La Favorita
325-331 Leith WalkEH6 8SA
0131 554 2430
Edinburgh's Best since: February 9th 2008
Outstanding Challenges
Papilio by Michelle Kasprzak
158 Bruntsfield Place Hands down: highest quality ingredients, best value for money, best service. I have ordered dishes similar to their "tagliatelle marinara" all over town, and each time I try this somewhere else, end up saying "Why didn't I go to Papilio?" I've never had a bad meal there, and have taken a wide range of people (partner, family, and visiting friends) -- everyone loves it.
Outstanding since:March 10th 2008La Partenope by Steve Piercy
La Partenope, Dalry Road (opposite first coast), Edinburgh. Where most Italian restaurants go for gallons of cream and clove upon clove of garlic... La Partenope just serves decent, simple food and lets the flavour of the ingredients speak for themselves. It's been a while since I was in, but last time I had perfectly cooked tuna served with just a simple dressing of tomato and fresh herbs. No cream in sight, but a delicious dish. It expanded a couple of years ago, and now has a much bigger floorspace (getting a booking at the weekend used to be a nightmare - it's a little easier now).
Outstanding since:March 22nd 2008