Caley Sample Room

Friendly staff, a welcoming atmosphere, a good drink selection and a lovely ever changing menu. What’s not to like about the Caley?
I visit here once or twice a month and it’s definitely one of the nicest bars in the area. It’s relaxed, cosy, and welcomes dogs!
If you don’t have the appetite for a meal, then the bar menu is worth a try, huge portions and everything is freshly hand made. I’m a big fan of the pitta bread and hummus!

I wanted to like the Caley Sample Rooms much more than I actually did. I had the mushroom burger, with the stingiest piece of halloumi, ever and a pretty dull bun. The SR opted for a brunch — smoked salmon and scrambled eggs which left him disappointed. Onion rings showed up a good ten — fifteen minutes later than everything else. Meh. Did like the beer options here though — maybe one day we’ll return for beer instead.

I live close by and thought when a friend visited me from the States that is was time to try it out. We arrived on a Saturday night after 8 and managed to get a table for 3. The interior is nice and clean, not hip in anyway, but definitely not a pub, gastropub yes. The menu is small and I would class it as a tad above average prices.
The menu has a mix of what you would expect at a pub, just slightly varied to more ‘foodie’ I think, i.e. the tempura battered fish and chips I ordered. We ordered some beers on tap, all of which were nice, served slightly warm and each was tasty. It seemed busy, but the food arrived quickly, and was nicely presented. The fish was really well fried/​prepared and the chips are good, the mushy peas received mix reviews because lots of whole grained mustard had been mixed in to them. I love peas, so no need to add to them, especially since the mustard didn’t really fit.
My partner got the burger, and it was really well cooked, still pink, which he appreciated, and it had a chutney on it which was nice. My friend also got the fish and enjoyed it. We were pretty full, but opted to try the sticky toffee pudding as it is something a visiting friend should try, it arrived, and was absolutely massive! And absolutely delicious, served with ice cream and lots of sauce, it was very tasty and a nice finish to the meal.
I was pleasantly surprised by this place, and might not go often, but would definitely recommend it.

Excellent beer. Excellent food. And an excellent atmosphere. Really gives credence to the word «gastropub». Highly recommended for those in need of a fine dining experience in a bar!

Good food
Good Beer
Bad when the football kicks out.
Decent times to be had unless you pop in when there is a football game kicking out. Then it gets fuller than a gerbils cheek after eating baby sweetcorn.

Had lunch here in the actual dining area for the first time last Sunday. Our food was very nice with just the presentation of the mulled pear being a bit let down by the marscapone breaking up in the wine and brioche is not quite firm enough when toasted to make you fully confident about spreading parfait on it. The spicy Crombie’s sausages they’re currently serving are fantastic though.
Service wasn’t anymore than average. Possibly down to it being the weekend but we got sprayed twice, each time the table next to us was wiped down and they could maybe do with one or two fewer tables so as not to require staff and customers to need to shimmy carefully past them. A few apostrophes on their main chalkboard wouldn’t go amiss either and I can only assume that having «terrible» as the tasting note for Deuchars (a Caledonian product) is ironic, albeit you could apply it to the price of a pint.

I visited the Caley Sample rooms for brunch a year ago and had eggs Benedict, it was delicious.
I returned here last weekend with Joe A. and I was pretty disappointed. It was pretty empty inside and the staff did take a while to notice us, but when they did they were very friendly and helpful, can’t fault the staff.
I ordered the chicken, mushroom and bacon pie, Joe ordered the lamb flank special and a side of breads and oils. The bread was very stale. I wasn’t a fan of the lamb but it isn’t my type of dish anyway. My pie was a little odd. It was basically a very stodgy shortcrust bowl with the filling, which was tasty, and a little puff pastry lid that looked shop bought and was cold and dry. The green beans with it were delicious and the new potatoes were OK, if a little under cooked.
Overall, nice place for a drink and I might eat there again but maybe just for brunch.

Given that is it actually a few hundred yards more ‘local’ to me than my ‘local’ I found myself in a bit of a quandry categorising exactly what ‘The Caley’ is supposed to be?
Part Pub, Part Bistro, Part ‘Designer Barn’ it veers towards trying to be ‘all things to all… people’. What cannot be denied though is that it is a wonderful space with a crackling atmosphere when the numbers inside it rack up.
The Staff are attentive, knowledgable and friendly in a way that doesn’t have you worrying about having a ‘friend request’ waiting for you on Facebook when you get home.
With more awards plastered around the place than Daniel Day Lewis’s mantle piece, my expectations of the ‘grub’ were up around Saturn somewhere. I have eaten there twice, lunch first time round when I was massively underwhelmed by a steak pie with a concrete top masquerading as pastry.
However always willing to ‘give a sucker an even break’, I did return with a friend for dinner and both my Salmon and her homemade Burger with REAL chips were simple Bistro Fayre of the highest quality.
So maybe I just got unlucky on the first occasion or maybe some more consistency in the kitchen is required? I will endeavour to find out.
Not short on ‘wow factor’ as you enter and a great hangout in the ‘burbs’ for those in the know.

I love whisky and I love beer. So, the fact that I’ve only recently got around to visiting the legendary Caley Sample Room is as baffling as it is shameful.
And it really is my kind of bar, in the sense that I like to feel slightly out of my depth. The big chalk boards behind the bar are in a constant state of flux, as barrels are changed and added in a parade of baffling beer names and descriptions. A few of the guest breweries I recognised as being from the current crop of UK craft darlings (the Bristol Beer Factory was well represented on my first visit) but the more exotic brands were entirely new to me.
As I stood there like a slack-​jawed idiot, while the patient barman tried his best to take my order, I reflected on the fact that not too many years ago, Stella was considered quite cosmopolitan. Even growing up a few streets down from the CAMRA headquarters, the choice facing your ever-​hopeful 16 year old pub-​goer was really limited to weak British beer (which always seemed to taste of farts) or strong continental lager.
‘Beer’ now really is a completely different category, covering a staggering range of varieties, strengths, styles and countries of origin. I started off with a fairly light IPA from Buxton (a special limited run, just for April) before moving on to a rich and chocolatey smoked porter, both of which were brilliantly distinctive.
These were relatively cheap options, but it’s possible to spend upward of £20 on a pint. What’s the difference? Is it worth the extra? I have no idea, but the bar staff certainly seemed to. I was there for a couple of hours and at least two-​thirds of the drinks I saw ordered involved a lengthy conversation between staff and punter. There seemed to be plenty of regulars, but I doubt the words «pint of the usual» get said very often — this is drinking as adventure.
And it’s definitely a global adventure in the Caley Sample Room. Shelves of bottled beers from all over the world compete for your attention, their label and box art as lurid and weird as their names. Only a fool or a hero would try and conquer this lot.
So, mine’s a pint of the unusual please.

My band recently played a very impromptu gig here supporting a friend’s band. The Caley Sample Room has a very welcoming and friendly vibe. Within no time, it was packed to the brim! The décor is cosey and homely and I couldn’t stop staring at the amazingly vast beer selection. The barmaid gave me a very very large measure of gin in my gin and tonic because she liked our set, I can’t complain about that! I’d be happy to play, or just have a drink here again.

Decided to return for munchies and am now a true disciple of this place. Lovely welcome from staff, great beer and very good food. The fish platter impressed, as did the chorizo stuffed chicken on barley risotto. The vodka soaked berry ice cream Sunday took me to another place altogether. Really very good. No wonder the CSR has won so many awards and continues to invest in quality and service.

The Caley Sample Room is a gem in the western side of Edinburgh, with a loyal local following and plenty of folk who travel a way to get here. The food wins awards, the beers and drinks are varied and plentiful and it has the best table water in Edinburgh (stuffed with mint, cucumber and whatever else they think will help).
The architecture’s a little odd, but that probably stems from its previous life as part of the nearby brewery. The exterior can seem a little uninviting and unfortunately it lends itself to smokers clogging up the doorway, but the pub opens up once you’re in. The restaurant to the right has plenty of covers, set around heavy wooden tables that bring a feeling of tradition and quality. To your right is the rest of the pub, with a long bar that stretches into the distance. Good for a quiet midweek pint, or a busy Friday night, they host regular live music nights and other special events.
The staff know they’re stuff about the menu and the drinks on offer, which is all you can ask. Fortunately I’ve always found them friendly too.
It’s well worth your while calling in to the CSR if you’re in the area — near Fountainbridge, the canal, Gorgie Farm and the other delights of this side of town.

This is a really nice pubthe outside looks a bit dodgey but definitely worth the venture inside!
I went for Sunday lunch; I wasn’t overly impressed with the food but thought the pub had a really nice atmosphere. I got the venison burger and chips and my friend got the roast beef. The burger was delicious, however, my chips were burnt and the roast dinner in general wasn’t great.
I would definitely go back for drinks but think I will give the food a miss

Not quite sure i agree with David that the prices were almost «a little too cheap», I found that the prices here are actually quite expensive and the portions mediocre for the price that you pay. I came here with my sister and her husband and fortunately they paid for the bill.
In terms of the décor, the pub is great and really cosy and has the appearance of a big barn with wood pretty much everywhere you look.
I ordered sausage and mash and only a coke as I was recovering from a hangover and the sausage and mash was priced at £9, which I would never have paid if I were to come here on my own, but thankfully I wasn’t paying. The whole menu looked to be overpriced with a side of onion rings costing £3. However, it must be said that the food served was actually very tasty, but still did not warrant the price tag that it had.

Love this pub, great atmosphere, really friendly staff who actually seem to enjoy working here, nice range of beers and fab wine list.
Food is consistently decent and well above average for a pub, the fish and chips a particular favourite.
This place is a far cry from what it once was and I think Jon should be proud.
Keep up the good work.

This place is roomy & warm, has a rafted ceiling & is comfortable & welcoming; a nice relaxed atmosphere with friendly staff. It’s a great place for families with high chairs & baby changing facilities. A good selection of beers. A long menu that as well as traditional pub food, also offers unusual dishes; the food is excellent quality & freshly prepared with local produce & there’s also a special board. The puddings are fabulous.

The brewery is still there, unlike other Edinburgh breweries, and this place is linked. Good pub with Caley beers, unsurprisingly, and as there aren’t many good pubs round this way it’s a good local. Cosy, fairly friendly, decent boozer.