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Searching for the best Christmas dinner in Edinburgh options for Xmas Day lunch or a festive day out? This delicious guide details Christmas menus at popular and local restaurants in Edinburgh’s City Centre and suburbs which includes 5 star dining and casual pub settings. It is advised to book as soon as you decide to dine out in December, Christmas Day (25th December) reservations tend to be be fully booked by mid-October.
You may also like: Festive things to in Edinburgh this winter, the most Christmassy hotels, where to see the best Xmas lights and decor.
Best Christmas Dinner in Edinburgh City Centre
The Balmoral Christmas Dinner To Impress
Let’s start big here.
The Balmoral (1 Prince Street) is one of the most iconic hotels in Edinburgh.
With its clock tower lit up in festive shades, the Balmoral is hard to miss.
Inside this luxury hotel, your senses are positively assaulted by everything that Christmas in Scotland can offer.
There are three restaurants to choose from, including the Michelin starred Number One.
You will be spoiled for choice choosing what delicacies you can eat, and paired wines set the whole meal off.
It isn’t a cheap option at around £60 per person for festive afternoon tea or around £190 per person for Christmas dinner.
Why not team up an afternoon tea or festive lunch with an overnight stay?
Relax in a suite with Edinburgh Castle views, spend time at the spa and work your way through the whisky in the SCOTCH Whisky Bar.
The Balmoral also features in our most romantic hotels in Edinburgh guide.
We stayed in room 314. Check out our Balmoral review.
Twenty Princes Street For Christmas Dinner With A View
Just across the road from The Balmoral is Twenty Princes Street.
This modern restaurant offers you a comfortable yet boutique feel dining experience.
The walls are covered in photographs of old Edinburgh.
From the windows, you can see right across Edinburgh city centre to the Royal Mile, with Edinburgh’s Christmas Market in full flung.
This dining option is less likely to break the bank at around £100 per person for dinner.
The restaurant bar, Juniper, also comes highly recommended.
Howies For Seasonal Scottish Christmas Food
With three restaurants in this group, Howies offers you the perfect setting for everyone.
Their flagship eatery is set under Calton Hill.
The Georgian Hall it is situated in was built to celebrate the Battle of Waterloo.
Another of the restaurants is on the iconic Victoria Street.
Full of colorful buildings and independent boutique shops, you will enjoy the walk here from the Royal Mile.
Above Howies Victoria is Scotts Kitchen.
This restaurant is set on the traffic-free part of Victoria street and offers you views over the Grassmarket.
Putting Scottish produce at its heart, you will enjoy a Christmas lunch for around £33 per person, however, the group of restaurants are not open on Christmas Day this year.
The sticky toffee pudding and banoffee is legendary.
Howies also features in our most romantic restaurants guide so if you don’t book here for Xmas, consider it for Valentine’s Day.
Le Monde For a Stylish Christmas Dinner Setting
Moving up to George Street, Le Monde (16 George Street) is right beside The Dome.
The Christmas lights on this street, rival anywhere in the world!
Le Monde is seriously smart and modern.
Sumptuous blue velvet seats adorn the upper floor where there are nooks and crannies to get up close and personal with that special someone.
If it’s cocktails you are after, Le Monde’s mixologists are some of the best in the capital.
Christmas Day lunch is around £35 per person.
The Dome – The Place to Dine At This Christmas
Christmas is not Christmas in Edinburgh until you have visited The Dome (14 George Street).
The Christmas lights set the standard for the city.
People come from all over Scotland to be photographed on the steps of this landmark building on George Street.
While The Dome doesn’t offer Christmas day lunch, it does offer festive dining and is a must for those who enjoy restaurant bagging.
If you think the outside is spectacular, wait until you go through those revolving doors.
The walkthrough to the main bar is twinkly and sparkly, but when you enter through those doors, the tree takes your breath away.
The hype is real and you will want to return again and again.
The festive menu is around £47 per person.
You won’t be surprised to read that The Dome is one of the best places for decor and lights in Edinburgh.
Angel’s Share For Whisky Fans Dining Out For Christmas
Over by Charlotte Square on Hope Street, is Angel’s Share.
The Georgian facade gives nothing away about the contemporary interior.
You will find modern Scotland showcased in this hotel/restaurant with not a tartan carpet in sight!
Celebrating famous Scots in their bedrooms, this hotel has got glam-Scotland done right.
The food also showcases Scottish produce and the Christmas day lunch is no exception.
The cocktails also come recommended and of course, true to its name, Angel’s Share has a lot whisky to choose from.
Prices are around £35 per person.
Old Town Christmas Dinner
Moving up to the Royal Mile, or The Old Town, there are plenty of places to choose from here that allow you to have that relaxing Christmas Day.
Edinburgh Castle For Pre-Christmas Lunch
While Edinburgh Castle doesn’t offer a Christmas dinner option on Christmas Day, we know this is a popular festive foodie bucket list so we wanted to include a general overview of why guests love it.
It’s time to indulge your inner Queen/King and dine in the glorious Queen Anne Room at Edinburgh Castle for Christmas.
Situated at the top of the Castle, this room is opulent and if you listen closely, you can hear the ghosts of Christmases past enjoying their time as well.
The Castle itself offers you uninterrupted views across the Lothians and Fife and is truly magical in that twilight time before darkness fully descends upon the city.
The festive fayre on offer gives you the best of Scottish produce and is only around £60 per person to enjoy.
Bread Street Brasserie at DoubleTree By Hilton
This historic building houses a contemporary hotel that is only ten minutes from Princes Street.
With views towards the Castle and easy access to the Grassmarket and theatres, this hotel has it all.
Christmas Day lunch is no exception.
The Bread Street Brasserie offers you a six-course feast with all the trimmings.
The restaurant itself is modern and set on the ground floor of the hotel and is elegant and stylish.
From around £95 per person, it gives you a good option for Christmas Day lunch.
Other Areas Near Edinburgh City Centre
Sheep’s Heid – A Big Hit With Locals
An unlikely place to find one of Edinburgh’s hidden gems.
Located at 43-45 The Causeway, this olde world pub hides a modern and cozy interior.
With greens and golds, leather, and oak, the decor is not stuffy or ancient, but upbeat and contemporary.
You can even have a game of bowling!
The Christmas Day menu showcases the best of the fayre.
From £45 per person, this is a great way to spend the festive day.
Carberry Tower Mansion House and Estate
Now, if spending Christmas in a castle is on your bucket list, then Carberry Tower (Carberry Tower Mansion House, Carberry Tower Estate, Musselburgh) is for you.
Set in over 40 acres of gardens, this private estate is full of history.
Constructed in the late 1400s, you can indulge your inner history geek with a wander around this fabulous building and gardens.
Christmas dinner is served in the castle and you will feel like royalty.
From £124 per person, you will enjoy canapés, a four-course meal, followed by coffee and petit fours.
Carberry Tower also features in our Santa grottos in Edinburgh guide.
Prestonfield House For 5 Star Luxury Christmas Dinner
For the ultimate in luxury, Prestonfield House (Priestfield Road) has to be the one to book.
Set in the center of Edinburgh under Arthur’s Seat, you find this secret gem.
As you enter the long drive, you can see highland cows and peacocks wandering the area. The hotel itself is painted white and at Christmas is a festive treat to behold.
Parts of the house date from the 1150s and as it has passed from owner to owner, the building has grown to what you see today.
On Christmas day, you enjoy a welcome drink in the Whisky Room by the roaring fire then a wonderful 3 course lunch.
After, you can walk off the calories by wandering the 20 or so acres of grounds.
Prices are around £145 per person this has to be the best Christmas dinner in Edinburgh.
Christmas Dinner Edinburgh All Wrapped Up
There is an abundance of restaurants and hotels that offer you a Christmas dinner experience that you will not forget.
These are just a few of the places you can book and enjoy someone else doing the cooking and washing up!
Let us know where you go or where you book for next Christmas in the comments below.
We love to hear your experiences.