Hemma

These guys just get it right. Spacious, friendly and comfortable, Hemma is another stellar attraction from the folks who own Sofi’s. I came here for a catch up with pals and enjoyed the table service, huge cups of tea and hodge-​podge décor.
I had a veggie burger. It was enormous, came with a huge pile of seasoned french fries, pickles on the bun (YUM) and home made coleslaw. Delicious. Also note that the burger patty was home made, none of this frozen breaded nonsense. It was so tasty.
The only downside? Bit drafty with the door opening and closing all night. But if you place yourself strategically on a table out of the way of the door you’re likely to be cosy and warm for the duration.

Bit of a belated review this one, given its well over a week ago I was here — but busy wee boy & all that…
Actually been here a few times, but this was my first dining experience, so figured it warranted a follow up. It’s owned by the same guys who run Joseph Pearce, Victoria & Boda — so has the same choice of nice beers & cocktails, and the Swedish-​themed menu. Only big difference with this one is visually — in a big open space in the new bit near Holyrood, it’s all high glass windows and scuffed boho furniture.
This being the weekend all our lovely students returned to the capital, it was slightly over-​run by, making me feel a tad on the «haggard old man» side in comparison. It is quite close to a fair few halls of residence, so I’d avoid if you have a similar aversion to our young learners!
Onto the food though — this may show me up as a bit of a foodie numptie, but I was introduced here to something I never realised existed — the Croque Madam! Essentially a Croque Monsieur with a huge fried egg whalloped on top! It’s made on nice, thick crusty bread — so a big improvements from the soggy slices you usually get lumbered with. Lots of nice cheese and a chunky, thick slice of Canadian ham (not usually a favourite of mine, but worked well here). Stick on their amazing Hasselbaink (typo I realise, but I have a Jimmy Floyd blind spot…) potatoes & you’re onto a big winner!

I stopped here for drinks and the atmosphere was pretty good. The restaurant has two levels, with great views all around due to the all-​glass exterior. It’s a cool place to sit and have a drink. In my view, Hemma was slightly expensive –giving me pause as to whether or not I would come all the time –but overall, I liked the atmosphere there.
Upstairs has a very loungy feel to it. There is a spiral staircase leading up to it and there is a bar and open seating everywhere. The ambiance to the place has a nice feel, although I did not like the carpet on the floor. For such a nice place, it gave it a motel-​esque vibe. Overall, I would stop back in at some point –only on a night where they had some drink specials though.

This place is perfect if you want to enjoy a glass of wine or a pint of beer with the kiddos in tow. No kids, then relax on the couches and have an conversation that might just change your life. Good drink and eats.

spacious and with a distinctive and delicious Swedish menu. Joker I.P.A., Williams Draft and Sam Adams on the tap.
And dogs allowed.

So we came here with some friends who were visiting. We were all really happy with our dishes. The soups were divine as was the bread. One of us got the salmon sandwich, which was humongous and gorgeous. Really tasty flavours. Overall for the price you get superb quality food and very good large portions.
Our friends were very surprised when the bill arrived as they had expected it would be at least double! So the prices are very good for what you get and the location is quite perfect if you are visiting the parliament or dynamic earth or the general vicinity.

Last Sunday I visited Hemma with a friend. We wanted to play a few board games and Hemma had big enough tables to accommodate us.
While waiting for him, I sat outside and I enjoyed the sun, a coffee and the free Wifi. Bliss.
I always find Hemma buzzing and especially when the weather is sunny it creates a very pleasant atmosphere in and around the bar. Being surrounded by all glass Windows you may think this will get very warm inside, but it was nice and cool.
We set up our games and ordered some lunch. I have to say that I am massively impressed with the food on offer (brunch, lunch & dinner) and the size you get for the price you pay. The Croque Monsiour with egg was big enough for two, though my friend did manage to eat it all by himself: o)
I like the skinny crispy fries they serve, those are my favourite (In Scotland you usually get the chunky chips) and are difficult to get outside of a certain burger chain.
They have a very friendly and efficient table and counter service, which encourages people to order a little more ‘since you asked so nice’.
I enjoy coming here as you have happy people from all around Edinburgh and they allow dogs too!

Came here for the first time for Scran Salon as its not really local for me. Although Hemma means home in Swedish, it didn’t give me that vibe, despite the floral chairs on the upstair mezzanine area.
It is all glass and open, hence not feeling cozy and although we were here for a private event, the noise downstairs travels up so it made hearing people speak a bit awkward.
So why 4 stars? I had sampled the food and it was great. This was provided as part of the event and was very scandi — salmon, trout, potato salad, veggies with dill, breads and more and it was lovely. Being gluten free, some options were off limits but the trout, meats and cheese were lovely. I only picked at a couple of things as I had eaten before I arrived but what I had was very good.
So Hemma isn’t very local for me but I will be visiting again and if I have the munchies, I would be happy to eat here.

Really like the vibe of this place. I know it’s big & airy (& at this time of year –draughty) but it’s quirky and well, cool.
The staff are chatty and helpful, there’s a great selection of beers, ciders & spirits & the food is good too.
On my last visit I tried the pea & spinach soup as it was recommended by Blythe. I’m glad I did. It was a delish way to pack in some of my five-​a-​day & the fresh dill through it gave it an interesting Scandi twist.
The portions are very generous & there was a side of lovely fresh bread & butter.
The upstairs has a cosier feel than the downstairs.
There’s even baskets of kids toys to keep the little (& large) kids entertained.

I have been going there a few times now and always found this place very accomodating, bright, quirky and cozy. You can sit downstairs and upstairs, either on small or large tables or couches. Guess, what I like…:-)
They serve craft beers and cider and not the normal commercial stuff you get in other bars and shops.
My friend ordered a bailies and I was blown away by the price of £3.20 for hardly anything. Sad!
I still enjoy going there for a chat and get together with friends. Next time I will try some food.

Hemma means ‘at home’ in Swedish, however I’m not sure they have really pulled that one off at this establishment! Maybe it’s just the wrong name for the bar, but I don’t feel homely and cosy here, with it’s vast windows and cold finishes. I’ve yet to warm to Hemma, like others have mentioned here, it doesn’t have the same cute and snug feel as the others: Sofie’s, Boda, Victoria and JP’s. Sure, there’s the old country kitchen style table and chairs, but the open space feels cold and slightly souless.
Environment aside, the staff are super attentive. They do brunch, lunch, buffet, smörgåsbord platters, dinners and cakes, I’ve not tried the food, so can not comment. There’s 12 draughts on tap and a fine cocktail list.
They have lots of events eg networking meetings, promotional events, Vintage pop up shops, of course there’s the Unilocal knitting night and even a Commando training group called «Do it Commando»! The mezzanine level takes up to 130 people and so could be a great place for party.

I think I’m gonna like it here.
I’d been to Hemma before for drinks, and hadn’t thought much of it. It’s the early afternoon cosiness or «gezelligheid» as us Dutchies would call it, where it really shines. All you’d need is a fireplace and you’re good to go.
The atmosphere is lovely, being equally happy here with a good book or a group of friends, and you don’t feel rushed. The food was the real surprise for me. I didn’t think it’d be as good as it was, and it really was damn delicious. I had a salad in which the green beans were so crunchy they damned near jumped off the plate, and my girl-​dates were happily munching away on their piri piri chicken and croque monsieur, both of which looked gorgeous.
I was surprised, I don’t know why, I think because I’ve come to accept below-​standard fare, but I really, really, enjoyed the food here. From now on, this is going to be a steady hang out for sure!

What can I say? Hemma is where the heart is, and I think I left mine there!
I read through some of the other reviews here before we plumped for Hemma on the strength of its being so near to my current flat (and I’ve been meaning to head there for ages) and I was a little tentative since the response seems so mixed.
But all I can talk about personally is the experience that we ourselves had — and that experience was «WOW!» I came here for an impromptu lunch with my parents and all three of us got completely swept off our feet by the loveliness.
Their little manifesto on the front page of the drinks menu sums up the unique feel of this place; it’s cheery, quirky, it’s friendly and good-​natured, and I love it.
The food is fab value at just under a tenner for a decent main, and especially for the giant portions we got. I ordered the spaghetti with garlic chicken (£8.50) and the mountain of deliciousness that arrived was almost too much for me to finish, but equally, too good to leave. My parents were both equally thrilled with their meals — club sandwich for Dad, beef burger for Mum — and having nicked a couple of their seasoned fries, I can see why. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered those fries’ equal.
Despite the somewhat intimidating and angular exterior, the décor within is homely enough to easily justify the name «Hemma», being comfy and mismatched, and the windows (which we at first glance had thought were some kind of chic stained-​glass mosaic) are actually creatively decorated with slides.
The thing I got most excited about was the awesome drinks menu; every single one of the impressive range of cocktails on offer is not only delicious-​sounding but also wittily described, and for the meagre sum of £4, water-​voles like me can order a custom mocktail instead. I can’t wait to go back and try this one evening.
Yep, they’ve definitely taken my heart hostage, and I’ve got full-​blown Stockholm syndrome.

Thas has become my post work hangout since starting work down this way.
From the people that brought you Sophies, Boda etc this is a very chilled placed spaced out over 2 levels. great international beers on tap as well by the bottle its a great place to relax inside or outside.

Nice food, nice staff, nice ambience.
I come here because of a monthly meet up and it’s a good place to be. Because of the time, it’s handy to order dinner whilst doing some stitches and having a banter with the rest of the group.
I had a burger with add ons of bacon and blue cheese. It was good and the bun was good too. It also came with slaw which was good but difficult to get and stay on the plate and skinny fries. i asked for mayo on the side and no problem, as it was there in secs.
This is my second trip to Hemma and both times staff have been friendly and food good. There is no bother settling up you’re part of the bill separately either.

I love Hemma because it is light, sunny and quirky inside. It also has great outdoor seating that is tucked back from the road.
I first came here for drinks after hiking up Arthur’s Seat with a few friends during the day on New Year’s Eve. I loved the quirky, vintage-​style furniture and the great selection of drinks at this cool Swedish-​style bar. They have Blue Moon on tap which made me happy, and also are the only place in Edinburgh that I know of that has Boston-​based Sam Adams on tap so it reminds me of home! I also loved that Hemma is surrounded with modern windows and the natural lighting flows in. Others had food and it looked delicious.
I have since been back a few other times. Once, on a Saturday night, I wasn’t so thrilled with Hemma because it was really loud. On another weekday night it was much better, though, and really relaxed. I like coming to Hemma best during the day, though, particularly when it is warm and sunny so I can sit outside right by Holyrood Park!

I really like this bar. I love the food, the ambiance is great, and they’ve been wonderful hosts to two Unilocal Knitting Groups.
The last time I was in I had the meatball sub, but instead of a sub I asked for fries. Not a problem. And then what showed up was the biggest plate of food I’ve ever seen. 6, or was it 7 meatballs, huge serving of fries, and an abundant salad.
I’ve read a few reviews recently where folk haven’t been as impressed with their food and I’m not sure why? Maybe they got it on dud days? This makes me sad if so.
The only thing that has happened recently is a few occasions of fairly lax service. I like laid back, and totally know what it’s like to be running around mad, missed your break, or working beyond your shift. But at one point I was standing at the bar whilst the (I believe) manager was playing foosball with a mate, the girl was putting candles on the tables, a nd one guy was pouring a wine order but didn’t ask to take mine or get someone else to whilst I was standing right in front of him. I get the feeling they were stressed, and were friendly enough when I then asked, outright, «Could I order some food and drinks please?» But later that night a few other members of staff were quite short with us. Overall not quite as friendly as I remember it last time.
But for food and drinks in a comfy environment, it’s great.

I was very happy to finally get a chance to visit Hemma for a henny lunch recently.
As other reviewers have said — it’s a bit airy space and, despite the horrific weather that day, felt quite cozy.
Staff were lovely — chatty and attentive– the coffees we had were good and cocktails were *incredibly* good.
The food is what let it down for me. I had a chicken and bacon club which had huge chunks of chicken that was so over cooked it was hard to bite through, and bacon that was so fatty I needed to deconstruct the sandwich to pull out most of the fat/​bacon. The herby fries were brilliant, though. Some of my friends ordered salads which were huge, but from what I saw looked mostly like *lots* of lettuce and not a lot else. The flip side is that the food is really reasonably priced.
I also liked how family friendly it is here — I believe they had a microwave in the corner for mums to be able to heat up food for their kids. I think that’s great because kids can be picky and I’m sure it’s much easier to just be able to bring your own food than hope the restaurant can prepare something they’ll like.
So I would definitely come back and drink more mojitos and eat more herby fries, but would view the rest of the menu with caution.

Really loud music…
Sam Adams is a big plus…
Staff was unfriendly.

I love a good Saturday or Sunday brunch so I was excited to check this spot out when Jenny L. organised a Unilocal brunch event. I checked out the menu online and it looked pretty good. I was starving by the time I met everyone and quickly enjoy my americano. I like how they put cucumbers in the water opposed to lemons or limes. I think it’s much more refreshing this way.
We were a pretty big group –12 or 13 people so I knew our order was going to take a while. I opted for the ‘Hemma Brunch’ and added smoked trout. As everyone received their meals I sat anxiously waiting. In my mind I kept hoping that they didn’t forget my order but unfortunately they did! However, it was not the end of the world. The server said it would be a few more minutes and said he would take my meal off the bill. It was a sunny day and I was with great company so there could have been worse things! The server was correct, a few minutes later I was chowing down on my meal like everyone else.
My brunch consisted of a huge (half the size of a plate) slice of olive bread with creamy + buttery scrambled eggs, smoked trout, button mushrooms and cherry tomatoes. It was really big. I had doubts that I wouldn’t be able to finish it but I persevered. (Note: When I doubt that I am going to finish something it must be huge — I can eat a lot!) It was great. I’m also not a huge tomato fan but I can say they were very sweet. The salads that various other people ordered at the table were ginormous and looked really healthy. I’d definitely want to try them out next time.
I think the location is great for a late lunch after climbing Arthur’s Seat or I’d recommend this play to tourists after checking out Parliament or Holyrood Palace.
I’ll be back to try other things on the menu (the ribs!!!)