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Edinburgh Too old for the student union but never been able to shake off that happy feeling of eating a bowl of chilli in a colourful, tatty joint which advertises arthouse films?
The Filmhouse Cafe Bar is one of the best bars in Edinburgh. The big secret is the crowd thins out once the films start so you don’t need to fight your way through a barrier of tourists to get a pint. You don’t need to see a film to enjoy the cafe bar but there’s usually something worth seeing.
Pub Spy said: “A membership card gets punters 10 per cent off on food and drink, as well as entry to films. But when a bar has this much going for it, you might just want to wait for the DVD.” Leith One of the most bonkerslooking bars Pub Spy has visited, with a load of whacky meteorology experiments going on and a theme for all four seasons at different areas in the bar. It’s gimmicky but great fun and the menu’s not bad.
Pub Spy said: “If you’re looking for fine dining, then pop along to the royal yacht and see what chef has on the go. If it’s fun dining you’re after, The Barologist is for you, whatever the weather.” Edinburgh pick some of the best bits of the restaurant menu. Pricey… but nicey.
Pub Spy said: “Ham, eggs and chips is on the menu at a staggering £19.50. I wondered if, at that price, it came with a share in Tom’s empire. In fact, it was a brilliant, hearty twist on the greasy spoon classic.” The restaurant is one of the posh joints in Stockbridge that posh folk like to brag about going to on social media as it’s run by posh guy Tom Kitchin and serves posh nosh.
But there’s also a great wee snug bar, which lands just the right side of cosy, with a bar menu that allows punters to
Kingarth Hotel, Bute Pastoral setting, ponies in the paddock, a view of the Clyde riviera and stools made from tractor seats.
The Smiddy Bar is round the back of Bute and well worth the journey. It’s also a watering hole along the West Island Way and, let’s not forget, has toilets given the thumbs-up by Pub Spy’s retired bar manager dad.
Pub Spy said: “My da’ could tell me all about how clean the lines are on the beer taps just by looking at a pint and usually has opinions about the mark-up on the spirits and the speed of the staff. For now, rest assured, the WCs in this boozer are pater-approved. The fresh hand towels swung it.”
So it’s only f itting that organisers of the Scottish Bar The sun was shining when Pub Spy visited the island where George Orwell wrote 1984 and, if Big Brother was watching, then he’d have seen one of the best views in a bar anywhere in the and Pub Awards should put on the greatest show.
With the nation still in the grip of Hugh Jackman fever following his sellout run at Glasgow’s SSE Hydro in April,