Inside history-making Sam Yorke's Edinburgh restaurant Heron

By Sam Yorke’s own admission, had Heron not received a Michelin star, it would likely not be in existence today.

Situated on what has now become a culinary hotspot of Leith in Edinburgh, Heron opened in 2021, within walking distance of renowned restaurants run by Martin Wishart, Tom Kitchin and Roberta Hall-McCarron.

Heron was created by Sam and fellow chef Tomás Gormley, off the back of their successful ‘Bad Seeds’ pop-up.

It was not the smoothest of starts for their bricks and mortar site, but everything changed in March 2023.

“When we first got the star, it was pretty surreal,” Sam said.

“I think none of us were expecting it. You get the invitation and obviously we were hoping that it would be the case, but you never know until you are there.

“The business was really quite struggling at the time, so it turned it around for us overnight.

“We would not still be here, I do not think, without the impact of getting the star.

“We have retained it now. This is our fourth year. Every year it feels amazing to retain it.”

Asked about the restaurant’s difficulties prior to winning a star, Sam explained: “With the costs, we were not busy enough. The industry as a whole is struggling, with rising costs across the board.

“We were about £60,000 in the hole at the time and, as I say, it turned it around for us completely.

“I do not think it is any easier now, to be honest, for small businesses. The cost of labour, the cost of produce and everything, business rates have just gone up. It is a tough time.”

He added: “There was a lot of pressure (before the star) on everybody really.

“We have bills to pay. It was the business debt. There was a lot of borrowed money to open the place.

“It feels good that we have since managed to clear that debt, thankfully, so we are not in a bad position. But it was stressful, for sure. A lot of sleepless nights.”

Standout turbot dish

The Michelin Guide describes Heron as a “neighbourhood restaurant” with “warm and unstuffy service”, with “skilful cooking, founded on fine Scottish produce”.

One of the standout dishes at Heron centres around turbot, served with a mousse, clams and sparkling wine foam sauce.

“Turbot is known as the king of the sea,” said Sam.

“It is the best meat that I work with, for sure. It has beautiful white, flaky flesh.

“The dish has been very popular. With the nature of the sauce and things, it can be considered slightly more challenging.

“It is quite a classic dish overall, technique wise, but we add in a few more curious flavours to try and make it a little bit more interesting.

“It has evolved slightly. We started out with a cider foam to finish it. Then we moved to Champagne and then tried some really nice sparkling wine from Langham. That is now what we use to season the foam.

“Usually we would do over 120 portions per week – so we are getting in four or five whole turbots a week.”

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Asked if fish has become more commonly chosen by diners in recent years, Sam said: “I would not necessarily say it is more popular. I suppose as people move to eating less meat in general, they might prefer to eat fish.

“But fishing is hardly the most sustainable either. It may be slightly better for the planet than eating a load of meat, but I would not say it is too dissimilar.”

Discussing the food offering at Heron more generally, Sam said: “We are always pushing, trying to make things better.

“We were a little bit more rustic five years ago.

“We only did à la carte at the time, so the tasting menu was something that we added on down the line, which is much more comfortable for me, and where my training has mainly been based around.”

Sam Yorke’s historic success

Rochdale-born Sam trained at Edinburgh New Town Cooking School, before getting a job working under Dominic Jack at Castle Terrace.

Within two years, Sam had risen from commis to sous chef, before the restaurant closed its doors.

Sam then met Tomás, whilst working together at Seasons, and the pair would go on to form a strong culinary partnership.

When first winning a Michelin star, Sam earned a notable accolade – the youngest Michelin-starred chef in Scotland, at the age of 25.

Asked if he was aware of that achievement at the time, Sam said: “I did not when we got the star. I would not have realised that I was the youngest to get a star in Scotland had I not been told by our PR firm at the time.

“It is not really something that you keep track of, although I have heard it quite a lot since!

“It is a real privilege and a real honour to be awarded like that at a young age.”

Why the name ‘Heron’?

Heron overlooks the Water of Leith, a fact which offer the best explanation to the name of the restaurant itself.

“There was not a reason necessarily why the restaurant was called Heron,” Sam said.

“Our previous restaurant manager used to say that it is because we are perched on the water, because we are right on the Water of Leith.

“We are looking out onto the water, so I think that is probably the best excuse.”

Heron opens five days a week, for dinners Wednesday to Sunday, and also lunch at the weekends, before closing on Mondays and Tuesdays.