Herringbone Abbeyhill — Restaurant in City of Edinburgh

There is a lot of good to be said about this place in principle, it is quite nice. However when the chips are down, it is essentially venal. The ugly side of gentrification. I went in with a pal at 1600 on a Friday, I was treated as if it was a special privilege to get a table by a snooty young man... Luckily, I was given a table and fairly warned it was booked for 1730. When the witching hour arrived we moved without complaint to another table. Sometime later, and about 20 mins after ordering a new bottle of wine (at the instigation of enthusiastic and freindly staff), we were told our table was booked and we would have to move outside.

I have been there many times, spent (for me) a lot of money, but we were simply not welcome when there was a queue at the door, made to feel uncomfortable and rushed out by immature and unskilled staff. My friend was gulping down wine because of the pressure from staff. When they are busy, you will be valued here depending on your spending power, if you want a relaxed time, this is not the place.... The Trump Towers of cafes, you can buy into the 'money is greater than God' thing or you can go somewhere friendly and warm. I wont go back - under the surface gloss, it is coarse. There are some really nice people working there, I enjoyed several visits, but the people in charge may not be good. Ultimately, the culture of the business trumps all.... £$£$£$£ ...

I am giving this place a 3/5 stars due to the imbalanced service we received on the two occasions we went. Our first time there was for wine on the terrace and this was a lovely time. Tables are a bit uncomfortable, but the ambiance and wine selection was superb. Our waitress knew a fair amount about wine (though I think the restaurant could invest a bit more into training their staff on wine if they continue to have such a wide variety of options) and I was able to make a good choice for me. My friend and husband were also pleased, especially my husband as he does not drink alcohol and loved the non-alcoholic options.

However, the second time we went was very poor. It was a late Saturday morning (11:15am) and we decided to get a quick coffee and a pastry on the terrace. The poor waitress was all alone in her tables and was well over worked, which might have been why she completely ignored us, got our order wrong, and took forever in getting our croissants. I don't blame the waitress entirely, but she should have asked us more questions to clarify what we wanted if there were multiple, similar, options on the menu. We left at 12:15pm, ruining the 'quick' coffee we intended to have.

Long story short - eat inside, not outside, for meals; go for brunch, not a quick coffee; and enjoy the evening on the...

We came for a Birthday dinner to treat my partner, we had high expectations of cocktails as you're always busy with people on the terrace especially when it's sunny, unfortunately, we've come on a wet day, nonetheless, you haven't disappointed us. The atmosphere and music were brilliant. Cocktails were a massive hit, so you've lived up to the expectations 100%, but what impressed us more was the food and service. I'll be honest, we didn't have high expectations and WOW you've blown our minds with your menu - great choices and food not only tasted delicious but also looked stunning too! Well done! Massive well done to Iona and her colleague on the shift - they were calm and handled a busy service incredibly well. Very attentive, kind and welcoming. Although the place looked busy, it didn't feel frantic or anything like that, they bounced off each other with such grace - well done! We are excited to be back...