Beanscene

Food for a fiver… sounds great — get a soup, coffee and a shortbread for £5. Great value in this day and age.
The soup was tomato and repper, actually not bad — pretty simple but nice. With some bread and butter its what you would expect.
The shortbread was crumbley with chocolate chips… not bad.
The coffee — a cappacino — awful! Its a coffee shop thus the weighting to how the coffee tasted — just awful!

I have been trying this café for more than two years now. I like especially the meal deal for my weekday lunches — for a fiver you get:
— A sandwich or hot dog or a soup,
— Hot drink (tip: you can have it take away if you like, just ask for it),
— Fruit or crisps.
There are a few options for sandwiches. Hot dog was good but not something special. Unfortunately only one soup option per day, which might include meat, so if you’re a veggieburger you will have to stick to the sandwiches selection.
Fruit option includes either a banana or apple most of the times (oranges make appearances too!).
I did try once their pizza, kept my belly full for quite a while! There is a selection of toppings.
The coffees they make are decent — I would recommend trying out the white chocolate/​mocha!
For sweet-​tooth people out there, big waffle with cream and maple syrup is also recommended!
Setting-​wise, big windows, close to the Haymarket station — I tend to sit right next to the window watching pedestrians and cars passing by, never stopping. It is above level street so you won’t be alarmed by any pedestrians staring at you while you devour that waffle I mentioned above!
Wi-​Fi does exist, although it requires a purchase and is time-​restricted (ask for a code from the counter).
There is a variety of sitting areas as well: from normal wooden chairs and tables, to leather armchairs, and if you want to enjoy even more — try out the big comfy leather sofas! (assuming they’re free, that is!)
It tends to be busy during lunch time, professional people do prefer it.
The staff is very friendly and doing their best to serve with a smile! :-)
My only inconvenient experience was when new staff was trained, and although there is the any-coffee-before-10-for-1.50 deal, I didn’t pay attention and paid the full price.
I would be happier if there were more soup choices and there were loyalty options for food too.
Comparing the options around this area, I will be going back to this for sure! :-)

We stopped there on a Saturday evening around 7pm and the place was still open. Gladly I must say. Every other coffee shop in the area seemed closed.
We ordered just coffee, which was ok to drink. Not my favourite, but acceptable. We were the only ones there. Awkward. Was I glad another person came and ordered something.
The interior is casual with comfy couches thrown in between. LOVED them.
I can imagine going back there meeting friends, have a cuppa and a book.

Better than average espresso. Nice atmosphere. Cappuccino a bit weak. Cake a bit dry but still tasty.

The problem with this area of town is there is a distinct shortage of relaxed coffee places. It’s either restaurant or greasy spoon territory. Beanscene is one of only a few coffee stops in the Haymarket area that you can even choose from (it’s sandwiched between two Starbucks).
So I find this spot quite handy if you’re meeting folk in this part of town. Saying that, the coffee shop is nothing to write home about — it’s a clone of every other Beanscene around and prices are on a par with other chains.
I’d never eat here — the food is ropey at best. But if you’re meeting pals for a chinwag, need a comfy sofa and a hot drink, you could do much worse.

An independent chain with a string of coffee shops in Edinburgh and Glasgow, Beanscene claim to offer a unique alternative to corporate coffee chains like Starbucks, Costa and Café Nero.
The problem is, their branches look just as bland with brown leather arm chairs and uncomfortable wooden tables and chairs. The coffee and food is around the same price point too and just as unremarkable. Admittedly, I’ve heard good things about the pizza and nachos from friends but the muffin and pannini I shared were both 70% stodge and 30% filling. As for the ambient music playing softly in the background — It might relax other customers but it made me feel like I was in an MFI or Sofa Workshop advert!

Arrived at the coffee house just after 7pm on Thursday evening 4÷2÷2010, to find the staff closing the doors, stacking chairs onto tables.
I had made a special visit into Edinburgh to try out their coffee, I was not very pleased.

Ich kann mich meinem Vorredner anschließen: gemütlicher, kleiner Kaffeeladen mit ausreichendem Platzangebot (im Moment ist hier gerade Mittagszeit und der Laden platzt nicht aus den Nähten).
Das Sitzangebot reicht von gemütlich (Ledersessel/​-​sofa mit Kaffeetisch) über arbeitsfördernde Tische & Stühle bis zu flotten Barhockern.
Und die Stunde freies Wifi zum Kaffee ist auch nicht zu verachten…

Ich war Silvester ²⁰⁰⁸⁄₂₀₀₉ fuer 8 Tage in Edinburgh, mein Hostel lag 2 Haeuser neben Beanscene und deswegen war ich sehr oft Gast dort. Tagsueber habe ich Edinburgh erkundet, gegen Abend dann bin ich bei Beanscene eingekehrt — oft solange, bis sie zu gemacht haben.
Die Preise dort sind fuer die angebotenen Getraenke gerechtfertigt, es gibt heiße Schokolade, Café und Tee. Zu essen gibt es Sandwiches, Bagels und Kuchen. Alles sehr lecker und liebevoll zubereitet und praesentiert. Die Bedienung ist sehr freundlich, Getraenke/​Essen werden zum Tisch gebracht. Freies WLAN ist genauso vorhanden wie aktuelle Tageszeitungen.
Da dieser Beanscene direkt an einem Bahnhof liegt, sind dort oft Reisende zu finden. Nichtsdestotrotz sind immer freie Plaetze vorhanden, die Bedienung ist, auch wenn Stress ist, immer freundlich und hilfsbereit.
Sehr gemuetliches Café, bei Aufenthalt in Edinburgh ist ein Besuch dort sehr empfehlenswert, wenn man mal abschalten will!

This branch of Beanscene is often busy with a mixture of locals and people heading off to the nearby station. But it is unusual for it to be so busy that you can’t find a seat.
Its a popular place to work and many of the people are regulars working on their laptops. The café offers free wifi for an hour with every hot drink and the service is ususally reliable.
The café sells fairly standard café fair, good coffees and a good range of teas and herbal teas. Foods include the kind of sandwiches and panini etc that you would expect as well as deli type platters with meats and cheeses.
The busines has just recently been taken over by another company so I think there will be some changes in the foods on offer.
The seating is a mix of slouchy leather sofas and wooden chairs and tables. If you want to work the tables are a good height for that.
Location is very handy for the west end of town and the atmosphere is relaxed and unhurried. Many people working for quite a while. Also a popular spot for business people to hold small meetings.
On some evenings they used to have live music sessions — I don’t know if this will carry on with the new owners.