Scotland


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-lowdown">THE LOWDOWN</h2>



<p>Stuart Ralston is something of a titan of the restaurant scene in Edinburgh with – count them – five restaurants across the capital: Michelin-starred Lyla, Noto, Tipo, Aizle and the newly opened at the end of 2025, Vinette.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-08-10-2025-14-04-33.jpg" alt="Vinette
" class="wp-image-2639" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-08-10-2025-14-04-33.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-08-10-2025-14-04-33-200x300.jpg 200w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-08-10-2025-14-04-33-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-08-10-2025-14-04-33-768x1152.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Vinette has moved into the space vacated by Fhior, the acclaimed restaurant by husband and wife team Scott and Laura Smith. That means it has big shoes to fill, but if anyone has a shot at doing that, it’s Ralston. Committed to seasonal ingredients and culinary excellence across all his sites, he’s, so far successfully, been able to create restaurants with distinct identities.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-vibe">THE VIBE</h2>



<p>Vinette’s is a restaurant in the vein of a Parisian bar à vin – sharing plates and bistro style dishes with old world influences. Below stairs, the basement has been transformed into a speakeasy bar Vivien, named after Renée Vivien, a lesbian poet living in Belle Époque Paris. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scoff-amp-quaff">SCOFF &amp; QUAFF</h2>



<p>We began in Vivien, a sultry, red-lit intimate bar, of cosy corners for illicit conversations. The vibe is very Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks. It’s the kind of bar you can perch at on a stool and nurse a crisp martini (exquisitely made) alone or rekindle a romance with your lover at a small table.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1333" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/IMG_8412.jpg" alt="Vivien" class="wp-image-2641" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/IMG_8412.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/IMG_8412-225x300.jpg 225w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/IMG_8412-768x1024.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>We treated it as a spot for aperitivi before heading up stairs to Vinette, the warm up before the main event, though it would have been easy to while away the hours down there, ordering snacks to accompany the excellent cocktail menu.</p>



<p>As anticipated the menu at Vinette gives a nod to the influence of a French bistro. The starters (named slightly oddly in the American style as appetisers) included chicken liver and foie gras parfait with figs, duck hearts au poivre and brioche and beetroot carpaccio with chèvre and hazelnuts.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-17-21-45.jpg" alt="Crisps" class="wp-image-2637" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-17-21-45.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-17-21-45-200x300.jpg 200w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-17-21-45-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-17-21-45-768x1152.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Main courses (or again, American-style entrees) take in pork collar with cider braised onion and mustard, chicken roulade with smoked butter and wild mushrooms and quiche, again with wild mushrooms and winter truffle. The French connection is there, loud and clear and, frankly, it was hard to choose. Every dish sounded delicious.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-53-24.jpg" alt="Chicken at Vinette" class="wp-image-2636" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-53-24.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-53-24-240x300.jpg 240w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-53-24-819x1024.jpg 819w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-53-24-768x960.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>But, if you’ve heard the chatter about Vinette, you’re most likely to have heard about the Baron Bigod crumpet with truffle and the Vinette burger, with bacon jam and mornay sauce. I’ll have to return to report back on these for you, but friends who’ve tried them, rave about them.</p>



<p>Still, it strikes me as odd that the dishes gaining traction in the city’s foodie chat aren’t necessarily those that match up to the stated goal of being a Parisien style eaterie. And indeed, the menu – with its appetisers and entrees rather than starters and mains, and potato chips instead of crisps – does seem to suggest that this restaurant has its eyes on American tourists more than a local crowd.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1200" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-43-27.jpg" alt="Venison" class="wp-image-2638" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-43-27.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-43-27-300x240.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-43-27-1024x819.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-18-43-27-768x614.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>That will remain to be seen in the long run. We stuck to the French elements of the menu, sharing cream cheese and trout roe with dipping crisps, and small plates of chicken liver and foie gras, and venison tartar tapas-style along with the pork collar and a side of potato and celeriac tartiflette.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-19-37-25.jpg" alt="Tartiflette" class="wp-image-2640" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-19-37-25.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-19-37-25-240x300.jpg 240w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-19-37-25-819x1024.jpg 819w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/scotland/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2026/01/Photo-04-10-2025-19-37-25-768x960.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kid-friendly">KID-FRIENDLY?</h2>



<p>Call in the childcare cavalry and ask them to have the little darlings overnight if they can – this is an experience to linger over.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dog-friendly">DOG FRIENDLY?</h2>



<p>Absolutely not.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-muddy-verdict">MUDDY VERDICT</h2>



<p>Good for: As with all Ralston’s restaurants, you go for beautifully executed food made with the best produce and a gorgeous winelist. It’s a place to savour the food and take your time over every mouthful. I still think about that tartiflette – so unctuous and flavoursome – and, truthfully, I’d think about going back just for that. It’s a great spot for a date, but you could easily take your bigger kids too for a birthday or celebration. The service is brisk but efficient leaving you to have those indulgent conversations you’ve been longing for with your partner or pal.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Not for: Yes, there’s a burger on the menu, but don&#8217;t be fooled into thinking this is anything less than a very smart establishment. It’s not a burger restaurant by any stretch. But I am curious to see how the crowd there changes – particularly during the summer months. My advice is to&nbsp;get there before it’s “discovered” and enjoy it to the full, like we did.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-damage">THE DAMAGE</h2>



<p>For the level of food and service, it’s not a bad deal at all. Snacks start from £6, appetisers run between £10 and £16 each and main courses between £18 and £23. We had no room for dessert but they’re £8 each with an optional paired sweet wine starting from £5.</p>



<p>Vinette, 36 Broughton St, Edinburgh, EH1 3SB,&nbsp; 0131 259 0974<br>vinette.co.uk</p>


Review: Vinette, Edinburgh

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