Circus

Great lunch/​brunch spot just off the Royal Mile. We were looking for places with gluten-​free options and were really pleased with Circus. The lentil soup was very flavourful. Panini’s were very satisfying for both a tuna and a Mediterranean option (not GF). Espresso was excellent.

Their baklawa is good (walnut-​based). Went in there to do some work and have a coffee. I had one regular americano, and holy. sh*t. That was the strongest cup of coffee I’ve ever had. I ordered a second cup and drank 2 sips before I realised something terrible would happen otherwise. I didn’t know what, but my numbed, crazy brain remembered childhood «say no to drugs» videos. I ultimately got a terrible headache and nauseated. In other words, yes. I got a caffeine hangover – I didn’t know that was possible, and I’m a regular coffee drinker. SO, if you’re looking for a quick caffeine jolt, definitely get a coffee here. Because good lord. If you want to do work, concentrate, and otherwise function on a basic human level (I was jittery and crazy – and ultimately the least productive human on planet earth – for four hours before I crashed HARD early in the evening), get a nice tea here.
Also, they have a ten pound minimum for debit card – it used to be five pounds and they raised it. That was really irritating.

You’d think in Edinburgh it’d be easy just to point your finger and find a cool place to eat. But when you’re a bit of a tourist in the city like me, you only really think of the usual (chain) places to visit for a bite to eat.
Our initial plan was to go for brunch (I still don’t quite get ‘brunch’) and somewhere a bit different. So out we went up and down the Royal Mile and passed numerous places but weren’t really feeling the love for anywhere until I happened to spy a colourful clown stood outside a place just off the Mile.
Circus turned out to be a cool wee bistro/​restaurant with a great menu. Plenty of options for meat eaters and lettuce munchers alike.
Given that we both hadn’t eaten since the previous night and it was hitting noon by the time we went in, I was having the full trad. Scottish breakfast and Julie was into the poached eggs and toast (with the chunky mushrooms from my plate). I added a turkish coffee and fruit juice to the side. I also love it when the waiter automatically sticks a big jar of water on the table, which they did.
My breakfast was superb, lovely crispy bacon, fried egg tasty links sausages and chunky toast served with hash brown, potato scone and fried tomato. My only complaint was the overcooked fried egg. I like my yolk runny but it’s a minor quibble, which sounds even more ridiculous as I type it.
The place was really busy with a mix of families, students and other folks the two guys working knew. There was also a women with a dog, which was quite happy with its bowl of water. The wee outside garden to the back looked like a fun outdoor spot for some al fresco munching but the weather was horrendous.
The service was pretty fast and the waiter was attentive but looked a bit overworked and seemed to struggle remembering folks’ requests. We asked for our bill but waited for quite a while before just paying it at the till.
All in though, a cool wee chilled out spot, close to the main tourist hub, to grab a tasty lunch.
Of and if you’re going in the evening they are also licensed.

Im here for the fringe festival and this is my 4^th visit to this establishment. I gave it a decent go before the review which I think is fair. the coffee is decent I will say. The service is hit and miss. You sit and wait, and wait and wait, then are hit with 4 waiters in a row. I understand they are hired for the festival however I wonder if anyone works here full time. The seem to be out of everything all the time. One day my friend ordered a G&T, yep out of a gin she suggested. Next my friend ordered a beer, yep out of that too. Next she ordered another beer, well they are out of it but not on purpose, the delivery man gave them something completely different. ???
The food… I had a Mediterranean salad, ok, not good presentation, my friend had kebabs, woo-​full. Anther friend had a burger and chips, thought you cant go wrong on this. WRONG. Soggy under-​cooked frozen chips. And for this I paid 53 sterling. I’m in shock. I asked him to double check. 2 coffees, 1 wine, 2 main courses not more than 20 for those, and 1 tea. Yep he was right. Never again. If you keep walking down Mary street there are some cool quirky restaurants and cafes. Give this a miss.

Went there for breakfast, food is average but the restaurant has a very nice outside seating area. Rating strictly on the food service is bad just like most of the places in the UK so I don’t really take that into consideration. Coffee and tea were both good.

Stumbled across this place while on a walk around the town and we were very happy to grab a great little breakfast here. My friend had fresh green tea and a scone and I had the most delicious apple cake I’ve ever had. Highly recommend that. I was also drooling over all the Greek meals on the menu when I was looking, might come back for lunch. The best atmosphere, if I had a restaurant I would want it to look like this.

If you think this is just a breakfast and brunch spot you are sorely mistaken! We ordered dinner here around 8pm and had a wonderful experience.
We ordered the borek starter, rocket and tomato salad, grilled fish, grilled chicken and vegetarian meze platter. Everything was absolutely delicious with very authentic flavours. They accommodated our «no chips» preference by making bigger salads.
We ended up waiting for our mains a little longer than expected. When we inquired, our waitress informed us that the food had been ready but she sent it back to cook a new batch of fish because there had not been enough. When we paid the bill we received 20% off the mains to compensate for this. And we received free pastries filled with delicious custard! Excellent customer service and excellent food!
We had been there earlier in the day for a Turkish coffee and orange cake which we enjoyed on their Terrance. You can’t see the garden from the street but it was beautiful as we were visiting in late April. Check it out!

Went in for a quick coffee and dessert, and was somewhat disappointed with the range of choices. There were four slices of a carrot cake and a dry slice of chocolate cake. Now, I didn’t go into the details e.g. gluten free, fat free, or other health considerations that might have gone into the insipid taste and the gloomy appearance.
OK, so I’ll give it this much. The place in itself didn’t look too bad. It had a very cool, working on your Mac — sipping on coffee kind of feel to it, the location doubled the charm, and they played good music. So I am almost tempted to say I would go back simply for the ambiance or even the music, but probably get a piece of confectionery from some place else. The coffee was not too bad.

A verrrry handy food pit-​stop between the Royal Mile and Pleasance — I’ve stopped here a few times in between festival shows or whilst giving visitors the old town tour to refuel (and usually shelter from the rain).
The big windows at the back let a lot of light in, and with the high ceilings give the place a nice airy feel. There’s a little courtyard out the back too if you’re feeling well-​insulated. I’ve always been pretty lucky timing-​wise but there might be a short wait for a table in the peak lunch hour rush.
The lunch choice is fairly predictable but decent; more often I stop by at teatime for a warming coffee and cake. This visit my sister and I shared a mahoosively generous slice of carrot cake which was 90% soft and moist, but the outer edge had been overbaked and was too hard to get a fork through (as I discovered after it tried to fly off the plate).
Thank you Circus (no idea why it has that name btw) for serving it with a scrummy fruit compote on the side though — it meant I could count the whole thing as one of my five-​a-​day :D

I discovered this wee place last year when I was working at Paterson’s Land venue just down the road, a dn it ended up being my favourite place to eat in a part of town that doesn’t have a vast choice of eateries.
Circus is just off the Royal Mile enough to be slightly less manic during the Festival, although it is handy for venues that are down that end of the aforementioned street, as well as the Pleasance. It gets fairly busy, but seems able to absorb pretty much anything that you throw at it, as I never saw anyone having to wait for a table. The ‘people love us on Unilocal!’ sticker on the door was a definite enticement to enter too!
The highlight of the space is the wee garden courtyard at the back, which is good for larger groups and I imagine would be heavenly on a sunny day; sadly I’ve always been on my own when I’ve visited and have never made it any further than the main bit at the front.
The cuisine is varied bistro-​style with a middle-​Eastern slant. The menu isn’t huge, but it’s good for me as there are a couple of veggie and fishy options to try. The staff have always been attentive and friendly when I’ve been in and the service is pretty rapid even when they’re busy.
On this occasion I opted for the veggie breakfast, and was very pleasantly surprised with what turned up. No baked beans, for a start! Instead, there was a small amount of green salad. It still had the usual staples of veggie sausages (nice), mushrooms hash browns and potato scones (nice and crisp, not greasy at all), scrambled eggs (fluffy), and fried tomato — which I left as I’m not a big fan of those.
Overall, one of the best veggie breakfasts I’ve had. The coffee’s not too shabby either.

Our teas, baked potatoes and burger were all good value for money. Service was swift but a smile would have improved it. Watch out for a character in shades and a technicolour dreamcoat though — failing to engage this drunk in conversation may result in some classist abuse (as he’s no judge of age though you may lose ten or so years so it’s not all bad).

I passed this place on my way to a Fringe performance at the Pleasance and thought to try it out and squeeze in some food between schedules.
The waitress was very attentive and I was handed a menu at the entrance and could chose my seat anywhere in the room. At first there were not many people, but this place filled up pretty quick. I also noticed the enchanting little seating area at the back, which looks really cozy.
I needed something fast and ordered Penne with tomato sauce (including mushrooms, onions and peppers) and mentioned to the waitress that I am in a hurry. The food indeed arrived very fast and I could pay within 20 min. If you plan to expect excellent Italian food than this is not the place, however, if you need a stop over, a cake and a coffee, or enjoy drinks whilst reading a book, then this place is ideal.
I paid £9.95 for the dish and if paying by credit card they will charge you for under £10 or might refuse to use the credit card.
Not sure if the food was worth £9.95, but I would definitely go back as the environment and the service are really nice.

nice little old courtyard to sit outside and enjoy a nice sandwich/​breakfast. pot of tea is big so can be shared by 2!

Perfect place just off the royal mile for breakfast, lunch or even an after work drink!
First time I went there they had just recently opened and being honest I wasn’t that impressed, the service was slow and the staff were not that friendly. However the food was very good and it’s a lovely café with a nice lively atmosphere so thought I’d give it another chance and I’m glad that I did!
Every time that I’ve been since the service has been good, the staff very friendly and welcoming and the food is consistently good.
For the odd day that we get sunshine in Edinburgh they have a lovely outdoor area at the back.
Good varied menu and well priced.

I had my lunch hopes pinned on something a bit more pubby, so it was with heavy heart and bottom lip tripping me, that I was dragged in here for what threatened to be a healthier option. Ha! homemade burger and fries leapt out of the menu, so retracted lip and replaced with sizeable grin and a bottle of Corona.
The food was pretty good, the salads light and fresh with a mix of dressings and dips and the burger well done. Staff delightful, second guessing my move for a ketchup bottle to glide across the room and bring it to my side.
The guys at the table next to us were tucking into an all-​day breakfast which looked a real belly-​buster and shows the diverse nature of this place. It can flex from subtle dishes to real tummy ballast with ease.
There’s a small outdoor courtyard which looks like it would be lovely on a sunny day, so going to be back for more sooner rather than later.

An offshoot project from nearby Empires, Circus is a smart looking little bistro, with middle-​Eastern influence, but a varied menu that extends beyond there. I only sampled the soup, which was OK, but I saw enough of the place to want to pay it a visit when I have a little more time.
Overall, we said: «what I got from Circus was a good introduction. It wasn’t fantastic, but I liked the look of the place, so will return next time I’m looking for a relaxed brunch style place.»