Civerinos - Edinburgh

Civerinos is one establishment in the touristy Royal Mile area that is adored by visitors and locals alike. Word of their fine Italian fare is spreading fast, and for good reason. Now the busy season is over, it should be much easier to secure a table – so be sure to try the relaxed dining experience in this joyful little pizza joint.

We went to Civerinos last week to tuck into a slice of Italy and to have a chat with Michele the owner on why this Italian has been getting rave reviews all over the internet and is hit with the locals. Civerino’s is located just off the Royal Mile near the Tron Kirk in Hunter Square and serves a fanatastic selection of family recipes handed down through Michele’s family, Italian street food and of course Pizza by the slice or whole. In contrast to the overpriced restaurants offering, as a general rule, fairly low quality food, Civerinos is the real deal and very competitively priced. The beautiful glass door way opens into a minimalist style canteen with long tables and an open kitchen where the smell of food drifts tantalizingly from. The staff are super welcoming giving a real easy going family feel to the place. The owner Michele is often sat at the bar and came to talk to us about his plans for the restaurant and the upcoming Festival season. It is easy to see why the food at Civerino’s is so good when you meet Michele. His enthusiasm and passion for Italian food and the business is inspiring and infectious! He is so excited by the fresh produce, especially after a recent trip with the kitchen team to source new products and try out new ideas resulting in some fabulous new gorgonzola croquettes, Italian salamis and porcini mushroom sauce to mention a few of the tasty new treats. He certainly loves his food and takes pride in his family’s heritage. Civerino’s is an expression of this passion great food from the heart; timeless, classic recipes using exceptional fresh ingredients that would last forever. A long term Edinburgh resident and foodie Michele loves eating at many of the local establishments and is very complementary about many of his neighbours including fellow street food success Ting Thai Caravan where he loves to go for his dinner and Ninja buns, who are now providing the food at Paradise Palms. With the restaurant’s first festival season approaching fast they are keen to ensure they still manage to save some space for their regular followers and will be saving a table at the back just for those who have booked before, they will also be open late so you can head over after your shift too. Seating outside should help them to catch the eye of the passing traffic as will their new Gelato bike set to appear very soon! On to the food – having tried the fabulous pizzas on a different occasion we decided to embark on trying out the rest of the menu. Mix and match home made pasta varieties and sauces featuring pig cheek carbonara and slow cooked beef ragu are sure to be a crowd pleaser and there are some really exciting antipasti dishes if you can draw your gaze away from the pizza menu that is. We decided on the parsley and chilli calamari, beef meatballs in mushroom sugo, Steak tagliata with wild rocket salad and Zuccini fritti. The food is served on sharing style boards with individual paper plates, so you can get stuck in and help your self in unpretentious communal dining style. We were very impressed with all our dishes, light crispy battered zucchini was really tasty, well cooked steak with roast tomatoes and rocket was the stuff of dreams believe me, and of course crispy calamari with aioli was just about perfect, but the rich tasty porcini sauce with the meatballs was a stand out winner at our table. We were dipping everything in it! The wine and beers are all really well priced and they have a frozen cocktail too! Featuring popular Italian favorites including Negroni and Aperol Spritz. Desserts are also pretty awesome we were recommended to try the Tiramisu but didn’t have space after our feast so it will have to be saved for our next visit. I am so pleased to have discovered this exciting gem of a restaurant right in the centre of all the festival action and cant wait to go back for more. Especially for their late night pizza and great music on until the early hours throughout the summer of Edinburgh’s festivals, and the terrace set in Hunter Square where you can sit and watch the crazy world of the Royal Mile go by!

Probably the best pizza in edinburgh delicious sourdough crust with many options on the menu. the appetizers are also delicious...I would recommend the calamari and arancini. this is a great place to come if you need a fast to late evening snack, or just want to enjoy qualitatiw high quality pizza with friends.

Pizza time! Decision time on where to go. I wanted to try somewhere I hadn’t been before so we whittled it down to Civerinos. Friday night and we hadn’t booked but as it was 8pm that we were aiming to dine, we thought we’d give it a go and have a fair to good chance of getting a table. Civerinos were busy but were able to accommodate us – thank you!

If you are looking for man sized pizzas and delicious sides, then come on down. Came here for late night eats with friends who were visiting Edinburgh. Nobody left disappointed. Calamari and it's accompanying dip were delicious and garlicky. Aranchini was beaut, and the sugo-YUM. Opted for the pork and apple pizza, and YIP ate the whole thing without coming up for air. The aperol spritz slushies helped of course. BRAVO.