Hidden Scotland
Sign in
An ornate hanging sign reading 'The Witchery' hangs against a sandstone building.
Edinburgh

The Witchery

A candlelit restaurant at the gates of Edinburgh Castle, opened by James Thomson in 1979 in Boswell's Court, a merchant's house of around 1600.

Visit website
Welcome

Just below the castle esplanade, an ornate sign hung with gold tassels marks the close that leads in.

A stone stair climbs beneath a vine-covered pergola and a wrought-iron chandelier.

The dining rooms are dark and theatrical. Candles burn in tall brass candlesticks on tables laid with white linen. Gilt booths stand under a beamed ceiling, and faded wall hangings sit above deep wood panelling, with a carved statue and a mirrored cabinet in one red-walled room. From the small windows upstairs the view runs out over spires, chimneys and a domed clock tower. The suites above keep up the mood, with carved four-poster beds and a clawfoot bath under a painted ceiling. Book for dinner, and let the evening run long.

Before you go

An à la carte menu served all day, with afternoon tea from half past two to half past three on weekdays, and nine suites upstairs.

Where
Castlehill, at the top of the Royal Mile, through a close beside the castle esplanade.

Opening hours

Their website
Monday
noon–10.30pm
Tuesday
noon–10.30pm
Wednesday
noon–10.30pm
Thursday
noon–10.30pm
Friday
noon–10.30pm
Saturday
noon–10.30pm
Sunday
noon–10.30pm

Did you know

An ornate hanging sign reading 'The Witchery' bears a coat of arms and gold tassels.
Did you know

Named for the burnings.

The restaurant takes its name from the hundreds of people burned as witches on Castlehill in the 1500s and 1600s.

A brass lion's-head door knocker hangs above a nameplate reading 'Heriot' on a wooden door.
Did you know

A merchant's motto.

Over the stair door in the close, a worn lintel still carries the initials of the merchant Thomas Lowthian, who built the house, and his motto: O Lord in thee is all my traist.

A church spire and rooftops are seen through a sash window overlooking Edinburgh.
Did you know

Rooms for the Kirk.

In 1895 the Church of Scotland bought the building and turned its lower floors into committee rooms for the General Assembly.

Sunlight catches a tasselled curtain beside a window reflecting a carved stone rosette.
Did you know

Oak from St Giles'.

The walls are panelled with 17th-century oak rescued from a fire at St Giles' Cathedral.

Sunlight catches the tasselled fringe of an ornate patterned curtain.
Did you know

The keeper's arms.

The old stone doorway into the tower of the Secret Garden carries the arms of the Duke of Gordon, Keeper of the Keys of Edinburgh Castle.

Spires and chimneys rise above Edinburgh's rooftops, seen through a window at golden hour.
Did you know

Ceilings after Holyrood.

Its painted and gilded heraldic ceilings are based on those at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

A domed clock tower rises above sandstone buildings, seen through a small window at dusk.
What is on

What is new across Edinburgh, day by day.

New places, news and stories, as we find them.

What is on in Edinburgh
01 / 07
Where it is

On Castlehill at the top of the Royal Mile, at the gates of Edinburgh Castle.

Close byThe places nearest the Witchery, at the top of the Royal Mile.
  1. The Scotch Whisky ExperienceThe Scotch Whisky ExperienceWhisky tours round a glowing vault of 3,384 bottles.Under a mile1 min by road
  2. Camera ObscuraCamera ObscuraSix floors of optical illusions and a Victorian camera obscura.Under a mile1 min by road
  3. Susannah Alice Stephen MemorialSusannah Alice Stephen MemorialA bronze memorial seat in James's Court off the Lawnmarket.Under a mile1 min by road
  4. Riddle’s CourtRiddle’s CourtA merchant's mansion of 1590 round a hidden courtyard.Under a mile1 min by road
  5. Gladstone’s LandGladstone’s LandA merchant's tenement of 1617, its rooms furnished for three centuries of households.Under a mile1 min by road
  6. Edinburgh CastleEdinburgh CastleA royal castle on its rock, home of the oldest Crown jewels in Britain.1 mile6 min by road
Directions
Bronze witches' well fountain by John Duncan, a single red rose left belowAttractionsThe Witches' WellA step away
Stone-walled bar with wine racks, hanging lights and tartan cushioned seatingCafeMaxiesA step away
Hanging pub sign for the Jolly Judge on a stone wallRestaurantsJolly JudgeA step away
Turreted stone building with a Makars' Court sign in Edinburgh's Old TownAttractionsWriters’ Museum in Lady Stair’s CloseA step away
Edinburgh Castle rises above trees and lawns of Princes Street GardensAttractionsPrinces StreetA step away
Golden bird sculpture above a hanging sign for Gladstone's Land, offering tours, ice creams, coffees and cakesAttractionsGolden Hawk Sculpture at Gladstone's Land0.2 miles
Turreted stone tenement with crow-stepped gables and a lamppost in Edinburgh's Old TownAttractionsWriters' Museum0.2 miles
Pavement slab inscribed with Robert Garioch's verse "In Embro to the ployAttractionsLady Stair's Close0.2 miles
Set table beside a brick fireplace with clock and mirror aboveRestaurantsWhiski Rooms0.2 miles
Stay nearby

Places to stay near the Witchery, and when each is next free.

A round table and chairs stand before tall curtained windows looking onto stone buildings, a sofa and mounted television to the right.Moment George IV Bridge
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from the Witchery
Check datesA man walks past Bucken Booths entrance flanked by black lamp postsOld Town Chambers
  • To stay
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from the Witchery
Check datesWest End Muse
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from the Witchery
Check datesA turreted sandstone building with conical spires catches the evening light above rooftops, a large pine tree standing beside it.The Scott Hotel
  • A hotel
  • In Edinburgh
  • A mile from the Witchery
Check datesPlaces to stayEvery stay in EdinburghAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
Hidden Scotland, the magazine

Scotland, in print.

Every photograph commissioned, every word written by somebody who went. Printed twice a year, made in Scotland.

Get Issue 13Read it here
Find out more

For further reading, before you go.