The best Italian restaurants in Edinburgh

The name says it all. L’artigiano translates as “the artisan,” and this Fountainbridge restaurant — founded by Italians united in their shared pride for Italian culinary heritage — takes the brief seriously. Just west of Edinburgh’s city centre, the kitchen draws on traditional Italian recipes while threading in contemporary ideas: a food philosophy rooted in simple, wholesome cooking, fresh-quality ingredients and herbs that are chosen to work together rather than compete. The full à la carte runs alongside a lunch menu, a dessert selection and a kids menu, with takeaway and delivery options extending the offer beyond the dining room. A warm, welcoming environment and attentive service have earned L’artigiano the kind of word-of-mouth reputation that keeps tables filled throughout the week. Look no further than L’artigiano for honest, well-crafted Italian food on the west side of the city.

Near the Edinburgh Playhouse on Antigua Street, Mamma Roma is emphatically a family affair. Owner Mennato runs three distinct spaces across the restaurant: a theatre-themed upstairs dining room adorned with paintings inspired by Italy’s most celebrated actors, opera singers and classic films; a Venice-inspired dining area next door with marble tables and canal-city décor overseen by his wife Florinda; and a downstairs whisky and wine room where son Giovanni attends to every request from a wide-ranging selection. Daughter Michaela completes the family team upstairs, lending the whole operation a personal warmth that only restaurants built and run by a single family tend to carry. The combination of an Italian menu, a thoughtfully curated whisky list and three atmospherically different dining spaces — each with its own character — makes Mamma Roma one of Edinburgh’s most distinctive Italian restaurants. 

Two styles of pizza under one roof — that is Pomo’s proposition, and it works. The Morrison Street pizzeria, open since 2019, produces both Roman and Neapolitan pizza: Roman comes thin and crispy; Neapolitan soft, with a puffed edge pulled from a wood-fired oven shipped in from Modena. The kitchen team is Italian, the pasta is made by hand, and over 100 dishes cover the breadth of Italian cooking without overcomplicating what is ultimately a format built for repeat visits. Gluten-free and vegan options are treated as full menu items rather than afterthoughts. With a 150-seat capacity, Pomo handles families, couples, long group dinners and quick solo midweek visits with equal ease — the room stays lively, the service stays relaxed, and the house red is always on somebody’s table. For some of the best pizza in Edinburgh, book at Pomo Pizzeria ASAP.

A five-minute walk from Haymarket station, Pizzeria 1926 holds a distinction no other Scottish restaurant can claim: it is the only pizzeria in Scotland to carry membership of the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, the body that certifies true Neapolitan pizza-making. Since 2016, the kitchen has kept things resolutely simple — highest-quality ingredients, properly developed dough, and the techniques that produce the pillowy, chewy crust Naples is known for. The menu stays focused: this is a restaurant that knows what it does and does it without distraction. For those in search of the most credentialed Neapolitan pizza in Edinburgh, the case is straightforward.

Edinburgh’s first cicchetti bar arrived on Melville Place, and it set a standard the West End Italian food scene has been measuring itself against ever since. Inspired by Venice’s bacaro tradition — snacks and drinks, served together, in the true Italian fashion — WestRoom offers small, fresh plates built for sharing: broad bean, mint and ricotta; Prosciutto San Daniele with fig and honey; zucchini fries; panna cotta with Scottish strawberries. A breakfast and brunch menu extends the offer from 9 am on Saturdays and 10 am on Sundays, making WestRoom one of the most versatile Italian venues in the city. WestRoom awaits.

Family-founded in November 2013, Mia Italian Kitchen on Dalry Road has spent over a decade earning its place as one of the most dependable Italian kitchens in the Haymarket neighbourhood. The concept is straightforward: fresh, quality Italian ingredients in a cosy, rustic environment, alongside a carefully selected wine list for those who want something beyond the house pour. The kitchen covers the Italian spectrum from bruschetta and parmigiana to ravioli ai funghi and pizza quattro formaggi, with fresh-cut pepper and parmigiano Reggiano added tableside. A second branch on Morningside Road brings the same offer to Edinburgh’s south side, with Dalry described as more buzzing and vibrant and Morningside calibrated for a slower pace of locals and families. 

The bacari of Venice — small bars serving cicchetti alongside wine or spritz, designed for sharing and conversation — inspired Social by Matto, and the Shandwick Place restaurant has stayed close to that brief. Venetian cicchetti, Neapolitan pizza and small plates sit alongside craft cocktails in a space that is lively from the moment the doors open, combining Italian flavours with what the team describes as Scottish warmth. The resulting atmosphere makes the whole experience feel local and considered rather than imported. Catering and delivery extend the offer to private events and celebrations of any size. For sharing plates, cicchetti and cocktails in Edinburgh’s West End, Social by Matto is a must-visit.

Six miles south of Edinburgh’s city centre, in the village of Lasswade, Luci’s Restaurant & Cocktail Bar has built a reputation that draws diners comfortably beyond its immediate postcode. Locally sourced ingredients, classic cocktails and a menu that balances Italian staples with crowd-pleasing signatures — including a steak pizza that has earned its own following — make it a compelling destination outside the city’s busier dining corridors. Breakfast runs in the morning, making Luci’s one of the few Italian restaurants in the wider Edinburgh area to offer a proper morning service. A midweek pizza deal keeps the value proposition strong throughout the week, and a Sunday afternoon atmosphere that encourages guests to settle in and stay makes it particularly well-suited to a longer, leisurely visit with family or friends. 

At 90 Haymarket Terrace, Amalfino brings the Amalfi Coast to the Scottish capital with a focused, produce-led brief. The kitchen at this Four Points Edinburgh hotel restaurant works directly with some of the city’s top food and drink suppliers, combining Scotland’s finest ingredients with the traditions of southern Italian coastal cooking: fresh seafood, hand-crafted pastas and dishes that carry the warmth and colour associated with the Amalfi region. Private dining — with a bespoke menu crafted in collaboration with the kitchen — makes it a strong option for celebrations and intimate events, while the Amalfino afternoon tea offers a distinctly Italian-Scottish take on a British classic. A private space, a kitchen committed to local sourcing, and Amalfi Coast flavours in the heart of Edinburgh’s west end — Amalfino awaits.