Black Medicine
Coffee Company
(2
Nicolson Street;
108
Marchmont Road;
10
Barclay Terrace;
blackmed.co.uk)
"
A little local chain.
They do a nice, strong
coffee and usually
have really good
music playing."
Surgeons' Hall
Museums
(
Nicolson Street;
museum.rcsed.ac.uk,
tel: +44 (0)131 527 1649)
"
There’s everything
here from early
dentistry tools to death
masks. It's great if you
like your museums on
the dark side."
Elvis Shakespeare
(347
Leith Walk;
elvisshakespeare.com,
+44 (0)131 561 1363)
"
Mainly second-hand
comics, DVDs, books,
CDs, LPs and singles.
It does occasional little
gigs with a band or a
singer/songwriter. It's
just very quirky."
Bow Bar
(80
West Bow;
tel: +44 (0)131 226 7667)
"
A huge range of real
ales, and no bells and
whistles. Just a great
place to sit down and
have a drink."
The Last Drop
(74-78
Grassmarket;
tel: +44 (0)131 225 4851)
"
It‘s named the Last
Drop because it's in
spitting distance of
where they used to
hang people. They do
food and a really nice
range of whiskeys
and beers."
The Blue Blazer
(2
Spittal Street;
tel: +44 (0)131 229 5030)
"
An authentic
Edinburgh bar, with a
real mix of people, but
not many tourists. It‘s
got a tiny back room
where really interesting
conversations go on."
CentoTre
(103
George Street;
centotre.com,
tel: +44 (0)131 225 1550 )
"
Go to this lovely
Italian restaurant in
a converted bank
for coffee and cake,
a cocktail, lunch or
dinner – it‘s very
flexible – and the
buffalo mozzarella is
the best I've tasted."
Calton Hill
(
End of Princes Street)
"
From here you get a
lovely, free, 360° view
of Edinburgh, and the
surrounding hills and
extinct volcanos, so you
can get your bearings."
Arthur‘s Seat
(
Holyrood Palace)
"
An extinct volcano in
the middle of the city.
You can go round to
bits where you‘d think
you‘re in the middle
of the Highlands – all
you see is wilderness.
I’ve used it quite a few
times in my books for
bodies being found
and chase scenes – it's
very evocative."
National Museum
of Scotland
(
Chambers Street;
nms.ac.uk,
tel: +44 (0)300 123 6789
)
"
It's free, it's just had
a makeover and, if it's
raining and you‘ve got
kids, it's an absolutely
fantastic place to go.”
Scottish National
Gallery
(
The Mound;
nationalgalleries.org,
tel: +44 (0)131 624 6200
)
"
Another free one and it
has a terrific collection,
especially the
19
th-century French
stuff tucked away
upstairs where nobody
ever goes."
Edinburgh Zoo
(
134
Corstophine Road;
edinburghzoo.org.uk,
tel: +44 (0)131 334 9171
)
"
There are two pandas
who are a big draw. You
have to book tickets.
They‘re desperate
for the female to get
pregnant, but it hasn’t
happened yet."
B L A C K
B O O K
Ian Rankin's
Edinburgh
PHOTO COURTESY OF EDINBURGH WORLD HERITAGE (EWHT.ORG.UK)
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R E G U L A R S
