Best Sunday Roast Edinburgh

Stockbridge is exactly the kind of neighbourhood where a proper Sunday roast feels completely natural – all independent delis, dog walkers and Victorian stonework. The Stockbridge Tap does a reliably good beef topside with proper gravy, crispy roasties and Yorkshire puddings that have clearly been taken seriously. Book ahead because the locals have figured this one out already.

Drive or bus out to Cramond village on the edge of the city and you get the bonus of a walk along the Cramond foreshore before your roast. The inn is old-fashioned in the best possible sense – low ceilings, real ale, and a roast that feels earned after you have had the wind off the Firth of Forth in your face for an hour.

The Sheep Heid claims to be the oldest pub in Scotland and while that claim involves some pub-historical footnotes, what is not in doubt is that sitting in the garden here on a rare sunny Edinburgh Sunday with a plate of roast lamb is one of the better experiences this city offers. Duddingston village sits at the foot of Arthur’s Seat, which means you can earn your lunch first.

If you want Sunday roast elevated to something properly special, Timberyard on Lady Lawson Street does a Sunday lunch that uses Scottish produce with real care – aged beef, heritage vegetables, excellent bread. It costs what a good restaurant costs in Edinburgh, which is to say it is not cheap, but it is worth it.

Tucked down a close just off the Royal Mile, the Jolly Judge is a low-ceilinged, painted-beam pub that somehow always feels like it has been there forever – because it has. Sunday lunch here is honest and well-priced, and the atmosphere alone is worth the trip.

Edinburgh rewards those who get out of the city centre for a Sunday roast. Stockbridge, Duddingston, Cramond and Leith all have neighbourhood pubs that do the job well. Book anywhere in advance from October to March – this city hibernates indoors when it gets cold, which is most of the year.