The Ship on the Shore in Edinburgh, City of

I've been here several times. It's probably one of the restaurants that comes to mind when you want to eat something fishy. Everything is very tasty!

Delicious fresh and smoked seafood. Good selection of wine by the glass. Cozy, friendly service. The downside is that it's a bit far to get to.

The best seafood in Leith. Paella is better than Spain!

Bad experience No kids allowed Reservation cancelled

Good fresh sea food over there, the seafood plate was looking delicious. Smoked fish were awesome. Service great and overall atmospehere relaxed and cozy.

Excellent atmosphere and great food options. All seafood plates were full of flavours and the fishes were very fresh.

Service and ambience great- food not so. Had 3 pax dinner. The sea bass fillet, tasty to be sure, but was smaller than the quantity of olives on the plate. Seafood chowder was over salted and mussels very overcooked and were sent back. Oysters were tasty but were so tiny it’s a wonder they were harvested. Will give them another try and hope they do better next time as the service and place are great.

Best fish & chips ever in a very cosy atmosphere. We felt like sitting aboard the titanic and enjoying a great throwback feeling. Never had such a great food

First-class fish restaurant in an excellent ambience! The food was great, the wine list was excellent, and the service was attentive. Definitely worth a clear recommendation! Insider tip: ask for the 100-year-old cognac and enjoy the history in a crystal glass.

Outstanding fish and oysters quality! Great service and lovely vibes by the sea.

On Edinburgh harbour, family friendly and busy, excellent food.

Fantastic meal, quick and professional service from being seated to be served what might have been the best seafood meal I've ever ordered.

Excellent meal for two! We opted for haddock risotto and roast trout and it was excellent. Nothing to say.

Was sick for over a week with extreme food poisoning after having oysters here. They have ignored my email and no refund offered. 7 days later I am still suffering with body aches and shortness of breath, after a whole week of vomiting and diarrhoea. Don’t eat here unless you want to pay to be poisoned. Ps oysters are served on ice not lettuce.

Loved it had the monkfish very nice

Was a nice meal - giving it 2 stars because it was for my girlfriend and she enjoyed herself. But I have just recovered after 5 days of severe food poisoning from here. I still have a headache and my stomachs still like a washing machine on spin but I'm feeling better than I was. Would not recommend

Great food and friendly, attentive service. Cosy decor that gives an intimate feel and food presentation that makes this ideal for a special occasion. Thoroughly recommended. Cullen Skink starter was a joy and the Fruit de Mare spectacular. Not a cheap night out but great value. Thank you

We went there to celebrate a birthday and everything was amazing. The food was excellent, the staff was super friendly and helpful and the nautical decor lovely.

Excellent dinner in a refined environment. Friendly staff and honest account

A great meal every time we go, so we keep going back! A nice cocktail to settle in, great seafood, a glass of wine and great atmosphere.

Amazing place. Lemon sole and Curry monkfish were amazing.

Good lunch in this restaurant on the port of Edinburgh - Specialty seafood - from the simplest (fish & chips) to the most refined (beautiful seafood platters; lobster) - Pleasant and efficient service

Great fish restaurant. Absolutely friendly and the food was delicious.

The Ship on the Shore is a relaxed, informal seafood restaurant in the Shore area of Leith; it’s on our doorstep, so we can be forgiven for visiting twice in as many weeks. Our second visit was at Hogmanay with a friend and the restaurant was full, with many diners elegantly dressed for the occasion and something of a party atmosphere. Fortunately, we had booked weeks in advance. The food was outstanding - I ordered the special: tarragon butter lobster tail topped with red caviar, vegetables, and a romanesco and champagne porcini sauce. It was so good, I could have licked the last remaining dribbles of sauce off the plate! My partner had the traditional haddock and chips, and our friend chose the monkfish tail in a Thai curry sauce. The service was friendly and attentive, the food delicious, and the prices very reasonable. For anyone visiting Edinburgh, the Shore area in the Port of Leith, is Edinburgh’s ‘foodie’ quarter with many fine restaurants, including fish restaurants: the Ship on the Shore is definitely one of the restaurants that is not to be missed.

Excellent restaurant with fish-based menu located near the sea. Nice location and nice room, simple but elegant. A menu with different dishes, but not too many as it should be, from seafood platters onwards. The choice of wines is also excellent and the cocktails are highly recommended, very good at mixing. Medium-high prices, in line with the place and the menu.

Outstanding in every way. The food is superb and so excellently served. The atmosphere when you enter is very dramatic, moody lighting, very nautical themed! This is a must visit.

Thank you very much for the atmosphere and effort in converting the dishes to halal, much appreciation. Happy new year 2025 for all 2 Jan 2025

Lovely cosy pub. Good food well executed. Not cheap but that's down to having to buy quality seafood

Extremely busy but managed to squeeze us in for a drink when easier to turn us away. Very as appreciated.

On a chilly Sunday morning our family was walking by when we stopped to ask if they would accept our dog. To our surprise we were sitting in the bar area, which was very fetching. The wait staff were quick, friend and very attentive without being over bearing. The food was excellent and we enjoyed the experience. I am looking forward to going back to Leith for dinner at the The Ship.

Would 100% recommend. We found this whilst walking around Leith, we hadn't booked but managed to get a table (thankfully, it was very busy). The food was faultless. The service was attentive too.

The venue is nice, the food is very good, just when the waitress noticed i did not give a tip on the 175 pound bill we were left ignored and disrespected. Not even thank you for your visit or have a nice day, my daughters thank was replied with an evil look of the waitress! Shame on you. Maybe i saved all year for this holidays and meal and maybe i cant afford a tip, but to disrespect your guests like this we did not deserve!

We're returned guests and the food and service and atmosphere delivered again. Thank you for a lovely lunch the other day. We had one roasted salmon, one trout and one monkfish dish We were all happy

💯% the best Christmas meal we’ve ever had. Fantastic friendly service, wonderful food and beautiful warm atmosphere. Highly recommend. We will return. Thank you.

Delicious food. All fish were fresh and tasty 😋. I celebrated my birthday with my wife and kids. Service was on top level. Thank you for your hospitality and warm welcome. I'll be back

Went in to wait for a friend the staff were lovely it was a cold day so I just had a coffee

Fish restaurant offering excellent quality dishes....at prices a little high for my standard, perhaps not so for the United Kingdom.

Perfect for seafood. Lovely staff, reasonably priced with amazing oysters and fish pie!

Lovely place ran professionally, serving amazing food.

Cool place and super nice atmosphere

Waterfront spot for shellfish and champagne, with elegant, romantic decor and terrace. It tasted very good, we were able to sit outside once, the second time the weather wasn't right. The restaurant is a recommendation!

Excellent paella and sticky toffee pudding

First time in Edinburgh and I must say this is one of the most visit restaurants the food was absolutely amazing from start to finish. The seafood platter was something special fresh clean the staff was very helpful.

Really enjoyed this. Great place for a date night if you like seafood. Busy, so advise booking in advance. Excellent service, well priced wine list. Enormous mussels. Side note: excellent chips.

Took the family here, it was so good we went back a fesw days later. We had oysters, lobster, langoustine, salmon pasta and the sole. All very good indeed. A good selection of wine was on offer. The atmosphere was lovely and the location fitting with the theme.

Perfect place for à romantic meal. Seafood is amazing and very welcoming People. Would definitely come back each time I come to Edinburgh

I did not like the restaurant very much, to be honest, and most of the menu is cold (icy) food, which means you order shrimp and they bring it to you on a plate with ice. There is very little cooked food, or more accurately, hot food on the menu. (It is important that you inform them about the alcohol issue. Almost all of the menu is cooked with alcohol except for some items upon request) My order He was: Smokey Seafood Soup 4/10 There is nothing special about it 2/10 SHIP'S HOT SHELLFISH PLATTER The food was cold and the serving plates were hot. Drinks: Sprite Moya The account is approximately 750SR

Best fish and chips! Not much the chips but the fish was amazingly done!

Pricey. Lovely ambience though and very friendly and helpful staff.

Best seafood restaurant! We were recommended this restaurant and it did not disappoint. Food was incredible, best meal we had whilst visiting. Staff were very attentive and friendly. Not to mention great cocktails too. We will be recommending to all our friends!

Weirdly you cannot book online; instead you message a request, get a confirmation, and then ring to pay a deposit and confirm you aren’t bringing children. That made our evening experience more odd because there were several children at another table who were allowed to go in and out of the restaurant getting in the way of the staff and adding to the drafts. All started well but fell apart as the service became erratic; it would have been nice to have been offered more drinks and coffee but everyone vanished. Paying took time and effort! The food was good (perhaps we should have had a platter) but the whole experience wasn’t good enough to make us rush back.

Delicious lunch. Seafood pie was well worth the wait as were all the dishes. Sea bass and haddock. Nice atmosphere for a lunchtime catch up.

If you're looking for a midrange seafood dinner, especially as a tourist, this is a perfectly acceptable choice. It's got all the things most people look for in a seafood restaurant. Mariner-themed motif, seafood platters, a good location close to the water, and busy. We came here on our last night and had a fine experience. It wasn't particularly memorable, but it was pretty much exactly as expected. The server was a little odd, as she basically abandoned our table when she realized we weren't drinking. The rest of the meal was taken care of by (who I assume was) the manager. A bit strange, but it made no difference to us really. Cullen Skink was better than other places we tried. A hearty, hot chowder with loads of fish, flavour, and cream. I got the hot seafood platter mostly for the promise of langoustines, scallops, and clams. What we ended up with was a giant plate of mussels with a few other bits and bobs on top. I don't recall seeing a single clam. 4 scallops. 2 small oysters. 3 langoustines. Some crab, yes. If there was a whole lobster--as the menu claims--half of it must have been invisible. I actually don't remember much lobster at all but my partner does so some must have been there, although the photo taken right after the platter arrived doesn't show much. To me, it seemed like just a heaping pile of mussels and potatoes. It wasn't the freshest tasting seafood I've ever had, which I thought was a bit odd considering Leith is so close to the sea. But it was cooked and prepared well, with good flavour otherwise. It was unfortunate that the price was so high (£135) for so little. Unless you really love mussels (which I really do not), it probably won't be particularly good value. There were two of us, and we both got tired of so many mussels and couldn't finish it. Seems like a waste of money and food, sadly. So, a very acceptable seafood spot for a once off, but not one that I would make a special trip for.

It's a really old restaurant right at the shore. An abundance of fresh seafood and 1 rib eye steak on the menu which I had . Full of flavour and cooked to perfection . The service was excellent and definitely a place for a special occasion as the prices were on the high side .but that is what you get for eating in a quality establishment. 👌

This place was fantastic from start to finish. The staff are so welcoming and friendly. The food was absolutely amazing and they were massive portions. We ordered the chorizo and King Prawns to share and was more than enough. Next, the mussels and chunky chips.... Amazing! The sauce for the mussels was so good and the chips complimented it. Definitely worth going to and we will be back

Loved the hot seafood platter. Worth a visit if in Leith.

Went to this restaurant to eat seafood. The menu was great with a variety of options. We went for hot seafood platter for 2. Wow, it didn't disappoint in fact it was more than expected. Seafood was fresh and cooked to perfection. Sauce was delicious too. We finished the meal with a luscious Sticky toffee pudding and warm apple pie delicious... service was top, very attent and lovely... 5 stars 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

Can’t say enough good things about this place. Close by to the hotel we were staying at, it became our home away from home. The inside is cozy, the bartenders are absolute gems, and the fish & chips rock. I literally love it here, Leith is just awesome in general.

The Ship has a fantastic reputation & great standards a good hospitality venue . With this being said really disappointed as last night I took my mum out for a special dinner. The quality of the food and service wasn’t up to standers at all, not sure if it was the restaurant manager but one of the staff members was rather rude to me and my mum which isn’t a nice experience for anyone. Unfortunately the food wasn’t that good as well no seasoning tasted bland very disappointing. I have been to the ship meany time and I can only say good things about the food. I am not one for leaving reviews. But working in hospitality myself, I know feedback is very important. Perhaps last night was just an off day. Thank you.

The seafood is so fresh and sweet😍 Great with white wine

The Seafood Restaurant in Leith is very special and you discover it as soon as you enter. The furnishings are reminiscent of ships (even the bathroom 🙂) and every single part is taken care of. The environment is very clean. The proposed fish menu includes numerous dishes, from the most classic Fish and Chips to huge plates of raw fish (which have their cost). The portions of the dishes are very generous. The fresh and very good fish makes it a restaurant that is not cheap but not too expensive. Very positive experience!

A family member booked this table for us as we were honeymooning in Edinburgh. The seafood was amazing. We had bread and olives for the table. Our starter consisted of oysters and the dressed crab. For the main we opted for the hot seafood platter which was delectable. We decided against dessert given that the hot platter was plentiful. The service at dinner was ok. However, when we mentioned that it was our honeymoon I felt like the servers were indifferent about this and were very much there to bring food and clear the table. After our meal we did have a nice conversation with the barman Dominic, and my husband tried a very expensive bottle of cognac, which was an experience and resulted in a great memory.

Beautiful food, the lemon Sole, and Fish Pie. Followed by home made ice cream and crème brûlée. All delicious. Staff very helpful. Will be back.

We booked a table for our 29th wedding anniversary over 2 months ago based on a family recommendation. When we arrived we were about to be shown to our table when the (possible manager) interjected and told the waitress where to seat us. We were then led to a small table, right next to the bar, with the bar hatch right beside us, where drinks were being collected from. Despite the restaurant being less than half full, when we asked for a different table, we were told the one we asked to move to wasn't free and we were offered another table, hemmed in by several noisy tables. The manager was indifferent to our decision to leave. Would not recommend this kind of welcome to anyone.

A great place for seafood lovers! Nice atmosphere and fast service! I highly recommend this place! It's one of my favorite restaurants in Edinburgh!

The royal paella was amazing 10/10, only shame was the service, they give an option for service charge at the end, I declined it and heard them discussing about it and pulling faces. And even refusing to say goodbye when leaving very disappointing service, we even had to pack our own food and ask for water multiple times before we were given a jug. Very unprofessional as they already get paid to be a waiter ... However, do go and try their paella. The chefs are top-notch.

We had a wonderful meal here - I would fully recommend it.

Reposting my dining experience in April 2023, I ordered this seafood platter. The plump oysters, tender sashimi, and plump scallops brought the most original flavor of the ocean, accompanied by fresh mussels, clams and various Shellfish, full of natural flavor. The mayonnaise in the center adds a rich texture to the whole, balancing out the deliciousness of the seafood. The lemon on the plate is not only bright in color, but also provides diners with a sour and refreshing garnish. The fish is golden and crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside, making every bite unforgettable. This platter perfectly showcases the freshness of the ingredients and the skill of the chef, making it a rare seafood experience.

Just fabulous !! Best meal out in a long time. Thank you x

This place is a seafood heaven for seafood lovers. Fresh catches and friendly staff with a big smile on thier faces. We've ordered: Seafood showder 3.5/5 Grilled Salmon 4/5 Shrimp cocktail 4/5 Ceviche 3.5/5 Reservation is preferable Seascalop 5/5 Half Lobster 5/5

It was a little cold when the door was open.

Found this incredible place with a recommendation from a true food and drink expert which was spot-on. The atmosphere near the water makes you feel great with delicious seafood and quality drinks. Would recommend for a nice dinner with your beloved ones.

Awesome seafoods <3 Reservation required

Stumbled up on this place on a Thursday night with my boyfriend as we were walking around Leith and it was a happy coincidence. We had no reservation and it was super busy but they managed to squeeze us in. The staff were friendly and attentive. They have quite the menu with so many delicious dishes but we ended up going for the Fruits de Mer Sharing Platter and wow, so fresh! The Shetland Mussels, Scottish Smoked Salmon & Mackerel were my personal favourites. The Loch Creran Oysters too but personally I felt like it was missing a little dressing of some sort. Maybe a chili and ginger dressing just to enhance the flavour but it was still good regardless. Overall, we had a lovely experience and I will definitely be back with my seafood lover friends and family for a visit. I highly recommend this restaurant and will make sure to book in advance just in case.

Top class meal. I had the seafood platter and it was superb. Very good service as well. Definitely recommend

Really good fish and chips adjacent to the Leith harbor. Very interesting nautical decor in the restaurant. Cheerful staff. Strongly recommend.

This place is great and has some great outdoor seating when the weather is nice. Very typical for the area. Really enjoyed it.

Fantastic food no complaints best fish and chips I have ever had!! Lovely menu choices for eating in or take out will be going back and heartily recommend

Came for dinner as a couple. The place is cozy, with old school vibes. Cullen skink was great. Ordered the cold platter, received the smoked platter. Our waiter was cold and acted annoyed when we asked abut dishes. My husband really liked his surf and turf. Cocktails were great.

Nous y sommes allés le midi après la visite du Britannia. Nous avons pris le plateau de fruits de mer royale qui chose rare en Écosse est servi froid et s’apparente à nos plateaux de fruits de mer. Nous nous sommes régalés. Huîtres, moules et praires cuites mais froides, coquilles St jacques froides fumées, haddock - saumon - bar et maquereau fumés, crabe avec ses pinces et un homard entier froid. Copieux pour 2 et vraiment savoureux. En outre, un très bon rapport qualité-prix. Un très bon moment avec un service agréable. A noter qu’autour de nous les moules’ soles, bars et fish and ships qui sont passés étaient magnifiques et copieux avec des convives qui semblaient tous se régaler.

Great restaurant. Nicely decorated and the service is top notch. Food is also very fresh and the price is normal. Definitely recommend this. We happened to be lucky, but I would definitely recommend booking in advance.

Last meal here for my birthday weekend, really disappointed thought I would save the best for last but definitely wasn't. Staff were rude not welcoming at all ordered the surf and turf for the price they are charging I would of expected more than a little meat in my lobster I literally had the bit at the end of the tail the rest was empty. Steak was perfect as was garlic butter. My partners meal was nice.

Make reservations - it's worth it. Our hotel concierge recommended this great restaurant when we wanted great seafood. The staff was great. The food was fantastic, great portions!

Reasonably good seafood, though both quality and volume in little relation to the price. Smoked salmon in particular froze on the plate, with frozen sinews taking away from taste. We had a great seat but the experience was dampened by strange behaviour from the American waitress, first treating us as if we were crazy for asking to try the wine before getting a bottle (her recommendations were also uninformed). After that interaction she proceeded to huffily walk away every time she came to the table, seemingly deliberately overhearing addt'l questions and request. Not the kind of service experience one would expect from that kind of background.

Cute place near the water. Well done and tasteful nautical decor. I really enjoyed my cocktail. We were a large group there for a business dinner. We put the wait staff through their paces, but they handled it well and with smiles. Highly recommend the summer garden cocktail.

Edinburgh has changed a lot in the last 30 years. Not only in a positive way over the past 5 years, but this subject is well known. Leith, a former working-class port area has turned into a trendy area. The ship on the shore is located in an exceptional environment at the port. A cozy, casual terrace during sun-drenched evenings. The service is very professional, the reservations are always correct and the quality of the fish on offer is of a very high level. I ate here several times on the recommendation of professional relations, local residents and on my own initiative. As a fish lover I can only recommend this. Would love to come back here often and wish the business a long life.

This was a return visit to the Ship on the Shore and I was not disappointed. The atmosphere was very good. A very bubbling dining room. A wide selection of delights on offer. I would recommend the smoked sea food platter as a starter. Quick friendly and efficient service. The food was beautifully cooked and presented. If you are visiting Edinburgh and enjoy fish step out of the city centre and head for Leith and Ship on the Shore

After a good walk, following the bed of the River Leith from Edinburgh and arriving at the mouth, we saw this fantastic restaurant with seafood dishes for all tastes, we had a luxurious, tremendous seafood platter.

So disappointed after reading all of the positive reviews… £60 for the smallest lobster served with soggy, “school dinner” chips and wilted salad… the atmosphere was of a place that had seen better days - not helped by the fake flowers and the placemats on the tables….

The hot seafood dish, the worst I have ever eaten.

We came because it was the only place in the area with a place and it went very well, everything we ate was delicious, good service and a great place.

Authentic. Food was great. Oysters where outstanding so where the smoked platter.

That was delicious. The place is charming. The staff at the top.

Delicious meal with friends, highly recommended.

A must must try when in Edinburgh. The freshest finest seafood restaurant in town. And poppy was a lovely wateriest. Make sure to book in advance as they are super busy.

Had a great dinner here with a couple of friends. The seafood platter was great and fish and chips the best I've had on my trip to Scotland. Also great service, professional yet still a personal touch.

Excelente atención y muy buena comida, aprovechamos las propuestas de pescados y mariscos. Muy linda la zona del puerto de Edimburgo, luego de almorzar vale la pena una caminata por la zona. Recomendable

Decent food and friendly service. A good place to visit if you're looking for seafood.

Well worth the visit every time one is in Edinburgh. Great food, great service. I yet to find a better restaurant in Edinburgh.

Overall, it is FINE. Deserves about 3.5 stars, but is severely overrated with 4.5 on Google right now. Everything is priced about 1.5x what it should be for the quality and technique. Food was yummy, but certainly not refined. Crab salad was pretty good. Limited flavour and technique, but would have been happy with this at a seafood shack. Overall good way to start. Ceviche was fine if you don't actually like cevivhe. Tiny portion, no real flavour direction, they may as well have skipped the acid alltogether and just chopped up some poached fish. crisps were uninspired as an accompaniment. Despite this, definitely not a chore to eat, but I wouldn't recommend. Arancini lobster bisque was an exciting concept, bludgeoned by mediocre technique. Rice was overcooked mush, insufficiently seasoned. Bisque definitely has lobster flavour which was a plus, beautiful colour, but oversalted to the point of obscuring some of that lovely lobster flavour. Seafood pie was the only thing I would actually endorse. Certainly hard to screw up, but they actually executed it well. Again, tasted like I was eating at a little shack on the coast, but in all the right ways on this one. Delicious, well seasoned, well cooked. Again, this review would be different if they took a hard look in the mirror and just became the seafood shack that their chefs seem to want it to be, rather than billing this as fine dining.