3 Steak Restaurants in Edinburgh

Less well known are the protections afforded Scottish food – Scotch Beef and Scotch Lamb are also subject to PGI status under a certification programme overseen by Quality Meat Scotland. If you eat at a steakhouse restaurant in Edinburgh that bears the Scotch Beef pennant or the European Union’s Protected Geographical Indication badge, you can be sure you’re eating the freshest, locally-sourced red meat.

While cattle breeds from around the world are reared in Scotland, there are a few distinctly Scottish breeds that the true steak lover will want to hunt down when dining at a Edinburgh steakhouse restaurant. Proper Scotch beef breeds such include Highland Cattle, Galloway Cattle and Shorthorn Cattle. Aberdeen Angus is perhaps the most famous type of Scottish beef, prized by Edinburgh’s top steakhouse chefs and a highly sought-after global food commodity.

Ethics labels – It’s not just the Scotch Beef badge that guarantees a quality steak; Scotch Beef guarantees that your steak has been sourced by the restaurant from farms in Scotland, but beef certified by Freedom Foods, Tractor Mark, Organic, or LEAF is also guaranteed to be ethically sourced thanks to regular inspections to ensure the highest standards of animal farming are adhered to.

Locally sourced – While a Scotch Beef certification guarantees that the beef is from Scotland, it’s even better if the restaurant sources each cut from a trusted local butcher. The best steakhouses in Edinburgh work closely with a favoured butcher to keep their standards high from paddock to plate. Colour – Take note of the colour of your beef: the deeper red the steak, the fresher it is, and the better it will taste.

Marbling – It’s not just Japanese wagyu beef that benefits from a high marble index. Scotch beef with a lot of marbling – small white flecks of fat distributed throughout the meat – means a juicer, more tender steak. Some cuts of beef are naturally more marbled than others – the ribeye and the New York strip (also known club or strip loin – try it rare!). Hanging – To do a quality cut of beef justice, the meat should be hung for between two to four weeks. This allows enzymes present in the meat to begin to break down the proteinaceous fibres, leading to an increase in flavour and tenderness. The best Edinburgh steakhouses will either make a point of noting how long their steak has been hung, or would be pleased to give more information from a clearly informed steak aficionado!

How do steakhouse restaurants in Edinburgh secure Scotch Beef certification?

Edinburgh’s top steakhouse restaurants naturally seek the very best meat, and this invariably means sourcing cuts that bear the Scotch Beef designation. The Scotch Beef PGI brand has held European Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status since 1996, legally protecting true Scottish beef from imitation and placing steaks sourced this way among the world’s finest. Animal welfare and well-being are understood to be key when it comes to ensuring the highest quality steaks, and all Scotch Beef is able to be traced back to source. If what you’re being served at a steakhouse restaurant in Edinburgh qualifies for Scotch Beef certification, the meat must meet the following criteria:

Meat is assured at every stage of the chain on its way to the kitchens of the best Edinburgh steakhouses: farms are graded according to the quality of the livestock; the feed the herds are reared upon is controlled; the methods used for haulage and transport are inspected; and the meat’s handling at auction and at the processing stage of the product cycle are also assured.