The 5 Best Cafes for Creative Inspiration in Edinburgh
There are few places in the world as jam packed with arts and creativity as Edinburgh. The world’s first UNESCO City of Literature and home to the globe’s largest Fringe Festival has been inspiring writers and artists of all stripes for hundreds of years.
But that doesn’t mean that simply being in the city can magically unblock you. While I’ve done some great writing sitting in my apartments here, often in one of the ubiquitous bay windows that so many flats have, I often struggle to truly lock in creatively when I’m surrounded by silence. Even in Edinburgh.
Luckily, this city of artists and students has plenty of other options. The number of cafes, work spaces, and public areas where someone can sit with a laptop or sketchbook are too numerous to number. But often, when working on creative projects, your local Costa Coffee or library may not be enough to attract the muse.
If you’re looking to be inspired as well as caffeinated, here are the top five places to check out in Edinburgh.
1. MF Coffee Shop at Summerhall
Located in the Summerhall event venue, this towering space has high windows that look out towards the Meadows, plenty of tables, and a tempting selection of cakes. Sitting here, you can sometimes hear music coming from other rooms throughout the building or catch snippets of conversation from folks passing through for various events and gatherings. On Tuesday evenings, there is a popular MeetUp group that gathers to write together here, too. Bonus: if you’re sick of the coffee, you can exit through the back of the building which will dump you right onto the doorstep of The Royal Dick Pub, with its plentiful indoor and outdoor seating where you can continue to write over a pint.
1 Summerhall Place, Newington; Open Monday - Saturday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm and Sundays from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
2. August_21 Coffee House
Not far from Summerhall is the tiny August_21 Coffee House. An independent cafe, this space is a community hub that hosts workshops, music, art, film, and much more. They are values-forward, seeking to make a welcoming environment for everyone. With limited table space, they are very clear on their policy around computers (share tables if you’re on a computer; purchase something new every hour), which I found clear and refreshing. It’s worth it too! Surrounded by art, creative conversations, and friendly people, it’s impossible not to feel inspired to focus on your own projects.
89 Causewayside, Newington: Open Monday - Sunday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
3. Books N’ Cup Cafe
This one is a classic for a reason! Bustling with activity, Books N’ Cup in Stockbridge is a popular stop for people hitting the shops in the area. They serve an array of pastries and other food, meaning it does fill up for breakfast and lunch. While they have rules around where you can have laptops and when, it is worth the wait. The warm brick interior with wood finishes and leather chairs is basically a writer’s dream and the seats along the front window provide ample people watching to help with character building. I suggest making a creative afternoon of your visit, hitting the many charity shops that are within a few blocks radius to dig for items that prompt your creativity, then fueling your writing or drawing with a coffee and cardamom bun.
16 Raeburn Place, Stockbridge; Open Monday - Sunday, 7:30 am - 10:00 pm
Instagram @booksncup
4. Out of the Blue Drill Hall
I was excited to learn about this space my last time in Edinburgh, when I took a sewing machine class with Remode Collective. Positioned just a block off of Leith Walk, the Drill Hall is home to a number of rehearsal spaces and creative businesses, like Remode. That means, from the cafe that sits inside the main space, you are surrounded by theater and music practices, artists making crafts, and other community gatherings. The high, windowed ceiling bathes the cafe in natural light and gives your imagination space to roam. Check them out the last Saturday of every month, when they hold a flea market, where you can explore and support other artists.
36 Dalmeny Street off Leith Walk; Open Monday - Saturday, 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
5. Browns of Leith
This event space in the center of Leith just opened in late 2025 and is quickly becoming a favorite in the neighborhood. Taking over the renovated George Brown & Sons Engineering Works building, Browns is home to four food and drink establishments, with more planned in the future. They include Haze, a coffee shop and wine bar; Shuck bar, serving seafood; Civerinos, an NYC-style pizza brand; and Woven, a whisky blending studio that I had a blast visiting recently. The building is grand, the bones of the old machinery blending with the modern steel tables to make something truly special. When the giant stable doors are opened onto the water, there is no better place to let the world in while you create.
4 - 6 Shore, Leith; Open Thursday - Sunday, 9:00 am - 10:00 pm
Do you have a favorite place to write, sketch, or dream in Edinburgh? Let me know on my instagram @sarahjeanbenvenuti
