leith pubs: the best bars in leith

Welcome to the Drink in the Sights guide to the best bars in Leith. When I initially set off to Edinburgh I was planning on including a few Leith pubs in my guide to the best bars in Edinburgh, but it didn't take long for me to realise the wonderful port district of Scotland's capital was more than deserving of its own section in this guide. For anyone looking at spending a few days in Edinburgh I'd urge you to spend a day seeing the Leith sights, most notably the Royal Yacht Britannia, but more importantly checking out some of these excellent Leith bars. 

Leith is around a 40-50 minute walk from the centre of Edinburgh, but if that's a bit to much for you the buses are really regular and cost next to nothing. Keep an eye out for Moonwake and Campervan beers which are brewed in Leith as well as the usual array of other Edinburgh offerings from the likes of Stewart Brewing Co and Barney's Beer. I know I've said it before in both my Glasgow and Edinburgh pub guides but it's worth saying again the service and friendly nature of the Scottish bar staff is exception, and I say that as someone who has been to Dublin a few times. So here's the Drink in the Sights Guide to the best pubs in Leith.

Leith Pubs

Lost in Leith

If there's two types of pub I love more than any others it's brewery taps and cellar bars, and while not technically underground Lost in Leith is close enough to meeting both criteria for me. Lost in Leith is the full on bar version of the Campervan Brewery Tap, which we'll get to later. It serves 20 beers on tap, which are mainly Campervan brews mixed with a few local guest ales. On top of this you'll also find a nice array of cans and bottles, plus bar staff who certainly know their beers, and are more than happy to have a chat about them so you can choose the brew that's right for you. I can tell you now though the Campervan Leith Porter and the Brett Old Ale are both exceptional.

As if the beers weren't enough of a lure to get you to Lost In Leith it's also one of the most aesthetically pleasing Leith pubs, with bare brick arches over wooden floorboards creating a proper cellar bar look. You'll also get to see some of the Campervan Brewery barrels full of beers getting ready to be served. Lost in Leith just ticks every box for me and there should be no doubt it's not only one of the best pubs in Leith, but one of the best pubs in Edinburgh, and for that matter Scotland in general.

Moonwake Taproom

That's right everyone it's another brewery taphouse, and this time it's the turn of Moonwake Taproom to enter this guide to the best bars in Leith. You'll find 12 beers on tap here featuring 6 from Moonwake and 6 guests. Rather inevitably as a dark beer drinker I'm going to recommend the porter, but my light drinking buddy tells me the Rye IPA is very nice. On top of this there's also a selection of cans available. As usual in Scotland the staff are top notch and friendly folk who are always happy to help. 

This really is what a brewery taproom should look like. It's stripped back to the bare bones with a wooden bar, some wooden seats, a few nice bright Moonwake logos, and a very shiny set of brewing equipment, that you're nearly close enough to touch. This also means you get the proper brew pub smell of fermenting beer. Lovely. No guide to Leith pubs should leave out the Moonwake Taproom, it's a lovely place, and it's always nice to be able to drink a beer so close to where it was lovingly made. Certainly one of the best bars in Leith.

Teuchters Landing

While I think you'll have gathered that I really like brewery tap pubs it's fair to say I'm also very partial to a proper old school boozer full of local ales, and local people. Teuchters Landing certainly fits the bill as a proper pub. If you like proper Scottish pub trappings you're going to love it here. Sure from the front it looks like a pretty small place, but once you enter you'll find quite an expansive pub. Out the back there's a beer terrace over the water while the front end has a classic wooden bar serving 6 predominantly Scottish ales.

The bar area and the two separate rooms have wooden flooring, comfy leather sofas, and you'll find some nice fireplaces to warm yourself up on a cold Leith evening. You'll also find several Scotland flags dotted around, just in case you've forgotten where you are, and some really nice old pictures and artwork of the local area. If you're looking for a proper snug pub look no further. Teuchters Landing is one of the top Leith pubs.

Innis and Gunn Taproom

Innis and Gunn have taprooms in the centre of Edinburgh, the university district of Glasgow, and this beauty in Leith. They're all genuinely excellent, not least because they serve the fantastic Barrel Aged Rum cask beer, which I love. They're also all seriously cool places with wood everywhere, brick bars, and around about 20 beers on tap, including the whole Innis and Gunn range. You'd think that as this was the third Innis and Gunn Taproom I'd visited in the space of a week they'd be starting to get boring, but they really aren't. I particularly enjoyed the Lust for Leith reference on the walls, a nod towards some of Trainspotting been filmed in the area. I didn't really think I'd enjoy these bars as much as I did, but this one certainly deserves to be high on any list of the best bars in Leith.

Port O' Leith

The Port O' Leith is one of those proper, eclectic, little bit mad local pubs that just always seems to have a buzz about it. No matter what day or time it is there's just always an atmosphere here, and I mean that in a good way. Sure there's only two ales on tap, but they're always both local brews, but that's probably not why you come here, you come here because it's a lot of fun. The whole pub has a bit of a nautical theme to it, with cool artwork, flags, and anything that looks like it could relate to a ship plastered on the bare brick walls. Add in the nice sofas, wooden floorboards and bar, and you've got yourself one seriously good looking, fun pub to sip a pint in. One of the top Leith bars.

Leith Bars

Dreadnought

If you want a proper one room pub full of Leith locals look no further than Dreadnought. The pub has excellent staff and four beers on tap, one of which is usually from Brass Castle and therefore likely to be gluten free, and outside of Bellfield Brewery we didn't find many other gluten free offerings in Edinburgh. I particularly enjoyed the gorgeous wooden bar with the glass mirrors behind, which for some reason I forgot to photograph on my last visit. Sorry. Just as a side not the pub made national news recently when the owner posted on Facebook that they no longer was any w****r customers. I'm pretty sure I'm still welcome though, and so are you as long as you behave. 

The Kings Wark

While The Kings Wark next to the Water of Leith is primarily a dinners pub it still serves 4 local ales so you wont be left feeling dry, and they are more than happy to have people just drinking there. I have to say the reputation it's earned for excellent food is truly well deserved following my experience eating there. The Kings Wark also has excellent, attentive staff, bare brick walls, a fireplace, and the pretty standard in this part of the world wooden floorboards and bar, making it look and feel like an excellent pub. Honestly if you're looking for a cracking well priced meal in Leith, or just a couple of pints, you'll be more than happy here. Certainly one of the best pubs in Leith.

Nobles

Nobles has all the looks and feel of a proper upmarket Victorian pub, with everyday prices. The ceiling is beautiful, the bar is exquisite, and the stained glass just adds an extra element of style to an already pretty damn good looking place. I also enjoyed the greenery that seems to bridge the gap between the old Victorian look and the 21st century nicely. In terms of beers you'll find a couple of nice local ales, but really this is just a great pub to sit down and relax in. One of the best looking Leith bars.

Roseleaf

Another one of the selection of absolute gorgeous Leith pubs is the Roseleaf. You'll find wood beam ceilings, I love wood beam ceilings, wooden floors, bar, doors, there's just wood everywhere. All around the wooden surfaces you'll find plants that just give the place a nice cool modern feel. There's also a homely snug area and as with the vast majority of pubs we went to the staff are really friendly. There's a couple of hand pull beers on tap so you'll be able to get a proper ale to enjoy too. Easily one of the best Leith pubs.

Campervan Brewery Taproom

Had I not also gone to the excellent Lost in Leith Campervan pub this taproom would have been much higher on the list, but honestly this is another top class brewery tap with excellent beers. There's a nice seating area outside, but we went in late November as a storm was about to hit so decided to sit in with the brewing equipment instead. You wont find a more stripped down back to basics taproom than this, and I really like that. You'll find 10 on tap most of which will be from Caravan Brewery with a couple of guests and a shed load of cans backing them up. Easily one of the best bars in Leith. 

Malt and Hops

When it comes to proper old boozers the Malt and Hops has to be right up there among the best pubs in Leith. There's up to 8 beers on tap, primarily from local brewers, in this proper locals bar, it must be a locals bar as the barmen seemed to know everyone's name except ours. A touch I particularly like is the hops hanging from the ceiling and the piano in the corner. If you want to get a proper feel for Leith life come to the Malt and Hops, a proper Leith pub.

Carriers Quarters

The Carriers Quarters is another one of the proper locals Leith pubs with a couple of nice ales. While the bar area with it's wooden floorboards is nice enough the real treat is waiting in the back room where you'll find some comfy leather sofas, bare brick walls, a nice level of beer related pictures, and wood beam ceilings, it's an absolutely gorgeous little area, and the perfect place to finish this guide to the best bars in Leith.

Thanks for taking the time to read my guide to the best pubs in Leith. Please also check out my guide to the best Edinburgh bars for a full Edinburgh pub crawl and also my guide to the best pubs in Glasgow which is only 50 minutes away by train and features some fantastic places.