Visit La Garrigue, arguably the most authentic French restaurant in town and be transported into the Languedoc region of France. Enjoy the food, sample the 'Terroir wines' and the warm service. Winner 'Les Routiers Guide; Scottish restaurant of the year'.

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• What are these?

• Average price 2 courses:
   £8.50 (set lunch)
   £19 (evening meal)
• House wine: £12.90 per bottle

• High point: Pretty and romantic interior
• Low point: Not all dishes measure up to the surroundings
• Food served: Mon-Wed & Sun noon-3pm, 5-10pm; Thu-Sat noon-3pm, 5-11pm
• Bar open: Mon-Sun noon-midnight
• Private dining: Up to 40 covers
• Open since: 1998
• Also offers: Childrens portions, Childrens high chairs, Pre-theatre menu

The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 is now in the shops.

This review is from the 2007 edition.

Maison Bleue has the kind of cosily romantic interior that Edinburgh's Old Town excels at: all stone arches, nooks, crannies and candlelight. Unfortunately, this also means rather cramped tables, and you need good eyesight to read the menu in lighting this dim. A similar story emerges from the Franco-north African-inspired menu: starters set an impressive standard which mains and desserts can't quite live up to. So escargots are deliciously juicy and pungently garlicky, but are followed by an uncrispy duck confit and floury chocolate fondant dessert. Similarly, balls of haggis in a thick but crispy beer batter combine well with their sweet whisky sauce, whereas lamb tagine offers a blast of heat but no real complexity of flavour in its spicing. It is all pleasant enough, but lacks the quality that the setting and prices deserve. On the plus side, the wine list is good quality and fairly priced; set-price lunches and pre-theatre dining before 6.30pm offer substantially better value than à la carte and allow you to eat more reasonably in what is definitely a very pretty space.