I love Maysons. It's…read morea great, loving pub. Full disclosure: I am not a native to Dalkeith, or Scotland, or Europe. But I feel at home in Maysons. I've enjoyed Maysons dozens of times. It felt the same 10 years ago as it does today, except for a few upgrades. The TVs have turned to flat screens. The bathroom was recently painted. This is Dalkeith, folks. Nothing but the best. My first experience at Maysons was as a wee 21 year old exchange student. Full head of hair. Low alcohol tolerance. Wide eyes. This is the closest pub to where the Wisconsin exchange students live and learn. I know that I learned more in the streets and pubs of Scotland than I did in the classes. Although, I certainly retained more from the classes. Pub lessons are simply ingrained and carried in your DNA. The staff, especially Gav, is remarkable. Gav looks like he could beat the piss from you in a brawl or a race or a drinking game or a push-up competition. He also might beat you at snagging a lass. But he's friendly and attentive and exemplifies the quick-witted Scottish humor that endears any visitor. You'll notice name plates on the walls for old regulars and lots of shaved heads. The men in Scotland can be intimidating. But they can also be hilarious and fun and affectionate drinking buddies. It's nearly impossible to match wits with a Scotsman as he barbs you with that killer dialect. There is a back room for pool. Or you can use it for privacy during a make-out session. Or for a quick snorting or stomping or stabbing. You know, druggin' & thuggin'. Use your best judgement and please be discrete. Wouldn't want to draw attention. Maysons may enjoy the kissing and game playing, but keep the drugging and thugging outside. There are some convenient alleys nearby which contain a number of 90 degree turns for your quiet moments. Use them as you wish. But always remember the CCTV. Don't let my poorly crafted jokes deter you from Maysons. It is a great, small, authentic pub. It's a great place to relax. Mind the cobblestone streets as you stumble home. They jump up out of nowhere.

aw aye sorry forgot u had to be 18 to order a bowl of bloody chips and a bottle of water.read more

From the owner: Great food, locally brewed ales and a friendly service!read more

The Buccleuch is a place my wife and I pop into for the occasional lunch. It is part of the Smith &…read moreJones chain of pubs. I have to say, for a chain the food is actually very good. We're not talking award winning cuisine here but good honest pub grub at very reasonable prices. One thing that has changed recently though is the menu. They used to have small bites at 2 for £5 or 3 for £7.50 and these were great to share at lunchtime. The sesame seed chicken bites in a JIm beam Glaze were scrumptious as was the southern fried chicken breast with sour cream dip. We'd also order maybe the indian chicken skewers to make it up to the three dishes to share but this deal seems to have gone. I'm sure they'll probably come up with another. If you're in Dalkeith there are a few pubs you could pop into for a bit of lunch but I reckon this place should be top of your list if you just want a bit of good old pub grub.

I have been to this pub on a number of occassions for lunch or evening meal. It is outstanding in…read moreterms of the quality of the food on offer and the very competitive price charged. A two course lunch, main meal with either a starter or sweet course, costs only £5.25 a bargain! Food is well cooked and attractively presented. The waitress is friendly as is the landlord. There is a daily menu which, typically, has a choice of 2 starters, 8 mains and 4 sweets from which to select. Highly recommended as a place to eat and relax!

Called in here for lunch yesterday with my relatives. It was very busy with only a few free tables…read moreavailable, so is obviously quite popular! My husband and I have now eaten at well over 30 different Wetherspoon pubs around the UK as we like the food and it's reasonably priced. There are always great guest real ales for my husband to try and I like the Merlot house wine. The coffees are lovely too and the service usually very good. Isn't it always the way though when you take friends or relatives to a favourite place you've suggested because something always goes wrong! Yesterday, in this pub, two of us ordered the superfood salad but the pesto pasta arrived instead. However, they took it away without any problem and replaced it with the correct meals quite quickly, so all was well. Then two desserts were ordered, one with custard and one without, but both arrived with custard! So back went one of the custard desserts and the correct one was then brought. The staff were very pleasant and came over a couple of times (after the mishaps) to check we were happy and that all was well. This pub takes its name from the blacksmith's forge which stood on this spot in the 1850s. Apparently there were practising blacksmiths here up until until the 1970s.

Good place for Food and drinks nice and cheap with great service. Fish and Chips is good in there…read morebut small portion so thats annoying but tasty at the end of the day and there Maccoroni is good

Great wee pub, perfect for holding events and family gatherings. Andii was brilliant hes definitely…read moremade an improvement on this pub. Staff were great throughout and made the event run smoothly. The guy with the bandana definitely made an impression!! A great place to book .

lovely rustic pub, food was delicious especially the chicken schnitzel, big portions and had a good…read morekids menu. Staff were very friendly and accommodating.

Hey, Yelpers, less of a review, more of a preview. However, I have eaten at The Melville Inn, so…read moreI've put my mouth where my money is. Yes, you'll find the landlord, or manager as they're called these days - Derek - out on the floor, serving customers, just like the rest of his staff. Don't take my word for it though, Carolyn, one of the top team, won the Scotland round of the in-house servers competition, and was silver medalist in the whole UK in 2012 - against 200 other Vintage Inn pubs. What's got me excited though is the October Tarot Evening. It's a first for the venue and, given the low-lighting, log-fire intimate surroundings, it should be a hoot. I'm minded to notch up five stars, because the Melville delivers what you expect, and delivers it well - good, family friendly food; plenty of atmosphere; and just the occasional surprise too. Rate me, rate my rating when you go.

This place is right next to the Butterfly Farm, and the massive garden centre which is worth a…read morevisit in itself. The beer garden looked inviting, although not today, it was raining. We walked in and once we finally got noticed it was sooo friendly. I picked the lamb koftas to start and the beef and merlot pie. Great service and fast, my koftas came and they were not bad, just a little more dense and just a little more spice for me though. My beef and merlot pie was the exact dish I'd had in the Balloch House a couple of weeks ago, but it seemed to me it was just slightly more lacking in meat, but still with the oversize bits of mushroom, still tasty though and certainly a nice Sunday lunch.

been here a good few times for a pub lunch, very good food and good selection of meals to choose…read morefrom. staff are friendly and welcoming