Olive Branch Bistro - Broughton

This delightful and informal bistro is located at the corner of Broughton Street and Broughton Place. With its large windows and relaxed atmosphere it is the ideal place to sit and watch Edinburgh go by.

Olive Branch Company owners, husband and wife team, Stuart and Kerry, have set up the Olive Branch Bistro to present a new element to eating out in Edinburgh, bringing into play Stuart's experience gained at some of Edinburgh's top restaurants, such as Witchery, Tower and Zinc.

You could catch up with friends after work over their Mediterranean influenced menus, possibly set up a romantic tête-à-tête with that special someone helped by a bottle from the cellar, perhaps linger over the Sunday papers for brunch or drop in to top up your batteries when out for a spot of retail therapy. Whatever the occasion the atmosphere is warm and welcoming, the food composed from local produce that guarantees freshness and quality.

The days start at 10am with breakfast until 11.45am, none of the big spreads that seem an inevitable part of the meal, but a series of more modest dishes leaving room for some combinations for the mega-hungry.

Lunch kicks in at 11.45am with some particularly attractive dishes, some more often seen as main courses, and served with a generosity that would suggest they are. So keep a lookout for grilled sardines with green salad and saffron mayo, or broad bean and pancetta bruschetta, or maybe the chicken and chorizo skewers with yellow pepper relish.

A sturdy soup of the day to help combat a soggy Edinburgh soaker with the wind coming straight off the North Sea can be a real life saver, but for less arduous conditions take a look at the antipasti vegetarian platter with bread, marinated olives and other reminders of the Mediterranean.

Beer battered Coley fillet with pea puree, homemade tartare sauce and chips present a never failing reminder of our country's staple dish, whilst even nearer home Crombies of Edinburgh sausages are placed on a bed of roast butternut squash mash and jus.

For more informal eating there is the OB Club sandwich, free range chicken, bacon, tomato, lettuce and mayo, or 5oz ribeye steak with moon blushed tomatoes and mustard. Add a mug of soup to your sandwich for a further £1 - what a bargain!

Puddings carry on the same robust pattern, and the Olive Branch flourless chocolate cake with cherry compote and crème fraîche will sit comfortably with virtually anything from the previous courses. A classic crème brûlée recalls the auld alliance which is about the nearest you'll get in this friendly restaurant for all sorts and conditions of people.

Their Website should be consulted for menu changes and details of their restaurant siblings in other parts of Edinburgh.