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Three miles from the tourist-trodden Old Town of Edinburgh, Portobello has a completely different feel from the medieval spires and haunted snickelways the Scottish capital is famous for. The shoreline here has been on a rickety wooden rollercoaster of rebrands over the centuries, from a thriving industrial base in the 18th century to an upmarket seaside destination for the Victorians and then a slightly neglected suburb of faded grandeur at the turn of the millennium. Slowly and quietly since, indie shops have sprung up along the high street and street food stalls have replaced the Wimpy fast food joint, which stubbornly clung to the side of the promenade’s arcades for decades.
