Where to find the best Sunday roast in Edinburgh

A Sunday roast is much more than a meal, it’s a ritual — a beloved British institution which conjures crackling hearths in cosy dining rooms, the rustle of newspapers and an air of soporific comfort. The Scottish capital is no exception; what better salve could there be to a dram-induced hangover than this satisfyingly savoury feast?

Conventionally, the centrepiece is a slab of meat, slow-roasted and carved off the bone. A choice of what the late, great restaurant critic AA Gill called the “three bloody heraldic beasts that support this island’s kitchen table”, namely “sheep, swine and kine”. Better-known as lamb, pork or beef, these are generally served doused in gravy, with a dollop of the designated sauce — mint, apple and horseradish, respectively. Roast chicken has become a popular alternative, while vegetarians can now choose from a wealth of thoughtful substitutes, beyond the conventional nut roast. Then, there’s the trimmings: tatties — roasted, if not in other iterations, too — are non-negotiable, plus stuffing and sundry other veggies. Yorkshire puddings usually make an appearance, despite their Anglo roots.

There’s little place for pretension in the Sunday roast — hold the jus and foams. And while Edinburgh’s pubs will be your go-to, several of the city’s fine-dining restaurants and five-star hotels are refining the formula, with scrupulously sourced local ingredients and more elegant plating. Whichever venue you choose, be sure to book ahead — these roasts are so good, they often sell out well before closing time.

1. Kyloe

Unlimited gourmet sides are a serious selling point of Kyloe’s Sunday lunches — including home-made pan gravy pooling in pillowy Yorkshires, organic root veg, beef dripping-roasted potatoes, silky creamed cabbage and hot horseradish cream. Views of Edinburgh Castle from this city-centre dining room are another draw but, as you’d expect at a steakhouse, beef is the star of the show. Cow-hide seating and paintings of Highland cattle nod to the theme, while the menu features a 28-day dry-aged, Borders-reared Aberdeen Angus and a choice of sirloin, rump or pastry-encased beef wellington, deftly carved tableside for groups of two to six diners (from £30 per person). The decadence concludes with a sharing portion of sticky toffee pudding and vanilla ice cream.

2. Rhubarb

Unless the First Minister invites you to dine at Holyrood Palace, it would be hard to find a more sumptuous, history-steeped Sunday lunch setting than Prestonfield House. Its claret-hued interiors are decked with ancestorial oil paintings, while velvet-swagged windows frame nearby landmark hill, Arthur’s Seat. Fine-dining restaurant Rhubarb — so-called because Prestonfield’s grounds were the first in Scotland to grow the ingredient – serves a rump of Scotch beef with roast potatoes and honeyed root veg on the Sabbath (£30). Alternatively, splash out on the Angus chateaubriand, a celebrated stalwart of the daily menu, on Sundays served with pillowy Yorkshires, both purée and Lyonnaise potatoes, spring cabbage and a Madeira jus (£99 for two). Spend your languorous lunch learning more about the fascinating history of this estate-within-the-city, from Cistercian monastery to celebrity-frequented hotel.

3. The Ox

Founded by three friends in 2014, this dog- and kid-friendly gastropub in New Town quickly won a loyal following, its menu as dependable, hardworking and no-nonsense as its namesake animal. Sundays are no exception, when there’s a choice of two classic combinations: pork belly with apple sauce or beef with horseradish (both £25). A giant Yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, carrots and seasonal greens grace each dish, all drizzled in a rich, bone marrow gravy. Not a meat-eater? Try the veggie roast, served with tomato gravy (£20). Add a side of bubbling cauliflower cheese, sip some of their cracking craft ales and soak up the buzzy weekend atmosphere into the evening. Among the de rigueur gastropub decor — brown leather banquettes, exposed brickwork, reclaimed tables — look out for bespoke bovine murals by local artist Reid Bernie.

4. The Queens Arms

At this unpretentious boozer in New Town, where the walls are bedecked with Scottish memorabilia, the Sunday classic is designed for two diners; the 'ulimate sharing roast' loads up a wooden board with 14oz of blushing beef, roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings and a jug of gravy (£48). It’s accompanied by a dish of seasonal veg and cauliflower cheese and followed by a sharing pud — keep it local with the cranachan sundae, featuring raspberries, oats and Scottish tablet. Solo diners and veggies are also well catered for — the menu features an individual plated option (£23), plus a roast pumpkin wellington drizzled with balsamic and red onion gravy (£17). A tavern to please traditionalists, stick around for a pint of local Cold Town beer, live televised sports and the 8pm quiz.

5. The Sheep Heid Inn

Robert Burns, Robert Louis Stevenson, Bonnie Prince Charlie — a roll call of famous Scots has passed through these cosy, firelit rooms in Duddingston, on the city’s eastern fringes. Established in 1360 and featuring an old-school skittle alley, it’s believed to be Scotland’s oldest pub — but rather than resting on its laurels, the inn pulls out all the stops on Sundays. Expect eye-popping portions and plenty of options, from half a roast chicken with bread sauce and bacon-wrapped stuffing (£18.95) to slow-cooked pork belly (£20.25) or 21-day-aged beef sirloin (£20.50). Can’t decide? Order the indulgent trio of roasts and drench the lot in bottomless gravy (£23.50). The veggie nut roast, somewhat less traditionally, includes Mediterranean flavours of fig and dolcelatte (£17.95).

6. Ardfern

Who’d have thought a trendy wine bar and bottle shop would serve one of Edinburgh’s finest Sunday roasts? Ardfern is the city’s third opening from Great British Menu alumnus Roberta Hall McCarron, and its beef rump cap — a tender, fat-banded cut favoured in Brazilian steakhouses — is sourced from East Lothian’s John Gilmour Butchers and charred on the grill to finish (£28). A marinated king oyster mushroom and garlic-bay confit carrot — both served whole and barbecued — make for grown-up, umami-rich alternatives to typical trimmings, while Ardfern swaps roasties for hash browns. This may sound sacrilegious, but these crisp, chunky cubes of compressed potato and duck fat already have a cult following among Leith locals. Yorkshire puddings cradle either ox tongue or vegetarian haggis — the latter accompanying veggie roasts of halloumi and bulgar wheat-stuffed courgette (£26). The daily wine pairings are, of course, spot-on.

7. The Broughton

Behind this New Town pub’s royal blue facade, leather banquettes, parquet floors and indoor plants provide a smart, contemporary setting for Sunday lunch. Begin with sharing starters that celebrate the Scottish larder, such as St Andrews cheddar croquettes, Cobble Lane fennel salami or east coast crab crumpets (from £8). For the main event, rare-breed pork chop (£24) with apple sauce is a signature dish, while the trimmings — duck fat roasties, glazed carrots, cavolo nero, a rich, silky red wine gravy — are every bit as impressive as the meat. Continue the porcine theme by ordering a side of honey-mustard pigs in blankets. While there isn’t a veggie roast per se, The Broughton’s Sunday menu includes a braised globe artichoke (£24).

8. The Spence at Gleneagles Townhouse

On Sundays, the marble columns and ornate glass dome of this former banking headquarters in Edinburgh New Town backdrop a steady flow of build-your-own Bloody Marys and a Champagne trolley circulating between tables. Starters such as crayfish cocktail or chicken liver parfait with quince jelly signpost that this is a place where comforting, crowd-pleasing dishes are in for an elegant upgrade. Fish also makes a welcome if unexpected appearance: a pan-roasted sea bream slathered in a sharp, buttery sauce, which still comes with the veg trimmings you’d expect at Sunday lunch. Meanwhile, the pithivier — slow-cooked squash and wild mushrooms encased in puff pastry — provides a spectacular plant-based main. There’s a triumvirate of meat, too: pork loin with toffee apple sauce, a rump of beef with horseradish cream, or leg of lamb with mint sauce (£32 for two courses).