Area C Coffeehouse

Nice enough place atmosphere/​purpose and the Staff are nice but I had extremely disappointing avacado toast. It was essentially just lime on toast. Coffee also not the best and also only comes in the one size.

It’s about time I wrote a review for this place as I’ve been visiting here for food and takeaways weekly since I fell in love with Area C 1 year ago.
My sister and I first went in last summer, they had an iced coconut latte on offer as a one off but the pair of us continued to go every day for about two weeks and now it’s on the regular menu. We can’t get enough of them! Every time is like the first time! I think it’s quite possibly the tastiest drink I’ve ever taken revel in!
I also regularly get a Bacon, Brie and Cranberry panini which always hits the spot!
Followed by a peanut butter brownie, an irresistibly perfect amount of saltiness, nuttiness and fudgyness!

I spilt an absolute shitload of sugar all over the table here and these guys were super cool about it. Really cool staff.
There’s some serious falafel action going on here. Get that platter for sure. It’s a goddamn winner. It’s pretty cute too, really cool looking wood chairs around. Family friendly as well, there was a little area in the corner to chill with your toddler you poor poor parenting bastard.
I worked for about 2hrs here and these guys were awesome. Internet was pretty snappy too. Kinda standard 10 down, 1 up speeds but it worked a charm.

I’ve had wonderful flat whites from Area C, as well as delicious Brie, cranberry, and bacon paninis, nachos, and falafel. The falafel and hummus are made fresh every day. The people who work there are friendly, courteous, and intelligent. I love the progressive political views which are evident from the posters and art on the walls. I will definitely be coming back soon.

I recently met a friend at the Area C coffee shop and was interested to find out what they are all about. I heard things like that it was a base for the Independence activities, there are specific gatherings held to promote the arts and socialising, their «deer» chairs are very comfy and funky and that it’s affordable.
When I entered there was only one other person, but it quickly filled up with locals enjoying a chat with friends or just a coffee on the go. The place was clean for what I could see. They sold lovely looking cakes, which were displayed on the counter. I ordered a coffee and a bacon and egg roll for which I paid £2.50 each. The coffee tasted well enough and I would definitely go back to get another. The service was polite, but distant. Well, it was a man without a smile. However, the chef who prepared my bacon roll was friendly enough :-).
The interior was bright and there was lots of light coming through the glass windows. There was a particular comfortable sitting area in the back of the shop including a play area for the kids with a few toys to choose from. There were quite a few mothers with prams coming and going.
Overall it’s a good place to chill, have a coffee and enjoy a peaceful read.

I’ve never visited Area C during the day as a café, but I have attended a couple of the evening events organised by ‘Edinburgh Coalition Against Poverty’. This is an organisation that provides advice and solidarity for benefit hassles, debt woes, and similar poverty problems. Edinburgh Coalition Against Poverty (ECAP) holds regular charity events here to help fund their cause. This can range from anything from ceilidhs, talks, spoken word and live acoustic music. The level of talent is outstanding, especially the regular bearded poet, I didn’t catch his name. It’s generally a BYOB with donations welcome as a ‘corkage’ and to support the night. The Area C staff move back the furniture to create a stage/​audience configuration. All artists kindly give their own time and performance free of charge in order to support ECAP cause. The atmosphere is warm and welcoming.
To find out more, follow them online and on facebook. They plan to hold more events here. They are doing an amazing job and they urgently need more support to maintain this venture.

this review will be short which was similar to my visit. on a sunday afternoon i knew that coffee was needed to sort out a bleary eyed situation from the night before. i’d heard good things about Area C Coffeehouse and since it’s a quick walk from my house i headed along to get two coffees to go for me and a bleary eyed friend.
on arrival, the coffeehouse was warm with a few people sat at tables. it’s a fairly good space and definitely seems like a nice place to spend a few hours on a weekend afternoon. there was one guy working who was friendly and had my coffees sorted out fairly quickly after serving lunch to another table sat down.
while waiting for the coffees i had a quick look at the cakes on offer (notably the chocolate and guinness cake) which looked nice and a fairly simple menu that had some nice lunch offerings. coffee in hand i headed back along leith walk to my friend’s flat where we both enjoyed a much needed caffeine kick. the coffee was quite good, nothing beats a proper flat white! and as there are few places within walking distance of my flat that have quality coffee, i’ll definitely be back here whether to sit in or to go.

Best falafel in Edinburgh hands down! Love this place, really chilled out, excellent coffee, lovely staff, good tunes, cool décor, brilliant wee shop on a couple of shelves. Love the falafel platter, just the best! Highly recommend this place, chuffed to have it in leith. You must go!!!

Cressida F was my wonderful company when we visited this venue.
How cute a small tipi for kids while you adults indulge in conversation and a coffee and cake or two!
The have windows along the shop front, which alongs natural light to filter through into the shop and you can people watch as they walk up and down Leith Walk!
But neither Cressida nor I wanted to people watch as we rested or bodies in wonderful polished wooden chairs.
A really good first impression of the coffee by taste although hate to point out the chap spilt it at arriving at the table and didn’t offer a napkin to wipe the saucer. Little things add up. I’m not sure of the whold décor as it seems to have a mix going on, but I’m sure it’s still settling it’s feet in the dust and before long it will have built a character for it’s self.
Defo would come back and try and cake soon!

I met up with Emma W for coffee here and was pretty impressed with the space. It’s larger than I expected and contains, along with the tables and chairs, a tipi (accompanied by a charming sign that reads «No food in the tipi pretty please»). How thoroughly splendid! The two chairs formed from single pieces of wood polished to a gleam are a real highlight too — very lovely.
I had a hot chocolate (standard!) and one of the brownies. The brownie was £1.50 and dense as dense could be, but gooey and rich. Delicious! In some ways it was more like fridge cake than brownie, because there wasn’t much that was a bit cakey about the texture at all, but it was yumtastic nonetheless. The hot chocolate was fine and came in a nice glass (I love a hot chocolate in a glass).
I think Area C is still settling into itself, so I’ll be going back to update in a few weeks. The owner was a little distracted, engaged in creating menu boards, and seemed somewhat uncertain of what kind of setup the café is aiming for (pay on purchase or on departure, he just sort of shrugged) but I’m sure those are just teething problems. There was also a slight spillage of coffee on delivery, which wasn’t accompanied by an apology or an attempt to clean up — again, I suspect due to being a little distracted by the primary task in hand. Menu boards are a v useful thing to have, especially when, as today, the chap can’t seem to remember the prices of things! It was really nice to see them hanging over the counter by the time we left and I’m looking forward to coming back. I have a feeling this place is going to be pretty lovely when it’s all sorted out.

Area C Coffee is a lovely, bright, chilled out spot and a nice addition to Leith Walk.
I’m on my second visit, the first time I headed here for a much needed bacon roll which hit the spot but wasn’t ‘ah-​mayzing’. I’ve returned to give the coffee a try.
The place is decked out in wooden, mismatched chairs with accompanying wooden, mismatched tables. Surprisingly, it comes together. The walls are earthy tones which is nice and relaxing. There’s a wee teepee in the back corner complete with kids books and toys, which is simply adorable! The staff put fresh flowers on the table, nothing fancy but a nice touch.
The menu is limited but standard; hummus, falafel, baked potatoes, paninis, nachos and soups. My flat white was good.
The staff are really nice, a mixture of older men and young lads (who look barely old enough to shave!) Strangely, there’s a jazz/​Africa/​cycling theme to the place it seems which is confusing but not overwhelming. I feel that this place was someone’s baby, and they’re going to do it their way.
Overall, I like it here. It feels local and is quiet and relaxed. To me, this place is perfect for Leith Walk!
PS To any ladies who make use of the facilities, I hope you like Barry Manilow!

Area C is a great new café on Leith Walk, taking over the premises that previously housed the Deli Polonia café. They showcase really good Steampunk coffee, have quirky mis-​matched furniture, including a little tipi, and their food is really impressive. Fans of the chickpea are particularly well-​served, with freshly made falafel and hummus (served with things like pomegranate seeds and chilli oil) forming the backbone of their selection. Their soup, with two daily changing veggie options, is really good, too :-)
Overall, we said: «Area C made an excellent first impression. Each element of their offering seems not only very good, but much more settled and assured than you’d expect from a place in its first few weeks of trading. Service was friendly, helpful and informed at all times, too. My advice would be to go and try it for yourself, at your earliest opportunity.»