The Rainbow Arch

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2009 – in the shops now or buy online.

A long established Chinese restaurant just off Lothian Road, the Rainbow Arch has arguably moved into the shadow of its basement offshoot, Henry’s Cellar Bar, one of the city’s best regular jazz spots. As with a number of traditional Chinese restaurants, Rainbow Arch can seem like a bit of a throw-back – from the fish tank and large Chinese vase as you enter, to the mirrored walls and pink tablecloths. Two menus are offered: a dim sum list with more intriguing options such as chicken feet, tripe in black bean sauce and mooli (white radish) cakes, and a longer, more conventional a la carte volume which is particularly well-worn and familiar. Folk coming in for the first time will be made to feel welcome enough, but you do sense that it’s a place for regulars who know their way around the menu. The food and cooking are decent – crispy pork has crunchy coating contrasting with soft, gelatinous pork slices, while sizzling chicken with ginger and spring onion is light and packs lots of flavour – and there’s a bit here for the more adventurous. It’s also one of the city’s late-night eating spots, with doors closing at 3am. Where diners are likely to be less enthralled is by the general tattiness of the place, from menus stuck with sticky tape at the doorway to spare tables untidily stacked at the rear of the restaurant. The downstairs toilets remain shabby in the extreme.

• High point: A chance to try some unusual dim sum
• Low point: Frayed around the edges