The best gin bars in Edinburgh

There has been a café-bar on site since the 1990s but after a couple of name changes the premises settled down as 56 North back in 2008. These days gin is their unique selling point so the venue stocks types of Genever, Old Tom, barrel-aged gin and more brands than you thought existed. They also do gin masterclasses and a pop-up festival gin garden in August.

‘Bar? Mini-distillery? Ah, let’s have both.’ In a city centre basement, this dapper venue made its debut in 2014. Edinburgh Gin is made here, there is a wide selection of inventive gin-based cocktails although the range of brands is not as extensive as you’d find elsewhere. Heads & Tales also does a nice line in bar bites.

A 2015 opening, with gimmicky ‘distressed Victoriana’ décor, this café-bar stocks over 60 brands of gin and the staff do actually know what they’re talking about. It offers a high-class pub grub menu, windows opening wide to the street and those excellent gins; it’s a great place for a refreshing summer G&T. 

Occupying just part of the University of Edinburgh’s former veterinary school, the Royal Dick bar has neighbours on site that include a multifaceted arts centre (Summerhall), a craft brewery (Barney’s) and a gin distillery (Pickering’s). Although the Royal Dick – named for the old vet school – is no gin specialist it is unique because a pipe from distillery to bar means you can get Pickering’s Gin here on draught.