The Witchery

Food	Service	Atmosphere	Value
3	1	8	3

This restaurant is an enchanting place was originally built in 1595 for an Edinburgh merchant. Started by James Thomson, this restaurant offers atmosphere and great food. Celebrities such as Ewan MacGregor, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta Jones, Jack Nicholson and others have been known to dine at Thomson’s restaurant. Examples of food include Chargrilled Aberdeen Angus fillet with celeriac, tomato and seared foie gras, Baked Atlantic Cod and more. It’s sure to be a memorable dining experience.

March 2005

We saved The Witchery until our last night in Edinburgh and were deeply disappointed by the whole experience. The food was bland and at best, mediocre and the service was very amateurish, neither justified the £50+ bill.
The Witchey seems to be relying on its past reputation. However most people go to a restaurant for the food and this menu was sadly lacking. Edinburgh is full of really great places to eat and every other night we had truly excellent food and ambience at half the price. Our best advice to anyone is go somewhere else and not to waste your money at The Witchery

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Extremely disappointing wedding anniversary meal at The Witchery.
We sat for over 15 mins with no menus, then once we were served (by a slow and disinterested waiter). The menu contained nothing seasonal and clearly hadn't changed in months (if not years) - not the sign of a good restaurant. The choices were limited and there were really only one or two things I fancied, you would expect in a restaurant with this reputation (and prices) that you would be spoilt for choice.
After ordering we waited another 30 minutes before our wine and starters materialised (after reminding twice).
The wild salmon ceviche was very small and while the fish was excellent quality, it was totally bland and tasteless. The langoustine and scallop tian was gritty and bland.
We both ordered fillet of beef for main course (having had this here 3 years ago and it was superb then). It was very leathery and tough and mine was so overcooked that I sent it back. When the second lot arrived they were burnt and tough on the outside and raw and cold in the middle. Also the meat had not been rested, so it was pouring blood all over our plates. The chips were flaccid and undercooked.
At this point we'd been there for two hours and decided to cut our losses and leave. The staff did apologise but bearing in mind we were also guests staying in one of their £300 a night rooms, did nothing to try and make amends.
On leaving, we heard the table behind complaining about rancid cheese, and looked around to see numerous other diners with no food on their tables, so I don't think our experience was a one off, sadly.
Also worth noting that the wine list, while fairly extensive, offers nothing between the £25 and £60 mark, pushing you to spend more than you otherwise might. Too obvious not to be deliberate.
One to avoid.

CrazyCatLadyLondon - Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Went to Edinburgh for my dad's birthday recently and decided to book a nice family lunch at the witchery and it didn't disappoint.
When booking on line, has arranged for 1:30pm and was told that needed to finish by 4pm (nice to see they set the expectation at a 2 1/2 hour lunch!), however when we turned up at 1pm there was no problem sitting at our table. Went on to enjoy a great lunch with some of the party choosing the (very cheap) lunch special and some from the normal menu - I had the oysters which were perfect and the lamb which was melt in the mouth soft and rounded off with some very nice puddings - not sure if the pudding selection was meant as a shared dish but waiter didn't bat an eye when some ordered it each! And trust me, it was a big platter.
With the mix of lunch special and normal menu, didn't seem too bad on price either. About £160 pre wine for 4 people.
Also, dispite being the only ones left in the restaurant at 4pm, the staff didn't try and rush us out in any way and left us in peace to finish up the great wine (more a wine book than a list). Finally rolled down the hill about 4:30.
Would definitely go back.

Neil - Saturday, June 09, 2007

Wholeheartedly agree with above reviewer - was here for dinner 2 weeks ago. Theatrical environment - not really necessary for a restaurant. Food itself - cooking and produce - not up to scratch - not for this price - you can see a sample menu on restaurant homepage. Chocolates served with coffee looked suspciously like Thorntons - says it all.

Thursday, April 19, 2007

This review dates back to July'05. I'd heard a lot about the Witchery so paid a visit to sample the lunch set menu. Setting was lovely and quite different (medieval you could say) but from there it went down hill. The head waiter seated us, he'd obviously been there a while, been through the motions a few times so was somewhat robotic - didn't warm to him at all. He'd ask us our menu choices without even looking at us - there seemed to be something more interesting to him out the window. The food was pretty disappointing - presented ok but simply lacked taste. Its one of those places where the more you pay the less you get. The atmosphere was lacking - I can put that in part down to it being lunch and it wasn't completely full. As I looked around there were quite a few tourists - I think they were being taken for a ride (not everyone ordered the 'cheaper' lunch menu). It wasn't all bad, the other waiters/waitresses were nice enough. There was an amazing selections of wines, some you could say on the expensive side - then again its one of the things the Witchery is known for. I wouldn't recommend it though. Not until it gets back to what made it a top Edinburgh choice in the first place - good (which includes nice) service and good food.

Chris - Friday, November 25, 2005

My boyfriend and i dined at 'The Witchery' to celebrate his birthday.
The whole experience was enchanting. The atmospere was romantic and romantic, the service was excellent and the food was exquisite complimented by the extensive wine list on offer.
The evening was perfect for us and 'The Witchery' is second only to 'The Waterside' at Bray.
Overall a worldclass dining experience for all and highly recommended! Enjoy!

Claire Smith - Saturday, September 24, 2005

My husband and I dined at The Witchery last August. Yes, the atmosphere was enchanting, but no amount of magic can disguise poor produce. The rocket salad was a pale yellow and should have been tossed in the bin several days earlier.

This may sound picky to some, but I firmly believe no restaurant should ever serve an ingredient that has "expired". I certainly wouldn't serve something like that to a guest, would you?

Furthermore, when I delicately pointed this out to our otherwise charming waiter, no apologies were issued--and you guessed it, our salads magically appeared on the bill.

Otherwise, the food was fine (read: nothing special). We had a far better dining experience at Edinburgh's Tower Restaurant--which I'd say rivals London's fabulous Oxo Tower.

It's a shame the kitchen and service at The Witchery lack the attention to detail that would otherwise make it a worthwhile dining experience.

Tuesday, May 03, 2005