The Dome cocktail bar on George Street in Edinburgh New Town, opened 1996 inside the former Commercial Bank building, a glass-domed grand-room space pouring.
Food program: Bar snacks and full restaurant menu
Tip: The Christmas decoration installation in November to January is famously over-the-top; book a window seat ahead.
Address: 14 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 2PF
Hawksmoor's bar on West Register Street in Edinburgh New Town, opened 2019 inside the former National Bank of Scotland Hall, a 30-seat cocktail bar.
Signature drink: Shaky Pete's Ginger Brew (gin, ginger, lemon, beer)
Food: Bar steaks, charcuterie, snacks
Tip: Express menu before 18:30 runs three courses at GBP 28 from the bar; the cocktails are the same as the restaurant.
Hawksmoor's bar on West Register Street in Edinburgh New Town, opened 2019 inside the former National Bank of Scotland Hall, a 30-seat cocktail bar.
Signature drink: Shaky Pete's Ginger Brew (gin, ginger, lemon, beer)
Food: Bar steaks, charcuterie, snacks
Tip: Express menu before 18:30 runs three courses at GBP 28 from the bar; the cocktails are the same as the restaurant.
Civerinos pizza counter and bar on Hunter Square in Edinburgh Old Town, opened 2016, an all-Italian cocktail and amaro programme beside the slice counter, open.
Signature drink: Amaro spritz
Food: Pizza by the slice
Tip: Slice plus a negroni at the counter is the local move after midnight; the cocktail menu changes monthly.
Fishers Bistro on The Shore in Leith Edinburgh, opened 1991 in a former 1700s signal tower, a seafood bar serving native oysters and Edinburgh Gin.
Signature drink: G and T with Edinburgh Gin
Food: Seafood small plates
Tip: Bar counter takes walk-ins; the upstairs dining room books out at weekends but the bar is the better seat anyway.
The Witchery bar in Boswell's Court at the top of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, opened 1979, a heritage candlelit room pouring cocktails and an extensive wine.
Signature drink: Whisky-cream Witchery (house cocktail)
Food: Full Scottish menu
Tip: Ask for The Secret Garden, the second dining room down the stairs; the candle-lit version of the experience.
The Caley Picture House on Lothian Road in Edinburgh, a JD Wetherspoon pub in the grade-B listed 1923 Caley cinema building, serving budget cask ales.
Signature drink: Cask ales and budget whisky
Food: Full Wetherspoon kitchen including pies and stovies
Tip: The listed art-deco interior is worth seeing regardless of the Wetherspoon context; look up at the original plasterwork.
The Bow Bar on West Bow in Edinburgh Old Town, opened in the 1860s and refurbished in the 1990s as a classic Scottish pub, with 250 single malt whiskies and 8.
Signature drink: A dram of Highland Park 12 and a pint of cask Belhaven
Food: Bar snacks (pies, crisps)
Tip: No cocktails, no music, no kids. Cask ale list rotates daily; ask the bar what is on tonight.
