The Sun Inn

The Sun Inn is just outside Edinburgh near Dalkeith located just below a railway bridge arch. It is owned by the same people who have the Potting Shed in town.
It’s very rare to go to a restaurant these days and not feel there was something that could have been better, perhaps because we all eat out much more these days, and watch too many cookery shows… I blame Greg Wallace! With this modern dilemma in mind, I have to say that the Sun Inn is one of those rare places where everything was perfect! Our food was absolutely faultless and so tasty, the service professional but friendly and the atmosphere first class! Best of all the food is great quality and so reasonable, especially compared with many city centre restaurants. Safe to say we loved it!
We went on a Saturday evening for dinner and were surprised by how busy it already was by 7pm. It’s a lovely country pub with a big restaurant area, open fires, outdoor beer garden and bar. The atmosphere was very friendly and the pub is clearly a favourite with the locals and those in the know! Everyone was chatting away between tables and the staff were so friendly. We were greater by the manager, who took us to our table and explained the menu.
The Sun InnThey have a big menu with something to please everyone from fish and chips and other pub classics through to Oysters and borders lamb cutlets, all locally sourced. They also have many options for gluten free and other allergies with the chefs very happy to create for you. The specials menu also included a number of dishes (see the pictures attached!) and some great offers too including an Early bird with 3 courses for just £14 and on the first Wednesday of every month a three course meal with a glass of prosecco just £25 — definitely a good plan for the next ladies night out!
So what did we eat you ask?!
The boy fancied the Moules Marinere (Mussels in white wine and cream sauce) and I went for the Duck Plate which was pressed duck leg, duck liver pâté, smoked duck breast and quince jelly, both priced at £7 or £13 for the mussels as a main. I have to say that the mussels were amazing and according to my dining partner the best he has ever had, embarrassingly I had to restrain him from drinking all the juice from the pan! The duck was equally good with the different textures and flavours working well together.
Personally I thought my main was the star of the show ‘Pan seared Monkfish, wrapped in pancetta with clams, chorizo and broad bean salad’ one of the more expensive meals priced at £17 however there are many options ranging up from just £10 a main course up to a huge rib eye steak with hand cut chips and peppercorn sauce at £22. The fish was cooked well, the meaty flavour of the chorizo complemented it perfectly and I even liked the broad beans. My dining partner opted for the Border’s Lamb Cutlets with braised hogget, dauphinoise potatoes, feta and asparagus (£17) which disappeared impressively speedily too. By this point we were both stuffed and probably should have shared a pudding as the portions are very good sized, however we are both fatties and didn’t.
The Sun Inn have a good old dessert selection too and also do a soufflé of the day for all you soufflé fiends. On the day we went the soufflé was raspberry and served with a white chocolate ice cream (£7) — it was a huge fluffy delight, as was my Vanilla Crème Brulee (£5) which was served in a big flat dish more like a crema catalana which means you get more burnt sugar crunch!
As you may have guessed we loved our trip out to the Sun Inn and are already planning to head back for their Sunday roast after a walk around the beautiful Dalkeith Country Park.

I always get excited when I know i’ll be visiting The Sun Inn. Simply because I know it is going to be great. Such is the high level of excellence that they constantly provide.
It’s set in a homely, historical ‘inn’ that has been thoroughly modernised. With pretty landscaped gardens outside and a pleasing, fashionably decorated interior. The restaurant is very inviting and warm. The dining area perfectly balances atmosphere and conviviality with intimacy and privacy.
However, it impresses on far more than just an aesthetic level. There is a huge array of wines to choose from, offering something for every personal taste without compromising at all on quality. Also with a wider selection available by the glass than most places.
The food is even more impressive. It’s very varied and inventive with a focus on using the best local, seasonal ingredients. The menu changes regularly but testament to the talented kitchen, is always creative and delicious. It’s probably not worth going into detail about the food i’ve had here as the menu does change so often but suffice to say I have never been disappointed and defy anyone to leave unsatisfied.
As with any establishment, service is key to the experience and The Sun Inn maintains it’s excellent standards in this department as well. The staff are all very friendly and attentive without being at all intrusive. Usually visiting with an awkward vegan, she has always been accommodated impressively, without any problem. In fact, she even gets given her own customised menu with multiple options for each course tailored to her needs with as much thought put into it as the regular menu! This is exemplary service that we have not experienced often, even at Michelin starred restaurants!
The Sun Inn has steadily been collecting awards since it opened and plenty more on the way, without doubt. It’s a pleasure to have somewhere locally that offers such high quality dining and I will continue to look forward to each visit.

This was the fourth time I have been to the sunn inn and I can say it was actually the worst!
The food was great don’t get me wrong.
But the setting was not.
It was Christmas Eve and we were sat next to the door so any time it was opened it was freezing. Also it was heaving and it felt as if I was sharing my food with 12 other people.
I know it’s not there fault but I would ask for a table away from the door if I go again.

I’ve not been here in ages, but whenever I do go its top notch. Good local food from an award winning gastro pub! It’s the puddings from here that gets me excited! I’ve always enjoyed that dessert whatever it is! Service is attentive and good. Staff are super friendly too!

The wife and I frequent this amazing place regularly. Most of the time we head in there for lunch as they have an early bird offer of, 2 courses for £11 or 3 courses for £14!
The last time we were there I had the, Red wine braised ox cheek pithivier,
Hornig’s black pudding, red wine jus for a starter and the fish and chips for a main. Both were excellent.
Service has always been good with only the odd long wait for the bill when they are very busy. I always ask for the bill as they collect the dessert plates to speed this up.
So, just how good is this place? Well… I have made the suggestion to the waitress that they build a private plate licking room so that diners can lick the plates clean without everyone thinking they are nuts!
One word of warning. They no longer accept American Express.

On a whim, I decided I wanted to go out to eat last Saturday. Good timing too, as it was the day my visa happened to come through (after 6 months of waiting) so we were primed for a celebration.
The Sun Inn isn’t the easiest place to get to. I opted to get the bus there (and walk 20 minutes from the stop — it was a nice walk on a quiet road), and taxi back. We arrived about an hour/​hour and a half before our 6:30 reservation because we fancied a drink before dinner. Timing ended up working very well because we sat down at 6 and had a much needed extra 30 minutes at the table.
The bar area is nice but very small and is really only intended as a place for people to enjoy themselves while waiting for a table. It has four stools and a barrel against the wall for people to gather around.
When we were seated, we were brought the wine menu first and had two different members of staff ask for our drink orders –we told both that we wanted to pick out our mains before ordering our wine — before we were finally brought food menus.
For starters, The Man opted for a goats cheese and beetroot dish, and I had Pentland IPA battered Scottish squid with a Caesar salad. He found the goats cheese and beetroot too sweet for his taste, and I found my squid incredibly greasy and a bit too salty for my taste, though well cooked and overall tasty. My starter was also so huge that I gave half of it away.
My main was venison loin with a mini game pie, and The Man went for one of the specials with beef shin and a small slice of lasagne. My venison was gorgeous and the pie was lovely though I personally would have preferred a veg in its place. I didn’t get to try The Man’s meal, so I think that speaks for itself.
We split a fantastic crème brûlée which was huge, and had a gorgeous thick layer of burnt sugar on the top.
Overall we were pleased with the food and the ambiance, but found the portions a bit large for fine dining. I was uncomfortably full at the end of 2.5 courses over 2 hours.
One final note — we wanted a drink at the bar while we waited for our taxi but due to its aforementioned size, we ended up crammed in, dodging busy waitstaff going in and out of the bar area. We stood next to the local alcoholics (occupying two of the four bar stools) who have apparently been drinking here every Saturday for the past 30 years, since before it was a nice restaurant. I’m all for tradition, but ultimately wasn’t keen on the ridiculous chat we were given by two drunkards, in a restaurant where we’d just spent £130 on dinner for two.

«Thinkin’ of you’s workin’ up my appetite
Looking forward to a little afternoon delight»
…yeah baby, The Sun Inn had me at hello. On a frosty December Sunday, we entertained the parentals as a pre-​Christmas treat. I haven’t been to too many gastropubs recently, but for me, this fitted the bill. Reasonable prices (2 courses for 15 quid), stonking portions (actually, too big even for greedy guts in the corner) and all rather tasty and locally sourced. Good solid food, why can’t everyone make food like this? Parents happy with father, ill at the time, even managing to pack away three courses. Only note is that the SR felt the lamb shank he had was lacking in flavour, whereas I found the vegetarian dishes rather over salted. But, The Sun has me hankering to return.
A little out of the way, but a perfect Sunday hangout.