The Palmerston — Restaurant in City of Edinburgh

Visited here for breakfast on a Saturday in June and I cannot describe how rude the service was. During the visit I spoke to three different members of staff and they were all extremely rude. The first member of staff walked by us several times as we waited at the door without saying hello or stopping to explain that they do not seat people for breakfast so we could just go in and sit anywhere. Eventually he looked at us on the fifth or sixth time walking past and said “alright?” before explaining we could just sit down in a very rude and dismissive way. We were then just sitting down at a table when the same member of staff approached that table to seat another person at it. We apologised and asked if he was seating the lady there (we had heard him say to her: “you can sit over here, I’ll just wipe it for you”) and he said “no” and turned around and walked straight past the woman, leaving her staring at us, and us staring at her. It was so awkward and bizarre. A second member of staff was standing beside our table folding napkins during our entire meal. When we asked her where the toilets were she simply indicated with her head without speaking to us or smiling and later when we asked her another question she just nodded, again without smiling or bothering to speak. She acted as though we were really troubling her by speaking to her. The last member of staff marched up to our table and said “we are now setting up for lunch so you need to be out in 15 minutes” before walking away. No pleasantries, no how was your food, no smile just “you need to be out”. Then as we were leaving we remarked to each other how rude the staff had been and the formerly mute napkin-folder then shouted after us, “thank you guys, goodbye” in the most sarcastic manner. So clearly she could speak after all!

It was honestly some of the rudest service I’ve ever experienced. Not what you expect from a supposedly nice place. On a separate note, the restaurant was badly presented. All of the tables were dirty and there were huge plastic containers with drinks inside sitting on display at the back of the room, labelled in sharpie. The pastries were totally dry - except for the pain au raisin which was very nice.

We definitely won’t be back. If I could give zero stars for service and...

If I were to describe my experience at The Palmerston in two words it would be: incredibly underwhelming

Where to start, I heard fantastic reviews about this place from the internet and from food critics around Edinburgh. The word on the street was this was Edinburgh’s chefs favorite restaurant. I was incredibly excited to try the food here during my 2 week trip to the UK. To say I was disappointed is an understatement.

Now I don’t want to be too hard on them, the cocktails and appetizers were very good but it’s the entrees that fall completely short. I ordered the Kid Crépinettes with mash and cabbage and my partner ordered the Roasted Pork Shoulder with celeriac and bitter lettuce. The Kid Crépinette was probably the most disappointing due to it being very bland and gristly. Traditionally they are coated with melted butter and then tossed in breadcrumbs before sautéing or grilling. This felt like it was maybe formed and just put into the oven for 10 minutes. No hint of truffle or any significant flavor. As for the roasted pork shoulder, you would have thought it was a grilled pork loin with how tough and flavorless it was. Usually roasted pork shoulder means fall apart tenderness and flavor but this was tough.

The only redeeming factor about the meal was the appetizers, cocktails and the wonderful service who did not charge us for the poorly made dishes. This all being said I would consider giving the Palmerston a second chance if I was in Edinburgh again in the future but I couldn’t help leave my thoughts on a dining experience I was very much...

Myself and my partner visited the palmerston for dinner on our first night in Edinburgh. We weren't expecting to get a table as the restaurant was super busy, but the kind servers made a table up for us which we massively appreciated. Off the bat the energy of the room was wonderful, it's a casual feel with a fine dining touch. The menue is changed regularly with what's in season which made the food we had incredible! My partner started with a smokey single malt whiskey and i had a glass of white wine. We stuggled to choose as we were spoilt for choice with their extensive wine list. Our servers were Adam and Grace who were so friendly and informative. We started our meal with the carrot and caraway soup along with the harissa tenderstem Broccoli which was divine! Expected the soup to be heavy but it was quite the opposite, super light and delicious. The Broccoli was the highlight of the meal for my partner who gladly finished every stem. I then moved onto the pork loin dish which was succulent and perfectly cooked. My partner ordered the cod which I had a little nibble of, both dishes exceeded our exodctations! At the end of the meal we asked Adam for further recommendations for our trip and he went above and beyond! He wrote a list of the best places to go while in Edinburgh, we visited one of the restaurants on the list a couple nights later and he really did know what he was talking about so a special thank you to Adam and the team. We will be back next time we are in Edinburgh to see what greatness the chef has come...