One of Edinburgh’s most anticipated new restaurants opens today, as The Cottage at Royal Terrace – the 19th-century William Playfair building tucked within Royal Terrace Gardens – welcomes its first guests.
Peter Adshead, whose career spans Michelin-starred kitchens and Edinburgh’s leading five-star hotels, takes on the role of Director. Originally built in 1836 as a home for the Gardener of Royal Terrace Gardens, The Cottage becomes, under Adshead’s stewardship, an intimate, quietly compelling and seasonal dining destination, its story continuing within Edinburgh’s historic landscape.
Peter Adshead, Director at The Cottage at Royal Terrace, said: “From the moment guests walk through the kitchen garden gate, we want the busy city to fall away, and for them to feel the atmosphere shift.
Everything here at The Cottage is carefully considered. The provenance of what’s on the plate, the wines we’ve chosen, and our warm welcome. The Cottage is a beautiful, rare kind of place, and we intend to honour that with every guest visit.”
Guests arrive through a working kitchen garden, passing the produce and herbs that will appear in their meal. Head Chef Jamie Stapleton’s menus take their lead from what is growing and what is at its seasonal best, sourced alongside local foragers and trusted suppliers.
The Cottage opens with a five-course tasting menu at £55 per person and a seven-course menu at £85, alongside a lunch offering of two courses for £25 or three for £30. A vegetarian menu is also available.
Highlights from the opening menus include asparagus with black garlic, charred lemon and basil; halibut with red grapes, barbecued leeks and beurre blanc; and hogget with ewes curd, maitake and hogget jus gras. Desserts include a chocolate tart with miso gel, crème fraîche and candied walnuts, and – on the seven-course – rhubarb with yoghurt, oats and hibiscus.
The George Mewes cheeseboard, served with Edinburgh honey and lavosh cracker, is available as a supplement across all menus.
The Cottage works with a carefully selected group of local and artisan producers: meat from ethical producer The Free Company, organic fruit and vegetables from Phantassie Organic Produce, seafood from David Lowrie Fish and cheese from George Mewes.
You Might Also Like:
The wine list, curated by Adshead, is selected from two independent merchants – de Burgh Wine Merchants and Alliance Wine – with a considered focus on European wines. Wines will also be available by the glass.
Tucked just steps from Calton Hill, The Cottage is an easy walk from the East End of Princes Street and the Edinburgh Playhouse, making it a natural choice for a pre-theatre supper, a long celebratory lunch, or simply an evening that calls for somewhere out of the ordinary.
