Tempo Perso — Restaurant in City of Edinburgh

Words may not be enough to describe this restaurant. Settled in the Bruntsfield area, itself brimming with gastronomic delights, Osteria del Tempo Perso is a class above many of its peers. The feel of the place is a mix of traditional woods, old clocks on walls, a black and white screen showing old Italian movies and an impressive selection of wines on display behind the working bar. And yes, the food is excellent: four selections of Bruschetta, three selections of ravioli; four chicken dishes and so much more (check out their menu online). The Mezzi Rigatoni N'Duja is a firm favourite, a spicy dish because of the soft and spicy hot salami from Calabria. I had the Panciotti Capesante & Gamber ravioli, stuffed with scallops and prawns in a courgette sauce. Delicious. One part member ordered the 'Italian Meets Scotland'. This dish comprises chicken stuffed with haggis, paprika and creamy whisky sauce, rolled in parma ham. A great looking and great tasting dish

We were a (birthday) party of 11 on a bustling Saturday night but were very well taken care of. This is my second visit and for my brother, well, he's a regular. And I can see why.

Not only is the food and wine excellent – ask for the cold red fizzy wine – but the waiters are what make this place singular. Truly. They are genuinely friendly but go way beyond the expected courtesies. They have a great sense of joviality, freedom and camaraderie, all served with respect and efficiency of service that makes the evening a seamless and enjoyable experience. Leonardo is the manager and was helpful getting more chairs for us. Over the course of the evening we were attended to by David and Guanvito. David is the seasoned waiter, having come over directly from 'Osteria's' home restaurant back in Italy. He was brilliant at speaking with all of our party who were across the age spectrum. Although only here a week, Guanvito fits in well and is equally engaging.

All in all, this is a restaurant that totally delivers on its promises of having a good time eating and drinking with friends or family, amidst wonderful surroundings with...

So, so much to love about my takeaway: most of my meal arrived in eco-friendly cardboard containers; the portions are generous and fairly priced; there's enough choice for vegetarians; and very sensibly, the tomato topping for my buschetta was packed in a separate container, which meant the toast stayed crisp and there weren't chunks of tomato everywhere. Why doesn't everyone do it this way? It was nice to be offered several different types of pasta for the puttanesca; I went with ordinary dried pasta, and it was perfectly al dente. The tomato sauce was nice; I added some hot pepper flakes to pep it up. The roasted potatoes were a perfect texture were nicely seasoned, and tasted of potato. The salad had some really spirited leaves which were really crisp, and other nice things. The mushroom and cheese bruschetta was a bit bland. But the oven-baked veg were absolutely sensational: perfect textures, and beautifully seasoned with my favourite herb, thyme: sweet lovely onions, aubergine with the skin left on, really flavourful tomatoes, and although I'm not normally a courgette fan, these were absolutely delicious. And not watery or greasy: just perfect. I'm so glad I was greedy and ordered two portions. And the tiramisu was the best I've ever eaten (and I've eaten A LOT of tiramisu, as it's my very favourite pudding). Real thought and skill went into the making of my meal. I'll be ordering...

Thinking Italian ? Think Tempo Perso. Personally I am a HUGE fan of calamari and pasta (and Aperol Spritz). Portion of calamari in tempo perso ? Good. Pasta ? Good. Amazing even. I do not eat pastas outside my house, (unless I am in Italy) because they are always overcooked and covered with tones of cream and whatever they do put in. You will not find that in Tempo Perso. I believe that it is THE ONLY or maybe one of the couple places I would order pasta in Edinburgh. That is a place where you can enjoy your meal. You will find the restaurant’s owner there giving you a warm welcome every.single.time. Staff seems to be happy and relaxed. Head chef and his team seem to be working well and coming up with good ideas hence look for the special menu. If in doubt of matching the wine ask restaurants manager or his staff - so far so good, I have not been disappointed - very friendly and well informed. And they do have a big if not huge selection of wines (happy days !). The place is nice and cosy - you can expect to seat close to the next table and bear in mind they do close for the after lunch break. Do book. And...