The Black Rose Tavern

I am so happy to be able to sit and enjoy the whole experience. It was a nice little pub with great food and friendly waiteresses.

My wife and I crave their Aberdeen burgers! Absolutely one of the best we’ve had. And the music is great!

I was strolling on Rose Street one evening and the Black Rose Tavern drew me in with its charming demeanor – walls lined with vinyl records, a nice and affordable menu, and ceilings adorned with beautiful, but edgy chandeliers.
As soon as I walked in, I made my way to the bar and I have to say all the bartenders were incredibly friendly and welcoming. I placed my order and made my way to my seat. Now, you’re wondering with such a nice place, why I gave it three stars, well, I ordered a pint of McEwan’s Red Ale to go with my 8 oz. rump steak, and I have to say the only thing I really enjoyed was the ale.
The rump steak came with mushrooms fried in batter, a good portion of chips, a side salad, and three onion rings. The meal came very bland. I drowned my steak in pepper before it started to have any taste to it. There was no seasoning, and perhaps they serve it that way, but at least have some sort of rub on it before you throw it on the grill. Other than that, my experience here was nice. I’m sure people don’t really come here for the meal, but rather, the atmosphere and events they hold such as open mic night.
They’ve a nice selection of beers as well as liquors so if I were to make a quick swim over to Edinburgh again, I wouldn’t mind stepping in this tavern again. Perhaps to hear one of their live musicians!

Relative to it’s size Edinburgh has surprisingly few rock/​metal bars (I’m discounting the Disneyland that is the Hard Rock Café from the overall number) but the Black Rose is undoubtedly the most central of the half dozen or so.
Clean and comfortable inside it also offers outdoor seating on Rose Street. The jukebox is well stocked with all variations on the theme of rock and metal although it gets switched off when major sports events are being shown on the large TV above the bar.
There are always one or two drinks deal on and aside from those a good selection of draught products, bottled equivalents, wine & spirits is on hand to meet your alcohol needs. For designated drivers or other non-​drinkers the soft drink prices are amongst the keenest in the city.
Cooked breakfasts (handy if you’ve spent a night in the Travelodge directly beside the place), burgers, fish & chips etc. make up the core menu and the staff will go the extra mile in attempting to meet any special requests.

Went in on a rugby night, so I didn’t experience the music unfortunately. One of the better pubs on rose street in my opinion because it’s quite original. A good mixture of clientele, nice rock-​themed décor and no-​nonsense food and drink offering. It offers just what you expect from a bar like this. Will definitely come back :-)

This summer in a moment of madness I tried with a few others in tow to do the rise street challenge but only managed halfway.
The black rose tavern was one of the bars that we ended up at, seemed to look ok from the outside but the interior here needs a real good revamp.
You certainly get the feeling of an outsider here with all the bar staff talking in heir native tongue, you could be mistaken for being somewhere else.
As you enter the bar the first thing to hit you is the smell of the chip pan & the grill, certainly need that extraction fan looked at.
A couple of us had burgers, that we wished that we never bothered ordering, a burger that was obviously frozen & cooked on the grill, chips that where served where the frozen type.
Drinks where ok.

This place smelled like something was burning on the grill and was very dark. I thought I was going to have to lay on the bar to get my order. I stopped in here for a pint. It was like Grundge Days Seattle Blue up all over it. My partner had some kinda icecream thing. Was different and dark.

Can’t say too much about the food unfortunately as we didn’t eat, but the gin and tonic I had was very nice :) We sat at an outdoors table watching the street pass by, which was very enjoyable and relaxed – a far cry from the relative darkness and heaviness of the pub indoors. Perhaps later in the evening, when the dark and rock music is more fitting, I would enjoy this place much more.

Like other reviews have said a preference for rock music might help you enjoy this atmosphere a little more. I am not a huge fan of rock so I found my inability to hear the people I was with a little annoying. I should have known though, The Black Rose Tavern. This doesnt seem to be a pub you would mingle at. I probably wont go back.

Extremely busy the Saturday night I walked in. Not your run of the mill pub — was blaring the 80s rock music via juke box. Pretty easy to get served especially seeing as the place was packed. I recommend the Fiery Scotsman for anyone who is looking for a hearty meal with some spice and isn’t afraid of haggis. Thought the food and drink were spot on.

Named after a Thin Lizzy song (some would argue THE Thin Lizzy song) is this lovely little place in the middle of Rose Street. A haven amongst the the hen nights, stag crawls and rickshaw taxis.
If you like your rock music, this is the place on Rose Street for you. The juke box is second only to The Black Bull on Leith Walk — and being an «old school» juke box and not a new fangled internetty type one, it earns some bonus points. The lack of One Direction earns a MEEEEEEELION bonus points.
They sell food, which I’ve never eaten, but every time I see a plate, I think I must try some next time.
A good solid range of draft beers, a wide range of bottles, and friendly staff make this a must visit place for me when I’m on a wander.

Being a college student from Seattle, you have to love and appreciate your Dive Bars. That what this place is. It’s your perfect little grunge/​rock n roll bar. I love the selection of music you can pick from the juke box. I absolutely love it. No common pop music but good ol rock n roll that makes Seattle so famous. Has a decent friendly staff, I had a burger and it reminded me of those greasy burgers you get in Seattle Dive Bars when it’s two in the morning, your wasted and hungry, and when you finally eat no matter what it is its the best thing ever! So some may not like this place but I love it for the music, decent drinks, and the good memories it brought back.

I’d like to give 6 stars if it would be possible. Funny people, good prices and awesome music.

New town — Rose Street — we needed to meet up for a drink before dinner — it was decided by others to wait for the dinner guests at the Black Rose. I heard good things about it so yeah why not.
We entered and first thing I noticed was the Halloween theme. It looked like someone did a half hearted job on decorating for Halloween and couldn’t actually be bothered to take it down. Skulls, spider webs and an Ouija board. The jukebox is full of alternative Hard Rock & Metal, How did I know this? — How could I not?! It was loud, damn loud. Which is off-​putting and normally I would have left already, but I was already on my extra cold Guinness and we were to wait for people to meet here. Thus I was to endure the loud grunting noises of Attila, Lordi and the antics of the village idiot that kept bumping into people. After several pints I decided that I needed to go for a trip to the bog.
M a j o r m i s t a k e .
I have been to many a gentleman’s toilets in many shady establishments, spend a penny in the Hogmanay 2006 portaloo and also spend my time in student houses. I’ve lived in the French country and been to Finnish Uthuussi. All of which I prefer over this toilet. I seriously think they filmed part of the Trainspotting film in this loo. The main toilet was clogged up. I shall not go into details (I can’t as I am still dealing with PTSD)
The staff was nice, but seemingly not interested in people well being or health, as many patrons went in and out of that toilet. * shudder *
Luckily we left after an hour to go to our restaurant.

Let me begin by saying I like rock/​metal music so I am naturally inclined to appreciate one of the few rock bars in Edinburgh. That being said this is probably the one I like the least, mostly due to location rather than anything the bar does strictly wrong.
The Black Rose is a binary bar, either you will have a great evening or feel a little disappointed and this is rather dependent on the presence of the stag/​hen groups which wander like zombies along Rose Street (looking for booze not brains) personally these sort of groups are why I tend to avoid Rose Street and the Grassmarket, I simply don’t like the atmosphere they generate.
So while I will return to the Black Rose I prefer Bannermans or the Black Bull Tavern, but the Rose is a decent to good bar on the right night and so it is middle of the road A-​Ok from me.

The Black Rose Tavern is just my speed.
As much fun as I had visiting Bannerman’s every day of my trip, I wanted to get off of the High Street/​Cowgate area and head over to Newtown.
The Black Rose is a decent somewhat divey pub with a pretty good menu (for pub food) and a good juke box of rock and heavy metal. It leans a little more to the corporate/​major label metal for my taste — I tend to prefer DIY punk and hardcore. But either way, the music and the general diviness felt comfortable to me.
The food was good and the beer was… well, the same as getting Tennents at any other pub I guess. The bartender was very friendly and made some good suggestions when it turned out they’d run out of fish and chips.
If I were in Edinburgh for longer I probably would have returned to the Black Rose. It seems like they have a good amount of entertainment during the week, everything from pub quiz to live music. Given the jukebox and the fliers on the walls, I’m fairly sure I would have enjoyed it.

Not your typical Rose Street Pub.
I took refuge here on more than one occasion while my Wife spent the GDP of a small nation shopping on Princess St.
Jukebox is killer. Aside from the one RHCP disc, the rest is pretty great (Siouxsie, The Cure, etc). It might seem like a conflict of interest playing metal in a Pub, but I found it quite relaxing. Also, I was quite amused when older tourists would poke their nose in through the door, only to have them pull a stink-​face and sod-​off when they realized Pantera + them do not mix.
Great place to go and watch the Tourists on Rose Street late afternoon. The evenings I can’t vouch for, but they take their Metal pretty seriously here judging by the regulars, the staff and the band flyers.
Pints were about 4 pounds on tap.

Our hen party had only been in one pub on Rose Street so far and when we went to go into another we kept getting knock back after knock back. I would love to say that it was because we all looked underage but alas it was our lovely pink feather boas that gave us away.
There was also a stag do on as well, with a poor unfortunate stag dressed in a green morph suit covered in scribblings. Yes we signed him as we passed him by, it’d be rude not to. Their group was also knocked back and in fact none of us were rowdy. Well we’d only been to one pub. It seems quite a few on Rose Street don’t allow hen or stag dos.
Someone said «it’s ok this one’s allowing us in». Little did I know it was The Black Rose. I had never been here before and my little ears pricked up and alas I felt at home. Never refused from the house of rock!!!
It’s a smallish pub and it was fairly busy but some of us managed to get a seat. The clientele was weirdly older men, not as in rockers/​bikers though. There was a few younger guys, so you’ve probably guessed by now there was more men than women and with our lovely pink feather boas we certainly stood out.
I’m a rock chick so this was right up my street and couldn’t care less if I had pink boa round my neck or not. The other hens weren’t so into the music unfortunately. I felt my time was cut short from here and I would have liked to have stayed a little while longer but they wanted to move onto the next pub. Next time I’m in Edinburgh I’m so back here.

The Black Rose Tavern looks sleek and edgy from the outside, with an interesting mix of sophistication and old tavern. There is in fact nothing old about this place — it’s a cool but kicked back rock bar!
Serving up good snacky food during the day and having a kick ass jukebox playing out rock classics, The Tavern is certainly one of the cooler bars in Edinburgh that I’ve been to. It attracts a mixed crowd, which further displays it has a universal charm.
It’s used by many as a precursor for going out but in its own right, the Black Rose Tavern host some great nights. There is an open mic every Tuesday for aspiring musicians, and for those of us who wish that we were Gene Simmons, there is a rock karaōke every week! They used to do rock karaōke in Glasgow and I only wish I could be through here more often for the event — there is nothing more fun than wailing along to Total Eclipse of the Heart when you’re tipsy!
This bar manages to successfully be a Jack of all Trades. By day, it serves up great food and is a nice place to hang out with your mates over a few beers. By night, it has a buzz about it, and is one of the nicer places to drink in Edinburgh. It’s got more character than a lot of the vapid cocktail bars I’ve been to in Edinburgh over the years, so I am definitely a fan of this cool alternative.

This place is an odd mixture.
Firstly, the actual bar itself is very much a traditional, wooden ‘old man pub’ — until you look up and notice the skulls, the gothic candles and hear the music.
Yes, we are in a ROCK PUB!
The best way I can think of to describe this place is if the rock club Opium in Cowgate is your main course, then The Black Rose is the chilled glass of champagne and a canapé. It is great to saitisfy you for a little bit, but soon enough you are gagging for the larger portion. You cant just fill up on canapes, they dont have enough substance.
The same goes here — yes, the pub is great, the rock music is good (and somethimes live), the drinks are cheap and the general atmosphere is fun — but you will want to move on at some point. It has no real staying power for the whole night (but thats a different analogy).

It was actually the funky, different sign that first drew me to The Black Rose Tavern. Then it was the eclectic mix of prim and proper with biker and rocker folk sitting outside in the sun with pints of beer or glasses of rose. This seemed like my kind of place.
It is essentially a pub just like the rest, but the difference here is that the focus is on rock. The emphasis is very much on live rock music, and we found ourselves in here on a Wednesday night when the very unique rock karaōke takes place. You won’t find any Cher or Celine on the screens here, think Slayer and Marilyn Manson. It makes for an interesting evening anyway, I’ll say that much!
I would definitely go back here for a night out. The people were friendly and everyone was there to have a laugh and let their hair down. Next time I might not wear my pink jacket though, I did get a few stares!

Cheap and clean, friendly people, good music, nothing more to say.