Sabor Criollo

So many times I’ve walked past this place and thought ‘oh Latin American food, I didn’t notice that there!’ I’ve probably done this at least a dozen times. It doesn’t look like much from the outside but don’t be fooled– inside is a lovely venue with authentic Latin American food.
With quite a small number of tables I would recommend you book on a weekend. When busy this place is loud. Like, yell at the person sitting opposite you loud which I found to be a bit of an inconvenience.
Acoustics aside, the food and drinks are quite good. £5 cocktails which I think is a reasonable price. In terms of food, there is a special where you can get a starter and main for just under £15 which I thought was great value.
My food (which for the life of me I can’t pronounce!) Came out freshly prepared and well presented. I do wish there was a bit more flavour to the shredded beef which was quite bland.
Overall, definitely worth giving this place a try. If not for the food, at least for the cocktails!

On a Unilocal dinner night out I had the pleasure to dine at Sabor Criollo in Stockbridge.
And boy, it’s great to be with Unilocal,because who knows when I would have gone there myself and this way I had most lovely company and a great dinner.
The restaurant is a little harder to find (at least if you are like me a New-​Edinburgher and are not used yet to restaurants being in the souterrain).
It’s a funnily decorated place that manages to let you forget that you are sitting in a basement which I wish more of these bars and restaurants would do.
Now the food:
mexican/​south american
It’s excellent, try their mojillos, these mussels were delicious for a starter.
Fajitas and Quesadillas are normally not something I particularly care for but theirs are great definitely a reason for me to come back again.
I would have liked to try their desserts but I simply could not eat another dish so I can only account for for what I had and can ensure you, it’s worth the way to Stockbridge.

Apparently, Sabor Criollo has been here for like six centuries or something (possible exaggeration) so I don’t even know how I hadn’t heard of it before. Were I wearing a hat, though, I would be tipping it most genially in Blythe R’s direction for bringing our monthly dinner club to this adorable little beach shack in a Stockbridge basement.
As a basement restaurant (it’s easy to miss so keep your eyes peeled when you’re on the right street) it could so easily be dark and claustrophobic. What they’ve done with the place is stellar — they’ve dressed the bar up as a beach shack, twined trees (and a parrot! not a real one, sadly) around the ceiling, and painted windows onto the walls with open shutters and wonderful beach views. They’re not in a convincing trompe l’oeil style, instead being intentionally slightly cartoonish. The effect is actually better, because first of all trying to make them convincing is never going to work and could just be tacky, and secondly the bright colours are so lively that it has the same kind of energy level as an actual window. It tricked my brain without tricking my eyes — very smart!
Now on to the food. I had the chilli mushroom starter, which was simply divine and I could have eaten four portions of it as a main. This was followed by chicken fajitas, Venezuelan style: wayyy less hot and spicy than the Mexican tradition, and the onions and peppers were less heavily fried, still having a considerable amount of bite and crunch. It was really nice, especially with the addition of what I called the traffic light of deliciousness — three little dishes containing salsa, sour cream and guacamole. A nice touch, too, was that the tortillas were served in a little plastic lidded pot marked «tortilla» to keep them warm and soft. Overall, the food didn’t completely blow my head off in terms of being impressed, but I was very HAPPY. I was dancing. Seriously. Ask my dinner companions. Happy dancing in my seat.
Finally, drinks. I ordered my usual, lime and soda, and I was thoroughly taken aback. This was no cordial’n’fizz affair. This was the real deal — fresh, bitter, and oh so good, for just £1.90, this is the place to go for a lime and soda properly.

The place has a nice atmosphere, and they’ve made an effort to make this basement location feel more lively, colourful and ‘south americanish’. The service is really nice and friendly as well, and I’m pretty sure most of the waiters speak spanish which is a good sign when you’re eating in a south american place!
So why only 3 stars? I love mexican/​southern food so maybe I’m a slightly harsh critic, but I just wasn’t really taken with the menu.
Everything we ordered was a bit too overflowing with cheese and crème fraîche so the vibrant flavours were drowned out. The menu isn’t really expensive, £15 for 2 courses, but considering the fierce competition with set menus in Edina, it’s probably a touch high for such simple food (plain rice, beans, chicken, flour tortillas and side salad)

a cute small place, starter were good, mains were not bad
i had chicken fajita and mu husband had the Venezuelan shredded beef which he loved ! i didn’t really like it but it was ok !
prices are ok !

I recently moved into a new flat near Stockbridge and during one of the many journeys from my old place to the new one, my boyfriend and I noticed a basement restaurant with LATIN AMERICAN FOOD written on the side. As a Californian, I am in a constant quest for good Latin/​Mexican food, so when the car was unloaded we decided to wander down and check this place out.
The restaurant is small and cute. It was hosting a large party of partially intoxicated women celebrating a 40^th birthday who provided some excellent people watching between courses. I think this would be a fun place to come with a big party as they serve cocktails (margaritas… yummmmm) in big pitchers and the space is well setup for it.
We had our drinks order taken within minutes of sitting down, which was a definite plus, and the margaritas were the best I’ve had in Edinburgh, another big plus. The big negative was that despite asking several times, we were never brought water, which we found very odd.
We shared a starter of nachos. I remember being impressed at the salsa, which tasted home made. They also came with black beans which were a very tasty addition.
My guy ordered a dish which I kind of remember so I just went to the website to look it up but the menu tab takes me to a page that says MENU, and nothing else. Er… I remember it was something which they called traditionally Venezuelan, and it was nice. It was different, which is something I always enjoy.
I ordered their «famous» fajitas. I have had great fajitas all over Edinburgh and I do love them sooo much. I realise they’re not sexy or unusual, but man they are tasty. I loved the char-​grilled tastiness that was cooked into the chicken and the veggies. BUT they fajitas were, as they always are, served with sour cream, guacamole, and salsa. I’ve already commented on how I liked the salsa, so I was shocked at the guac and sour cream.
The guacamole tasted like it was Tesco value guacamole. Fine for a pub, but not fine for a Latin American restaurant. It was green, but I’m really not sure it even had avocados in it. My boyfriend argued that avocados are expensive and this place probably couldn’t afford to make their own guac, but I think it’s an expense which is necessary for a Latin American restaurant.
The sour cream was even more disappointing. I’m a huge fan of sour cream so was surprised when I wasn’t tasting the tangy wonderfulness which I love so much. I stuck my finger in it to taste it plain and was shocked to discover that it was cream, heavy cream. In addition to loving sour cream, I bake. A lot. I know what cream tastes like, and that was cream.
When the waiter came to take our plates our exchange went like this:
Him: So how was everything?
Me: It was great! We’re stuffed! But I just have to ask… (smile) did you run out of sour cream tonight (big smile) ?
Him: I’m sorry?
Me: (smile) I was just wondering if you ran out of sour cream, because that’s actually cream
Him: No it’s not.
Me: Oh, ehm… it really didn’t taste like sour cream to me
Him: Well it is, but I will ask the kitchen.
Me: Thanks… oh and can we get our bill please?
A few minutes later the waiter came back to assure me that it was indeed sour cream, and was then never to be seen again.
We sat for about 15 minutes trying to catch someone’s eye to bring us the bill, before we just stood up and went directly to the counter to pay.
So, I’m left with really mixed feelings about this place. I would definitely have gone back to try the food with more of a Venezuelan twist if the waiter (s) hadn’t decided to dessert our table because of my question.
I find it hard to give places a second chance when they fall down so hard in areas like service and quality of ingredients.

We checked Sabor Criollo on the recommendation of a friend who regularly works in South America and knows good food from the area when she sees it. It didn’t disappoint.
A two-​course meal is very reasonably priced at £13.99 a head on a Saturday night. The place was busy when we were there, but the service was fast, courteous and friendly.
I had the fajitas (delicious) and my wife had the shredded beef, both of which were fantastic.
This is a great little place tucked away smack in the middle of Stockbridge and we’ll be going again.

An unexpected Venezuelan restaurant right in the middle of Stockbridge, supplies arepas and a wide range of latin american food and beers. The black beans are perfect. Highly recommended.

It’s a good Latin American place, and takes the menu wider than the Mexican staples you might expect. Great black beans and the fish dishes are superb. Often quiet but a good place to hang out with beers if you like them limed, and the food is properly good for a casual meal out.

In my relentless (if not very wide-​reaching) search for a good margarita this Latin American restaurant comes top of my list. And I have it on good authority that it is ditto for the mojito.
But you don’t just come here for the cocktails. If you are a regular consumer of mexican food you will recognise many of the dishes on the menu; nachos, enchiladas etc. BUT and it’s a very fine BUT, there are several more esoteric dishes to try and try them you should. My personal obsession is Pabellon Margariteno, a fish dish that looks unspeakable, but tastes divine. Tool up on the cocktails and go for dishes you’ve never heard of. Go on, go on, go on.
Oh and the prices are good, the atmosphere friendly and the décor VERY LOUD.

I loved this restaurant as it has a great selection of fish and seafood. It is very reasonably priced and the menu is quite original, authentic Latin American. The staff were nice if not over friendly and the atmosphere within the restaurant is relaxed and calm