Locanda De Gusti

I celebrated my 60th birthday with close family and friends at Locanda De Gusti, in Dalry Road, Edinburgh, on 29 December and had an exceptionally good experience. The early stages of preparation were dealt with by email and the communication was very good. Owner and chef Rosario was very understanding about the fact that two of my guests might not make it due to old age and illness and said we could just let him know earlier the same day. We also had a meeting over coffee to discuss the menu. I made an addition to my red meat selection on the day itself, and there was no fuss or difficulty. The restaurant itself is very atmospheric and busy. The staff were lovely, warm, welcoming and attentive. The food was exceptional. We had a tasting menu that saw us share a selection of hot and cold starters, meat, fish and vegetarian, then a slection of pasta dishes to share from three platters, all were superb, then sharing platters of sea bass, lean lamb chops from racks of lamb and slices of rib eye, cooked to perfection, with a selection of vegetables as well. I didn't want the fuss of a birthday cake so we had a small selection of desserts, but the staff put a candle in and sang 'happy birthday' anyway. We were welcomed with a very nice prosecco, and we moved on to Aglianico and Greco di Tufo, both from Campania, where Rosario and my own family hail from. It was a fantastic experience. At the end, the leftovers, including most of a bottle of Greco, were packaged up and brought to the table for us. I didn't realise until we were on our way home that they had also included a full bottle of Greco, my favourite wine from Campania, as a gift. I can't recommend this restaurant highly enough. The price was extremely reasonable for the quality of the food and wine we had, as well as the service, so it's not just a restaurant for special occasions, though it fits that mould very easily. Comfortably the best Italian restaurant I have experienced in Edinburgh.