Porto & Fi On The Mound

We popped in here on Sunday afternoon for a bit of respite from the shops & the weather. Even though the sun had his hat on there was a chilly breeze so we opted for hot chocolate to warm us up. Despite there only being 3 other tables occupied, two of which were getting ready to leave, it was almost impossible to get served. Eventually one waitress said she’d come take our order then disappeared to clear a table. I could understand it if they were busy & needed to seat custoners but it was after 3pm and very quiet. The hot chocolate, when we were eventually served, was really nice & served with a flake on the side which was a nice touch. The poor service has put me off. Shame, I’d heard good things about Porto & Fi

Best brunch I had had for months.

i was a bit late in finding out how awesome porto & fi is and must actually credit my boyfriend for taking me here to make the discovery of such a wonderful place for brunch! my first visit was about a year ago and my second visit was this past weekend, but i really need to make an effort to go here more!
needing to be in town to go to the bank, i suggested we get brunch at the branch on the mound. this worked out rather perfectly as i only had a short ten minute walk after my bank visit, but it included the playfair steps so i was fairly hungry by the time i reached the top of the stairs and the door to the restaurant itself.
on arrival we were actually lucky to get a set as there were a few empty tables but these were booked. i made a mental note that next time we go we’ll need to book a table! we did end up with a cosy corner both that wasn’t booked until an hour later and the waitress left us with menus.
the lunch options looked rather yummy, but my heart was set on breakfast so i opted for the scrambled eggs, toast, and parma ham. my boyfriend went for the eggs benedict with smoked salmon. we also had a tea, coffee, and orange juice with that. i saw they sold tea pigs tea, but at £2.75 a pot i opted to go for the standard early grey at a £1 less!
our drinks arrived prompty and our breakfasts shortly after. my plate was large and filled with fluffy and moist scarmbled eggs atop a thick sliced of buttered freshly made bread. on the side of this was a number of slices of parma ham and another slice of lovely toast. the parma ham goes so incredibly well with eggs, it has that perfect saltiness that adds such a great flavour!!! my portion was so big i had to offer half a slice of toast to the boy as i couldn’t finish it, but it was so so so tasty! i was also assured that the eggs benedict was very good and the very empty plate confirmed that as well.
the service at porto & fi is quick and efficient, but also friendly and welcoming. we were in and out in an hour, which suited us just fine as i had a hair appointment to go to but i also got the feeling that if they didn’t need the table back we could have stayed as long as we wanted.
my only dislike about this place is i thought the £2.75 for a pot of tea with a tea pig tea bag was seriously overpriced. i can buy a box of 80 tea bags for that price! it’s a small thing and would hardly stop me from going, but think it is something they should think about especially as the rest of the menu is quite reasonably priced.

Went for lunch today. Very nice and well worth a visit

What a great addition to the Mound and this part of town in general — am a regular visitor and like their style. Easy going service (but good!) in cool surroundings and great coffee. Try it.
Good range of quklity offering lunch or dinner, or maybe just sneak a fly wee coffee and cake.

I had the day off last Friday and arranged to meet my friend here for coffee. It turned out to be a good choice! Lovely seat by the floor to ceiling front window, exposed brickwork, tones of lime green and purple, quirky resin seats embedded with straw (I think!), mellow atmosphere, attentive staff and extremely tasty cake!
My carrot cake was yummy and the scones were perfect. The waiting staff had the perfect balance of being there when we needed them… but not hassling us as we sat and blethered! Although we were just having a cake and coffee afternoon, we both agreed we’d have to come back and sample the food menu sometime. The prices were very reasonable and there is a patio area outside ready and waiting for the sun to come out!
A perfect place to while away an afternoon catching up with good friends and people-​watching!

Have heard many a great thing about Porto and Fi — and today with a work lunch got my chance to go!
It was lovely and busy but we didn’t have to wait for the table and whilst we were walking to our seats I spotted many a person with very cool looking fish goujons and chips in a little bucket. The menu had a reasonable selection but the goujons had me captivated and I couldn’t think of anything else! In fact ¾ of our table ordered them. Alas, it was not to be, whilst looking lovely the goujons were rather bland although the chips were lovely.
We had time for a quick coffee and it’s here I was most disappointed. Now I don’t insist of Artisan Roast everywhere I go, but nice tasting coffee is in fact a requirement and I was very disappointed with the lack of flavour!
Lots of positives though, the waiting staff were delightful and friendly and the place was super, I mean noticeably clean! Impressive for a busy restaurant.
Now! Having read the other reviews, I’m not writing Porto and Fi off, I would hope to return again — but I simply can’t review it as highly as the other places I’ve been writing about recently. Here’s to an improved return visit — perhaps for eggs benny?

I had been looking forward to trying this restaurant for a while now. I had passed the one at Newhaven a few times and it is always busy — which is usually a good sign! So when my friend and I decided to try the latest addition on the Mound, I was very excited.
The menu is very reasonably priced. Although i didn’t try a starter (as wasn’t that hungry) — I throoughly enjoyed the haddock goujons and curly fries. The batter on the fish was delicious and extremely light.
I liked that next to each dish on the menu the recommended wine is shown next to it, which is helpful for those unsure what wine to drink.
I had a lovely house chenin blanc which was very nice indeed.
The staff were extremely friendly and we were very lucky to get the best seat in the house (in the right window as you come in) with the most beautiful view all the way down to Princes Street and over the city. I would definitely recommend booking this table if you’re planning a romantic evening, or again, a lovely place to take friends and family as it’s a really nice, relaxed atmosphere!
My friend felt it reminded her of a Swedish restaurant she’d been in and I can see what she means, with the very open plan, minimal style.
Definitely will be going back. Also being next to the Whiski rooms, it’s always handy to stop off there for a swift one afterwards!
Will be back!

I was here for lunch a few days ago. Nice ambiance — and cosy and warm inside while it blew a storm outside. I had good service, but wasn’t overwhelmed by the food. An halloumi sandwich with ciabatta and salad. I enjoyed the salad, and the halloumi, but frankly the ciabatta didn’t do it for me — and didn’t bring out the best in the halloumi (even with the chilli jelly). For dessert I had carrot cake — which was rather dry. Much better carrot cake to be had in town.
I’ll be back though — apparently they do a good eggs benedict.

I’m always impressed when café staff can manage to fill their place a relaxed atmosphere amidst the festival mayhem. And Porto and Fi on the mound most certainly can!
I managed to nab a prime window table to relax and enjoy the view whilst sipping on my cinnamon latte. Coffee was tasty but the atmosphere is really why they get so many stars from me. There was a steady stream of people coming in but i never felt hurried or hassled to get going and free up the table. The staff were polite, considerate and friendly without going overboard. Exactly what i needed to find after fighting my way through the madness of the royal mile!
Without a doubt I’ll be back for a bowl for there soup which smelt beautiful and was massive!

Well they have done well to recover these 4 stars, having called to book a table I was told didnt I realise it was the festival so they wouldnt be taking bookings!!! :@!!!
The festival is ONE MONTH A YEAR I am here 12 months, short sighted to my mind!
Anyway…to the food!!! My dinner chum and I opted to share a bottle of savvy b! very tasty!
For dinner I had the home-​made burger with gouda — she had the fish goujons! I loved my burger — medium rare in the middle, nice cheese, bbq sauce served with homemade coleslaw, curly fries and salad it was delicious
My chums fish was lovely too — crispy batter and fresh fish! Amusingly they gave her a childs side portion! She is a goregous girl but she couldnt decide if this was a hint she needed to cut down on the food or they were saying «you coudlnt possibly eat a whole portion» …funny :o)!!
Jd = happy man!!!

Why hello new potential favourite brunch spot! Having read Brad G’s reviews of Porto & Fi, and their amazing Eggs Benedict, it did make me a bit sad that they weren’t within lazy Sunday morning walking distance.
So imagine my joy when I walked up the Mound last week to see the pretty word of ‘Porto & Fi’ atop a restaurant that was currently being ‘done-​up’ inside. I thought it might be open by summer, hurrah!
What’s this? Fast-​forward but a few days and it’s open for business with quite a few customers inside already. Perfect. So when a good friend came to visit and needed some afternoon snackage, I was keen to try it out.
She ordered haddock goujons and chips, whilst I just had a tea. It made my day that the tea came with a small square of tiffin type traybake. Such a nice touch. The haddock goujons were presented quite elaborately in a small metal pot, spilling over the top. Very fresh, light batter. The chips were a bit forgettable but the haddock was lovely (yes I did try).
The interior is fresh, modern, quite simple but also with style. Open brick work, greens and browns, and the absolutely stunning view from the top of the mound. My only concern is that this place will become very popular very soon.
But they do have an exciting looking Brunch menu that I will be back to try on a Sunday. I haven’t been able to find somewhere with the right mix of restaurant, bar and café that does a good all-​day Sunday brunch in the near vicinity. Expect updated review and verdict soon!