Restaurant in Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Scottish seafood, Asian technique, fair price.
Dulse is Edinburgh's clearest case for Michelin-recognised seafood at a mid-range price. Dean Banks runs Scottish fish and shellfish through Asian technique — think tamarind-glazed monkfish and Arbroath smokie spring rolls — earning a 2025 Michelin Plate and a 4.5 Google rating. Easy to book, two-floor format (wine bar downstairs, restaurant up), and genuinely better value than any comparable Edinburgh alternative.
Getting a table at Dulse is easier than you might expect for a Michelin Plate-recognised seafood restaurant in Edinburgh's West End. Booking difficulty is low, which makes it one of the more accessible quality seafood options in the city — but don't read that as a signal to be casual about planning your visit. The two-floor format (ground-floor wine bar, upstairs restaurant) means your experience depends on how you use the space, and timing your visit correctly pays off.
If you're returning to Dulse after a first visit, the move is to arrive early and spend proper time at the ground-floor bar before heading upstairs. The wine list runs international and is worth exploring — not a perfunctory bar menu but a genuine list with range. The aromas from the kitchen reach the bar area as service progresses, and if the kitchen is running Arbroath smokie dishes, you'll know it. That smoky, oceanic warmth is a useful preview of what's upstairs.
Chef Dean Banks has built the menu around Scottish fish and shellfish, with Asian technique running as a consistent thread rather than a gimmick. Dishes like the Arbroath smokie spring roll and tamarind-glazed monkfish are grounded in Scottish produce but cooked with a wider technical vocabulary. The Michelin Guide's 2025 Plate recognition calls out the quality of the produce, and that read is accurate , the sourcing is doing real work here, not just the seasoning.
At ££ pricing, Dulse sits in a different tier from almost every other restaurant on this page's comparison list. That gap is worth saying plainly: you are getting Michelin-recognised seafood cookery at a price point that significantly undercuts Martin Wishart, The Kitchin, Timberyard, AVERY, and Condita. For diners who want the quality signal without the occasion-restaurant spend, Dulse is the clearest answer in Edinburgh's current seafood category.
The ground-floor bar format makes Dulse a strong weekend option if you treat the visit as a two-act experience: drinks and small plates downstairs, then the full menu upstairs. Edinburgh's West End is busier on Fridays and Saturdays, but the low booking difficulty means you're not fighting for a table the way you would at comparable-tier restaurants elsewhere in the city. If you're visiting Edinburgh in autumn or winter, the Scottish shellfish and smoked fish preparations on the menu feel especially well-suited to the season , cold-weather eating is where the kitchen's flavour profile lands with the most impact.
For a brunch or weekend daytime visit, Dulse's wine bar format gives the ground floor more utility than a typical restaurant arrival lounge. Confirm current service hours directly with the venue, as brunch and lunch service availability can change seasonally.
If you've already worked through the more familiar Scottish seafood preparations, the Asian-inflected dishes are the sharper edge of the menu and worth prioritising. The tamarind-glazed monkfish is the most cited example of the kitchen's technique, and the spring roll format applied to Arbroath smokie shows the kitchen using a recognisable Scottish ingredient in a way you won't find many other places in Edinburgh. The wine list rewards exploration too , if your last visit was beer or cocktails at the bar, spend more time with the international selection this time.
For context on how Dulse's seafood approach compares to European peers working at a similar quality level with strong coastal produce, Gambero Rosso in Marina di Gioiosa Ionica and Alici Restaurant on the Amalfi Coast offer a useful reference point , both are produce-led seafood restaurants where technique serves the ingredient rather than overshadowing it.
Edinburgh has a strong collection of higher-spend restaurants , see our full Edinburgh restaurants guide for the complete picture , but the ££ seafood category with genuine culinary ambition is thin. Dulse fills that gap directly. If your Edinburgh trip includes a serious dinner at The Kitchin or Martin Wishart, Dulse works well as a lower-commitment meal on another night. If you're not planning a full fine-dining occasion at all, Dulse is the most credentialled option at this price tier.
Google reviewers rate Dulse 4.5 from 466 reviews , a consistently positive signal at meaningful volume, which supports the Michelin Plate recognition rather than contradicting it. The venue is not a critical darling that divides opinion; it delivers reliably.
If you're building a full Edinburgh itinerary, our guides to Edinburgh bars, Edinburgh hotels, and Edinburgh experiences cover the rest of the city alongside other notable UK restaurant destinations like CORE by Clare Smyth, L'Enclume in Cartmel, and Moor Hall in Aughton for reference on what Michelin-recognised cooking looks like at different price tiers across the UK.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dulse | Seafood | In Edinburgh's bustling West End, this pleasantly unpretentious spot offers an enticing combination of wine bar and seafood restaurant. Make an occasion of your visit by starting in the ground-floor bar, with a glass from the interesting international list, before heading upstairs to enjoy a celebration of Scottish fish and shellfish. Techniques and flavours from across Asia are often used – such as in the Arbroath smokie spring roll or the tamarind-glazed monkfish – with the quality of the produce always shining through.; Michelin Plate (2025) | Easy | — |
| Martin Wishart | Modern European, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| The Kitchin | Modern British, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Timberyard | Modern British - Nordic, Modern British | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| AVERY | Creative | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Condita | Modern Cuisine | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
A quick look at how Dulse measures up.
Yes, and the two-floor format is part of what makes it work for an occasion. Start with wine downstairs at the bar, then move up to the dining room for the full seafood menu. At ££ pricing with a Michelin Plate (2025), it delivers a considered meal without the outlay of a Michelin-starred room like The Kitchin or Martin Wishart.
Dulse sits at 17 Queensferry St in Edinburgh's West End and runs as both a wine bar and a seafood restaurant across two floors. Chef Dean Banks builds the menu around Scottish fish and shellfish with consistent Asian influence — dishes like Arbroath smokie spring rolls are part of the concept, not a one-off. Book ahead, but availability is more accessible than comparable Michelin-recognised rooms in the city.
The ground-floor bar makes solo dining practical here. You can eat and drink at the bar without committing to the full upstairs dining room experience, which gives solo visitors more flexibility than a reservation-only format would. For a solo visit to a ££ seafood spot in Edinburgh, it's a more comfortable format than most comparable options.
The menu is built around seafood, so pescatarians are well served, but the Asian-inflected preparations mean ingredients like tamarind and soy-adjacent sauces are likely in play. Specific allergen or dietary accommodation details are not in our current venue record — check the venue's official channels before booking if this is a concern.
Yes. The ground-floor bar is a genuine option for eating and drinking, not just a waiting area. It's the stronger choice for a casual visit or if you want to graze on smaller plates with wine rather than commit to a full upstairs dinner. The wine list is described as an interesting international selection, which makes the bar worth the stop on its own.
Dulse is described as pleasantly unpretentious, so smart-casual is a reasonable read — think put-together but not formal. It's not a white-tablecloth room, and the ££ price point and wine bar format both signal that you won't feel out of place without a jacket. Avoid turning up in beach-casual if you're dining upstairs.
The Asian-inflected dishes are where Dulse is most distinctive: the Arbroath smokie spring roll and tamarind-glazed monkfish are both cited in the Michelin recognition as representative of the kitchen's approach. Scottish fish and shellfish form the core, so lean into whatever is seasonal. For wine, the international list is worth exploring rather than defaulting to the obvious choices.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
