Golden Ambal in Edinburgh, City of

the quality of food of this place has dropped significantly. Also they charge you for extra sambar and they don't give sambar with methu vara. This is totally of at a south Indian restaurant. Sambar is totally complimentary with all south Indian dishes. Sambar is the most important aspect of a south Indian food. They are extremely miser with this and I can't call this place a true Indian hospitality anymore. It's a shame because it use to be good a long time back but now it is really bad.

Little gem on the corner! Good and friendly service, phantastic food. We had a great evening and would come back anytime.

Delicious and our waitress was very friendly. The decor is lovely too

The food is absolutely delicious! Authentic South Indian flavors—especially loved the Chettinad masala and Chicken 65. The service was great too. Will definitely come back!

We’ve been meaning to write a review of the Golden Ambal for several months now, and the first thing to say is: apologies for not doing so sooner—we truly should have! The Golden Ambal is, without question, the best place for curry in Leith—and possibly all of Edinburgh. The food is simply exceptional. Every time we eat from the Golden Ambal, we’re transported straight to India. The rich aromas of cumin, cardamom, turmeric, and garam masala rise from every dish, wrapping you in a warm, fragrant embrace. It’s not just a meal—it’s an experience. The flavours are bold yet balanced, the spice blends are masterfully crafted, and the dishes consistently deliver happiness, comfort, and joy. We’ve ordered from the Golden Ambal over twenty times, and not once have we been disappointed. Whether dining in the restaurant or ordering for delivery, the quality never wavers. The staff are always polite, attentive, and clearly passionate about what they do. Without the Golden Ambal, our culinary lives would feel far more bland and soulless. So do yourself a favour: order from the Golden Ambal or pay them a visit in person—you’ll embark on a culinary journey that delights the palate, warms the heart, and fills your soul with spice-laden bliss. Written by two happy residents of Balfour Street.

***MUST VISIT!!*** Excellent restaurant and fabulous food! We had a range of items mentioned and rated below: Chicken 65 - Really flavourful and perfectly crispy by far the best in Edinburgh 5/5 stars Chilli chicken - We expected it to be a lot more spicy but that's a personal preference 4.5/5 stars Medu vadai - Really perfect! Although they're deep fried, there was barely any oil on the fingers or the plate! Really well flavoured too! 5/5stars Mysore Masala Dosa - just outstanding! It was soo good I absolutely am returning for this!! 5/5stars Lamb Chettinad - Lamb was excellent and tender with a burst of flavours!! We did feel it was missing the salt though but still really really enjoyed it! 4.5/5 stars Idli- what can I say they simply couldn't do it any better honestly it was soo fresh and fluffy I could've eaten the entire batch. 5/5 stars Paratha - fluffy and piping hot as well as perfectly crisped and flaky it doesn't and cannot be any better than here!!! 5/5stars The BEST EVER CHUTNEY!!! The chutneys reminded me of India as if I was teleported there!!! Spot on and absolutely made my day!!! The sambar was equally amazing!! The food was amazing overall and the service was excellent very attentive and friendly with a broad smile just added the chreey on the top!

Really nice and homely place. Authentic taste of each and every food item.

Absolutely gorgeous food. Lovely friendly staff. Quiet relaxing atmosphere. Highly recommend.

This is a small but friendly Indian place. There are supposedly 100 varieties of dosas but most of them are just minor alterations at least for the vegetarians. They got mixed up with a couple of dosas in the golden ambal special. The service was laboriously slow. They took literally 45 minutes to get us the dosas in spite of telling them that we were super hungry. After having got the food late, I would have expected it to be piping hot. It was on the contrary. The dosas were good but not great. It felt like going to a North Indian place to eat South Indian food. The owner himself is from Kerala and he could have concentrated on some of the Kerala specialties instead of promoting the 100 varieties of dosas. Again, this review is only for the vegetarian food and not for the meat eaters.

Amazing curry! Authentic and things on the menu you see that you don't find elsewear!

We'd often visit Golden Ambal for having some nice dosa, idli and sambar vada. It's pocket friendly. The staff has always been good. Overall the place has a sombre vibe, a bit under-lit, not sure why. It's at a great location on Leith walk so for sure gets a lot of footfall. We try to stick to the traditional South Indian fare. The times we have tried the curries, they weren't bad.

Food was incredible and atmosphere was nice but service was quite slow. We had to wait awhile for our food, water refills, and to get the bill. Overall, still a nice experience. Pictured are the mini masala dosa, fried squid rings, tikka masala, and butter chicken.

Food is amazing. Good value for money.

Really chilled atmosphere with great staff . I had the Vegetable Samosa to start and the onion Dosa which was a first time trying for me. They have 100 choices of Dosa here which I recommend trying. My partner had the chicken 65 for starter and the chicken chettinadu for main . He loved both. My daughter loved the rice , chips and poppadoms. ( queen of fussy ) Really lovely experience . Would visit again .

We visited this place today. Must visit place for South Indian food in Edinburgh. Chicken 65, Chilli chicken, pepper chicken, chetrinad chicken curry and especially the sweets, ah! they were mind blowing. Great service ans taste. Kudos to the chef!!! 🤩🤩🤩 Do visit if you’re in search of a decent Indian restaurant 🥘 🍱 🍲

An absolutely lovely experience. The food was delicious and the waiter was very nice. We had an amazing moment between friends. Thank you :)

The food is very good, and quite authentic. I have a lot of allergies and their food has been safe for me so far (which is rare). Their dosas are excellent. Nice variety. Personally I like the masala as well as the onion masala dosa. The idli is probably not as soft and fluffy as I'd like (but is about what my mom would make). I tend to prefer it each time I've been there. Their vadai is extremely good. So try the diff options. Indoor seating is limited, but it's good for casual dining.

Amazing staff, making Ambal a place to visit again and again.

Really friendly service with amazing recommendations. With 100 choices of dosa what more do you need?!

Tasty south indian food. We had the chicken masala dosa and chicke saagawala which were delicious. Service was fast and attentive and the portions were large!

Second visit here. So nice to have an Indian meal that is different from the generics offered everywhere. We had a chilli fish dish as a starter....incredible! I can't remember the type of bread we got instead of naan but man, I'm going back just for that! It cost us £38, before tip, on a Friday evening. We took our own wine that cost us £8. Staff were attentive without being in our space. Quite happy for us to finish our wine when meal was over. Looking forward to going back.

Staff is very friendly. I tried Mysore masala dosa and it was very nice in taste which was served with sambhar and chutney was nice authentic taste as they said. I prefer you must try this place. Thanks

Good Indian food with normal prices, considering its location. Friendly and efficient service. Good food! I'll definitely be back!

I had great hospitality at this place and even the staff are soo humble. And when it’s come to the food, it’s delicious and remembered me of bengaluru’s breakfast centre.

We tried the masala dosa here, although the dosa itself was fine but the coconut chutney and sambar were bland and disappointing.

I definitely recommend for people who want South Indian food. We've been there several times for dosa, and they have been very good each time. We've had chili panner masala dosa, keema masala dosa, cheese mysore masala dosa, rava masala dosa, and ghee roast lamb dosa. The masala fried idly are also a tasty addition to a meal. Unfortunately, the thalis (veg or non-veg) are quite boring, and best avoided. I believe the North Indian food is also best avoided. Overall, the service has been quite patchy, being extremely slow at times. It also seems that their tawa keep having problems.

We have been a frequent guest in this restaurant for the last 7 years and love it. Food is really tasty and very authentic. Prices are also very competitive and a BYOB is a cherry on top!

lovely indian resturant! service was fab and the food was amazing. £40 for 2 people which is decent too. would definitely recommend:)

I visited Golden Ambal Restaurant in Edinburgh with my husband on the 10th at around 2:30 PM. We ordered the Non-Veg Thali and Mutton Biryani, and I’ve waited three days to write this because I just can’t accept what they served us. The Non-Veg Thali was shocking. It came with white rice, 6-7 tiny pieces of chicken in gravy, carrot poriyal, dal, curd, some kind of veg podimas, gulab jamun, and poori. I even asked the waiter if this was really a Non-Veg Thali, and he casually said “yes.” Seriously? A Non-Veg Thali with barely any meat? This is unacceptable. The Mutton Biryani was even worse—it didn’t taste like biryani at all. It was more like a bland mutton pulao with no flavor or satisfaction. I’m writing this because people come to restaurants with happiness and excitement to enjoy good food. What we experienced was utter disappointment. No matter how much money you earn, it’s not worth it if your customers leave feeling cheated. Please improve your food and don’t let others feel the same.

Delicious South Indian food. The dosa was large and crispy and the curries were very flavourful.

Absolutely delicious food, and a very kind and friendly server! Highly recommend, everything I tried was perfect!

The restaurant has a great vibe and the food is simply amazing! Not to mention the super friendly staff :)

Very nice quality and tasty the delivery prompt and polite.

Livingston Hibs Real Ale Society have visited this slightly off-beat curry house a few times. A great place for the veggies, Dosas and Dahls aplenty, it also offers meaty curry classics, including a sumptuous Keema nan. The meal provided this group of beer soaked, snowed upon Hibby's a small bit of sanctuary away the doom & gloom of a snowy/wet/cold day in Leith.

The food was amazing with so many veggie options! The service was also excellent. I will definitely be eating here again and would recommend it to others. Thank you 😊

Superb veg biryani and raita. Cozy and friendly ambiance. Am going back tomorrow !

Visited the restaurant today, Nainus gave us very good service. The food was excellent. Hope to visit again.

Great food as always. Lovely staff.

Absolutely shocking . Group of 8. 2 hours and 15 mins before getting served. Freezing cold basement. Avoid. The nan was actually still alive

Possibly the best curry you will eat in Edinburgh. Unfortunately, the service left rather a lot to be desired this evening - having finished my first drink I was never offered another, even during the 40 min wait between my starter and main course, and there was no explanation or apology for the delay.

Recommended by a friend. The food was so amazing and delicious. Services was in a friendly manner.

Really authentic food restaurant

Authentic experience. Reminded me of dosa in India and in Singapore. We will be back.

Landed in Edinburgh and was craving for dosa. Incredible taste. Will highly recommend. Really a quick service as well.

Curry and chili chicken were amazing! Will be coming back!

Our take away was great! Two delicious dishes that were spicy and flavourful. The naan was great too. Thanks for the extra chutney!

Excellent food, would recommend!

The food here is great when you actually get it, but in this case it was marked as delivered but nothing showed up.

Incredibly delicious food and super friendly service!

Mon to Fri, or Sat till 5pm to try the Thali (see photo), delicious with various healthy spice (as far as I could tell as non-Indian). To me, it’s almost like just travelled to India to eat and try different local tastes, haha. Thanks for nice experience.

Had excellent taste of Onam Sadhya. Great staff. Great service. Nice ambience. Had a very good experience. Very authentic tasting south Indian food.

It was properly tasty in kerala style after a long period of time.

Best South Indian restaurant in Scotland.

The quality of the veg food we ordered was very ordinary and seemed to be reheated and served. People not used to food being cooked in coconut oil, may find the taste not to their liking.

Taste of South India.variety dosa

Great dosas - they have 100 and I’m yet to find a bad one! Would recommend number 18 - cheese mysore masala dosa

Really lovely south Indian fare. The local curry and the paratha were standouts - byob for wine as well which is very reasonable :)

What a pleasant surprise in taste and variety. 100 varieties of Dosas…. Having lived in LA, visited SF, San Jose, or NJ…. I have not seen this many variations ( over 60 vegetarian choices)…. We ordered Chilli Paneer Masala dosa (item #48 and Chana Coconut Masala Dosa (item # 24)…. Food was tasty, filling and to our taste…. The sambar and chattiest were tasty, I ended up having extra sambar twice…. Should have taken pictures of our dosas before diving in it…. The smell was so good, forgot to take pictures…. If there is a dosa lover, I dare say, this restaurant “Golden Ambal South Indian Restaurant “ should be a must visit…. A pleasant surprise awaits you…. You can not go wrong by any stretch of imagination…. Loved it and the ladies served with beautiful smiles… very comforting….

Had our first dosa here and loved it!! Definitely recommend for a delicious, casual dinner :)

The food was good., they specialised in 💯 types of Dosa.,

Such amazing food. I tried my first Dosa...and now I have another 99 to try. Highly recommend!

Really tasty and inexpensive Indian restaurant with loads of vegan choices. The mushroom rice was to die for.

Very good authentic food and service. Good price-performance ratio. It's also worth going several times.

Lovely friendly staff, great food and prompt service. Highly recommended

Great, tasty food, fast service, good prices and huge selection

Delicious food, very good service I think it's the best Indian restaurant I've ever eaten at.

The food at this restaurant was excellent, probably the best Indian food I have eaten. The server was very pleasant.

Great food and service and nice interior, highly recommend!

A restaurant which is such good value for money for good quality food seems hard to come by in Edinburgh these days. Luckily the Golden Ambal delivers on both fronts. The service was lovely and the portion sizes generous. An excellent establishment.

Food was 10/10! Food tasted absolutely delicious and the portions were very generous. The service was great - food delivered in a timely manner and waitress was accommodating and friendly. Will definitely be going back and looking forward to it already.

Food was really authentic and service was great

Great food & service, Masala Dosa was delicious

This was my second time visiting and I again had an excellent meal, one of us had a chicken masala dosa and the other had a non-veg thali. The food is absolutely delicious and incredibly good value for both the quality and portion sizes. There is also a good selection of drinks, all very reasonably priced. The staff are also excellent and were really helpful in explaining all the dishes in the Thali to us. The food was so good that we had finished before we thought to take any photos! I will definitely be back to try more of their massive dosa selection.

Need a sixth star for service. Fantastic food, great place!

Lovely food and friendly staff.

Excellent dosa! Exceptional curry, everything was the best imaginable. Very friendly and welcoming.

Legitimately the best idian food I've ever had, their chili chicken was genuinely so perfect I cannot explain to you how much I enjoyed that meal

Love this place! Very authentic and great choice of dosa’s. Friendly staff as well. Highly recommended if you love Indian food.

Best indian food we have eaten! Fantastic service! Don’t be fooled by the slightly chaotic aesthetics;)

Small place, good and diverse food. Great service

Nice place, very welcoming, excellent food and we had a very good time.

This place offers good variety of Indian food, especially starters. The service was good, while the ambience seems to okay. Definitely its not too pricey. Perfect place for a burst of Indian flavours. The mini masala dosa was my favourite and I recommend trying once.

The best Indian food I’ve ever had

Very good dishes and possibility of dining a little late (we arrived at 9:30 p.m.). Very kind service!

Went in on a whim and it turned out to be a delight. Ordered the Vada Sambhar, Methur Vada, Thattu dosa and Paper roast masala dosa. Fresh, tasteful and reasonably priced (£33 for two people).

Best curry - Delicious food and great service!

Food was average probably a little expensive for the quality and taste most disappointing was the nan bread which was the size of CD and lacked taste

Very delicious dosa and paratha!

Excellent South Indian food at reasonable price. Highly recommended. We had different dishes for 3 different days and really enjoyed. Customer service is exceptional as well. Keep up the quality. Best of luck.

The food blew our minds! Tender meats, flavoursome sauces, perfect service- I will definitely be back. Thank you!

Great food, lovely people! Thanks

The food in Golden Ambal in Edinburgh is very tasty and authentic South Indian food. The staff is very cooperative and has excellent service. GOLDEN AMBALA IS A MUST TRY!!!!!!

Brilliant food and service from the staff. Thoroughly enjoyed the Thali, and curry. Highly recommended.

Excellent food, and amazing service

Great wee place , starters amazing , nice beer. South India wins 😄 Decent service.

Excellent food! Most authentic meal I’ve had outside India itself.

The food was good and the service excellent, the waiter helped me with making a good choice to eat due to my dietary needs.

Very good ambience with lovely staff and the food was amazing. Reminded me of home food.

Tasty Indian food. Very tasty Masala chcken dosa. Thaali is also a good choice with rice, poori and Indian curry and a tasty Ghulab Jamun. They don't serve Thaali on Friday and Saturday. Very friendly staff.

I really liked the chettinad dish... Must try for a south Indian in Edinburgh..