Kilimanjaro Coffee

Average place for breakfast, brunch or coffee. The soups, however, are very tasty. Relaxed atmosphere but quite a small café. A bit too crowded and not spacious enough for my liking. Wouldn’t be at the top of my list of places to try in Edinburgh but worth a visit.

Went to Kilimanjaro Coffee for breakfast — it’s been ages since I’ve been there and I wanted one of their scones… I was there early, before 9.30 and there were only a few customers in. What I saw, I liked. Mainly that the scones were BIG, and they had different ones: fruit, date or cheese, each served with a different kind of jam.
So I had a large cappuccino and a fruit scone with bramble jam. The coffee looked beautiful, tasted great. The scone tasted good too, however the butter was too cold and hard, impossible to spread evenly on the scone. I hate that when this happens in cafes. Yes, I know — first world problems and all that, but still.
The bramble jam was ok-​ish. I would have preferred a nice raspberry jam though.
Bill for a large cappuccino and a scone came to £4.85.
ps. note you can opt for clotted cream as well, for an additional cost.

Here’s the deal. If you have the word coffee in your name I’m going to judge you on the quality of your coffee.
Kilimanjaro was one the first ‘third-​wave’ coffee shops in Edinburgh which proved that there was more to coffee outside of gingerbread lattes at Starbucks. In the years since then Edinburgh has seriously upped it’s coffee game and unfortunately I don’t think Kilimanjaro has kept up.
I ordered a flat white and a bowl of soup which took a bit too long to come. I don’t mind waiting for good coffee but the impression was that they just had a backlog they were trying to rush through. You may not be able to judge a book by it’s cover but I think its fair to judge a coffee by it’s latte art. Passable but not perfect. The coffee had decent flavour and they use good beans but milk was over-​heated for my liking. It’s definitely a step up from Starbucks but lacking compared to the serious coffee places in the capital, such as Filament further up the road.
Overall I feel like the place is a little bit tired and in need of a facelift. I don’t think it has changed much in the several years since I last went in and could do with some modernisation. The furniture and fittings feel a little bit outdated but not necessarily in a trendy hipster way.
I will give it credit for being open late and if you need passable coffee after 7pm there isn’t much choice. Their sandwiches and scones looked like they might be decent also.

I’ve been here a couple times, and I’m definitely a fan. A nice selection of cakes — I’ve gone for the scone, they usually have a choice of scone and jam which is nice, and clotted cream as a bonus. They don’t warm the scones, but still delicious. The chai latte is a winner, and I’ve also tried the veggie breakfast which was very good — veggie sausages can be a bit iffy, but I had no complaints about these. A very pleasant café!
Some other notes — it’s been busy whenever I’ve gone, but I haven’t had trouble finding a table for two or three people; it’s a favourite with many of my friends, one of whom regularly goes here to study; I believe that they do take-​away for some of their menu items, not all; you order and pay at the till, and then they bring the food to you; they have loyalty cards, both for drinks and sandwiches — I have one, so another reason to visit again!

Visited for the second time yesterday, and thankfully found a table for three very quickly– a surprise, given the popularity of the place. My friends and I were in for tea and scones, and were not disappointed by the selection. I went for a simple breakfast tea (which always goes well with scones), and a fruit scone with rhubarb and ginger jam. My friends had a chai latte and a lemonade, again both with scones. All the food and drink was delicious. The clotted cream and the jams were excellent, the scones were fresh, and the drinks were well made. The table was cosily tucked up in a corner, and we had access to the day’s newspapers as well.
The staff we dealt with were not the friendliest I’ve ever come across, but maybe this was just a bad day. Kilimanjaro is certainly not the least expensive café you’ll find in Edinburgh, but the excellent produce and atmosphere makes it worth a visit.

This is hands down, my favourite coffee place in Edinburgh. The staff are lovely and they make a really good cup of coffee in addition to offering a great brunch, real fruit juices, and pastries. So much better than your average Nero or Starbucks. To give you a better sense of what to expect, here are some pros and cons.
Pros:
– Great Coffee and friendly staff. The store also has an excellent vibe that puts you at ease for a leisurely weekend.
– The food is excellent. Especially their brunch options.
Cons:
– They offer no Wi-​Fi or charging ports. Like really — there is none. This might end up being a good thing if all you’re looking for is a quiet place to do some reading or socialise with a friend, though.

Picture it… a rainy morning around 07.30 after work, I’m hungry but also getting caffeine withdrawal symptoms and awaiting the banks to open! What to do for an hour, we’ll let me tell ya something. I heard and read about this coffee stop from other Edinburgh Unilocalers, so wondered what all the fuss was about.
I’d not tried a veggie breakfast for a fair while literally a veggie breakfast for me recently had been beans and cheesy toast. But wow, the guys at Kilimanjaro Coffee knew what exactly should go from the plate to your face.
Veggie haggis, spinachy type greens, soy sausages or similar, toms and four rather generous slices of whole wheat seeded bread and rounded off with a egg. Soy coffee for my caffeine fix and neatly serviced very quickly before the shop got too busy, all for under ten quid.
Cool.

If I ran a coffee shop, I’d want it to be like this place.
Lovely vibe, big rustic wood tables and old couches, so much light. The perfect size — large enough to handle the brunch crowd, small enough to feel friendly. Big windows. Beautiful.
A fantastic assortment of vegetarian brunch choices, and everything genuinely sounded good, unlike some places where there’s only one obvious item that pops out, and everything else sounds meh.
We had:
* the granola (big, delicious yogurt, piled with fresh fruit. You get kiwi!)
* eggs and toast (classic, perfect, nice thick crusty whole wheat bread, came with marmalade)
* zucchini fritters with pickled sweet beets and avocado (an interesting and refreshing change from classic fatty greasy breakfast foods, and a great flavour combination).
Tea came in kettles, which was nice.
Food came out fast and the service was lovely.
A perfect brunch spot. Absolutely worth five stars.

Great for breakfast/​brunch/​lunch/​tea and snacks.
Current favorites: Halloumi and avocado sandwich. Brownies. THE BROWNIES. So good.
Have been coming here regularly for a few years now, usually relaxing atmosphere for studying, unless you’re here at peak lunch hour. Sandwiches are generally better than surrounding cafes at a reasonable price.

Spent 6 months living in Edinburgh in 2013 and the place was great. Really embraces the city’s under appreciated café scene. They have fresh abundant options. I appreciate a good full Scottish breakfast and the café’s Kili breakfast fits the desire. It’s a great place for a group under 3 and it’s well priced. A good stop for a meal.
Update: I was there again this past week and it was just as I remembered

Kilimanjaro has a great brunch menu. It’s not huge but it has some really imaginative options alongside the breakfast classics like granola and eggs benny. I was really tempted by the full cooked breakfast with haggis but in an effort to be more paleo I opted for the courgette fritters with poached eggs, bacon, feta, avocado and onion jam. The courgette fritters were really tasty and all the components of the dish worked really well together. The portions were huge so it was definitely good value for money. Atmosphere was nice and relaxed. My only complaint is that the tables were a bit small for two people to have such big breakfasts.

I’m one of those people who are «secretly healthy». Sure I stuff my face full of fried things on the regular and wax poetic about full fat dairy everything, but I also have a cupboard full of supplements, active kelp enzymes and multi-​vitamins, I wish I owned a Vitamix, I make smoothies with Manuka honey and
I juice.
It is my secret shame.
Before my big move, I juiced fruits and veggies daily but haven’t quite made my way to buying a new juicer here in Edinburgh. Instead, I scour the city looking for fresh juice alternatives, that can tied me over until I get my own and Kilimanjaro takes this top spot so far.
My only real complaint with this place is that it doesn’t have wifi, or else it would coast cleanly into a five star range. It’s a great little spot for a meeting and the food here is fresh, but filling. The coffee is good — not being a coffee geek myself, I can’t speak to HOW good, but I like it. So that means it’s half decent I suppose.
But the nicest surprise of this spot is that it boasts some decent fresh juice, including GASP — some greens. Green juice just doesn’t seem to be a thing that’s caught on here, so I applaud them for taking the reigns on it. What’s more, the juice is fairly priced and seems to be juiced to order (which fellow juice geeks will know is mucho important).
All in all, it’s a happy little find for my secret health nut ways and though it’s a jaunt and a half away from my house, I will definitely make a point to stop in when in the hood.

My last review was from 2012, and whilst the amazingness of Kiliminjaro hasn’t really changed, their menu has with some really tasty new options.
The Kili Breakfast is still there (a full Scottish breakfast with haggis, without the grease. Highly recommended), and the Benny, but now they have «the Fritters» and «the Shrooms». The Fritters are great for gluten-​free option (I haven’t checked to make sure they are really gluten free, but there’s no bread). Courgette fritters that are fried, not deep fried, with poached egg, bacon, feta, avocado and beetroot chutney. Yes, it is as awesome as it sounds. The Shrooms are balsamic chunky mushrooms on chunky bread with poached eggs, and a hard strong Spanish-​like cheese. Also amazing (but comes with bread so I can’t get it as much).
Their flat whites are still brilliant. Their scones are still legendary in Edinburgh. They still have four types of soup everyday (served before lunchtime). Their furniture is still rickety and mismatched. There’s still no wifi. They’re still really busy with students at all times of the day. And you can still order breakfast at whatever time you want.
Kiliminjaro is an Old Town institution, and I love it all the more for their updated menu.

Love this spot! The staff are often very busy as the place is hopping, but they always handle it extremely well and service is super quick.
Yummy food, relaxed atmosphere, you pay for the quality you get, like in any coffee place/​restaurant/​bistro/​café, so no complaints about the prices!
Always a great place to wind down or start the day, right by the university campus too!
My new haven.

My friend and I had a killer brunch at Kilimanjaro Coffee. We were both tired from a night out at The Hive and were craving drinks and a big meal. I ordered the vegetarian breakfast and was not disappointed — great portion and fabulous taste.

Spinning my bike through Edinburgh, and looking for a good cup of coffee,…I find some good ratings for Kilimanjaro, so must give it a try.
An Americano. Double long shot.
Long Black. 40% La Serrania, Colombia; 40% Ayichesh, Ethiopia; 20% Santa Ana, Brazil.
Some of those lemon, nutmeg, and persimmony notes that lover of lighter roasts love, but which, for this less witty tongue require a bit of milk to soften the pungency. Doesn’t embrace the chocolate, sienna darkness that I require in the morning, but a good cup nonetheless, especially if you’re fond of tangier flavors.
By the way, the scrambled eggs were perfectly cooked. Along with the thick-​cut freshly baked bread and bittersweet orange marmalade,…a pretty lovely way to start the day.

Kilimanjaro Coffee is a great little lunch spot when out and about in Newington and around the university. It’s a handy place to meet friends for lunch, grab some brunch or catch up over coffee.
They do a scrummy Chai latte and always have a great selection of different soups (much more interesting than other lunchy places). They also do a tasty eggs benedict.
As it’s such a good spot for lunch, it does get very busy around lunchtime and can be hard to get a table. I suppose that’s a good sign though!

Spectacular breakfast plate. Was properly impressed and given so much food that I could not consume it all (see photo). Good cuppa to go along with it hit the spot perfectly.
Will definitely be back here. I liked the look of the cakes too, though I didn’t scoff any on my first visit.
Only downside? Very, very busy at lunch time and practically had to shout in order to have a conversation, ooft! But pick a less hectic time of day and you’re probably on for a winner.

I’m super-​finicky about orange juice, but this morning as I bimbled aimlessly along the street, I had a bizarre and sudden craving for a big glass of the stuff. Boy, was I lucky to be on Nicolson Street when the craving descended: I definitely hit the right joint.
This might seem an odd thing to rave about in a coffee shop but… the ORANGE JUICE, people. It tastes of ORANGES. When they say freshly squeezed, they absolutely mean it, and you only pay the same as you would for stuff from a carton or bottle in a restaurant. I’m seriously thinking of going back again just for another glass of the stuff.
For those of you less inclined to be citrically overawed, there are of course other details. The service was jovial but unintrusive. The bacon was jolly good too. There’s also more seating within than you might expect from a glance at the frontage; it’s compact, but not crowded. At first, I was going to say that my pot of tea was fairly generous too, since it did me two and half cups, but the cup was actually weeny. Nonetheless, it’s that juice that sticks in my mind like a jug of sunshine. Tasty, tasty sunshine.

Aw, a nice spot for a nice breakfast.
This is a very nice coffee shop and café. Order at the counter and then grab a seat behind it or down the long hallway filled with tables.
We came at the height of Fringe Madness and was worried there wouldn’t be a place to sit. There actually was a table, but it was crammed in between two others and we were four people. You take what you can get though. We were just about to sit when another bigger one opened and we snatched that.
What I’m saying with that is, Killimanjaro has great turn over, even in the mouth of Fringe… so on a normal day, I’m betting you’ll be fine.
The food was excellent. Seriously excellent. We got the Killi Breakfast which for £6 came loaded with toast, eggs, potato scone, bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes and more. All of it tasty and delicious. Woah. We also got the healthy breakfast which was yoghurt, granola and fruit, also tasty, also fresh.
Staff could use a little more cheer (but again, it was Fringe.) They forgot to bring out two of our meals and our waiter gave a frustrated look at us when we stopped him to ask if it was coming. But ah well.
Besides that, great breakfast, great stop to stop and take a breather in Edinburgh.

Sehr feines Café in Stadtzentrum. Der Kaffee ist ausgezeichnet und die Atmosphäre ist auch sehr nett, da sehr szenige Musik gespielt wird. Einziger Minuspunkt sind die kleinen Tische und großen Stühle. daher 4 von 5 Punkte.