Bruntsfield

Bruntsfield is one of Edinburgh’s most liveable neighbourhoods. It sits just south of the Old Town, beside the open green spaces of Bruntsfield Links and the Meadows, and it’s all Victorian tenements, independent cafés and delis, and people walking dogs across the grass.

What’s Bruntsfield like?

Bruntsfield and its neighbour Marchmont are classic Edinburgh tenement territory: tall sandstone buildings with bay windows, built in the late 19th century for the city’s growing middle classes. Today they’re popular with families, students and young professionals, and the main street, Bruntsfield Place, is lined with independent shops, cafés and restaurants.

What to do

• Walk across the Meadows, the big park between Bruntsfield and the Old Town. It’s at its best in spring, when the cherry blossom is out along the paths.
• Play the short-hole golf course on Bruntsfield Links. The Links have been used for golf for centuries, and the free pitch-and-putt course is a local summer tradition. Bring your own clubs and ball.
• Browse Bruntsfield Place, with its independent shops, bakeries and delis.
• Wander Marchmont, the grid of tenement streets east of the Links.
• Walk on to Morningside, further south, for more neighbourhood shops and cafés.

Where to eat and drink

Bruntsfield is great for a relaxed lunch, a slow coffee or a neighbourhood dinner, with plenty of independent cafés, delis and restaurants along Bruntsfield Place. Pick up a picnic and take it to the Meadows on a sunny day. See my guide to eating in Edinburgh.

A perfect day in Bruntsfield

1. Morning: Coffee and a pastry on Bruntsfield Place.
2. Late morning: Browse the independent shops and delis, then wander the tenement streets of Marchmont.
3. Lunch: Pick up a picnic and take it to the Meadows.
4. Afternoon: A round on the free pitch-and-putt course on Bruntsfield Links, or a walk on to Morningside.
5. Evening: Dinner at a neighbourhood restaurant on Bruntsfield Place.

Getting there

Walk south from the Old Town across the Meadows in about 20 minutes, or take a Lothian bus from the city centre.

Good for

A slower, local day, picnics on the Meadows, cafés and seeing how Edinburgh people live.