Edinburgh Cafe, 70-71 Princes Street, Edinburgh

The Edinburgh Cafe, located at 70-71 Princes Street in Edinburgh, is a former cafe built between 1886 and 1888 by Hippolyte J Blanc. This four-storey and attic building features a single bay in the Early North European Renaissance style, characterized by its narrow gabled frontage made of red polished ashlar sandstone. The ground floor has a modern shopfront, while the giant semi-elliptical central arched recess contains a canted window that extends from the first to the third floors. Flanking this recess are panels framed by narrow pilasters. On the second floor, there are oval sculpted heraldic panels and a frieze. The attic features a six-window band in the gable, topped with a crest in a round panel and a lion finial.

At the rear, facing Rose Street South Lane, the building has a three-storey, three-bay elevation made of droved ashlar. This elevation includes windows flanking a pair of doors at ground level, with a cornice and cill courses above, while the upper storey has been later harled.

The windows throughout the building are timber sash and case, with plate glass and six-pane upper sashes. The roof is covered with grey slates, featuring ashlar coped skews and a pedimented ashlar stack.

The interior has been converted for modern retail use.