Name: Vinette
Address: 36 Broughton Street, Edinburgh, Lothians, EH1 3SB, Edinburgh, GB
Telephone: 0131 259 0974

The story

Vinette Edinburgh: Modern French Bistro with Scottish Ingredients

The kitchen and concept

Vinette brings French cooking to Edinburgh with a focus on straightforward bistro classics refined through local ingredients. Chef Stuart Ralston transformed the former home of Scott Smith’s Fhior into a streamlined French bistro. He stripped the architecture back to bare putty walls and simple wooden furniture, creating a quiet backdrop that lets the menu take center stage. His approach blends Parisian tradition with Highland produce, earning the establishment a Good Food Guide recognition for 2026.

Signature plates

The menu opens with a Highland twist on classic tartare, swapping beef for venison paired with beetroot and cranberry. Chicken liver and foie gras arrive as a smooth parfait crowned with sticky fig and crisp toast. Main courses lean into hearty richness, featuring pork collar cooked with cider-braised onions alongside tender monkfish and mussels. A cast iron cocotte of creamy potato tartiflette and a dense burnt Basque cheesecake finish the service.

Space and pour

The dining room stays deliberately sparse so attention remains on the food and conversation. Below street level, the basement bar called Vivien shifts the mood entirely. Named after a nineteenth century poet, the neon lit space glows in a rosy hue and operates like a late night drinking den. The cellar holds a lengthy French focused wine list that occasionally branches into orange varieties, with plenty of options available by the glass.

Recognition

Awards & accolades

2026

The Good Food Guide

Good

Details

At a glance

The Good Food Guide 2026 — Good

Cuisines French

History

On the record

2026

The Good Food Guide — Good

Stuart Ralston’s Vinette, his take on the French bistro, was, until summer 2025, home to Scott Smith’s much-lauded establishment Fhior. Now, with a pared-back design, bare putty-coloured walls, wooden floors and simple wood furniture, the clean and uncluttered look is more neo-Nordic-monastic than Moulin Rouge – it’s down to the menu to carry the Parisian theme. To start, the classic tartare has been given a Highland makeover, swapping beef for venison and teaming with beetroot and cranberry – it’s light, bright, delicate and fruity – while a silkily smooth chicken liver and foie gras parfait topped with sticky fig and triangles of toast is simply delicious. Then flavoursome cuts such as pork collar with cider-braised onion and mustard ooze hearty richness, while a dish of monkfish, mussels and purslane is tender and fragrant. They were teamed with simple sides of fries and green salad but upstaged by a creamy potato and celeriac tartiflette, topped with lardons and served in a small black, cast-iron cocotte – dish-scrapingly good. For dessert the dense and creamy burnt Basque cheesecake with vibrant plum compôte hits the spot. The wine list is lengthy, French-focused but with a smattering of orange wines and there’s good choice by the glass. In the basement, there’s tiny neon-lit, Vivien, a Parisian-inspired bar. Named after Renée Vivien, a 19th-century lesbian poet and designed to evoke a speakeasy decadence, it’s bathed in a rosy glow and feels every inch the late-night drinking den.

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Established

Location

Find us

36 Broughton Street, Edinburgh, Lothians, EH1 3SB
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
0131 259 0974
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