L'Etoile Salon de Tea (Edinburgh, Scotland)

L'Etoile Salon de Tea is an affordable and cozy café not far from Edinburgh's Grassmarket, featuring soups, sandwiches, and pastries!

By: Alisha Trenalone

Just down the street from our rented flat in Edinburgh's Old Town, we found the perfect little café: L'Etoile Salon de Tea.

Although we sampled the fare at multiple other restaurants during our week in Scotland's capital, this French café was the one we kept returning to for cozy, affordable lunches!

Where Is L'Etoile Salon de Tea Located?

The café is on West Port, one of the streets that leads into the Grassmarket below the castle. It's less than a 5-minute (uphill) walk from that area, as well as from the Vennel stairs, one of the most photographed points in the city.

If you're relying on public transport to get around, the Number 2 bus has stops on both sides of the street in this block.

Menu Options

Although this is a French café, you can get a full Scottish breakfast here if you desire! Lighter breakfast choices are available as well. We, however, primarily came at lunch time, when there is a range of soups, toasted sandwiches, quiches, and baguettes.

We started with some tall glasses of hot breakfast tea.

On the days we visited, they were serving a spiced carrot and lentil soup that was fabulous. I was more than satisfied with a simple bowl of that and some fresh baked bread.

Dad enjoyed a baguette sandwich and salad. They also have a lunch deal where you can get both the sandwich and a bowl of soup for a pretty reasonable price.

It was one of the owners who served us for our first time at the café, and she was super friendly and helpful. We felt so welcome that this place immediately went to the top of our list in Edinburgh.

The pastry display case near where we were sitting kept drawing our attention, and there was no denying one of those tempting little tarts at the end of the meal.

Visit the shop's Facebook page for more photos from the pastry case, including millefeuilles, macarons, and so much more. They have a lot of gluten-free options.

There were lots of other goodies I would have loved to have tried too — particularly the shiny little chocolate dome known as the "Black Gold". I actually really regret not ordering that!

Our other favorite places to eat near or in Edinburgh's Grassmarket were Bertie's Proper Fish and Chips, Made in Italy Pizzeria, The Beehive Inn, and Mary's Milk Bar for ice cream.