Launch date revealed for Edinburgh’s top Italian restaurant

One of Scotland’s most successful young restauranteurs has announced that Edinburgh’s latest destination Italian restaurant, Rico’s Ristorante, will open its doors to guests at 58A North Castle Street in the New Town from 6.30pm on Friday 9th July. 

Scots-Italian Stefano Pieraccini, 25, has created the exciting new 56-cover restaurant and 20-cover bar on the former site of The Honours, which was previously owned by Michelin Star Chef Martin Wishart for 11 years.

Open for lunch and dinner five days a week from Wednesday to Sunday, Rico’s aims to attract city centre workers and the New Town community as well as visitors to the city with focus on top quality and authentic Italian dishes made with the finest, locally-sourced Scottish ingredients, including fresh pasta made onsite daily. 

As well as a mouth-watering selection of cicchetti pre-dinner snacks, antipasti will include hand-dived Isle of Mull scallop & guanciale; risotto with East coast crab and shellfish bisque; and Carpaccio of Tweed Valley beef fillet, smoked onion & truffle.

Homemade pasta will feature Pappardelle with organic Peelham farm rose veal ragù & black truffle. 

Showcase main courses will include oven baked sea bream served at the table; Tweed Valley Ribeye; Black faced lamb with violet artichoke;  and fillet of Pittenweem Day Boat Halibut. 

A fixed price set lunch menu will also be available. 

The bar will be open to non-diners until around midnight as soon as all Covid restrictions have been lifted, offering an extensive cocktail menu and award-winning wine list be supplied by Antinori; one of the most well-known names in Italian winemaking with a history that dates back almost 600 years.

Named after his grandfather, Enrico Pieraccini, Rico’s is the latest addition to Stefano’s growing portfolio of restaurants and will create 25 local jobs in the city.

Led by Stefano, Rico’s will become the latest addition to independent restaurant collection, The Rocca Group, which already includes The Broughton on Edinburgh’s Broughton Street and The Seafood Ristorante in St Andrews.

Commenting on the launch of Rico’s, Stefano Pieraccini, said: 

“We’re really excited to be putting Rico’s on the map as Edinburgh top destination Italian restaurant.

“We think now is the time to bring something really different to Edinburgh city centre. The venue itself will be stylish, desirable and have a great atmosphere, but I also want it to be somewhere guests know they will get excellent, authentic Italian dishes and warm hospitality.

“It’s a great feeling to be announcing some good news after the trials and tests of the pandemic. We can’t wait to welcome guests to Rico’s from 9th July.”

The Rocca Group is known for its dedication to quality and long tradition of great cooking, award wins and delivering great cuisine in a refined but relaxing environment. Building on the high standards he grew up with, Stefano and his team combine an eye for new trends with an unwavering commitment to quality. Each venue has its own unique character and are connected by a shared passion for the very best food and drink, professional service and all-round excellence.

Stefano’s ambition is to grow his restaurant collection across Scotland and the north of England over the next five years.

Rico’s will be located at 58A North Castle Street, Edinburgh, EH2 3LU. For more information, visit https://www.ricosristorante.co.uk and follow Rico’s on Instagram https://instagram.com/ricosristorante.  

Table reservations will open from Thursday 1st July via the Rico’s website https://www.ricosristorante.co.uk. Bookings can be taken from 6.30pm on Friday 9th July.

For more information on The Rocca Group, visit: https://www.theroccagroup.co.uk