Nor’ Loft is the rooftop and champagne bar of the Market Street Hotel located adjacent to Waverley Station.
Take the elevator to the seventh floor and you enter into an open-plan space with large windows overlooking the city skyline. With its fires, soft lighting and eclectic designer furniture and artefacts the ambience exudes ‘stealth wealth’ and comfort. If Gwyneth Paltrow were to be spotted sipping a green tea she would fit right in. Like Gwyneth, Nor’ Loft is a cocoon of class wrapped in cashmere.
I visit with my friend in Eleonora, and we are seated and offered the champagne list; ‘Nor Loft specialises in bubbles. There is also a full drinks list including classic cocktails and a seasonally changing menu of shared plates and light bites. The latter are served in threes and have been created to complement Champagne in particular.
I spot a favourite Champagne, Pol Roger Winston Churchill and we indulge in a glass each. Oysters served with a traditional shallot vinaigrette are the delicious accompaniment.
From the menu, we also choose Gnocchi which presents more as a mini blini with creamy aubergine garnished with a thin seaweed crisp. We have moved on to glasses of Laurent Perrier which cleanse the palate for our next dish.
Buckwheat pancakes are filled with Taleggio cheese and seasonal hazelnuts; a garnish of dehydrated Syboes adds an onion-y twist. We think the dishes have been very cleverly constructed from premium ingredients and are all perfectly balanced in terms of flavour and seasoning.
Staff are pitch perfect with their balletic ability to be at once warm, efficient and informative.
Glasses of Rioja and Primitvo are suggested to accompany a Mellis cheese board which includes another favourite, Baron Bigod alongside Irish and Polish hard cheeses.
Eleonora wants to taste the dessert of carrot cake; a trio of pretty mini morsels piped with lemony cream cheese. There is only one dessert offered and I like the confidence of this approach. Our waiter suggests a Pisco Sour and a French 75. It would be rude not to!
We left Nor’ Loft and its luxurious environs feeling very happy. Competence is on display all around in drinks, food and service and the views have to be some of the best in Edinburgh. If you like a classy joint, go to Nor’ Loft.
