Chaakoo Bombay Cafe in Edinburgh, City of

Tasty food and amazing ambience.

Food was amazing staff were fantastic

The best food! The lamb chops were delicious.

This is outstanding. Can recommend a rice, naan and two dishes each (a bit like tapas). Service quick.

I happened across the Chaakoo Bombay Cafe on Lothian Road by chance and thought I would just venture in; well I am so glad I did! I had a lunchtime special of tandoori chicken wings, bowl of curry and fries and how delicious it all was. Succulent tasty chicken wings, tender and extremely tasty lamb rogan josh and crisp masala fries. Great value for money, friendly and attentive staff and I wil definitely be back!

Was in for lunch yesterday afternoon and couldn’t be happier with everything. Food was amazing, service was great and prices were reasonable. I’ve lived in the area for a while and always wanted to try but now that I have I’ll definitely be back soon.

Excellent food for a reasonable price.

Please read the one star reviews. They are true. First we started of with a "pot of chai for sharing" which cost £4.50 for a pot the size of a a small coffee mug. We did not find the thumbful of chai each humorous. The chai was just tea with milk in it and a bit of spice. As if you bought a chai teabag from the supermarket. Chaakoo you couldn't even bother to brew chai which wouldn't cost you anything. The signage was not humuorous either. Just poor decor reflecting poor taste. Also yes we got the biryani which as others mentioned is just yellow rice topped with onion and exactly one piece of dried out lamb. The railway chicken dish was steamed chicken breast topped with sauce (sauce was favourful). Nothing authentic. There is nothing Irani about this venue. It's British Indian food for people who don't want meat with bones on it. The naan was paper thin with plenty of garlic flavoured ghee dripping off of it. Should be the opposite ratio. Service was good and friendly. Restaurant was clean.

Discriminatory Service at an Indian Restaurant – A Deeply Disappointing Experience As an Indian, I was deeply disappointed by my experience at this restaurant. It was disheartening to feel unwelcome and judged, especially at an establishment that represents Indian cuisine. Unfortunately, the service reflected a clear bias, making for an uncomfortable dining experience. When we ordered ice cream with different flavors for two people, it was served in a single bowl, and upon requesting separate bowls, the waitress reacted with visible displeasure. While the food was decent, the overall experience left much to be desired. I would not recommend this place, as no guest should feel unwelcome while paying for a meal.

Went to eat here on the 4th of February. Everything is ‘crushed’ onto a small space that leaves the very little room cluttered. The starter was good but by the time I got to the main it was cold. Tried to catch the eye of a waitress to no avail before eventually when my dining companion had finished they came to clear the table at which point I was able inform them that my meal was cold and not been eaten. The waitress took no notice of my remark and cleared the table so again I informed her that I had not eaten my meal so would not be paying for it to which the reply was ‘you will have too’ she then shrugged her shoulders which prompted me to ask to speak to a supervisor. The supervisor then approached the table and without any prompting said there was nothing wrong with the meal but did offer a free drink which was declined, she then responded by saying ‘you ate most of it anyway, so there cannot have been much wrong with it’. It was pointed out that immediately on starting the main course and on discovering it was cold I had tried to summon a waiter but was ignored. Bottom line, the staff attitude and service was atrocious, would not recommend this restaurant to anyone.

Ambience is the real touch of Indian Irani cafe. Food was delicious. Indian tea need some change its should be proper brut tea as compared to portion size of food the price was higher than excepted.

Buzzing on a Saturday night but excellent service and food is amazing.

Great food, fast service, decently priced. But food portions could be a bit bigger.

Visited at 5pm so it was just beginning to get busy. Staff were attentive, our choices arrived quickly, ( which was good as we had a teenager with us who gets bored almost instantly). The curries we chose reminded me of being a kid, not too spicy, and absolutely delicious. The chicken was perfect. The garlic nan was light with really toasted bits on it. It’s the most restaurant food I’ve ever seen my teenage son eat….(gutted to watch him devour platefuls lol). Can recommend.

Loved the sharing meal for 2. Great choice and lovely meal.

Reached just before the kitchen was closing but, great food and service by Tala.

“Visited Chaakoo in Edinburgh and had a great overall experience. The atmosphere was lovely, and most of the food was delicious. However, I was a bit disappointed with the seekh kebabs, as they lacked flavor and didn’t meet the standard of the other dishes. That said, the rest of the menu was fantastic, and the service was excellent. Would definitely return to try more options!”

Dal makhani was fantastic, so was all the other food items. Had ordered via deliveroo. All items were packed in a very neat way however I had ordered for garlic naan but recieved plain naan. Quality of food items were too notch. Would definitely order again.

Had the pleasure of eating and WOW, i was not disappointed. I opted for the Lamb Madras, the lamb was absolutely gorgeous and just fell apart in your mouth, paired with the lovely fluffy rice and garlic naan. Cocktails were a delight too! Lovely clean and welcoming atmosphere with friendly staff. 10/10, i will definitely be dining here more often.

It's funny because I'm sitting in the restaurant as I'm writing this review but I was blown away by the food here. When I entered I thought of chaakoo as a tribute given to Dishoom but boy was I wrong. The food is much much better than any of the Dishoom's I've been to especially the lassi. Overall I absolutely loved the food and it's really affordable as well. Would love to come back here sometime again when I'm in Edinburgh.

After seeing the reviews I was absolutely shocked at how bad the food was. That a restaurant can be managed in such a way that a chef could serve this food is amazing. There were hardly any customers either. The fry overcooked fish pakora and weird chutney could have been overlooked but when I got the under seasoned dry Biriyani with dry overcooked lamb, it was all over. Customer service however is top tier and I did get my bill reduced. I will never return. Either most people don’t know good Indian food or I had a very unlucky meal.

Had an amazing meal and two of the fabulous chai-tinis. Whole heartedly recommend this restaurant anytime you are in Edinburgh

Ordered via Deliveroo , very disappointed could not eat the meat dishes ordered . Afghani chicken , chicken tikka masala and lamb samosas heavly over salted I could not eat and wasted over £30 . Do not recommend at all was looking forward to this meal however disappointed all went straight in the bin

Came here with a large group and had a great time. Food was all delicious, staff were on the ball and the restaurant itself is really nice. Will definitely head back

Good is very nice and service was great. Portions are OK but could be a little bigger

Fantastic restaurant. Food was amazing. Just the right portion size and so tasty. Our waiter Alec was great. Really fury and patient!

Lovely find 👌🏼 We found this by exploring a little further afield and we couldn’t have picked a nicer place for food. Affordable and very good food. Portion sizes are good and very filling. The flavours are unbelievable. Would 100% recommend

Buttered chicken is the best here. However I did not have much chicken in it, but the souce and the nanbread was very special. Restaurant was recomended, no wonder why :)

They sent us the wrong thing but I don't even mind because everything was so delicious

Food here was really tasty and the menu is huge. Highly recommend the Dahl, butter paneer and any of the naans. This place is very comparable with Dishoom - it is a lower price point and the quality across dishes isn’t quite as good, but it’s a solid spot that I’ll return to.

The portions are small, but I find it more suitable for me. Intersting decor.

Went here with my baby son and my wife for her birthday. It was an amazing experience the staff were amazing the food was soo good. The butter chicken and the daal were to die for. Shame I don't live near by or this would have been my regular spot !!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The food at Chaakoo in Edinburgh was absolutely delicious, and the hostess provided excellent service with a polite and friendly attitude. The overall dining experience was lovely, but we were seated at a very cramped table. Unfortunately, despite requesting a change, we weren’t accommodated, which was a bit disappointing. That said, the quality of the food and the attentive service made up for it. I’d recommend Chaakoo for the tasty dishes, but hope for a more comfortable seating arrangement next time.

The food is fantastic, the portions are slightly smaller but this is reflected in the price, so you can have a couple of dishes for the cost of an average Indian meal. The garlic nans are fantastic, unfortunately they don't sell poppadoms or dips, hopefully they might be on the menu in the future. Currently my favourite Indian restaurant in Edinburgh, you won't be disappointed. Definitely worth a visit.

Great food, service and value! The Afghani chicken is a must try.

Pleasant evening spent here with friends who had been before. We had a selection of sharing dishes and tried quite a few things. The staff were nice and there is a good atmosphere. We were seated in a lovely booth.

Great food, very friendly service, quick and very good value! Would highly recommend the afghani chicken and lamb garlic bhuna!

The food here was delicious, thoroughly enjoyed every mouthful.

We ordered the afgani chicken and a couple of currys and nan. The afgani chicken was raw not once, not twice but four times! By the time we received new chicken the rest of our food was cold and I wasn't hungry after seeing 4 pieces of uncooked chicken, I didn't want to take my chances with the rest of the food.

Loved the food! Tulsi chicken, chicken tikka masala and daal was our favourite.

Clearly trying to be a Dishum clone, neither the food or atmosphere lived up to it. Quite small portions, you definitely need side as well as a main

Small dishes but absolutely loved the food here. Would come back in a flash. Quick service too. Highly reccomend

First time I have been there and defo be back ,friendly staff, nice relaxed atmosphere, excellent food ,lov it 👌 😋😋😋🍺

Really disappointed by this place. Been wanting to try it for a while since it opened and the presentation of the place was intriguing if a little orientalist. Would have enjoyed that if the food was decent however: The railway chicken was bland. The sauce was just like thick water. It was also made with chicken breast which was stringy and overcooked. The kheema matar was nice. But the waiter couldn’t even manage to pronounce the dish correctly! The naan was very thin though nicely flavoured. The fish pakore were bland again, they tasted of nothing, not even fish! The drinks were nice too. and a creative menu. We also overheard another table remarking how bland things were. But overall, give this a miss. There’s plenty better in the area including just up a bit further in tollcross. And for cheaper too, we spent 60 quid for two people.

We visited they allot us table after we placed order which arrived almost after 30min and the taste was not at all up to mark even the staff was so less that they could not be able to help after that again we order another time because the quantity was too less visited so many restaurant didn’t find this kind of quantity another order also arrived almost after 20 min very poor serve will never visit again in life neither will recommend to anyone

We went here after watching one review on TikTok and it did not disappoint it was amazing. The service was great. I’m still dreaming about all of the food I ate. Will definitely come back when we come to Edinburgh again

With respect to the portion size, the meal price is above average. Lamb chops came burned. They changed it and this time inside the chops were pink uncooked. Even if you think that portions are half and price is half, for the full price you will get naan and or rice with the dish. So I will not visit again.

Great place for their Tuesday deal, with lots of starters to share and curries to try at a decent price

Astonishing place the food was perfect, service was top notch and venue is very welcoming and characterful. Highly recommended.

The Resturant is very well designed, it has a reallay good Atmosphere, and really good service, Nice Personal and the food was given to us fast. They also asked us for Allergies and looked at our Orders. The Prices were fully Normal, and the Food was absoluteley delicous and well spiced. If possible, I would give 10 Stars

Food amazing however very busy and service can be slower when busy only to be expected

Average food at above average prices.

We only got take away but it was fantastic. We got lots of the “humble” dishes which are the smaller portions so we could try a few different things. Everything we had was delicious and the presentation was fantastic. Not the standard takeaway tins and everything was labelled. Definitely going back to try a few more things.

Great spot for a snack - I got a kebab and the masala fries. They have so many flavors of iced tea it was hard to choose, and an impressive cocktail and wine menu that I was happy to see included a white wine from Sicily and a red wine from Sardinia. The atmosphere is really cool and server was helpful and friendly.

I have been to both the Edinburgh and Glasgow locations. The food is excellent, the atmosphere is nice and the staff are friendly. Highly recommend.

Wonderful food, just as good as the original in Glasgow! Some of the best Indian we have had. Was blown away by the attention to detail and allergen care the waiter, Alec took. Huge shout out to Alec for his care and excellent service!

Delicious small plates of some of my favourite Indian foods! Being able to have small portions of lots of dishes was perfect. The house lager was amazing and is worth a visit just for a jar. The cocktails were absolutely great to start with too

Amazing. Fantastic food. High quality.

Truly lovely and live place to have a meal. The food was delicious, good service and a very nice ambience. Loved interiors...

I’ve ordered Lamb biryani. Costed me 10 pounds but the quantity was not sufficient. They give me biryani in a coffee cup 😂.

It's not cheap, but the quality of the food and service is what you are paying for and very much worth it. We had 2 starters, 2 mains, 2 sides, and a veg dish, plus 2 cocktails for £45... in addition, we had a few beers and extra cocktails, which was an extra £45

As an Indian, I was looking forward to visiting this place. But it must say, the signages used on the restaurant is very offensive to the Indian community. Comments like "no feeding cattles" , "no spitting" and many more, it's feels like the restaurant owner thinks that Indian just do these things. The best part was when one of the manager said that this not the first time anyone has pointed out this, and there has been no action by the management. Shame on the top management for selling Indian food, attracting audience and on the other hand defaming our community.

Ok only. Food is far too generic without any subtlety. The curry sauces appear to be made from one base and adjusted. Naans were thin and rice was dry, both poor. Very busy but that's because of the decor and location. Not worth visiting.

The food was ok. The ambiance was ok. Service was ok. The restaurant, the cutlery, was not clean. Chai was sugar water.

Authentic Indian food in a very retro environment

Delicious food! The lamb chops were lovely and so was the butter chicken. I wouldn’t recommend the veggie samosas as I found them quite dense but everything else was great. They recommend 2-3 dishes per person but I think 2 dishes or even one curry with a naan is more than enough.

(Chaakoo Edinburgh) Good things: - Decor is really beautiful, lots of space and a choice of seating in booths, windows or tables. - The staff were friendly, polite and patient. - Dishes that were lovely: the shakhari pakoras and chutney were amazing, both paneer dishes including delicious Saag, naan were not too heavy. - Great selection of drinks for the whole family; the Fanta Lemon was a nice surprise. Room for improvement: - The music. In the hour or so we were there, we listened to Jazz, 70s hits and some Michael Jackson. I think picking a vibe and sticking with it will really help with ambience. - The serveware: it would help to have either bigger dishes with the same amount, or less food in the dishes. As soon as you try and scoop something out, the food spills over. Not great. - The food that needs improvement: daal makhani was not stirred through so was clumpy in places. Both cauliflower dishes need work. The Aloo Gobi in particular basically came as one massive undercooked floret sat on a bed of oil and then masala underneath. Not great. The raita was also really thick and basically chopped salad in greek yogurt; needed flavour and perhaps to be thinner. All in all, nice place to visit but some dishes outperform others.

Food was terrible, staff really nice Had a potato salad with literally 4 potato cubes in a nest of rocket leaves. And it'd have been better to use a bit mild rocket.

Joe and Ana were the best. They really took good care of us. Food was amazing. Must try butter chicken.

Great food , great service … what’s not to love

Delicious satisfying small plates. Loved it!

The restaurant is excellent, but the amount of food is small and the prices are reasonable. It costs approximately 10 to 15 pounds per person for six people. The bill was 71 pounds.

Went for lunch and ate from the lunch menu, see photo attached. The food and service were excellent. Served with water as soon as we sat down - love that. Food comes all at once, but it was nice to enjoy it that way. The chicken wings were a hearty portion, the paneer was really tasty, it had a lovely dip with it. My chickpea curry was great and the others enjoyed the garlic chicken. Fantastic value as 2 dishes and fries/rice for £13.95

Genuine mumbai Irani cafe in Edinburgh. After exploring Indian restaurants in London, we have come to Edinburgh to try more indian restaurants. We came across this place as it is close to the city centre. We ordered murg thali and chicken tikka. The thali came with butter chicken, chicken curry, and dal makhani. Everything was delicious and had authentic Indian taste. I genuinely felt as if I was eating in a Delhi restaurant. The staff here was very polite. They have a special kids menu which comes with juice and ice cream as add-ons. Lastly, they have a collection of old Indian movie posters that took me back 30 years to the times when I used to see movie posters on walls while going to school. It made me feel nostalgic. I would totally recommend this.

Very small portions, ordered biryani’s , very plain, no sides , Indian biryani’s in Indian restaurant always served with yougurt chutney and pickle. Sorry to say but it’s a proper waste of money, very disappointing.

Twice went to this Indian cuisine restaurant and bar..... both food and service quality were good.... lamb samosa and biryani were value for money.

Fantastic food & service. Highly recommend the Full Bhuna, served on a Sun & Tues for only £22 pp

Wow, just Wow! The cocktails, the food and the atmosphere. Wow. This is a must stop if in Edinburgh. We loved everything about this place.

Good atmosphere and excellent chai tea! Curries were somewhat small servings but would recommend the starters and sides.

We happened across this place on our way to another place we found on Google. The menu looked great—it’s a big menu with lots of kabob and curry options—so we changed our plans. It didn’t disappoint. Everything was delicious. The restaurant has a diner feel, with numerous funny signs on the walls, e.g. “Management are always right.” The chai was great, too. If you’re going to have something spicy, I recommend washing down with the Achchha, a hoppy beer with a bit or earthy, barley flavor. The service here was a tad slow, but the staff was friendly and helpful. If I lived in Edinburgh, I would eat here often.

Food is nice but the portions are small

Good place for having Indian food. Taste was nice. No artificial coloring. Peshawari naan was very soft and tasty. Chicken/Lamb dum biryani was good. Cocktails were good. Ordered it on recommendation.

Great, top class service, poor taste signage.. Tries to be tongue in cheek but instead panders to LCD prejudice.

Very good food. Lovely flavours. A bit on the more expensive side but good to treat yourself every now and then. I like the concept of small portions so you can try different things.

What I love about this place is you can walk in when you feel like eating, not like other places with having to go through the hassle of booking, reserving etc. The service was excellent, food was amazing, and given the fact that this is the capital city, prices were reasonable. Portion sizes were good. Nice, contemporary atmosphere.

Thoroughly enjoyed our meal. They went to considerable lengths to alter dishes to cater for one of our party who is allergic to peppers and with grace and humour. Good atmosphere and reasonable prices.

Very tasty, and nice decor. A bit pricey for the portions but the lunch deal is fair value.

Great place for lunch with plenty of lunch menu options to choose from

Absolutely fabulous, the food was delicious and the service was really good. Not too expensive. We had the Afghani Tikka, Dum Biryani, Chicken Tikka and Peshwiri Naan. We had leftovers to take home so dinner the next day was also really good. Will definitely be going again.

Lovely, authentic dishes, not too strong (hot) , tapas style so you can order more types of food. The naan is also sooo great! The servers are kind and fast! We loved it very much!

Absolutely delicious and perfectly spiced. Found by accident - my lucky day!

Best indian food I have ever eaten! No joke!

Absolutely amazing. Food, service, staff, atmosphere all top notch

How come one star? Great food, ambience and such cheerful service. We pay Mia who writes a 'thank you' on the receipt then, as our small party prepares to leave we're met by a man who demands to know if we have paid and tells us to wait while he investigates. It could have been handled a thousand times better! We can see him collecting staff together. There are now several people standing around us. We offer him the receipt as evidence, but he tells us that he doesn't believe it has gone through the books. The implication being that a server is stealing? We explain that we're due at the theatre. No difference. His American (we think) accent is loud. He's now clearly angry with staff. Our own guests - two European tourists - are bemused. We're all still standing in this crowded restaurant surrounded by young servers who look uncomfortable. Then suddenly he's told by one of the staff that it's all okay and without a word of apology to anyone he walks off. Funnily enough we had been saying before the incident that we would recommend the place, but does this happen frequently? In response to the owners' reply: None of this was explained at the time. There was no apology. Simply a bunch of people standing around us. Both I and my guests felt that the tone was rude. Why not a simple 'Excuse me, there appears to be a problem with our system, would you mind waiting a moment. I know that you've paid but please, hold on a for a moment. Perhaps we can offer you a coffee? ' I see that your response doesn't contain an apology either. This makes it even worse. The single star stays. The manager was rude and offhand. We will not be visiting your establishment again or recommending it unless you take action to prevent other customers suffering such rudeness.

Came here for dinner with my boyfriend and we would both highly recommend! We ordered Machali, Tulsi chicken tikka, saag paneer, garlic lamb bhuna, garlic naan, and then shared some gulab jamon for dessert. Everything was really tasty and the portion sizes were ideal for sharing a few dishes between the two of us! Service was decent and the price was reasonably cheap. Would definitely recommend if looking for a good Indian restaurant in Edinburgh!

Egan was so amazing, personable, funny, and welcoming; and actually Scottish - not American. He made our experience exceptional with his recommendations and friendly banter. Thanks for the 5 star service!!! From Matt, Brooks & the girls.

Food is fine, although wheat based tandoori roti is not available. Other curries are tasty.

Beautiful food Great service Very clean

As a note to highlight... a family member lost his passport inside the bar and when he called they immediately answered that they had it and he went to retrieve it. Excellent service and delicious food

This was a very enjoyable experience