City Drinking | Edinburgh
Where to drink in Edinburgh
Many of the capital’s pubs have a long and colourful history behind them, particularly in the cobbled streets of the Old Town which wind their way in and around the castle. The Royal Mile and the Grassmarket have more than their fair share of such howffs. In summer, especially during the Festival, these streets try their best to resemble European pavement café culture whenever the sun shows its face.
For your own slice of history, wind your way to:
Finnegan’s Wake, Grassmarket
Black Bull, Grassmarket
Deacon Brodie’s Tavern, Lawnmarket
The Canon’s Gait, 232 Canongate
Dragonfly, West Port
Beluga, 30A Chambers St
The New Town
The New Town isn’t exactly modern, being beautifully designed Victorian or Edwardian townhouses, many now converted into smart bars, restaurants, offices or shops. Rose Street, the pedestrian lane that runs parallel to Princes St, has always been popular for pub crawls, but now the stylish ‘superbars’ of George St are beginning to vie for attention.
All Bar One, George St
The Dome, George St
Candy Bar, George St
Tigerlily, George St
The Abbotsford, Rose St
Whigham’s Wine Cellars, 13 Hope St
Café Royal, 17 W Register St
Indigo Yard, 7 Charlotte Lane
Stockbridge
There are not only pubs galore in the city centre, but many outlying districts too. Stockbridge by the Water of Leith still has a good range of traditional bars, as well as more contemporary neighbours who have since moved in.
Avoca, 4-6 Dean St
The Baillie Bar, 2-4 St Stephen St
Bert’s Bar, 2 Raeburn Pl
Hector’s, 47 – 49 Deanhaugh St
Hamilton’s Bar Kitchen, 18 Hamilton Place
The South Side
The South Side, too, often missed by tourists, has its own unique selection of popular watering holes, frequented by the mix of residents who live in and around Bruntsfield and Morningside.
The Canny Man, 237 Morningside Rd
Montpelier’s, 159 – 161 Bruntsfield Place
Cargo, Edinburgh Quay, 129 Fountainbridge
Human Be-In, 2 – 8 West Crosscauseway
Bennet’s, 8 Leven St
The New Bell, 233 Causewayside
Leith
Leith once had a seedy reputation, yet the busy port has cleaned up its act and is now the location of expensive harbour-side apartments as well as Michelin-starred restaurants and attractive bars. Fresh seafood is a speciality here, while there are even more ambience-filled pubs along the seafront at Newhaven.
The Ship on the Shore, Leith
The King’s Wark, 36 The Shore
The Waterfront Wine Bar and Grill, Leith
Port o’ Leith, 58 Constitution St
Starbank Inn, Newhaven
Old Chain Pier, Newhaven