Amber Restaurant

The 2012 edition of The List's Eating & Drinking Guide is out now – only £5.95 (+p&p).

This review is taken from the current (2012) edition.

Being practically on Edinburgh Castle’s esplanade and part of a five-star tourist attraction, it’s inevitable that dinner at Amber is geared towards city visitors. Past the £1 million revamped shop, down the stairs from the Scotch Whisky Experience, the restaurant is in stark contrast to its historic building – modern, oak-clad, with a touch of the canteen to it. The Taste of Scotland menu shows characteristic integrity of ingredients. Many of the components also appear on the regular menu as ‘tapas’, starters or mains. Generally structured around tripartite starter and main courses, the latter being fish, vegetarian and meat, it changes almost daily. Mains could include a well-hung fillet steak and grey mullet with wild garlic sauce courtesy of a local forager, followed by sticky toffee pudding and a dram. It doesn’t all work, the starters particularly: ham hock is lacking in flavour, and a roll mop doesn’t sit well next to smoked salmon mousse. In the main, however, there’s the feeling throughout of classic Scottish pub dishes, done well – not a bad way to introduce tourists to the taste of Scotland.

• High point: Surprisingly decent prices across the menus
• Low point: Last orders are very early