Edinburgh is a city that loves a good fish and chips, so much so, that when visitors head here it's usually the first dish they seek out to try – after haggis of course.
But with so many top-notch chippies on offer, how do you find the best one? As with most things, many people turn to TripAdvisor to find the answer but incredibly, one of the top-rated places for fish and chips is actually a bar in the Old Town.
Located close to Edinburgh University, Doctors, which takes its name from its links to the old Royal Infirmary, is sitting in fifth place in the review site's best restaurant list beating out some of the capital's more famous restaurants – and it's all thanks to its epic fish and chips.
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Keen to see what all the fuss was about, we headed along on a Thursday afternoon to see and found the bar already bustling with crowds and with a friendly wave from the welcoming staff behind the bar, we grabbed the first free seat.
After decanting our stuff we headed to the bar, where assistant manager Michael Kelly, who was deftly manning the bar on his own, took our order. Joking that we should probably wait to see the size of the fish and chips (which cost £14.95) before ordering sides, he asked if we wanted mushy or garden peas (mushy is always the option here) and poured our drinks.
Inside the pub is like any great Edinburgh bar should be, with sturdy wooden interiors and plenty of drams and great beers on offer but also has the added coolness factor of displaying items like the apothecary's shelves and a full replica of a human spine on its walls to remind people of its rich history and connections to the location you find it in.
Thankfully, even though the bar was rammed, we didn't have long to wait and pretty soon a smiling Michael was approaching with an absolute whale-sized slab of golden battered fish and some very enticing-looking chips.
When we asked how many they usually sell of these a week, Michael guessed around 120 on an average week. Which is pretty impressive and shows its popularity.
Cutting into the fish, (after we'd added the customary salt and vinegar) the batter passed the crunch test, while the fish inside was flaky and pristine looking, so far so good.
The taste was exactly what you want, the crumbly fish and crunchy batter perfectly cooked, we can see why it's popular, and we were happy to note it was on the right side of the grease scale.
The chips too were crisp on the outside and fluffy on the in, and though they weren't as good as the best chippy chips they were pretty close.
It's obvious to us now why it rivals even the top capital chippies in the ratings.
Overall, we cleaned the plate and enjoyed every bite, and we would definitely recommend it, especially when added to the excellent service on offer (seriously give that man Michael a raise) and the buzzing atmosphere.
It's a pity Good Friday is tomorrow, otherwise, we might have used it as an excuse to come back for another portion, two nights in a row might be pushing it though.
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