Condé Naste Traveler Feature 2023
The Harajuku Kitchen Bistro was included in Condé Naste Traveler magazine “The Best Restaurants In Edinburgh” edit in April 2023
Condé Naste Traveler: The best restaurants in Edinburgh
The Scottish capital has developed into a genuine foodie destination, as demonstrated by our edit of the best restaurants in Edinburgh.
BY CAROLINE EDEN, OLIVIA MORELLI, ARUSA QURESHI AND AMBER PORT 27 April 2023
HARAJUKU KITCHEN
Best for: sushi and bowls
Even a short stroll around Edinburgh’s cobblestones teaches us that the Scottish capital is spoilt with modern Scots restaurants. Not so when it comes to other national cuisines. One fish out of water, though, is this Japanese restaurant, the brainchild of chef-owner Kaori Simpson, who leans heavily on her upbringing in the Fukuoka region. There are few other reference points for such authentic Japanese food in the city, so it’s easy to go all-out and sample a bit of everything, from mentsuyu (noodle soup with kelp dashi stock) to chirashi don (a speciality sushi rice bowl) to dinky takoyaki (octopus dough balls with katsu-mayo). If you can, bring a few pals. This is an education in chilli, garlic, umami, and smoky barbecue, all underwritten by tatami screens and balloon-shaped lampshades that whisk you off to Nagasaki, not nearby Newington.
