Forth Floor Brasserie at Harvey Nichols

While the First, Second and Third Floors at Harvey Nicks can sometimes be akin to depopulated wastelands, the escalators seem to be constantly carrying the population of Morningside up to the Fourth Floor restaurants. Whatever reservations the Edinburgh Establishment may have had about Harvey Nicks, these clearly never extended to eating here. So much so that I used to worry that the Harvey Nicks building would get top heavy and topple over. But the surveyors have obviously calculated their loadings correctly and the diners in the Forth Floor Restaurant & Brasseries are absolutely safe!

The Forth Floor Brasserie is all stainless steel and glass, whites and creams. The wonderful views over St. Andrews Square to the castle are interrupted only by a strategically sited "Jenners" sign, and If you are lucky enough to get a corner table looking down to the Forth, then I think you are getting the best views from any restaurant in Edinburgh. Yes, better than Oloroso or the Tower.

The Brasserie serves Lunch and Dinner but otherwise it is tea, coffee and hot chocolate time. When I asked what teas they had, the waiter chirpily replied "All of them!" Not strictly true, and certainly less than "Plasir du Chocolat". But by and large there is a good selection of everything.

Service is variable and has been commented on in other peoples’ reviews of Harvey Nicks. However, I have found that most of the time service by the black-suited international staff is friendly and surprisingly informal.

Edinburgh "Grande Dames" may still take coffee at archrivals Jenners but one suspects that many of their daughters and granddaughters have long since defected to Harvey Nicks. Certainly this is deep in the heart of "ladies who lunch" territory. But the girly reputation is undeserved - even Mr B likes it!

Why would I go there?   To be seen!

Any Negatives? Yes - sometimes the service is not quite what it should be.

Before or After:
1. Visit the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Queen Street– a couple of hundred metres north.
2. Shopping in the trendy clothes shops on George Street or browse the expensive ones on Multrees Walk– and perhaps even visit Jenners!

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