Hitlisted, Child friendly

85 places

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The King's Wark

36 The Shore, Edinburgh, EH6 6QU

With a history dating back to 1432, this is one of Leith’s most venerable buildings. Although it has only been in its present guise for a comparatively short 22 years, its stone walls, hardwood floorboards, open fire and dark wooden furniture lend it an…

Nonna's Kitchen

45 Morningside Road, Edinburgh, EH10 4AZ

Owner Gino Stornaiuolo named his establishment in tribute to his two grandmothers, whose faces adorn the walls of a room in which space has been well exploited. However, it is the contribution of his parents that brings the restaurant to life. While…

The Gardener's Cottage

1 Royal Terrace Gardens, Edinburgh, EH7 5DX

Run by two talented chefs with impressive restaurant experience between them (including The Atrium, The Kitchin, The Outsider, Café St Honore and Falko), Gardener’s Cottage is a relatively new addition to Edinburgh dining. Be transported out of the city…

Moyra Jane's

20 Kildrostan Street, Glasgow, G41 4LU

MJ’s gold-embossed frontage justifiably claims that it is a brasserie. It also has an appropriately Scottish twist and a daytime alter ego as a popular café. Customers are offered a cocooning and enjoyable experience, for which they usually return.

The Hidden Lane Tearoom

8 Argyle Court, 1103 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8ND

The Hidden Lane Tearoom is hidden only in name. Despite being just a couple of years old, it has clearly established a serious following, which means that at weekends, it can often get pretty busy – despite having two levels. Somehow though, owner…

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Rivage

126–130 Easter Road, Edinburgh, EH7 5RJ

Rivage may seem an understated presence from the outside, but there’s nothing low-key about the restaurant’s menu or the kitchen’s execution of it. Husband and wife team Ryad Meeajane and Catherine Thomson look after the kitchen and front of house…

Café Gandolfi

64 Albion Street, Glasgow, G1 1NY

With its handsome interior, chunky Tim Stead furniture and globe lights, Café Gandolfi is the granddaddy of Merchant City bohemianism. Serving a mix of clientele from shoppers to concert-goers, it’s been dishing out high-end bistro food for more than 30…

The Balcony Café

Upstairs @ The Glasgow Climbing Centre, 534 Paisley Road West, Glasgow, G51 1RN

Well above par for any sports centre’s in-house catering, this café in the rafters of the converted church housing the Glasgow Climbing Centre is both a welcome pitstop for dedicated climbers and a dining venue with an unusual and transfixing view for…

Cafezique

66 Hyndland Street, Glasgow, G11 5PT

A good local eatery can be hard to find but not in Partick. Cafezique is attached to a delicatessen. Inside, simple décor and a mezzanine level is enjoyed by elegant young ladies chattering over wine with nibbles (olives and cheese fondue). And…

Crabshakk

1114 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8TD

No place captures the energy of the Finnieston renaissance better than Crabshakk, a few years old but still packed to the rafters most evenings. At the bar and on the mezzanine, diners sit beside, opposite – practically on top of each other. Brushed…

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Hemma

75 Holyrood Road, Edinburgh, EH8 8AE

Meaning ‘home’ in Swedish, Hemma is the latest addition to Mike and Anna Christopherson’s string of Scandinavian style bars. And with its soft furnishings and quirky interiors, it does indeed have a laidback, homely atmosphere, despite the modern feel…

Spoon

6a Nicolson Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9DH

Rocking the boho bedsit chic, with elegantly mismatched retro furniture, lampshades and crockery, this is one Spoon that’s unquestionably more loving than greasy. The menu’s packed with wholesome, healthy options, a decent proportion of which are…

Mezbaan South Indian Restaurant

14/14a Brougham Street, Edinburgh, EH3 9JH

South Indian restaurants offer a refreshing change from the Punjabi-based menus normally on offer in Edinburgh. Old favourites are still available for the less adventurous, but for anybody looking to experiment, Mezbaan is a great place to start. Wheat…

Tanjore

6–8 Clerk Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9HX

When you head to Tanjore, and it’s heartily recommended you do, there are two reasons to bring an appetite. First, this is where to sample the finest Southern Indian cuisine in Edinburgh. Second, you’ll be tempted to order everything on the enticing…

Cookie

72 Nithsdale Road, Glasgow, G41 2AN

It's a simple concept – a café style venue, a kitchen for all to see and a head chef not bound by a printed menu. Since its opening Cookie has succeeded in being a bit different. It is home of Chef Wars, where once a month chefs from around the city…

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Mother India's Café

1355 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 7RU

It takes confidence to add fixed specials that are creatively different every day. But it works…. to try a MIC fish biryani then you have to get down there on a Friday and one Friday, that’s exactly what you might do. With the ability to turn tables…

Petit Paris

38–40 Grassmarket, Edinburgh, EH1 2JU

If Petit Paris aspires to be a little piece of the French capital, it’s not the city’s grand boulevards or imposing squares, but the winding cobbled streets where time seems to stand still and there’s an old-fashioned bistro on every corner. The place…

Restaurant Mark Greenaway

69 North Castle Street, Edinburgh, EH2 3LJ

Famed for his television appearances on the Great British Menu, in 2012 Mark Greenaway relocated his restaurant to a new city-centre venue. There are grand plans afoot but for now the stylish and muted interior plays second fiddle to the main star here…

Rice Terraces

93 St Leonard's Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9QY

Edinburgh’s only Filipino restaurant is a family-run affair with an informal, homely ambience to match. Owner and head chef Zenaida Taylor and her son David are on hand to talk you through the dishes and it’s worth taking a chance on some of the less…

Stravaigin

28–30 Gibson Street, Glasgow, G12 8NX

Stravaigin feels as fresh and inventive as when its doors first opened back in 1995. The emphasis on local, seasonal produce combined with a global approach to flavour means even the most jaded palate should find something to please. Look beyond the…

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Ubiquitous Chip

12 Ashton Lane, Glasgow, G12 8SJ

Although its star has occasionally waned over 40-odd years of serving the West End’s finest, the Chip still holds its own amid the crowded glare and shifting fashions of Ashton Lane, carving a hard-won niche for quality food and metropolitan chic.

The Glad Café

1006a Pollokshaws Road, Glasgow, G41 2HG

A true chameleon, this innovative community enterprise café and arts venue attracts a varied clientele. The kitchen offers breakfasts, lunchtime specials, soup, sandwiches and unusual cakes including sweet potato and white chocolate. Familiar breakfast…

Saramago Café Bar

CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, G2 3JD

Housed in the CCA, this spacious café-bar attracts a predictably bohemian clientele in evenings, with workers and young families hanging out during the day, especially on Saturdays. Despite the cavernous space and clean, modern lines, there’s a sense of…

An Clachan

Off La Belle Place, Glasgow, G3 7LH

A genuinely inspired eatery. From the delicately displayed cupcakes to the well-lit, nicely designed interior, it projects a contemporary, taste-driven approach. Its ethical stance is no less impressive, with locally sourced veg, ethically fished tuna…

Café Milk

232 Morrison Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8EA

Like the white stuff itself, quirky Morrison Street café Milk seems wholesome and pure, from the cream enamel tin plates to spotless tiled walls. The look is 1930s industrial: an old dairy maybe, with worn wooden benches and Formica tabletops, where…