Ryans of Edinburgh — Restaurant in City of Edinburgh

Avoid this place! The Manager, Marta, would be better suited to working in one of Her Majesty's Prisons and not in the hospitality sector. Marta knows how to win an argument and lose a customer.

I have been eating at Ryan's Bar since 2017 and always found the food very good, the surroundings convivial and the staff extremely personable. I popped in for lunch today, for the first time after the bar re-opened, following relaxation of Covid 19 restrictions. I was served by two very well mannered and personable young men. When it came to ordering my dessert, one of the young men struck up conversation with me. A young woman whom I now know to be Marta ordered the young man to stop talking and help her. The other waiter then took over my order. Marta returned and took issue with me for having a conversation with her staff and for delaying her staff. On each occasion, it was each waiter who engaged me in conversation and not the other way round.

The restaurant only had one other couple dining in it. Marta is arrogant, far too self assertive, unremitting and her sarcastic use of the expression "of course" when I challenged her about her arrant bad manners and rudeness is both inappropriate and impertinent.

I am old enough to be Marta's grandfather and feel totally disrespected. I cancelled my order for dessert and requested the bill. She unsuccessfully tried not to lose the sale. She has no shame attempting to take my custom for granted. She presented me with the bill in an officious way and when I stated that I wanted to leave a tip for the waiter, she responded that tips were shared and told me to "suit yourself." She declined to give me the details of the Company's Chief Executive and told me to speak to the GM. The General Manager sets the tone of any business and must take responsibility for the delightful Marta's exemplary service which is an anathema to the standards that are widely expected and approved of in Scottish hospitality. As I left the bar, the two young men were standing at the bar...

I've lost count the amount of times I've come here for chicken fajitas! They are sooo good! They arrive on a sizzling platter, 4/5 wraps and a generous helping of sour cream, cheese, salsa and most importantly guacamole! YUM! All that for £11. I haven't let myself try anything else on their menu, because the fajitas are so tasty!

Fajitas aside, I wouldn't normally come here for a drink. It always has sports blaring on the TVs, so not my kinda place. Although I do love the beautifully decorated ceilings, cosy banquet seating and.... fajitas!

Downstairs there is the Cellar bar and 'finer' dining that plays Jazz music every last Sunday of the month. Never eaten down there, but the bar is more contemporary than the main bar, which is traditional timber in style. There is a nice conservatory extension that surrounds the pub, which is great for soaking up the rays in the warmer months.

Like Rayan D. mentioned it's a good place to meet people who don't know Edinburgh well. Ryan's at the west end of Princess Street and has been around for a long time, since 1991 and unlike many of the bars around, I don't think it'll likely change hands...

Highly underrated restaurant. I've been a few times now and each time I've been impressed with something - the first time was the service, when we had a very helpful, friendly and attentive waitress. The second time was around Christmas 2013, when I was invited to sample their festive menus, and the food was absolutely superb, as was the wine selection. I took a friend and she ended up making a huge booking for her company Xmas night out, which I think is as good an endorsement as any! The most recent time I went was for Valentine's Day in 2014, and I have to say it wasn't as good as my previous visits - the waitress we had was fairly inattentive, to the point where we had to order our drinks three times and go up to the bar to pay because the bill sat on our table for about twenty minutes. Shame to have to report that, but there it is. However, the food we had was delicious and very reasonably priced.

I'd very much recommend The Cellar Restaurant. Protip if you're booking: ask for a private alcove. If it's a quiet evening, you'll get one to yourself, and the experience is very intimate...