Top restaurants on the menu as part of Haymarket revamp

A NEW street near Haymarket will become home to a string of leading restaurants, as part of a bid being put together by developers.

They want the link between Morrison Street and Dalry Road to gain a reputation as a place to dine out, rather than simply another shopping street. Loch Fyne Oysters and Restaurants, the seafood chain, and noodle bar Wagamama are among the names being lined-up.

A well-known local Italian restaurant firm has also expressed an interest, as have several London-based restaurant chains.

The as-yet-unnamed street is part of the planned £200 million redevelopment of the former Morrison Street Goods Yard, which also includes 16-storey hotel, a Travelodge and office blocks.

A coffee shop, sandwich bars, cafes and other traders are also wanted in order to cater for the 1600 additional workers that would be brought to the area. The developers want to form a new "community", featuring hairdressers, booksellers, a local superstore and general shops.

But the key theme would be restaurants, and work has already begun on trying to attract leading eateries.

Ewan Mackay, director of SGM Property Consultants, the retail consultants for Tiger Developments, said: "We want to have some good quality restaurants with international brands and some good local names.

"We want to utilise the existing economy and build on it because there is going to be a lot of office users there."

The site will have around 12 commercial units and a total of 3700 square metres of restaurant and office space.

"It will become a good quality restaurant location and will be something new for the city," said Mr Mackay. "We want it to be something different – we don't want it to be another mainstream shopping street, we want some good quality local businesses."

The site itself, known as "The Haymarket", has caused controversy since drawings of the giant hotel at its heart were revealed last September. John Nesbitt, managing director of Tiger Developments, said: "The proposed retail offering will enhance and complement the existing retail in the greater Dalry and Haymarket areas.

"The Haymarket is expected to attract almost 1600 additional workers to the local area, who will not only require products and services from retailers on our site, but also existing businesses and other outlets in the wider community."

Graham Birse, deputy chief executive of the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, compared the area surrounding Haymarket Station to the area around Hammersmith Underground in London.

There, retail and leisure facilities have been built specifically aimed at commuters.

He said: "Haymarket handles more commuters than Waverley. And there is that daily march up and down Morrison Street, yet little to keep people in the area.

"This is a significant improvement on what is there now. What is far more useful [than the existing car park] is a mixed use development like this one."

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