Cloisters Bar

Cloisters is a traditional pub that’s up there jostling for the best real ale pub in Edinburgh accolade. They have a huge range of rotational cask and keg beers from breweries all over the UK and Europe. Written up in chalk beside and behind the bar is an informative table of current beers on offer, including tasting notes. Whatever you like, I think you’ll be catered for.
The interior is traditional and despite being in a converted church, very cosy. Service is very friendly and helpful.
The food is focussed on burgers and seafood with a smattering of pub classics. Dishes are a little more inventive than standard pub fare and very tasty. I had the homemade tomato soup, side salad, polenta fries and mussels in Thistly Cross cider and parsley sauce. The flavour through the soup was excellent and far from being the boring tomato soup that it can be. The polenta chips were really good, I’ve tried to make these at home but ended up with chewy straws of polenta twice. These were crisp, fluffy and served in a rosemary seasoning. The mussels were superb; fresh, big, juicy pillows of shellfish goodness in abundance! The side salad was generous and the sliced pickles through it added a nice twist to a simple salad.
As far as Edinburgh pubs go, Cloisters is definitely one of the best. A really nice atmosphere to enjoy some of the best beer in town. Best pint in the Tollcross/​Lothian Rd. area for sure.

I did not know how many nice bars that Edinburgh would have. Call it the natural suspicious Glaswegian in me, but I was not expecting that much when I travelled through on Saturday, It turns out there is quite a few nice places that I would head back to and one that falls into that bracket is certainly Cloisters.
It sort of looks like an old church. It certainly had lots of stone work and wood, but it ain’t an old mans style pub in my opinion. It’s more like a converted old building that has been turned into a modern bar. All good so far, a nice place for a pint in pleasant surroundings, but what steps this place up to a higher level for me is the beers on offer. They are yet another good bar doing craft beers and have a good selection available on their taps.
If craft beer is your thing then this place is worth a look, I can’t comment on food but the booze went down very well.

I can never really take to this place its always a bit odd in terms of atmosphere and space around the bar. The atmosphere always seems some what lacking and I always feel like I am in some bar up north where they know your not a local/​regular. The bar area gets quite cramped and busy I really haven’t enjoyed a night here standing at the bar in quite some time.
The décor changes now and again as does the lighting. The place was refurbished recently and after the lick of paint the lights also seemed to get turned up. One of things i enjoyed about the place before was the low key lighting, open fire and dark wood features. Raising the lighting levels didn’t work for me.
Okay enough moaning… what i do like is the staff they are always friendly and really know their drinks. The food is pretty nice to boot with tapa/​meze style offerings. however the reason people come here is for booze and mainly the ales. I am not an ale drinker but my friends are and love this place. For me they have some great organic lager and often some very interesting ciders. The booze selections are great with gin, borbon, whisky etc all covered by the top shelf spirits.
Decent enough boozer just doesn’t ever feel comfortable to me. I don’t mind going if someone suggests it but I wouldn’t suggest going here myself.

This is one of those ‘I can’t believe I never reviewed it’ reviews.
My OH used to live directly opposite this place and so we were in a fair bit. I think it’s great. I’m not a beer drinker and even I can appreciate the fantastic selection here. Additionally they have a great whisky selection –which is right up my alley!
Since moving westwards I haven’t been in until last weekend and I was pleasantly surprised to see the place hadn’t changed!
The crowd is not your usual ‘Edinburgh craft beer’ crowd. More an older group who won’t make way for you at the bar but that’s part of the charm of this place for me.
The service is great and the staff are always good with banter. This place is a hidden gem!

First real experience with a UK pub and it was great. The bartenders were polite and quick to serve you. Good selection of beer on tap and good liquor selection. It was a little crowded but that added to the experience. Would come back here if I ever made it back to Edinburgh.

Had a Saturday arvo out in Edinburgh a couple of weekends ago and the pal decided we were to explore pastures new (although Holyrood 9A was a given for dinner! ;)). This was (I think) our second stop of the day and brief though our visit was, I loved it and have every intention of being back soon.
Looks like a bland, slightly old mannish place from the outside but inside it’s exactly what a pub should be. Friendly bar staff, excellent beer selection and a lovely wee table in the far right corner that catches the sun through the window in just the right way. I could while a lot of hours away here on a sunday with a book and some beers.
For a Saturday afternoon with rugby on at Murrayfield it wasn’t too busy either. Plenty busy enough, just not rammed to the rafters busy, which was a pleasant surprise!
If you’re a beer head, you could do a lot worse than head down here!

I visited this bar on a Sunday afternoon as I had heard a lot about how busy the pub can get during the evenings.
From the outside it looks like a bit of a local and if it wasn’t for the good reviews on here I definitely wouldn’t have entered as casually as I did.
Looking at the bar you know this lot are serious about their real beers and there is nothing that makes me happier than real beer. Apart from real coffee and wine gums, but not together.
There was 9 ale pumps, about the same in beer taps and 6 – 12 different bottled beers. Very homely old fashioned bar with wooden tables and chairs. Even a stool if you want to practice your «lean».
If you’re serious about your beer, give this little guy a chance. Stay for a while, the bar does grow on you I promise.
I have nothing to say on their food as I’d already eaten but the Emily H seems to have summed it up pretty well.

The bar is an old hat at serving local and special brews. They have a old style in set up and furniture. Big tables that invite people to sit together and talk. You can also play one of the boardgames on offer.
On Fridays and weekends it gets busy and you’ll wait a long time to get served.
It is in a good spot — close enough to the Meadows and slightly away from the other bars. So brilliant for a couple of drinks and a chat when just visiting, and if you are a local it gives you the chance to enjoy a quiet pint on the not so busy days.
I am not a big fan of this bar to be honest. It is difficult to explain, but for me the atmosphere is just a little missing that tiny bit to make it comfortable enough to spend a long time here. The occasional visit is all right though.
The beers are reasonably priced. They also offer a meze /​bar snack menu which has interesting fares on offer.
I wouldn’t go out my way to visit, but will not say no to anyone wanting to meet up here.

Not quite a five star but close. Goid range of beers well kept and a lively place to be.

Based on my one visit, this seems to me to be a great neighborhood-​feeling bar. They have either 9 or 10 (I can’t remember at this point) taps devoted to cask ales. The two bartenders I dealt with were very friendly and knowledgeable about the beers. One of them had already poured me my second beer, when we started talking about West Coast IPAs, and he told me that the manager of the bar brews his own beer, which he thought I might like better than what he had just poured me. He poured out the just-​poured beer and produced a bottle of Conviction IPA by Elixir Brew Company, and it was indeed good stuff.
As to other details, the bar seemed to be frequented by locals, and was a somewhat older crowd, at least the time I visited. It was quiet enough to have a good conversation. We ended up talking to a couple of guys at the next table. Just the sort of place a pub should be.

Does anyone know what their Penguin is called?
He sits above the bar watching everyone drink delightful beer, if I had to name him, I would call him Bryan.
Anyway, this is one of the best beer bars in Edinburgh; I have consumed some of the best beers ever in this bar. It’s a classic old fashioned place, wooden benches and stools, and some good spots for groups to chill. A popular spot among the local students and local young professionals, beer enthusiasts also flock here regularly.
They have the occasional tap takeover, which is always a recipe for disaster. The good news is it is less than 10 minutes from my flat, so stumbling home is OK — and I can meander through the meadows!
Never tried their food, but that’s not important.

Large range of ales and local fare. Great whiskey selection, as well. Gets crowded.

Cloisters is probably one of my favourite pubs, however it is one that I visit fairly infrequently. They offer well kept craft draught ale, lager and cider alongside a good range of whisky and a fair range of rum and gin. What you won’t get here is generic beer or lager (no Heineken or Belhaven beers here), rather they offer quality drinks from smaller brewers. If you aren’t sure what to try the bar staff are knowledgeable and professional, giving you a taste of the ale or guiding you to the right drink.
It does get busy and you may not get a seat between the various groups of folk from all ages and walks of life, though if you do then settle in and chat or perhaps play one of the boardgames they keep behind the bar…
In short if you are after a good quality pint then Cloisters is near the top of the list in an area fairly well served with good pubs.

If I lived in Edinburgh, I would probably hang out at this bar a lot. The night we went was an Oakham Ales takeover, and while I wasn’t a huge fan of their beers, they had an American-​style IPA (not Oakham Ales, though) on tap that was great.
To sweeten the deal, I ended up randomly winning a t-​shirt in their raffle! No complaints here.

Such a shame. This place used to be my local when I lived in Tollcross and I rather enjoyed the unpretentious old man’s pub atmosphere. Easily a 4-​star for me. So I thought…
I went with my flatmate the other day, both regulars. We went after the kitchen was closed (9pm) and were hungry, so basically at some point I went to the takeaway across the road, under the soaking rain, to get some chips for my flatmate and I. She stayed inside with our common friend because our pints were still full.
Well… guess what? They politely chucked us out.
«- Sorry, no takeaway food in here
— But your kitchen is closed.
— Sorry you just can’t
— How come?
— Well it stinks…»
For a place serving fish & chips and pork cheeks, I thought the «stinky» was a bit cheeky. The policy isn’t clearly displayed and the reasons invoked were utter rubbish. We ate out, under the rain, with the smokers, and went back in to finish our drinks.
Considering other places — that also operate a kitchen — never bothered us with that (Cuckoo’s Nest for instance), well Cloister’s Bar now seems slightly more pretentious than it appears, and I probably won’t spend as much time and money as I used to.

Grandpa,
I know you’re dead. Yes, that’s sad, but well, you didn’t live to see me drinking age and really, that’s a crying shame because I’m pretty sure we would have liked the same bars. Like just tonight I sat at the bar with two men who owned a brewery and we talked about Scottish weather, baseball sports stars of old and we asked the people near the door if they could shut it because we were getting a little chilly.
This place looks like what it is. It’s a big olé church that has a big olé (and massively awesome) selection of the good stuff. Yep, that’s beer. I know «Scotland be all about whisky, son» but as a complete pussy, and a beer lover, I prefer to walk home rather than throw up in a taxi on the way.
And that’s Cloister’s. A place I would bring my grandpa had he made it until now (he’d be like 104 now, which would be even cooler) and we would have a beer with other old men and talk about the good olé days when people used to send faxes and watch television with commercials.
This isn’t a dark and dingy old man pub, far from it, it’s a very well lit middle aged man pub and I could come in here knowing I could get a couple of good beers and no 22 year old will be wasted on tequila sunrises looking all skeevy and try to pick me up.
It’s a talking pub, a pub where you meet up with an ex and let him admit that he did some terrible shit, but you’d be too embarrassed to cry but deep down you’re happy he’s finally saying it all. Then you go home and let it out. (That never happened, I’m just imagining — I’m just saying it’s the type of place you can have a deep and meaningful conversation over beers).
This started out as a letter to my grandpa, and it ended up not being, mostly cause, well… I don’t even know if he liked beer. I know he liked kielbasa, fried dough and smoking cigarettes. So, if anyone knows a good place for that.

Another great Edinburgh pub. After work drinks a speciality.
Good seating, good choice of real ale. Thoroughly enjoyable all round.
Can get rather busy but I never think that’s a bad thing for a pub! Just means you have to be super good at finding chairs.
I come here for drinks with a few friends, or to sit and read on my own there is even a book exchange on the mantle.
They let dogs in which is a definite plus.
Beer choice is spot on although sometimes a little «samey» but that might just be me! I at one point had an issue with grumpy staff but that was a year ago or so and I’ve had nothing but smiles the last few times I’ve been in!
Recommended. An Edinburgh classic.

After a failed attempt at attending a gig (we showed up and there was no one there, not even the bands. Huh strange.) Emily V and I were in need of a suitable place to rest our hats (if we were wearing any, which we weren’t) and sup a pint.
The footba’ was on, so we were trying to find somewhere a little less crowded, with seats, and a good selection of beer. Oh and local (it was frickin COLD that night!)
Cloisters was the closest we could find, so in we settled. It was fairly busy and buzzing, with a good mix of students, locals, younger and older folk. It’s definitely a traditional pub-​type joint, without a cocktail in sight. This is all ok, but I think it focusses so much on beer and whisky that they didn’t even have coke and lemonade in bottles — it was all tap. For a spirit-​girl like myself, this ain’t great as it means any spirit and mixer tastes like syrupy water. Blegh.
I should also say that even though it’s not my ‘scene’ I have been to several more traditional ale-​houses in both Edinburgh and Glasgow which I enjoyed a hella lot more. So I’m not being biased. It just lacked any charm or personality.
So, personally, it’s not somewhere I’ll be hitting up again soon. Probably great for a larger group of folk on a weekday evening, or for a chilled out Saturday night. It’s casual and relaxed, and yes they do have a lot of beers. But it just felt a little ‘meh’ and after my first syrupy vodka and coke, I switched to a cup of tea (much to the bemused look on the barkeepers face). In fact, that reminds me I had asked for vodka tonic so the coke was even less appealing at the time.
It was still a lovely evening with the ever-​delightful Miss VD, but that’s no thanks to the venue itself.

Cloisters is a great bar to go to in Edinburgh whatever the occasion — whether it is for a quiet drink in the afternoon or for a pre-​drink on your way to a night out.
Situated in the centre of the Tollcross area of Edinburgh, Cloisters bar is just a short walk from the city centre so it is a convenient place to reach. I frequently come in here with friends for drinks and I always have a great time.
The décor inside is modern and pleasant, not tacky, and you are always greeted by friendly and warm staff. Cloisters sell about ten different real ales, always a bonus for the guys, as well as serving some beautifully tasting wines for the ladies.
Cloisters Bar is always worth a look in for lunch, which they serve seven days a week, and it very reasonably priced. Their menu includes the traditional pub food such as baked potatoes, sandwiches and fish and chips. Their burgers deserve special mention as they are delightful — huge and really juicy and served with proper chips.
The atmosphere is always lively inside, but it can get very busy on a Friday night so probably best to get there early to ensure you get a seat.

Real ale isnt my thing — and nor is whisky, so from the off, Cloisters didnt really have that much of a chance with me. However, for the sake of a friend who does enjoy that sort of thing, I agreed to go to the Cloisters for a quiet drink.
And, I must admit, I was pleasently suprised — I loved the bar, its part of an old church or something and is pretty cool, very traditional and old manish. It was pretty quiet apart from the low mutterings of people having conversations and I like that sort of thing when I dont fancy going to so hip bar with blasting music and cocktails.
The drinks were pretty much as I expected — with names like ‘Badgers Arse’ and ‘Biships Bottom’, and while I didnt enjoy any of them personally — my mate said they were some of the best he’d ever tasted — and after a conversation with the friendly bar man, it was discovered that most of the ales were local. Which I guess is pretty cool.
Dont come here if you are looking for a cold pint of lager, a lads night out and loud music — this is a place of reflection and supping the same pint for 3 hours to ‘appreciate’ it.