Last Week In Edinburgh
Real time good stuff for you
Hi Friends,
I’m currently finishing up this post from my darling flat in Oban, Scotland, which is stunningly gorgeous charming, and wonderful. I can’t wait to share more with you in the next couple of weeks.
For today’s post, we are covering my very lovely experiences last week in Edinburgh and I had quite a few highlights to share.
First, though, I’m so happy it is October.
October is my favorite month of the year. For me, it is all about the final glory of the trees, blazing like a phoenix in the final throes before they go dormant to replenish themselves. It’s also foggy days, crisp mornings, the smell of wood burning in fireplaces, and the wonderful light that is so unique to late autumn.
Edinburgh and Oban are giving me all of this and more. Scotland is such a special place and there is so much to explore - autumn is pretty stunning and I feel so lucky to be here experiencing it.
Ok - moving on!
WHISKEY & FOLKLORE EXPERIENCE
One of the things I pre-planned to do on this particular visit to Edinburgh (that I didn’t get to last time) was a whiskey “experience”. There is no shortage of whiskey in Edinburgh, it being Scotland’s most famous product but not all whiskey’s are made the same. There are currently 144 distilleries in Scotland so there is a lot to learn and discover.
I went to my favorite place for discovering unique experiences, which is Airbnb, and found a very highly-rated experience that sounded right up my alley: Whiskey & Folklore. I am all about good storytelling and the description was perfect - two hours of learning about Scottish whiskey, some history, and tasting 4 whiskies with our wonderful host, Ben.
My walk from my flat in Stockbridge to the Hot Toddy (a cafe with a great name) was lovely and took me through the busy center, over Princes St. by the Scott Monument, and up close to the Royal Mile. I arrived a little early and chatted with a lovely woman from the States who was in Edinburgh for a few days before going on to St. Andrews to golf (sounds like a great visit!). I always appreciate meeting new people on these experiences - I have found it to be a highlight and made some friends I still keep in touch with as well.
We learned that Ben and his partner had started this tour business several years before with much success (not surprised) and had recently expanded to opening the Hot Toddy and converting the basement to the experience space. The space is truly lovely and comfortable and just perfect for cozying in and sipping incredible whiskies and listening to a (my words) master storyteller. Ben was just delightful and shared lots of great historical information, current information (like whiskey taxes - yikes), grand folklore about Robert Burns, poet, failed farmer, and gauger ( a man celebrated widely in Edinburgh on ‘Burns Night’ which I was here for in the winter). The group I tasted with had about 16 people, which I thought was a perfect size for a Monday afternoon. Very enthusiastic and many excellent questions led to a lively and fun tasting.
DISHOOM
I planned my experience with the intent of going to my first dinner of this trip at Dishoom. I have written about Dishoom in other posts - it is one of my very favorite restaurants in the world.
Dishoom pays homage to the Irani cafè and all the food of Bombay. It is a magical place where I could eat (and have) breakfast, lunch, and dinner multiple times a week. The staff in every location (only in the UK - they have several locations in London, one in Birmingham and one in Edinburgh) are so wonderful and happy and the FOOD. It is to DIE FOR.
Dishoom is always busy. Maybe breakfast can be less busy depending on location/day but it is always busy for dinner. There was already a queue when I rolled up at 5:45 p.m. but I was able to grab a spot at the bar for a gimlet (their gimlet is also insane - I don’t even drink gimlets unless it is at Dishoom).
Once I sat, I quickly ordered all my favorites: lamb samosas - garlic naan bread - black daal, and rice. The menu is vast and I’ve had many other dishes and all are just wonderful.
I highly recommend Dishoom if you are traveling to London, Birmingham or Edinburgh. You can’t go wrong with ordering but I do also recommend trying their Chai (it is magic - I know I keep saying that but it is true!) and go for the bacon egg naan for breakfast. These items are musts.
LISA LEE ACUPUNCTURE & THROAT PUNCH COFFEE
I listen to my intuition a lot these days. Especially in these last years. It was my intuition that was urging me (screaming in a good way) to go to Italy in the Autumn of 2021. It was my intuition telling me to put my stuff in storage and explore different ways (and places) to live.
Last winter, when I was able to make Edinburgh happen for the first time when I secured my apartment and had my plane ticket, I started hearing a voice telling me to look for an acupuncturist. Now, I’ve done acupuncture before and have had some good, okay, and really terrible experiences. I had been suffering from a few ailments that were eluding help and I thought of acupuncture. When I was exploring Edinburgh’s wellness scene via the internet I landed on Lisa Lee Acupuncture. Something inside me was calling out a firm YES. I booked my appointment for my first week there.
Well, let me tell you I have never had acupuncture so wonderful and healing and impactful as working with Lisa. She is a true healer. I saw her every week I was in Edinburgh and experienced some wonderful breakthroughs and healing.
After securing my apartment for this trip I immediately booked an appointment with Lisa and I was so delighted to see her. She is fantastic. I highly recommend reaching out to her if you are called to explore healing through acupuncture. She has a lovely office in the West End of Edinburgh, which is about a 30-minute walk from my place in Stockbridge, and one filled with wonderful spots for coffee food and books, and more.
After my initial appointment, when I was suffering from some serious sleeping issues (as in not sleeping) and a racing brain, which Lisa treated me for (and I slept really well, by the way) we were talking about some other non-pill related things to help with sleep and she recommended an Asian fruit, Chinese jujube, to help. Lisa directed me to some Asian markets not too far away from her office, further up than I had ever been in that neighborhood. I headed out and found the markets and also found:
THROAT PUNCH COFFEE
First off, what a great name right?
And the storefront just calls for you to come right in, no?
As a rule, I don’t have coffee before acupuncture and therefore was SO READY for some and was delighted to find that staff and the coffee at Throat Punch to be EXCELLENT.
Edinburgh has a love for medium roast coffees. I find that most coffee shops are using medium roast coffees, which tend to have much higher acidity than dark roast coffees. I have a hard time digesting medium-roast coffee as it’s hard on my stomach so I am always inquiring about what is on for espresso. Throat Punch had a very nice darker roast coffee and they made me a delicious latte. I think I would be there every day if it wasn’t a 40-minute walk one way from my place. But it is my go-to now after acupuncture - perfect mornings!
THURSDAY WINE NIGHT AT GOOD BROTHERS
Popping some cool bottles and putting them by the glass - love this.
When I was chatting with Graeme on my first visit he told me about Thursday Nights at Good Brothers. On Thursday nights, starting at 5 p.m., the team will pick some “cool wines” which can include old vintages and pricey bottles and just pop them and put them on the glass list “until they are gone”. This is so fun and really expands people’s knowledge of wines they might not ordinarily get to taste. Last Thursday I was working on a project and hit send on it and looked at the clock to see it was 5:15 p.m. so I decided to pop out and see what was on at Good Brothers.
Fully packed at 5:30! I was able to grab a corner spot to chat with Graeme, who warmly welcomed me and got me a glass of bubbles (some Champagne that was quite delightful). I spent some time chatting, learning about the wines they had opened that night (always different each week), and people-watching before heading back home for dinner. When I left, there were folks on the stairs and a full room - a great, great vibe.
TOPPING & COMPANY BOOKSELLERS
I am all about bookshops. ALL ABOUT THEM. I actually wrote a whole entry here about my favorite bookshops around the world that you can see here.
I really experience a sense of community when I’m at a good bookshop. Sometimes I end up chatting away with a bookseller on many topics, including favorite books or places in the city. I feel like if you’re traveling alone and feel of need of company, go to a bookshop and just get lost in the stacks.
Edinburgh has many lovely bookshops. I am still working on to getting to the bulk of them. I went to Topping Book Sellers on Saturday as one of the other guests at my whiskey tasting was an NYT best-selling author who was here for a stop on her book tour and doing an event at Topping. I wasn’t able to go to her event as it had long sold out but our conversation did remind me to put Topping at the top of my list, if you will.
I went on a Saturday and really enjoyed exploring their multi-level floor of books. I’m really into reading scripts right now - like the original ‘Succession’ scripts are amazing so I was looking in the film section and they also have the full scripts for ‘Fleabag’ both seasons! On my list now.
An hour quickly sped by and I decided I needed some fresh air and a walk. So, it was fortuitous that I was right around the corner from….
CALTON HILL
A hill in central Edinburgh overlooking the east end of Princes Street and included in the city’s World Heritage UNESCO designation, has some of the most stunning views in Edinburgh. Also, a home to iconic Scottish monuments and buildings.
I was astonished to be able to see part of the Forth Bridge from my climb to the top but I think my favorite view is of Arthur’s Seat - the main peak of a group of hills in Edinburgh and an ancient volcano. Truly stunning.
I would recommend bringing a book, a blanket and a picnic on a nice day and just spending time here. That’s what I saw a lot of people doing last Saturday. I was a bit jealous I hadn’t thought of it.
SPRY WINES & ANTE COFFEE
Right across from Topping Book Cellars are two of my favorite places: Spry Wine Bar and Ante Coffee - you can’t go wrong at either and I highly recommend both. Spry has an absolutely magic chef and menu and a stellar natural wine selection. Ante Coffee has a very inspired menu and I had a delicious dish of salmon rillettes on a crispy muffin when I was there recently. They also make their own bread which might be my favorite in the city.
Spry Wines - Ante Coffee and Topping & Company are also right around the corner to the start of the ascent to Calton Hill.
That wraps up last week in Edinburgh - so many good places, people, food, wine, coffee, whisky, and gorgeous nature. Oh my!
Are you heading to Scotland soon? Have questions? If I don’t know the answers I’m pretty sure I can find someone who does…hit me up. I love questions and comments.
Thanks, so much, for reading. I so appreciate you! See you soon.