian options, and if you get there before 11:30am you can have a fry up made with plenty of locally sourced ingridients, or a V-fry if you're a veggie like me. If you've not got much time, there were plenty of homemade cakes and large range of teas to pick from! Plus it's located a road away from the famous Circus Lane, so it's the place to go before getting the perfect Instagram shot on the cutest road in Edinburgh. 

Love Crumbs:

Nearly everyone I spoke to recommended Love Crumbs to me and I can see why! It wasn't quite what I was expecting but very cute nonetheless. I loved that there was a little reading nook by the window, perfect for university students trying to catch up on work. The cake was great, but the stand out thing for me was their apple juice! It might be the best I've ever had. We arrived at about 3pm on a Saturday afternoon and it was pretty busy so you might want to head down a bit earlier if you want to secure a table!  

Life Story:

If you're hoping to do a spot of shopping in Edinburgh I would recommend visiting Broughton Street, there's quite a few nice independent shops in the area and on the corner is Life Story. The shop is practically made for Instagram and sells interior lovers favourite brand HAY. It's the perfect place to pick up gifts for friends or a beautiful card for someone special. Interested? You'll be happy to know that it's also online (opening 19th May), so you can shop all of the Scandi inspired goodies until you drop! 

Curiouser and Curiouser:

I was on the hunt for some birthday cards to add to my every growing collection and this shop was just up the street from Life Story. I loved looking at all of the super cute cards they had, and I finally settled on a couple to buy but I could have easily bought LOADS. I really enjoyed it in here as they sell one of my favourite party/gifting brands Meri Meri, I fell in love with a little pom pom garland. They also had some gorgeous smelling candles in here too! 

The Brotique:

On our way into town one day, we discovered The Brotique, as they put it it's "a treasure trove of goods for the man that has everything." With a room filled with Men's skincare, hair products and fragrances I was highly impressed, it's not often a big space is filled like that with Men's 'beauty' products. If that wasn't enough, there's an old school Mario Kart game set up, a wall filled with the coolest books, plus a hand-picked clothes that fit the style of the shop beautifully. 

And a few other honorable mentions....:  The National Museum of Scotland was amazing, we spent a lot of time here one day! We even left for lunch (at Civerinos) and came back. Henderson's Vegan restaurant is the perfect place for the vegan in your life, or if you just fancy having a meat free day! I'd highly recommend trying the 'playful platter' we loved the herbed cashew cream cheese. Mary's Milk Bar is apparently the place for the best ice-cream in town. Finally The Milkman for a cosy tea spot, and they even stock my favourite chocolate teacakes, homemade caramels and peanut butter cups.