My favourite street food in Edinburgh

Some say I'm biased, but Tupiniquim brings the best flavours of Brazil into the heart of the Scottish capital

Edinburgh’s food scene is changing. Perhaps accelerated by the pandemic, or maybe by the growing population of wealthy overseas university students who are used to (and demand) good street food options, only the best survive.

While many places have closed over the last few years and a lot of new competition has appeared, some of the best street food vendors remain favourites throughout the years.

I want to share one of my favourite street food places in Edinburgh. Tupiniquim, run by a Brazilian couple, occupies a prime spot on Teviot Place, right in the heart of ‘student Edinburgh,’ and has been going since 2010. It is established as one of the true greats of street food in the Scottish capital and, importantly, a firm favourite among the many international students who live in this part of town. It is featured at 13:46 in this YouTube vlog.

What makes Tupiniquim’s longevity particularly impressive is that the street on which it is located has a lot of very good and new competition.

I had a friend visiting from London during COP26 who asked where she could take a group of delegates for lunch while in the city. I told her to go to Teviot Place. Within a block, there are around a dozen great options, from a great Thai place, to Mexican, pizza, Chinese, Greek and more - and then there’s Tupiniquim. There are options for all tastes. Incidentally, the COP delegates chose the Thai place and loved it!

What you may notice is that none of these options are Scottish. There is an old pub on the corner (Doctor’s) and an Irish pub round the corner as well, but these are the least interesting of the options in my opinion, at least in culinary terms.

What makes Tupiniquim stand out as a feature on this foodie street is that it is located in one of those old and striking green police boxes, and right on the corner of the entrance down to the Meadows park. The area has high footfall and, particularly if you have any sense of smell, you can’t miss the place as you walk by.

Some will say I’m biased: my wife is Brazilian and I spend a lot of time in her home country. I absolute love Brazilian food. The problem for a lot of Brazilian food outlets in the UK, where there isn’t a large Brazilian population (basically anywhere outside of London), is that Brits - or in this case, Scottish people - are absolutely boring when it comes to food. If they don’t understand what it is, or have never heard of it, then they usually don’t want to try.

Most Brazilian food is entirely alien to us in Scotland: moqueca, pão de queijo, acaraje and quindim are just a few Brazilian foods that most Scottish most probably haven’t heard of and definitely can’t pronounce.

And this, I believe, is the secret to Tupiniquim’s longevity in Edinburgh.

For one, they are in the city’s international student hub, so people are more likely to try different things, but secondly Tupiniquim’s owners have tempered their pure Brazilian instincts to offer a really simple and singular food item that absolutely every hungry local can understand: crepes, filled with familiar sounding meats and other fillings (but all cooked using Brazilian flare and flavours).

Tupiniquim sells a really simple menu of crepes.

The crepe base they use is also Brazilian, made with a mix of rice, tapioca, maize, buckwheat, eggs and flour - and is gluten free. As for the fillings, there are options including steak/brisket (delicious), vegan marguerita, butternut squash, chicken and chicken curry. The crepes are easy to eat, just like a sandwich, are full of flavour and fill hungry bellies really nicely.

On Saturdays only, they make a very traditional Brazilian dish as a special, and it’s one of my all-time favourites. Feijoada is a kind of black bean and pork stew: lots of parts of the pig are used, including traditional pulled pork meat and sausage, but then there are the more unusual parts, such as fatty parts of the pig’s feet. Slow cooked with garlic and a large amount of black beans, the flavour is sensational, and is served over a bed of rice and cabbage, and topped with cassava flour. The hot sauce (below) is optional.

This might not seem appealing to the uninitiated, but I promise you, the flavours and textures create and pleasurable explosion in your mouth. Meanwhile, it is a hot, extremely filling dish, and is especially good during cold winter days in Edinburgh.

I’ve eaten a lot of feijoada in Brazil, both home cooked by family members and in restaurants, and Tupiniquim’s version is as good as I’ve had anywhere. Honestly, I cannot recommend it highly enough.

But as it’s only made on a Saturday and in a single serving, once it’s gone, it’s gone, and if I am anywhere close to the place on Saturdays, you better be sure I don’t get there before you!

Find out more about Tupiniquim here or visit their Instagram. Watch my YouTube vlog below which shows Edinburgh during winter, as well as eating feijoada at Tupiniquim: