Roti King / Wok & Sambal, Edinburgh

Roti King have all the flash you could want from a new arrival from London; recognisable branding, lots of existing restaurants, their own cookbook, etc. On our lunchtime visit not long after opening, they also have a fair few floor staff looking for things to do.

Once Edinburgh realises they’re here, they shouldn’t have any problems, because their signature roti remains fantastic. It’s paper-thin in places, supremely flakey and squidgily soft. It’s light in flavour and texture, which makes it ideal for all the dipping you’ll do; we pair ours with a mutton kari (£11.95) that is well-spiced but not too spicy, warming without being overly intense. There are pleasingly enormous chunks of mutton; it feels like the spices are just about being held in place; it’s a delicious bit of lunch that it is simply impossible to eat without getting your hands dirty.

Sometimes when you’re very good at something, you mix it up a bit – the spinach and cheese murtabak (£10.50) is a wafer-thin filled roti stuffed with the classic combo. There’s a lot of cheese, and a lot of spinach, so grabbing one piece may result in everyone coming along for the ride, but it’s another treat. It’s served with a creamy, earthy dal which holds its own against the rest of our dishes, including two pieces of fried chicken (Ayam Goreng Berempah, £4.95) with a brilliant crust and a particularly lively sambal.

Then there’s the Roti planta (£4.95), a large rectangular sweet roti just absolutely covered in condensed milk. It’s almost caramelised in places, it’s puffy and sugary in others, it’s like the most fantastical pancake you’ve ever had and it’s an early leader for ‘silliest dish of 2026’.

When IG tastemakers and list-takers try to sum up Edinburgh’s food scene, they invariably stick to certain parts of town, and certain kinds of place. We’re guilty of it – you’re making a magazine, you need pictures, and well-funded city centre venues are much more likely to have sorted out a professional photoshoot or a free press night. For an example, look at this page of this magazine.

But then you go up the Bridges and reap a whirlwind of Korean, Japanese and regional Chinese cooking; heavy strip lights, mild inscrutability, and cheap and incredibly flavourful food. You head to Leith and find the wildest mish-mash of high-end restaurants and holes-in-walls; you wander through Canonmills and Stockbridge and hit a bunch of cafes where European innovations in soups and sandwiches still get the praise they deserve.

And Gorgie and Dalry are becoming the place to go for food from South Asia. The shops have been fantastic for a while, home to any and every ingredient you could wish for. Siyamsunthar Charlie Sigaganasundaram – the man who set up Amma Spices, the excellent Indian grocery on Gorgie Road – passed away in November, and part of his legacy is the incredible array of food that’s now available up and down this strip of western Edinburgh.

Roti King. Image courtesy of Roti King.

Wok & Sambal on that stretch of Gorgie Road is a classic unassuming shopfront fit-out, in that it’s somehow both grey and shiny, but it makes up for it with so many lamps and hangings we genuinely lose count. It’s early days for this spot – the two guys running the place occasionally lapse into some Laurel and Hardy-esque bumbling – but there’s plenty of pedigree here. W&S is the new place from the folk behind Chennai’s Marina, the excellent string of Sri Lankan and Indian restaurants across the city, and their emphasis on big vibrant flavours continues.

These rotis are slightly thicker and a little more rustic, but that comes with a little more flavour and bite. There’s plenty of both in the mutton curry (£11.95) which brings real robustness and depth, as well as a good bit of spice. The chicken curry (£10.95) also pairs well with the roti, with a thicker sauce and fuller flavours turning everything a whole bunch of notches at once.

It’s pretty much a tie when it comes to the Ayam Goreng (£5.95) – the marinade seems to have got deeper than back in town, but Roti King wins on crispiness – but the sambal at the place with Sambal in the title is excellent. Pairing loads of chilli flavour with just the right amount of spice, and a lovely fishy fermented tang, it’s just great.

Both of these are the kind of places we want to see more of in 2026. We want flawed, funky new venues where the energy is entirely focused on the cooking. We want solid, reliable spots where the food is great and the vibe is curated. We’re looking for chaos, comfort, precision and panache. And lads, we’re off to a good start.

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Roti King, 8 South St Andrew St, Edinburgh, EH2 2AZ; Sun-Thu, 11.30am-10pm; Fri-Sat, 11.30am-11pm

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Wok & Sambal, 388 Gorgie Rd, Edinburgh, EH11 2RQ; Tue-Sun, 5.30-10.30pm