Bennets Bar

One of Edinburgh’s oldest and finest bars. The fabulous interior was designed in 1891, refitted in 1906 and since then has hardly changed.
It stocks a huge selection of Malt Whiskeys (over 100) and has Real Ale on tap too.
A lively place in the evenings or a quite retreat during the day. A must visit for any whisky, real ale or historic pub connoisseur. ⁵⁄₅
Don /​

Ornate ambiance, plentiful selection, solid Scottish pub.

We ended up here because it was the only place in the area still serving food late in the evening, and it was a good choice. The menu offered lots of food choices at reasonable prices and the portions were generous and well prepared. The real attraction here is there large selection of whiskeys, on which I’m not qualified to comment.

Baby, it’s cold inside…
It’s a bit difficult for me to pick a star rating for Bennets as I think it’s a usually four-​star establishment, but during the winter… It’s barely a three.
I went here for lunch and some drink with my parents when they visited recently. My dad is obsessed with going to «proper pubs» whenever he visits. He needs a brown, wooden look about the place with rococo stylings and big mirrors. I took them to the Skean Dhu first, which is part of Bennets, but it was quite cold and my dad wasn’t happy with the modern stylings. We were told there was a warm fireplace on the Bennets side, so we moved. Coming into it, my father was instantly gratified as Bennets is every bit the Traditional Pub by looks.
The fireplace turned out to be an electrical one that did hardly anything for the heat. Pretty much all the patrons were wearing their coats. The only way I could tell that it was colder outside was that every time someone came through the huge doors, the wintery cold came wafting in, leading to collective shuddering and a great many coats being pulled tighter.
So if it’s winter and you’re escaping the cold… This is not the place for you.
This is what we ordered:
Haggis, Fish & Chips and Mac & Cheese. (and beer)
My father had the haggis, which was presented as a moulded heap with three layers. While he reported the taste to be good, he was disappointed with the amount of haggis compared with the neeps and tatties. From my perspective, it seemed to be mostly tatties, to be honest.
The Mac & Cheese wasn’t big, but as my wife pointed out, it was just the right size for M&C, as it’s a dish that can easily get boring in large doses. If you have a big appetite, though, maybe look for something else…
… like the Fish & Chips! This was my pick, and it was a very nice, thick bit of Fish, cooked just the right amount. It was nice and moist and had a good bit of fishy flavour. The chips were great, too, just the right amount of crispy on the outside and mushy on the inside.
The beer selection wasn’t huge, but they had some tasty options and we weren’t left wanting.
This place is one of my wife’s regular haunts as it’s one of the best places to go in the Tollcross area for pubbing, and she meets her friends there on a weekly basis. Personally, I’ve had ups and downs with it. The review and rating is based on my most recent experience as these kinds of places change around a lot, but here are some previous experiences I’ve had:
I ordered a «hand-​made burger» once in which the patty turned out to be the size of a hockey puck, and about as dark. It looked ridiculous as it wasn’t just smaller than the bun, it was smaller than the slice of tomato it was resting on! When I pointed this out, I was told that it’s kind of meant to be that way as it’s «hand made», but was eventually given a replacement that was a more appropriate size. It was… okay to taste.
When I was on my alcohol sabbatical, not drinking alcohol or eating alcoholic desserts or dinners for a year, I was met with a very dismissive attitude by the man taking our order. When I asked what they had that didn’t have any alcohol in the sauces, I was told it was «bullshit» that there’s still alcohol in the sauce after it’s been cooked. He was convinced all alcohol boils off instantly. It doesn’t.
I won’t hold these incidents against them in the long run as owners and chefs and servers change all the time, but I figure it’s worthwhile to share those experiences anyway to give you a complete picture of my experience.

This such an amazing local bar. So beautiful, great for just some fun drinks with friends and SO many whiskeys to try.
The also have this amazing snuggie (just to the left of the entrance door. No idea why it’s there but it’s kind of a tiny room attached to the bar where you can hangout and have a few quiet ones away from the noise of the main bar. Amazing!!!

Grorgeous traditional bar with beautiful period detail. Secret snug by the door — blink and you’ll miss it and hoping one day to lock myself away in it for a few hours.
It’s listed and apparently they close for around 1 – 2 days every year to maintain the fixtures and fittings. Spent around five hours in here before Christmas quite happily. Good mixed crowd in of all ages and we managed to get a seat and settle in for the night. Drinks are probably normal prices for Edinburgh — think I was about £4 for G&T and they don’t horrendously over charge for crisps and nuts when the munchies kick in.
I don’t come here often due to its location but if I’m in the Tollcross area then I’m happy to pop in an while away a few hours.

Quite a nice pub with luvly original interior. Limited selection of real ales but well kept.

Went in last night for the first time and 1 pint turned into 5 (not very clever on a ‘school night’).
Friendly Staff and a decent pint of Caley 80′, although ‘ales’ were in limited supply generally. A leaning to artisan lagers on the guest pumps which may point to the fact it is (as others have said) actually a student hang out masqerading as an old mans pub.
Original fixtures and fittings (B Listed from 1906) are wonderful but… and the ‘but’ has been coming… it isnt really an excuse for the whole place having a ‘grubby’ look and feel to it. You can be quaint and historic and also be clean (Diggers Bar/​Athletic Arms being a prime example of a ‘spotless’ local).
This place needs a serious deep clean, including the toilets which were pretty shocking. That done, it would be a true gem.

I have reviewed a fair number of traditional style pubs, which is what Bennets Bar is. Simply put this means lots of wood, mirrors, good beer and a great selection of whiskey. Bennets Bar serves real ale (regulars and guests), other decent draught options and has a good spirit selection. The staff are professional and friendly, though at busier times it can very occasionally be a challenge to get served. Finally the food is good, with decent sized portions for a fair price.
Given Bennets’ proximity to the Cameo or the King’s Theatre it also attracts a varied crowd, so while it may seem from the décor and the style of the building to be an old mans pub it really isn’t, there is plenty of room for those in suits or the theatre darlings…
One small aside, in my otherwise positive review; while a lot of the pubs I have reviewed of a similar ilk to Bennets Bar serve a 35ml measure Bennets uses 25ml, this is worthwhile knowing simply because of the ongoing promotion for whiskey tasting boards, when looking at the cost of the dram you may not be comparing like with like.
Overall though, Bennets Bar is a great pub doing what all great pubs should; serving tasty drinks and good food.

I’ve always liked Bennets and the way it harks back to an older age, a time when there were clear divisions between the public bar and the lounge bar. Bennets also has a wee snug by the front door: for a small pub it has a number of surprises to catch out the newcomer.
The public bar deserves to have sawdust on the floor. It’s all hard wood and leaning on the bar, with a wide range of beers and spirits proudly shown off. The opposite wall is lined with big mirrors, at the base of which are shallow booths and round tables. The tables are topped with maps of Scotland, which I’m sure have inspired countless stories and conversations over the years.
Back in the lounge bar, which has its own entrance off a side street, floorboards give way to carpet, comfortable seats and a more than adequate menu. The ceiling is lower, the atmosphere calmer.
Both bits of the pub are great places to catch up, relax after a trip to the Cameo cinema or the King’s Theatre, or just head along for a quiet pint in genial company.

Definately one of my favourite places for a quiet beer. I had not eaten here until recently and this is what prompted my review. The food was great we just grabbed some starters but for pub fare it was excellent. I had the haggis fritters which turned out to be something a bit special … well for me anyway. They reminded me of a haggis pakora but had what appeared to be a peppercorn sauce over the top. Might sound odd but on a cold day with a pint it was ideal. My friend choose the soup and had enjoyed it very much.
The beer selction is always good and they carry a fine array of whiskeys, gins and rums. I havent been through to the newly renovated section to eat, but I did wander through to get to their outside seating on a sunny day and the place looked very nice. The staff here are always friendly and professional. Nuf said thumbs up from me! :D

Bennets is a great wee place. They do good solid food with a wee secondary restaurany/​bar bit out the back that you can rent out. Be careful though because even if you do book it they’ll likely forget about your booking and some rather shocked diners will have to sit through your Edinburgh wide sports committee meeting/​punch and judy fan club meeting/​whatever you booked the room for.
The beers are a tad on the expensive side but very nice. Décor is awesome in the main bar. Some great maps on the table and other bits and pieces that really make it «pop».
So I recommend this place for a beer on an evening although they do commit the sin of having a big ass TV that’s on all the time. This is a sin in my book that would be punishable by a hefty veto if they didn’t have maps on the tables.
I like maps.

Meiner Meinung nach die schönste Bar Edinburghs.
Die Auswahl der Whiskysorten ist riesig.
Wer liebevoll ausgestattete und gemütliche Pubs mag,
für den lohnt sich der viertelstündige Spaziergang vom Zentrum in die Leven Street auf jeden Fall.

A traditional pub that some people rave on and on about, Bennets Bar seemed quite average to me.
I’ve never had a bad experience here, just of neutral. The staff are actually quite nice, the place is often quiet, the drink is fine. However one thing does actually STICK out, that is their STICKY toffee pudding. No idea why I decided to try it, maybe its because I was in no way expecting them to serve it, but it was really pretty good!
I’d rather pop round to the Illicit Still or Cloisters but all the same this place isn’t bad.

This is a good old proper pub in my eyes, but a really attractive, intricately detailed pub, which is my favourite kind of public house. How shallow of me… does drinking in a good looking environment really make any difference to the enjoyment of your drink? Well, whatever, it’s nice here, and it’s not the kind of bordering on scary atmosphere you get in some pubs, when you walk in and all the regulars look at you like you’ve just pushed over a granny in the street/​told a small child santa doesn’t exist. There’s a good mix of people plus banter here, including imbibers coming pre or post theatre, and film watchers going to the Cameo, plus regulars and other random assortments of individuals. The stained glass windows and tables with map decoration, plus the awesome looking bar, are the highlights of Bennets for me.

I already have a vacancy for the ‘Old man’s’ haunt filled by Cloisters, a bar just around the corner from Bennets.
Indeed, its stained glass windows, shiny brass fittings and all round quaint image is a crowd pleaser. However, I can’t help comparing it to Cloisters. There, they seem to have a larger rotation of local ales. There, the atmosphere is a bit lighter and less dingy.
All minor niggles of course but enough to persuade me to choose Cloisters over Bennets.

A standard pub in the Tollcross area– with an old-​man pub feel, although as Emma C. said I have seen mostly students and movie-​goers here rather than grumpy old men.
Putting this detail aside, it serves reasonably priced drinks and because of the stained glass windows you sort of forget you are in Edinburgh and you can’t see the horrible weather which is a plus in the winter. Great for a pint with mates at a low-​key place.

Bennet’s Bar masquerades as an old man’s pub in the heart of Tollcross, although if truth be told you’re more likely to come across students and theatre goers having a drink in here. It has lovely stained glass windows on its façade making it hard to peer in or see outside, I rather like this feature (it somehow implies that serious drinking should be done in private, like it was in the olden days). The drinks are reasonably cheap and the wee tables have maps underneath the glass tops, so you can while away the hours hunting down where your flat is/​was/​is going to be. Marvellous.

Bennets Bar is a great place for a pre-​theatre drink before heading off to the Kings. An old traditional bar with stainglass window and wood floor, in my opinion it looks like the way a pub should look. It also has another room off the main bar called the green room where food is serves. It also serves a couple of real ales which is a bonus.

The perfect old man pub if ever I’ve seen one. Great bar. Cheap drinks. A map of Britain on every table for all your entertainment needs. Proper British grub and huge portions. Top marks! Well– almost. Your bar games are all missing parts! It’s torturous to get half way through a game guess who and then have to quit due to faulty pieces and a missing ‘Bob’ card… sort it out!

The Lothian Road/​Tolcross area has plenty of places that’ll serve you a drink, that for sure; but if unspectacular-​looking pubs in a sometimes less than salubrious area are not usually your thing, you have to look a wee bit harder for quality.
A couple of doors up from The King’s Theatre, Bennets’ is nicer than most. You couldn’t tell though the modest exterior doesn’t promise much beyond spit and sawdust. Once inside there’s a long traditional bar to your left, backed by painted glass mirrors and to your right there’s the curved bench, tables and chairs.
There’s a greater choice of drinks than you might expect, and prices are surprisingly fair considering the bar is adjacent to one of Edinburgh’s most popular playhouses. The food is not to the same standard though, a short menu sporting basic pub fayre lacks enthusiasm or originality.
I went in on a chilly winters’ evening and was cheered by the offer of an inexpensive hot toddy or an Irish coffee on the blackboard. Little touches make you come back to a place, and provide a genuine choice when plumping for somewhere to drink amongst the run of the mill venues in the area.