Explore the city’s Italian tradition and the new wave of Italian style and creativity
From high art to design and from food to film, Italian culture and talent plays an important role in the Scottish capital. In the Scottish National Gallery there’s a prime piece of Italian culture, a series of panels of the life of St Thomas, painted in 1362 by Luca di Tommè of Siena. This year, the Edinburgh International Festival features a performance of the sumptuous choral ‘Mass in 40 Parts’ by the sixteenth-century composer Alessandro Striggio, a lost piece that was only rediscovered in 2007. And to come bang up to date, if you want to buy fresh produce in Edinburgh that’s just arrived from the markets in Milan, browse for cutting-edge Italian fashion or see the latest Italian arthouse films, you can.
Once these premises housed Tinelli’s, a local legend of Italian cooking; Al Dente took over in 2008 but the tone of the venue endures. It’s a small, neighbourhood restaurant with friendly, hard-working staff and some great special offers like lunchtime deals and BYOB evenings. It can be convivial for parties or just somewhere to relax with spaghetti al frutti di mare and a glass of Cirò Bianco.
139 Easter Rd
EH7 5QA
Tel: 0131 652 1932
www.al-dente-restaurant.co.uk
Occupying a former banking hall, with the fixtures and fittings of a contemporary restaurant, this is a striking venue. Originally called Centotre at its 2004 launch, it became Contini in 2014 but with the same owners and high standards. Open from breakfast to evening, there’s accomplished antipasti, deft pizza and pasta, and some of the city’s best Modern Italian cooking. Good grappa, too.
103 George St
EH2 3ES
Tel: 0131 225 1550
www.contini.com
Sneaking up on the foodie consciousness of Edinburgh since its 2010 opening, Nonna’s Kitchen is a modern café-restaurant run by the Stornaiuolo family, whose history in the local restaurant trade dates to the late 1960s. In a setting that’s sharp but informal, it offers everything from morning coffee to dinner. The staff are welcoming, the children’s menu is decent and the cooking is accomplished; a twenty-first-century take on relaxed Italian dining.
45 Morningside Rd
EH10 4AZ
Tel: 0131 466 6767
www.nonnas-kitchen.co.uk
Fashion house Missoni made a splash when its Hotel Missoni arrived in these premises in 2009. It transformed into the G&V Royal Mile Hotel in 2014, but the design and the flagship Italian restaurant, Cucina, were retained. Meanwhile the hotel bar still resembles a set for a magazine shoot and has aperitivo evenings on Monday to Wednesday. Try the delicious Aria di Primavera: raspberry Bellini with apple and elderflower foam.
Royal Mile Hotel
1 George IV Bridge
EH1 1AD
Tel: 0131 220 6666
www.quorvuscollection.com
The Vittoria Group runs a number of successful restaurants in the city with a traditional pizza ’n’ pasta menu. In 2010 they added something different with Divino Enoteca, an atmospheric basement wine bar. There are tasty small plates and à la carte dishes and the wine list is excellent and extensive. You can sample wines by the glass or spend serious money on a bottle of top-end Barolo, Barbaresco or Brunello di Montalcino.
5 Merchant St
EH1 2QD
Tel: 0131 225 1770
www.divinoedinburgh.com
This wine bar has endured for nearly 15 years because the formula is a winner. The decor is simple, the wine list is predominantly Italian with the vast majority of bottles pegged at under £30, the food is straightforward but good – antipasti, bruschetta, pasta, salads – and the atmosphere is chilled. It remains a great choice if you want to chat with friends over a bottle or two.
19 Cockburn St
EH1 1BP
Tel: 0131 225 1441
www.eccovinoedinburgh.com
The premises offer a trio of attractions – a delicatessen, an award-winning Italian wine merchant and a caffè-bar. You can pick any wine off the shelf to have with your meal for the retail price plus £6 corkage, saving a fortune on typical restaurant mark-ups. The food quality justifies a good wine choice: Valvona & Crolla is an Edinburgh institution, dating back to 1934, with a stellar reputation for its produce.
19 Elm Row
EH7 4AA
Tel: 0131 556 6066
www.valvonacrolla.co.uk
If a boutique can be described as venerable then Corniche surely is, a must-visit venue for Edinburgh fashionistas with a history stretching back to 1976 and some eye-catching stock. In terms of innovative Italian design, recent standouts have included gorgeous garments from Masnada, for men and women, and pieces from Barbara Bologna, the Italian body art performer and sculptor who started her own label.
2 Jeffrey St
EH1 1DT
Tel: 0131 556 3707
www.corniche.org.uk
In an imposing neoclassical building, among a wealth of art treasures, Italian works of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries still manage to impress even the most casual of gallery visitors. The list of names includes Bellini, Paris Bordone, Botticelli, Raphael, Tintoretto and Titian. A visit here is an education; the Scottish capital is privileged to host such a collection of Italian artistic genius.
Scottish National Gallery
The Mound
EH2 2EL
Tel: 0131 624 6200
www.nationalgalleries.org
The city’s most glamorous department store runs almost the entire gamut of Italian fashion for men and women from A to Z, or at least A to V, from Armani Collezione to Valentino and Versace. If the shopping exhausts you, or you need a stiff drink after investing in a pair of Belle pumps by Gianvito Rossi, there are some great options for eats and drinks on the fourth floor.
30-34 St Andrew Square
EH2 2AD
Tel: 0131 524 8388
www.harveynichols.com
Born in the docks area of Leith to Italian parents, Paolozzi (1924-2005) was a major figure in twentieth-century art, one of postwar Britain’s leading sculptors. He donated a large number of his works to his home city: Modern Two in Belford Road is where to see them, from a recreation of his studio to the impressive sculpture titled ‘Vulcan’ in the gallery café.
Modern Two
Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art
73 Belford Rd
EH4 3DS
Tel: 0131 624 6200
www.nationalgalleries.org
A local music collective, the Badwills’ repertoire ranges over traditional Italian folk, taking in regional variations on the tarantella, as well as tunes from the British Isles and Ireland. They can tug at your heartstrings with tales of Pugliese woe, or make you dance like you’re trying to shake off the ill effects of a spider bite. Watch out for them at TradFest (late April into May) and the Festival Fringe (August).
For shows, see www.thebadwills.co.uk
Anchored in Edinburgh, with partnerships in London and Rome and screenings in Dundee, Glasgow and Inverness, the Italian Film Festival has been running since 1993. Over a couple of weeks, it offers the best of Italian cinema from contemporary flicks to classics; a big focus this year was the acclaimed director Francesco Rosi (1922-2015).
Main venue:
Edinburgh Filmhouse
88 Lothian Road
EH3 9BZ
Held annually in March, for details see www.italianfilmfestival.org.uk
An outpost of the cultural department of Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the institute has been in operation in Edinburgh since 1979 and primarily offers Italian language courses. In addition however, it serves as a focus for Italian culture in the Scottish capital, it’s a significant supporter of the Italian Film Festival, it hosts regular book launches, exhibitions and lectures and has a lending library of Italian books, CDs and DVDs.
82 Nicolson St
EH8 9EW
Tel: 0131 668 2232
www.iicedimburgo.esteri.it
The EIF is a rallying point for high culture, with world-class ballet, classical music, opera and theatre, so it’s no surprise that Italian artistic achievement usually features prominently. In 2015, highlights include Striggio’s ‘Mass in 40 Parts’ performed by Le Concert Spirituel, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra with ‘Recomposed: Vivaldi – The Four Seasons’, Max Richter’s remix of the baroque classic, and a more conventional version of ‘The Four Seasons’ by violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter. There’s also ‘The Marriage of Figaro’, sung in Italian, and Scottish-Italian voilinist Nicola Benedetti performs with the Oslo Symphony Orchestra.
Various venues, annually in August, for details see www.eif.co.uk
