About
Welcome to our little bit of Italy in the heart of The Shore, Edinburgh. You will find wholesome food and delicious daily specials and a welcoming atmosphere - what's not to love!
PRICE RANGE
€5 - €23
Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly, Gluten Free Options, Vegan Options
Meals
Lunch, Dinner, Late Night, Drinks
CUISINES
Italian, Seafood, Deli, Sicilian, Southern-Italian
FEATURES
Takeout, Reservations, Seating, Street Parking, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Accepts American Express, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Digital Payments, Free Wifi, Table Service, Highchairs Available, Gift Cards Available
Reviews (395)
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386 results
Traveler rating
297
73
7
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3
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Time of year
LanguageEnglish
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Traveler rating
297
73
7
6
3
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All reviews pasta nduja scallops wraps arancini haggis sea bass ice cream bread italian cooking house wine is red pepper daily specials friendly service fantastic food small restaurant visit edinburgh
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Reviewed 2 weeks ago

A delightful restaurant with lovely people who really believe in the food they serve up. The avocado sauce with linguine and sea bass was a perfectly balanced dish. Who knew you could make a pasta sauce from avocado! Genius. Locally popular so you probably need...to book.More

Date of visit: July 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 3 weeks ago

My husband and I were there on Saturday night (having booked about a month ago on a recommendation from a colleague). The restaurant is small and very cosy. The staff were all so welcoming and chatty (but not in your face like some places!) I...had the monkfish in prosecco batter with aoili as a starter which was very nice but the haggis pasta that I had as a main was AMAZING (even though I only managed half of it - although they were happy to give me the other half away "for breakfast"!!) Husband had an amazing starter of goats cheese wrapped in parma ham with honey and pine nuts (I was very jealous that I hadnt ordered this). He had coley with roast potatoes and the sauce underneath was sooooo nice. We did manage to share a chocolate orange cake with Cointreau. Very reasonable prices for the quality of food and service. Almost feel like I shouldn't be writing this review - as we won't be able to get a table in future!!!More

Date of visit: July 2023
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Reviewed July 4, 2023 via mobile

In our visit to Edinburgh we happened to meet a local who is from Leith. She recommended we visit Leith and said they have many restaurants to eat at. We decided to Uber over and booked a reservation online to eat here since my daughter...was wanting Italian food. They called us and apologized that they were already booked but could offer us a “small table”. We were expecting a very tight fit but the table was actually a normal size to accommodate us. The food was amazing and the service was very good and the staff very friendly. One of our favorite meals on our vacation to Scotland.More

Date of visit: June 2023
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Reviewed July 3, 2023

Food was just average although waitress was very friendly and accommodating. Not as good as we expected.

Date of visit: July 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed June 26, 2023

Had booked via Quandoo whilst travelling into Edinburgh with my wife. Had never actually heard of this place before Saturday (24 June), but whilst searching for restaurants on the Shore in Leith, I came across TripAdvisor's reviews, and thought we would visit. It's perhaps the...smallest restaurant we have ever been in. However, the food and service was very good. My wife and I had 2 courses [starter and main] - went for the same food. Starter was Arancini (stuffed with parmesan, nduja, and what I think was orzo pasta) - a lovely, if quite spicy Sicilian recipe. We chose one of the specials for the day - Stufato di Pesce - a tomato and tangy seafood dish with fish of the day (salmon), mussels, squid, prawns and a proper lovely sauce, which we got free bread to mop up the remaining sauce at the end. Service was really good (lively, friendly and fun), and would definitely go again. I would definitely recommend this restaurant!More

Date of visit: June 2023
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Reviewed June 11, 2023 via mobile

40th wedding anniversary Weekend stay in Edinburgh ended with a fantastic meal at cafe donenico Would massively recommend food is excellent Italian cooking and the staff are great fun

Date of visit: June 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Karen Ross, General Manager at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded June 12, 2023

Thank you so much for the fabulous review- so happy you enjoyed your time with us… congratulations on your anniversary ❤️

Reviewed June 10, 2023

Took my niece, her husband and their 7 month old daughter for lunch. Being a regular, I guessed how welcoming the staff would be with a young child and - yes - they were brilliant. And the food was, as usual, excellent with my niece's...husband saying as we left that it was one of the best Italian meals he had eaten outside of Italy.More

Date of visit: June 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Karen Ross, General Manager at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded June 12, 2023

Thank you for the lovely review .. so happy you enjoyed it.. and your little one was the cutest ever..loved her high chair ❤️

Reviewed May 29, 2023 via mobile

Excellent food and wine, friendly service. It’s small so book ahead. The menu isn’t huge but the food is beautifully prepared and presented.

Date of visit: May 2023
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Karen Ross, General Manager at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded June 27, 2023

Thank you so much for the lovely review 🙏

Reviewed May 5, 2023

We have been regulars at Domenico for well over a decade. It’s wonderful to see that this restaurant has survived the pandemic and is flourishing. It’s the little Italian place the locals know about and everyone else should know about. Traditional Italian pasta and food,...no pizzas. Great service always.More

Date of visit: May 2023
Helpful?
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Karen Ross, General Manager at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded May 23, 2023

Thank you so much Sally for the fabulous review, we are so thankful for the support from all our local regulars 🙏

Reviewed April 10, 2023

Been coming here for many years, the food was excellent as usual, very reasonably priced wine and the service by Toni was outstanding, makes everyone very welcome. Would highly recommend this little gem of a restaurant

Date of visit: April 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed April 10, 2023 via mobile

Stayed in Leith whilst visiting Edinburgh. Hadn't booked an evening meal and daughter fancied Italian. Phoned ahead and they seated the four of us later that evening. What an excellent choice. Small restaurant with friendly staff and outstanding food. They even made my son a...dish which wasn't on the menu. The best Italian food I have eaten out in a long time. Compliments to the chef. A real hidden gem. Would definitely book here if ever visiting the area again.More

Date of visit: April 2023
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Karen Ross, General Manager at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded May 25, 2023

Thank you so much for the lovely review… and have passed on your comments to the team ❤️🙏

Reviewed April 8, 2023

We had such a spectacular meal and service I just had to leave a review! We started with the Goat cheese and chorizo bruschetta which was just perfect! Not too much bread very fresh high end goat cheese and topped with a spectacular onion and...red pepper jam! We ordered a cal polo Ella wine which was very delicious and yet super inexpensive. The porchetta was cooked with a marvelous crackle crust and a perfect amount of sauce which melted in our mouth! We also had the salmon on freshly made tagliatelle and a light amount of tasty sauce with superb veggies and capers! I literally thought I was back in Italy! We loved the quiet atmosphere, great tunes lightly playing and the wait staff was informative, professional and on top of it the whole meal! We will Reccomend this place to all our friends who visit this beautiful city!More

Date of visit: April 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Karen Ross, General Manager at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded May 23, 2023

Wow thank you so much for your lovely words.. delighted you enjoyed our city and our little place ❤️

Reviewed February 21, 2023

I live in Leith and am surrounded by good food. I like Domenicos because it's small, friendly and the food's excellent. This time Arancini, monkfish, ragu tagliatele, amareno ice cream, a bottle of gavi di gavi, and coffees. All excellent. Eggy fresh pasta. My wife...is vegetarian and always has a choice - or they cook something simple like spag + tomato if she asks: no problem. Staff really friendly and helpful.More

Date of visit: February 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KRdomenico, Owner at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded February 24, 2023

Thank you so much for the fab review, means the world to us 🙏

Reviewed February 13, 2023 via mobile

We were up in Leith for a birthday celebration but had not booked to eat on the day of our arrival Found Cafe Domenico on a certain App and decided to give it a go There is nothing I can put in a negative box;...great staff, lovely atmosphere, fantastic food and generous servings High recommended it if you are nearby or even further a field I know there are some negative reviews, but check the dates they were posted. This is a fantastic place and very much worth the visit Will be telling all my friends about this place! Thank you for a lovely evening!!!!More

Date of visit: February 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KRdomenico, Marketing at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded February 18, 2023

Thank you so much for the fabulous review! So happy you enjoyed your time with us 🙏

Reviewed January 27, 2023 via mobile

This lovely little restaurant does some great food, it’s quite small but the food is delicious. The house wine is very gullible & certainly when with the meal Staff are welcoming & friendly It was our second visit & as perfect as the first, it’s...a good idea to book as being small you might be disappointed.More

Date of visit: January 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KRdomenico, Marketing at Cafe Domenico, responded to this reviewResponded January 28, 2023

Thank you so much for the lovely review and happy you love our menu & food! Hope to see you again soon

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Questions & Answers
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TRAYNORI
October 31, 2016|
AnswerShow all 2 answers
Response from NH50 | Reviewed this property |
Definitely ask them: it's a small place and they will fall over you for special arrangements whether 2 or 10 guests. But it's a small place. Excellent food and great welcome
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CAFE DOMENICO, Edinburgh - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Cafe Domenico

Yes, Cafe Domenico offers takeout services.

Cafe Domenico is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travelers:
  • Food: 4.5
  • Service: 4.5
  • Value: 4.5
  • Atmosphere: 4.5