Bellini

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

Eating at Bellini, with its grand, welcoming dining room complete with chandeliers, candle-light and background opera music, is an experience to be savoured. This New Town gem is no place for a quick, cheap meal, so settle in and soak up the sumptuous surroundings while you wait for the slow-cooked fare of chef Angelo Cimini to arrive. Angelo plied his trade in Venice and brings a passion and imagination to a seasonal menu that showcases the very finest fresh produce. The service, overseen by his partner Gina, is impeccable and unpushy – nothing is overlooked, and specials and suggested dish variations, particularly for vegetarians, are thoughtfully explained rather than recited. Follow a starter of Italian hors d'oeuvres or the moreish house special of sautéed handpicked wild mushrooms with an exquisite made-to-order lobster and seafood risotto or tender char-grilled Scotch beef fillet with gorgonzola, Parma ham and truffles. Finish with the immaculately presented ice-cream profiteroles with chocolate sauce and fresh fruit or velvety chocolate mousse with Baileys. Large and small groups alike tend to linger at Bellini, such is its homey, affable ambience, and retiring to the gorgeous lounge for a nightcap is a fitting end to a fabulous evening.

• High point: Fine dining without the fuss or fanfare
• Low point: Presentation of mains gives no hint as to how good they taste

The LIST Card C8

Bellini

The following text has been provided by Bellini.

A warm welcome awaits you at Bellini restaurant in the heart of Edinburgh’s historic New Town.

Chef Angelo and his wife, Gina, create a welcoming, cosy, relaxed atmosphere from the moment you step over the door into the delightful Georgian dining room -
Italophiles, eat your heart out!

A passionate Italian chef marrying the best of Scotland’s larder with his skill and expertise to make mouth-watering authentic Italian dishes that leave a trip to Italy absolutely unnecessary. Dishes are made to order with only the finest, fresh quality produce creating distinctive, delicious flavours that are truly sublime.

Fresh pastas filled with cheese, Parma ham and haggis are not to be missed and a basket of fresh wild mushrooms is presented with pride to make the most divine risotto one could ever imagine.

A member of the Scotch Beef Club, the steaks are prime Scottish Aberdeen Angus and cooked to perfection, whilst a selection of freshly caught fish is also available.

Chef Angelo trained at the prestigious world-renowned catering school in Villa Santa Maria, Abruzzo and spent over a decade in the magical city of Venice cooking for many international celebrities. At Bellini he has had the pleasure of cooking for Gloria Estefan, REM, Blondie, Jacqueline Bisset and many famous dignitaries.

Gina and her highly trained team deliver a high level of service in the dining room and do their utmost to ensure you have a most pleasurable and memorable experience at Bellini.

We look forward to welcoming you…

(Classes are available with Chef Angelo at Bellini Cookery School)

Reviews
“One of the finest Italian restaurants they are ever likely to experience outside Italy itself” Gordon Clark, ‘Catering In Scotland’
“Bellini’s chef is skilled in the art of making masterpieces out of classic Italian comfort food” ‘Scotland on Sunday’

The LIST Card is a dining scheme that gives you promotional two-for-one offers at a range of restaurants in Glasgow, Edinburgh and beyond. Find out more.