High-profile Edinburgh chef Roberta Hall-McCarron is to close her restaurant Eleanore at the end of next week for a month-long refurb, after which it will open in a more relaxed incarnation as a neighbourhood bistro.
The evening tasting menu will be dropped in favour of a two-or-three-course set menu of ‘bistro classics with a modern edge’, and guests will be encouraged to drop in for a glass of wine and snacks at the bar if they don’t feel like a full meal.
Eleanore is one of three independent venues run by Roberta and her husband Shaun McCarron in Leith, a mile or so from Edinburgh’s Royal Mile – all of which are highly rated for their “wonderful food” in the 2026 Harden’s guide. Eleanore occupies the original site of their flagship, the Little Chartroom, which they opened eight years ago.
Roberta says of the latest move: “We wanted to take Eleanore back to its roots, giving guests the freedom to shape their own experience, from how long they stay to what they spend. There’s a lot of nostalgia tied up in this restaurant for us, and this felt like the right moment to reinterpret that in a way that reflects how people want to eat now.
“By bringing our kitchens and wine collections closer together across Eleanore, The Little Chartroom and Ardfern, we can operate more thoughtfully and pass that value on to our guests, without compromising on quality.”
Eleanore will reopen in March after a full kitchen refit and with the dining room rejigged to bring back the banquette of the original Little Chartroom and the kitchen counter removed to make way for a bar. But it will remain a very small and intimate venue, with 16 table seats and four stools at the bar providing just 20 covers.
Head chef Hamish McNeill will preside over a seasonal menu presented with what is described as “a more comforting, generous style of cooking”. Highlights include snacks like oysters with rhubarb ponzu and hot sauce or ox cheek croquettes with salsa verde; starters such as beef tartare with kale and kohlrabi, or mussel Thermidor; hearty mains from confit duck leg with Puy lentils to a rotating specials board featuring sharing steaks; and nostalgic crowd-pleasing desserts like sticky toffee profiteroles. On Sundays there will be a special lunch menu, with the kitchen working closely with The Little Chartroom and Ardfern to use whole animals across all three venues.
A concise list of around 25 wines will be available by the glass, carafe and on draught, much of it drawn from Helix Wines – the importing business founded by The Little Chartroom alongside group head sommelier Finn Porelli and operations manager Johanna Cole.
