In the neighbourhood — La Cîme Deli

In early May, I met with Will and Anne, owners of La Cîme Deli at Lounge 33 on Leith Walk - somewhere new to me - a place full of chatter, gentle clinks of coffee cups and an appreciation for vinyl records. Over oat milk flat whites and lattes, we spent the morning chatting everything from the appeal of a perfect scraggily scone to the quiet power of neighbourhood cafes to the dishes that feel like home.

La Cîme is nestled in the Trinity neighbourhood in Edinburgh, a stone’s throw away from Victoria Park and just uphill from Newhaven harbour. From the outside, its rich burgundy exterior is a beacon amongst the light sandstone terraced buildings that surround it. To the side hangs an antique-looking sign with Anne’s childhood home stencilled into it - a welcome sight for locals, neighbours and visitors alike. Inside, there’s ample open shelving where old radios, enamel jugs, scales, bottles of wine and Anne’s grandma’s crystal glasses sit amongst tins of sardines, French pantry essentials and local Scottish products. La Cîme rests quietly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays but come Thursday, life pours in and out of the space - a cross-generational mix of customers, pulled in by the lure of heartfelt homemade cooking. With space to sit both inside and out, it’s a place to nurse cups of coffees, brush pastry crumbs from lips and tuck into something hearty and comforting, often with a nod to the flavours and traditions of Anne’s French heritage.

La Cîme opened it’s doors in 2023, following an extensive renovation - but the early seeds of the deli started a decade or so earlier when Anne and Will first crossed paths. Will grew up in Stockbridge, Edinburgh while Anne grew up in the the Lozère region of Occitanie in France. The pair got together in 2012 when Anne was midway through her time in hospitality school and took a summer internship at Restaurant Martin Wishart in Leith. Anne explained, ‘I wanted to get some experience in fine dining… when I joined the team, Will was in charge of front of house and that’s where we met’. Laughing, Anne continued, ‘It’s a bit of a classic story where I spent the summer working and visiting and thought, I want to stay here - so I went and finished school [in France] and then came back to work here full time.’

It wasn’t long until conversations about their imaginary future bistro started, Will describing it as ‘the driving force’ behind the different jobs they took. As well as picking up friends along the way, each job was, in some way, a stepping stone into opening their own space - Anne focussing on building her skills in the kitchen in both sweet and savoury cooking and Will gaining experience in front of house capacity, management and in wine. Their stint on luxury yachts offered them an opportunity to hone their multi-tasking skills and ability to work under pressure, and above all, to do a lot with minimal space and storage. It also allowed them to travel while working and exposed them to different foods and cuisines - Anne told me, ‘The access to ingredients was incredible and it was amazing to have a limitless budget - it’s a bit like working in a top restaurant.’ Will added that Anne was the only chef on the yacht and so, ‘all the ordering, provisioning, peeling every potato, washing every dish, running to the shops’ fell onto her shoulders.

On returning to Edinburgh, Anne took up posts in restaurant kitchens and Will sidestepped into wine - heading up a Majestic Wine store before stepping back into the restaurant scene to gain more management experience. In that respect, La Cîme is the result of hours in the kitchen and on the restaurant floor - of up-skilling - of steadily learning how to turn their shared dream into a realisation.

Anne told me thoughtfully, ‘I feel in hospitality, if you want to make it your career, at some point you will be thinking, can we do it ourselves?’ She continued, ‘It keeps you motivated and we always try and take a step forward - and the excitement would be what you’re dreaming of doing yourself’.

They explained that La Cîme was an ongoing project - one that slowly developed and grew over time, Anne telling me, ‘Every time we speak it’s very much linked to food and wine - from cooking something in the home that we loved, hunting down a recipe or deciding what to drink with what dinner - La Cîme came from that, from finding those dishes where we say, ‘that’s a banger… let’s share that!’’

Talking to Anne and Will, it is so apparent that their heritages have naturally shaped their shared love of food and wine. Anne told me openly, ‘I cooked from a very early age, my mum is a very good cook and my Granny was too - all the slow-cooked dinners have come from home.’ She continued, ‘It’s those childhood memories connected to meals - that’s the kind of cooking I really love.’ Here we chatted about dishes that feel synonymous with childhood and with home. Will spoke lovingly of his mum, of her fish pie and her practice of sticking meticulously to the recipe as well as his Granny, who used an ancient gas cooker from the 50’s, which at one point was condemned by a serviceman for having no safety features on it, but remained at the heart of her kitchen, churning out Sunday lunch after Sunday lunch for Will and his cousins. Anne on the other hand spoke of dishes involving foraged mushrooms, game and charcuterie - her family making their own charcuterie once a year in January, working the whole animal and making sure nothing was wasted. She spoke animatedly about the recipe in the family notebook for pate, exclaiming that ‘if I was doing it, I would only use that recipe’.

When they first opened La Cîme, Will and Anne did everything themselves. It was an exciting and creatively rewarding time, but it was also unsustainable. As the months went on, and when they found themselves expecting a little one, they recognised that some change was needed. Will told me, ‘La Cîme has been very personal from the start and so we really took our time with expanding the team. Anne added, ‘We wanted a team who shared the passion behind the food, the combination of flavours and care, when it goes through the pass they would like to eat it themselves.’

Will reflected, ‘The team we’ve hired have all really helped us transition into parenthood’ and told me how each person has played a key part in keeping the standards that they hoped for and in making La Cîme a supportive and thriving work culture. Here he mentioned Dan, who regulars will fondly know - he was their very first hire in August 2024 and has been a ‘very mindful and supportive’ team-player, learning everything from scratch. Will continued, ‘A big shout-out also to Clem - she has been excellent. She and Anne share a similar ethos about food - both cooking from the heart. She has come up with some really great dishes that people have enjoyed - she has really driven the standard in the kitchen and really does care.’

Talking of food on the pass, we spoke about what their La Cîme order would be just now - a question that gave a real insight into their characters and how they like to eat. Will was split between the tiramisu cake and the savoury scones, which he described as ‘simple and heartwarming, they are always a steadfast winner.’ Anne on the other hand opted for one of Clem’s weekend specials - courgette flowers with goats cheese and pancetta. Will lightheartedly teased that Anne could ‘easily have a Croque Madame every week’. Laughing, Anne agreed and added, ‘I think if Will and I were going, we would sit and share four plates, one choice is quite tricky because one flavour is so different from the other. Maybe a rabbit ragu with tagliatelle, that is very good.’

We spoke about cooking with intention and care, of considering the flavours and seasonality and of the way food can evoke emotion. Anne advocated, ‘We don’t want to be on autopilot when we work; when you start not really having to think when you cook something, it means you need to change it.’ She continued thoughtfully, ‘You never want to be bored when you’re cooking’. This is so evident in their changing menus and counter offerings - there is a transmission of feeling there - of memory, of care and of love - that magical quality where each mouthful makes you feel something.

Over the years, La Cîme has become a treasured part of the community - a place for fostering conversation and connection, to escape the rain, to offer comfort after a tricky nursery run, to share experiences of grief, of love, of celebration and everything else in between. Anne told me how the children of families, who they’ve seen from babes in arms to toddlers, now know her as the ‘smiley cake lady’.

Will added, ‘People have been so supportive from the beginning, some people come in twice a day for coffee - I would actually say it’s way surpassed anything I would have imagined when we first opened.’

From the outset, they were determined to build strong bonds with the community and the businesses already in the area. Will told me, ‘It was always going to be Mr Eion for our coffee, we never even considered using a different coffee supplier.’ They warmly recalled a very caffeinated morning they had in the Stockbridge shop with Martin, who roasts the coffee beans, cupping coffee.

Will continued, ‘We were just about to open and were buzzing (helped by the caffeine) and had a brilliant morning, tasting and sharing the same passion, as well as learning about the product.’ As well as championing local roasters, and milk suppliers - Bonaly Farm Dairy, they also spotlight independent makers and suppliers in the products they stock - from The Leith Annual, to Chocolatiers Edward & Irwyn to Wildflower Honey by Jon Bradbury.

Since the beginning, Will and Anne have also opened the doors of La Cîme for private dining, where guests can have exclusive use of the space and tailor it to meet their own needs. In that time they have hosted a wedding, a stag do breakfast, a family Christmas and many birthday celebrations.

Anne recalled a lady who booked the space to celebrate her 80th, telling me, ‘I really loved that one because they were just laughing the whole time, all you could hear was laughter’. Will added, ‘The events that stand out are the ones that are full of laughter, people having a good time and using the space how they want it.’ He continued, ‘We love doing them, they are part of our culture and I feel honoured that people want to spend a special occasion at La Cîme.’

For me, La Cîme is the quintessential example of the impact and value a neighbourhood cafe can bring to a community. Like many others, it has become part of the tapestry of my life - a place I go to catch up with a friend or have a slow weekend lunch with my family or simply have some time for myself. I often see a familiar face, clocked on a previous visit and can spot the looks of excitement when people recognise their orders coming out of the kitchen. La Cîme is truly a realisation of a long-held ambition and it’s character, ever-inviting food and warmth has found its way into both my heart and the hearts of the local community and beyond.

A huge thank you to Will and Anne for taking the time to meet and tell me about their story. Find out more about La Cîme here and Graham Williams (a local neighbour and friend of Will and Anne, as well as professional photographer) here.