The Skinny Food and Drink Survey 2012: The Results
You voted, we counted, and here they are – your favourite places to eat and drink in Scotland
EDINBURGH
BEST PINT
Bow Bar, West Bow: The very definition of a 'real pub'; no annoying music, plenty of dark wood, and a great beer selection.
Blue Blazer, West Port
Holyrood 9a, Holyrood Rd
Queens Arms, Frederick St
Cloisters, Brougham St
KING OF COFFEES
Artisan Roast, Broughton St, Bruntsfield Pl: They travel to meet growers. They run a blog packed with coffee science and bean grading guides. They do it all, and that's what makes their coffee so good.
Kilimanjaro, Nicholson St
Wellington Coffee, George St
Cafe Gaia, Leith Walk
Black Medicine, Marchmont Rd, Barclay St, Clerk St
BEST DATE PLACE
Under the Stairs, Merchant St – A basement restaurant with great food by day, a quirky and cosy bar by night, with comfy sofas and brilliantly moody lighting.
Restaurant Mark Greenaway, Picardy Place
Outsider, George IV Bridge
Bramble, Queen St
Spoon, Nicholson St
FAVOURITE FOOD SHOP
Peckhams, Bruntsfield Place, South Clerk St: A hybrid of the perfect grocer and a top-drawer off-licence, where a man can get a £75 bottle of top-end vodka and a kick-ass sandwich at the same time.
Earthy, Ratcliffe Terrace
Real Foods, Brougham St, Broughton St
Valvona & Crolla, Elm Row
Cornelius Beer, Easter Rd
TITAN OF TAKEAWAYS
Kebab Mehal, Nicholson St: A stand-out among the Southside's myriad Asian restaurants, and when you get your hands on one of their curries or kebabs you'll see why.
Illegal Jacks, Lothian Rd
La Favorita, Leith Walk
Karen's Unicorn, Abercrombie Pl
Thai Pod, London Rd
CHIP SHOP CHAMP
The Tailend, Albert Pl: A fire earlier this year hasn't kept the Tailend from putting out the best fish suppers in the city in their restaurant and takeaway.
Cafe Piccante, Broughton St
L'Alba Doro, Henderson Row
La Campagnola, Drumsheugh Pl
Newington Fish Bar, Clerk St
VITAL VEGGIE SPOT
David Bann, St Mary's St: No anaemic salads here; Bann's menu is packed with inventive vegetarian dishes good enough to tempt even the most bloodthirsty meat-eater.
Hendersons, Hanover St
Kalpna, St Patrick's Sq
Urban Angel, Forth St/Hanover St
Baked Potato Shop, Cockburn St
COLOSSUS OF CAKES
Eteaket, Frederick St: Their choice of cakes is incredible, the taste and quality is exquisite, and the décor is fantastically quirky.
Mimi's Bakehouse, The Shore
Falko Konditormeister, Bruntsfield Pl
Chocolate Tree, Bruntsfield Pl
Hula, West Bow
GLASGOW
BEST PINT
Nice n Sleazy, Sauciehall St: We could use the rest of this page to list the names who've graced Sleazies over the years. Instead, we'll encourage you to head down to this institution, and soak up the (recent) history.
Blackfriars, Bell St
The Belle, Great Western Rd
Horseshoe Bar, Drury St
Brewdog Bar, Argyle St
KING OF COFFEES
Artisan Roast, Gibson St: Everything good about the Edinburgh branch, and a chance to see their roaster in action as well.
Tinderbox, Byres Rd, Ingram St
Avenue G, Byres Rd
Coffee Chocolate and Tea, Argyle St
Kember and Jones, Byres Rd
BEST DATE PLACE
Sisters, Kelvingrove St: A top-end joint in one of the nicest parts of town, and therefore the textbook definition of 'good date location.'
Bar Gandolfi, Albion St
Two Fat Ladies, Argyle St
Hillhead Bookclub, Vinicomb St
Firebird, Argyle St
FAVOURITE FOOD SHOP
Peckhams, Glassford St, Byres Rd: The same great range as Edinburgh, but in Glasgow as well. Who says the two cities can't play nice?
Delizique, Hyndland St
Lupe Pintos, Great Western Rd
Grassroots, Woodlands Rd
Heart Buchanan, Byres Rd
TITAN OF TAKEAWAYS
Little Italy, Byres Rd: This Italian cafe-takeaway has been on the go for years, and the quality of the food and drinks on offer make it easy to see why.
Taco Mazama, Renfield St
Banana Leaf, Old Dumbarton Rd
Mother India, Westminster Ter
Ichiban, Queen St
CHIP SHOP CHAMP
Philidelphia, Great Western Rd: A West End chippy that does the little things better than most. They also do a good job of the 'big thing' of making a good fish supper.
Kings Cafe, Elmbank St
Jack McPhee, Hope St
The Grove, Argyle St
Blue Lagoon, West Nile St
VITAL VEGGIE SPOT
Mono, Kings Ct: Veggies are catered for all day long at this Trongate institution, and there's a ping-pong table if you need to work off the falafel belly.
13th Note, Kings St
Tchai Ovna, Otago Lane
Stereo, Renfield Lane
The 78, Kelvinhaugh Street
COLOSSUS OF CAKES
Avenue G, Byres Rd: Locally-sourced ingredients fill the menu, and the delicious cakes are no exception.
The Butterfly and the Pig Tea Rooms, Bath St
Fifi and Ally, Princes Sq
Vanilla Black, Sauchiehall St
Hidden Lane Cafe Gallery, Argyle St
THE REST OF SCOTLAND
BEST PINT
Under the Hammer, North Silver St, Aberdeen: An atmospheric pub set beneath an Aberdeen auction room. Pun-tastic.
Art Bar, Perth Rd Dundee
Salmon Inn, Bank Street Galashiels
KING OF COFFEES
88 Degrees, High St, Kirriemuir: A great cafe menu make this a great place to 'do coffee' as well as just drink the stuff.
Nardini's, Greenock Rd, Largs
Tea Leaves and Coffee, Perth Rd, Dundee
BEST DATE PLACE
Junk Rooms, Friars St, Stirling: Mismatched furniture, live music, and an attached gallery-shop make this ideal for impressing/buying off that special someone in your life.
Monachyle Mhor, Lochearnhead
Jute Cafe Bar, DCA, Perth Rd, Dundee
FAVOURITE FOOD SHOP
Green Seafood Shack, Harbour, Oban: Possibly the freshest seafood in the whole country served up just yards from the ocean.
House of Bruar, Blair Atholl
Belhaven Smokehouse, Dunbar
TITAN OF TAKEAWAYS
Earl of Sandwich, The Green, Aberdeen: EARL don't let down their famous namesake, offering more sandwich choices than you can shake a Nobleman's stick at.
Beijing Beijing, High St, Galashiels
Gurkha Kitchen, George Street, Aberdeen
CHIP SHOP CHAMP
Anstruther Fish Bar, Shore St, Anstruther: It's in the middle of Fife, and yet every American exchange student and London foodie knows about the Anstruther Fish Bar and its delicious fish suppers.
MHOR Fish, Main Street Callander
Allanwater Cafe, Henderson St, Bridge of Allan
VITAL VEGGIE SPOT
Musa, Exchange St, Aberdeen: Gannet-eating antics aside, Musa gives its herbivorous guests little reason to complain with some great veggie dishes.
Foyer Restaurant & Gallery, Crown St Aberdeen
Pillars of Hercules, Falkland, Fife
COLOSSUS OF CAKES
Fisher and Donaldson, Dundee/Fife (various locations): Worth the win here for their custard-filled fudge doughnuts alone, which taste heavenly but could give you diabetes simply by looking at them.
Kilau, Little Belmont St Aberdeen
Jackie Lunn, The Borders (various locations)