BABA in Edinburgh, City of

We came here tonight after kindly receiving a gift voucher and oh my days are we glad we did. The food was incredible, we started with the baba ganoush and flatbreads, then had the crispy cauliflower with a main of bavete steak, monkfish and a side of the sweet potato dish. My palate was loving every bite! The dishes were intense and so full of flavour, everything complimented well and if I had room I would have ordered everything all over again. I also want to give a massive shout out to McKinlay who was our server and he was so funny, very attentive and when we thought about ordering his recommendations were spot on. I would come back for his service alone!

Great service - attentive and friendly. A lovely atmosphere too. The food was tasty enough, but the bread was rather tough and not so pleasant. I also felt that it was slightly overpriced for what we got ( we had a platter for 3). We gave a tip of 10% but a 12.5% discretionary tip had been added and the waitress came back to tell us that the Bill was short. Gave a while new meaning to the term 'discretionary '..

The food is a failed attempt to make it Lebanese/Mediterranean. Tried the best of Baba, and I could not believe how disappointing everything was. The haggis mergues and babaganus were very average, the mozzarella tasted like normal mozzarella, it can't be a main dish, especially if you don't know what to do with it. The lamb was dry and the big grains under it tasted like kid's food. And to finalize, the coliflower was again kid's food, mayonnaise with coliflower. It was mostly big word, but when eaten, it was bland average food. Also portions were extremely confusing as some plates were big and others small. As it is a tasting menu and not a sharing menu, in no way shape or form, you can serve it like they did.

Baba is my favourite restaurant when in Edinburgh. Found it by accident a few years ago and return at every possible occasion. I have taken my friends who have never been and also highly recommend for anyone to go if they are in the city. My favourite dish is the lamb. The cauliflower is delicious as well. Until next time Baba.

We ordered the menus thinking it would be easier for a big group but turned out more complicated as the plates were shared so we didn’t know who gets what and what portions. If I wanted to share I would have ordered the small plates and shared. The flavours are not at all Mediterranean or Middle Eastern especially the mayonnaise grilled cauliflower dish!!! The lamb was dry and over cooked. The baba ghannouch not thick enough. Very disappointing eating experience. Would not recommend.

Can't have gluten, but they gave me gluten bread. I had to dash home to take my meds and sit out the effects. If I could give it a - 5, I would. Won't be returning.

My go-to place whenever I come to Edinburgh. Every item is a delight of its own, especially the mussels. Lovely service and ambience.

Amazing food, so many great veggie options, McKinley looked after us so well, would be back every week if we were local. The dark chocolate crémeux was one of the best desserts we’ve ever had.

absolutely delicious! very good at catering for gluten allergy. well priced plates considering the how interesting everything was and exceptional taste + the sides are massive. only thing was it was a little empty. falafel and the brussel sprouts were the favourites

Tasty food, pricing represents pretty good value. Restaurant ambience is really nice. The coley was maybe not to our taste, but we liked everything else. Perhaps overall a slightly different style of execution of some of the dishes than you’d get elsewhere - flavors are perhaps abit heavier, which can be good depending on your preference. Totally worth a visit if you’re in Edinburgh.

My daughter treated me to a meal at this restaurant for the first time. The food was great but the service let the restaurant down. We waited at least 10” in a queue to be greeted and taken to our table. The waitresses slapped our meals down on the table instead of placing and rushed off. I was trying to say that I had ordered the lamb but she just rushed off. The service ruined our dining experience which was very disappointing for a restaurant in central Edinburgh!!

Loved the sharing dishes.Very tasty. Great atmosphere

Everything about this place was first class. Excellent service, delicious food and great atmosphere. Definitely be back

Great concept, inspired by Levantine cuisine, you will find some typical common Middle Eastern dishes and some other creative untraditional dishes with Arabic flavours. Great place for sharing food, loved the grilled dishes, top quality ingredients and very enjoyable experience. Superb service and atmosphere.

We had a lovely dinner here while visiting Edinburgh. The place is massive and lacks a bit of soul. It was hard to get anyone's attention. The food is amazing. We had a mix of meze and grilled plates. I think this is a place for big groups. Being just two of us, we felt a bit strange sitting surrounded by loud groups.

lovely, lovely food at a spacious, cozy location for special occasions (at a very fair price too!) a good mix of veggie and meat plates for sharing.

Great food, lovely place. We had the fixed menu - so if you are stuck go for it, you won't regret it.

Great place. The lamb shoulder with pomegranade seeds, yogurt and sour vegetables was the best lamb dish I've ever had. The dessert and rose tea were also perfect.

A beautiful restaurant worth a visit. The staff is very friendly. There are various types of food. You should be careful if you are looking for halal meat and chicken because it is not available. There are many vegetarian options. -I tried the following dishes: 1. The hummus was very delicious 2. Falafel is delicious and crunchy 3. Muhammara is delicious, but 🌶️ spicy. Caution should be given to those who do not like spicy food. 4. Zahra shawarma is marinated and grilled flower. Water is provided free of charge.

Every single dish was absolutely delicious: the haggis skewers + meatballs, baba ghanoush, lamb shoulder, buffalo mozarella + cauliflower. Great ambiance and service. Now one of my favorite restaurants.

Lovely lunch with a friend. We shared delicious plates, felt unhurried and not neglected (our table was tucked away in a corner). Staff were friendly and welcoming. Great spot

I’m Turkish so I am quite familiar with the cuisine. Count on my words that you won’t regret anything here. Best food I’ve had in Edinburgh.

12.5% service charge for drinks when I'm stood at the bar? Nah.

Unfortunately, I found the quality of the food to be below expectations, and I also observed unsatisfactory behavior from some members of staff. pRegrettably, based on this experience, I do not intend to return and cannot recommend this services to others.

I was disappointed with my recent visit to this restaurant. Although the listed closing time is 12 am, when I arrived at 9 pm, I was told the kitchen had already closed. It was frustrating and inconvenient, as I had planned my evening around having dinner here. It would be much better if they updated their hours to reflect the actual kitchen closing time, or at least informed guests more clearly to avoid such misunderstandings.☺️

It belongs to the Kimpton Hotel, where we stayed, had breakfast and ate there. The service at breakfast was slow, the water we asked for at the beginning was brought at the end, when we had finished. The breakfast buffet was quite good. The dishes we ordered to eat were quite complete and the cuisine was different from normal. The mussels, as in all of Scotland, are delicious.

Very good food and excellent service.

I used to like going there but last time we had dreadful service (not just incompetent but rude with it). This means I will not be going there again.

My wife and I had a great time here! We were looked after by a gentleman named McKinlay (apologies if that wrong and also spelt incorrectly). He had great recommendations and was very chatty with us which was welcomed. All the food and cocktails we had were delicious. I’d recommend the pork neck and slow cooked lamb for your mains The only very minor thing is that I ordered a Whisky sour which never arrived, not sure if I paid for it either as I didn’t see a receipt.

Fantastic food, superb service and a great atmosphere. What more do you want ? Highly recommended!!

The restaurant is stunning! Everything from the interior, through the service, ending with the food is just next level. Very reasonably priced too! It was recommended to order a few plates per person but we were completely fine with 1/2 mezze’s and 1 side each. This said, I wish we could fit in more to try all of the lovely dishes. Special thanks to Kinley for looking after us :)

Very cozy and nice restaurant. Not expensive and definitely an enjoyable food experience. Our server Zak was so nice and knowledgeable!

Felt pressured into accepting the bolted on optional service charge. Ruined the night having to ask for it to be removed. Food was great.

My first visit....shall go again.ThanQ.

Went to Baba yesterday for a birthday meal - quite a few dietary restrictions which makes us a more difficult group, however Francis was great as a server and was very patient and helpful. They made sure everything arrived in good time and talked through the menu well, made great recommendations and created a great atmosphere for the table. Service is always great here however on this occasion it was faultless. Food was great - one item we weren't keen on (personal taste) however this was dealt with really well by our server and the manager. Kitchen seems to be constantly busy but always send food out in really good time and with great consistency in quality. Baba is very reassuring in how they deal with dietary restrictions from taking orders to kitchen processes and checks - even during the busiest times of service. Host was polite, friendly, and accommodated us very well with requests - the table was ready just shortly after our booking time but they had a great space at the bar that we waited in and were shown to our table quickly after. Management are obviously very on top of the place - everything was clean and tidy, well cared for and organised. Couldn't recommend enough.

Never answer your phone ? Have a booking and trying to discuss some additional requests.

Gorgeous food, the set sharing menu (Best of Baba) was recommended by our server and every dish that came out was delicious!

Enjoyed dinner here one night while staying at the hotel, had a great meal! Service was quite good and food delicious.

Nice enough but not worth the cost. We tried the steak dish, the monk fish, the hummus and the charred lettice. All were fine other than the charred lettice which was not pleasant at all! It tasted and smelt as though someone had put out their cigarettes on it. Service was friendly enough but didn't seem to want to come back to the table to take orders. We were also very let down that they do not accept cash at all! If I had known this I would not have booked this restaurant as there are plenty great restaurants available in Edinburgh that are happy to to accept cash payments. This is not a restaurant I would every recommend to friends or family.

Absolutely delicious food! Loved our dinner here and great service too

We did the set menu and the food was very good. We did one veg and one meat and the two of us could not finish everything. I would definately recommend this restaurant.

Great food, but the portions are small and you need to order a double portion of grilled to be full. The decoration style of the restaurant is great and it’s a great dining experience

What an amazing find in Edinburgh. The best places we have eaten in so far in our trip. Ordered the vegetarian set menu and added an extra plate of steak. Every single plate was Devine especially the cauliflower!! Wish they had this place in Sydney. Definitely dropping in again before heading home.

The food was very delicious and the waitress who served us was charming.

This is the bar/restaurant in the Kimpton Charlotte Square. It’s decent, as befits this relatively fancy hotel. Visited for drinks whilst staying in the hotel. The bar itself was very busy; it turned out there is an hour of free drinks for hotel guests, which I had found by accident. So there we go. Free beer. Very pleasant and friendly hosts. The bar itself is dark blue; there are mirrors on the ceiling (there may have been pink champagne on ice, I couldn’t tell..) and bannisters on the wall. It’s quirky and has a nice vibe. I can imagine cocktails here bring good. Good location in central Edinburgh. Probably a good place to start or end your evening. I didn’t try the food, but it smelt very good. A small plates menu I think.

Nice Middle East cuisine restaurant. Nice atmosphere, quick and attentive service.

I wanted to order take out and this restaurant does not allow any takeout or food to leave this establishment! Since we were not stay at the hotel and part of our group are elderly and unable to eat in the restaurant, we were forced to go across the street to a very friendly Brazilian restaurant which we recommend!

Food is tasty and the atmosphere is good. It is a pity that it is not indicated whether something is sharp and, if so, to what extent. This would still be of added value. In addition, the price-quality ratio was moderate, but we still had a pleasant evening. It is useful to book in advance. We were there on Saturday evening and had one of the last places.

This was recommended by someone who was a server in another restaurant! Perfect place to try Mediterranean food. The flavours are truly exquisite. If in doubt the service staff advise well. We enjoyed it all! And we will return!

This was our second visit after 2 years and it didn't disappoint! Amazing Mediterranean food with a twist, as a Lebanese I enjoyed the mezze small plates... The only fail was the cauliflower shawarma side plate as it was bland... Friendly staff and good service.... The place was full on a Tuesday night!

When I searched a lebanese it came up, I was shocked it was not a lebanese restaurant it was lebanese inspired! And nothing is halal so we orderd a grilled fish it was very yummy, and the baba ganoch was also good, the service was very sloppy, people who bring the food does not place it in front of us they place it at the edge of the table ..we had to rearrange the plates, water classes was smelly too, I wish they truly adapted the lebanese cuisine and add authentic dishes

Great, beautiful food and friendly staff that explained the restaurant concept (in detail) at the start, but very slow and inattentive service thereafter. Waited over 30 minutes between finishing starters and receiving mains even when the restaurant was not busy. Had to pay at the counter rather than at the table. Shame as the experience was otherwise great.

Went in for a drink before going on to get dinner elsewhere. I was overcharged when I went to pay and was refused a refund and promised that one would be delivered at the end of the night. However I never received it, none of my emails were responded to either. I will definitely not be going back.

I chose to accept the chef's suggestion for 2 people and it was an excellent choice.

Easily one of the best dining experiences I’ve had in a long time. Everything was perfect, I highly recommend the muhammara starter.

This. is a scammer. they did not pay us and they buy fake reviews for their business +923337067406

This was my favorite meal in Edinburgh. Food was delicious, restaurant was really cool, service was a little slow, especially considering the restaurant was only about half full. I would definitely eat here again!

Let me start by saying that this place was packed, even on a wednesday evening, so make sure to book ahead. The food was very good, with flavourful dishes with levantine inspiration. The service was really subpar, unfortunately. I arrived 15 min before my reservation time and I was asked to sit at the bar and I would be called to be seated. 20 min passed and no one came for me, and in the mean time, I could see people coming with reservations been sitted right away. After I rejoined the queue I was seated right away with not even a sorry from the host. After I ordered, I noticed that the dishes were coming at really random times. i got the starter and it took at least 10 extra minutes to get my cocktail, which is not ideal. Once I got the main dish, I ordered an extra pita which they kept forgetting and I had to remind them. Dessert also took ages, even when the restaurant was almost empty. In general, the service was a disaster and not at the same standard than the food. I noticed that the waiter was really attentive with the table next to me (a larger group), so I felt quite forgotten by him. I have been to Baba before and I was looking to come back once I arrived in Edinburgh. With this experience my excitement has damped quite a lot

UNBELIEVABLY GOOD. Feel free to explore the menu but I’d definitely get the marinated chicken thigh

Great food and good menu loved watching the chefs

Amazing food and great Service!

The reason i gave food two stars was because after i ate in the restaurant (about an hour passed after eating the food) i rushed to my hotel room because i had an urge to vomit… I think it might have been caused by the mussles but i am not sure because i had everything from “mezze” on the menu. The service was fine and the atmosphere was okay but if you want a quiet place to dine in this is definitely not the place i would recommend.

We really enjoyed a variety of tapas here tonight. I think the char grilled aubergine and capsicum is my favourite. All very tasty, and colourful. Highly recommend this Mediterranean tapas restaurant.

The first night we tried to walk-in, but there was no availability. The reviews were so good, so we made a reservation the following day, even though the only open table was 4:30pm. So glad we came because the food was delicious. The baba ghanoush was smooth, creamy, and smoky. The muhammara was equally delicious with a surprising hint of spiciness. The romaine lettuce seemed simple but was presented beautifully. We loved the beet hummus with the falafel and artichokes. We were a little surprised to find pork neck w pineapple on the menu, which felt more south american inspired than middle eastern, but that dish was a favorite. We polished off every plate and only regret we were too full for dessert.

Gorgeous food, every single dish we had was delicious! We also had amazing service - Zack H was lovely and really knowledgable, really made our experience special.

Fabulous restaurant wish I had you near my home.

I’m usually a fan of Levant food, but unfortunately nothing I had in Baba was to my liking. We ordered hummus and labneh, along with flatbreads. The hummus was very smooth, however it tasted a bit odd - a bit more like dark tahini, and the toppings were too much. I’ve had labneh from quite a few places and usually it’s thick and flavourful, whereas the labneh in Baba was quite thin and didn’t taste of much. The breads were okay but a little sweet and nothing special. The chicken thighs in spinach sauce were quite unpleasant. The outside of the chicken was really tough, and the sauce definitely wasn’t my favourite. The venison carpaccio was okay though was very salty in places - which didn’t seem to have anything to do with the olives. Easily the poorest dish was the falafel with artichokes. The artichokes tasted like they were from a jar, as did the chillis. The service was good and the staff were really friendly, unfortunately the food just didn’t live up to expectations.

Absolutely amazing food Tapas style sharer plates and great for sharing. The venue is gorgeous, really well designed and the layout and decor was stunning. Especially the colours and furniture. We requested to sit in one of the smaller rooms and it definitely feels much more intimate than in the main room. We were celebrating a birthday and one of our friends had preordered and paid for a bottle of champagne for us. The price of this still came on the bill, luckily I checked as I normally don’t and just pay. Didn’t really get much of an apology just the correct bill. The food is another level. I would prefer to come with more people next time so we can try everything on the menu. The pricing is very reasonable.

Little Middle Eastern hidden gem in Edinburgh!! I’d recommend the hummus, babaganoush and the artichokes&falafel dish. Super friendly staff as well. Overall a very nice experience eating at Baba

Had a great lunch here - would definitely recommend the Merguez sausage!

I had high hopes going here as there is a lot of hype about this place. Unfortunately we found it to be quite mediocre in the end. The upside was the food was, for the most part, good even if some dishes did not fully meet our expectations. The downsides were that the menu was quite limited (e.g. no salads, potatoes or chips) and quite expensive given the small size of portions. The service, whilst friendly and polite, was also slow and inattentive (e.g. we ended up waiting 15-20 minutes for our bill). Overall a bit disappointing.

Came to Baba for a special occasion. Very attentive waitress called Trina who explained everything in detail and was lovely throughout. Mussels and hummus was the highlight dishes for us. Would definitely come back again!

We booked a table for four in the early evening. First, we had to wait over ten minutes for someone to acknowledge us and then further time to be taken to our table. The food was lovely - we had many of the small plate dishes and almost all were delicious. A few small things were that our monkfish was undercooked and the steak was undercooked to our liking - the waiting staff should really make you aware of how it is going to come out. The big let down was the service. All the staff were friendly however not attentive at all. Our waitress began to take our food order, and when my partner and I had finished speaking, she then walked away without asking if we were done - our friends sat with us hadn’t ordered yet so we had to try and grab her attention again to finish. It was difficult to get staff members attention, at times they would come and check on us however this was mainly when we had finished and they wanted to take our plates. The service really pulled down our experience and were unlikely to return. Final thing is the lighting - bring a torch! We were sat in a booth at 1900 and could barely read our menus or see our food properly. I understand lighting to set a mood, however this was simply too dim. Overall we won’t be back but the food was very good.

excellent restaurant. All the stuff was very kind, especially Rafa. An extremely charming waiter who served us our meal very quickly and explained us the menu perfectly.

Amazing experience and wonderful meal, I recommended the Labneh and the Lamb! Thank you so much to Trina our waitress who was so kind and hospitable and made our meal extraordinary!

Loved the food and the service and the vibe. Food is fresh and flavourful. Our server Pierre was really helpful and gave the best recommendations. Will definitely visit again!

Very rude staff , not friendly at all . Fod wasn’t the best portion was too small Food plates looks like sample , very limited choices No salads Over rated place . Not going back for sure

Amazing food. Very friendly staff

Excellent Mediterranean food in a large setting on one of New Town's nicest streets. Lamb shoulder dish was a stand out amongst the dishes we ordered. Server (Sophie) was great, and the ambience was cozy.

Lovely place to eat in Edinburgh. Food was delicious.

Very slow service. Placed our order and were told 20 minutes later that the mussels were not available. The mains were served almost an hour after we placed our order, and unfortunately arrived verging on cold. Lamb shoulder was dry and quite bland, monkfish tasted good but would’ve been better if it arrived hot. Overall the food was mediocre. Staff was polite but quite dismissive/inattentive and didn’t realize our food was nearly an hour late until we asked about it. Very disappointed and most likely won’t come again.

We had a lovely time with great food and amazing service from McKinley! Thank you

The food was perfect and the service was on point

The server was rude and unprofessional. Severely misinformed about the drink selection and was acting arrogant and racist.

Great food and healthy options. Great seating and a chill vibe.

It’s a take on Middle Eastern food

Let me start by saying that I absolutely loved the food. I thoroughly enjoyed everything we ate there. Super tasty. Sadly, that wasn't the whole experience. The food was arriving very, very slowly, there was about 20-30 minutes wait between courses which is wayyy too long. After we finished our lunch, we specifically asked how long the wait for desert was as we were in a rush, the waiter said it'd be 5 mins then we waited 15. Shocking wait time for a desert. The girl who served us was cool but the rest of the staff was dismissive and we felt like we were being a bother for even coming there. I felt we were being ignored and tables with more guests were served first. There seemed to be a couple of parties on the day we visited so I understand there were more orders, on the other hand, the restaurant wasn't even near being full. It would also be great to see some more vegetarian options.

Really great food here and service was fab too Would 100% come back if in Edinburgh

An incredible all-round experience

The atmosphere and the service is great, the dishes are good, and some are spicy and spices

One of the best food experiences of my life! Could eat their hummus and baba ganoush with a spoon. Can also recommend everything we ordered: marinated chicken thigh, slow-cooked lamb, cauliflower shawarma and blackened sweet potato — everything complimented eachother perfectly. For dessert we enjoyed the lovely whipped labneh cream with rhubarb. I want to go back here asap! ❤️

Delicious food and impeccable service!

Food was cold, the staff argued because they wanted us to pay for the cold food. Very disappointed indeed. It used to be better.

Baba never disappoint me. Nice food good drinks every time I go.

Amazing space, and food was great too. Definitely can recommend this restaurant to visit.

WOW! Fantastic restaurant , the best we went to on our 6 day trip to Edinburgh! The service, decor, drinks was all amazing, and the food.... next level! Absolute gem located in the Kimpton hotel! 10/10 recommend it!

Lovely food in nice area of the city

Ein sehr gelungenes Restaurant-Konzept. Hervorragende Gerichte, sehr gut gewürzt und harmonisch abgestimmt. Der Service war sehr freundlich und entgegenkommend, immer bemüht einen genussvoll durch den Abend zu führen. Das Ambiente des Restaurants Baba stimmt vollkommen mit dem Konzept überein.

It was ok main courses are over loaded and drowned in sauces.far to much going on fish was terrible 5/10

This was one of the best meals I've had in a decade! We were taken care of very well by our server, Abby, who made some excellent meal recommendations. We went with a party of 6 and she suggested we order a variety of dishes to share -- which made the experience so much better. The chargrilled broccoli (with green lentils and hazelnuts) was the unexpected star of the show alongside the slow-roasted lamb shoulder. Honestly, though, everything was delicious. Oh the spicy Tom Colins and spicy margarita were both big hits, too! The menu is very reasonably priced based on the portion size and quality -- this place just couldn't get any better.