Mezbaan is Edinburgh's only restaurant dedicated to just traditional and authentic South Indian cuisine. We are now open for lunch. If you are short for time you can sample our express menu or for a more relaxed our a la carte menu.

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• Average price 2 courses:
   £15 (lunch)
   £15 (evening meal)
• House wine: £10.95 per bottle

• High point: Enticing aromas
• Low point: Fluctuating food quality
• Food served: Mon–Sun noon–2.30pm, 5.30–11.30pm
• Delivery: Free for orders over £15, otherwise £2.50
• Private dining: Up to 20 covers
• Open since: 1985
• Also offers: Vegetarian options (at least 25% of main courses), Children's portions, Takeaway

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008
– in the shops now or buy online.

Before you've even entered the building, Lancers has you salivating. A wafting aroma somehow manages to snake along Hamilton Place, enticing you in. The attentive staff do an equally good job of making you feel welcome. They also project a confidence that says: 'We've been here a long time; we know what we're doing.' As your dining experience unfolds, however, there's also the sense that Lancers is trading on a former glory. Certificates adorn the walls and proclamations of greatness abound – but they all date back several years. Lancers was once a jewel in the Stockbridge crown, but needs to make some changes if it is to reclaim that status. The menu has a Bengali and north Indian style, and certainly offers an extensive range of meat and vegetarian dishes, sides and breads. It can, however, be a little inconsistent. Starters such as a boti lamb kebab or sabzi pakora are full of flavour, but some of the main course sauces taste uncannily similar. The dessert menu feels uninspired, yet the mango lassi is so creamy and smooth you feel like a kid in a sweet shop. This mixed bag approach may mean you meal is a little hit or miss.