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    The Black Bull

    3.6 (44 reviews)
    ModeratePubs
    Open 9:30 am - 1:00 AM (Next day)

    The Black Bull Photos

    THE BLACK BULL ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Loud
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

    Recommended Reviews - The Black Bull

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    Reviews With Photos

    Casey M.

    The black bull is situated right at the heart of the historic grassmarket. The service was slow as I wasn't sure if it was table service or order at the bar but eventually someone came over and took my order. The bar is dark but cosy with some interesting little bits on the ceiling and the fish & chips were honestly delicious and reasonably priced. I sat by the window and enjoyed watching the goings on during the fringe and would definitely visit again!

    Bar and small tv screens
    Ryo Hanalei Z.

    Long day of walking and enjoying Edinburgh but now I'm hungry. I was chatting with someone outside of this bar and he thought it was pretty decent, so I decided to try it out. The bartenders were kind enough to let me know that they were running a little behind and food would take awhile. I said I can sit and have a drink. One of the waiters was kind enough to clean up a table so I can sit. After a long while. I was finally approached to see if I was ready to order and I was. Wings with sauce on the side a caprese salad. I was excited when my food finally came out. My excitement turned to disappointment when I took a bite of a wing. Dry. Crunchy. Arid. The outside of the wing had good flavoring. It was just dry. Even the meat inside was dry. I took another and dipped it into the hot sauce mixed with mayo and that didn't help either. I don't think the cook realize that these wings were so tiny, that they shouldn't be fried for so long. You can take a look from the picture I took how small these wings are. I lost my appetite and let the waiter know to give his cook some friendly feedback and that I wasn't going to finish my meal. I still paid for my check, it wasn't the waiters fault he didn't recognize how bad the food was. I don't recommend coming here for food, the bartenders were nice so, i would recommend eating somewhere else, and just come here for drinks. I hope you don't have the same experience I did. Njoy!

    The outside on a cold night
    Dorothy G.

    We just went for a a nightcap and did not eat. Beers were cold and there was a decent selection. There was some broken glass on the floor by our table. It wasn't clear if there was table service so I fetched our beer from the bar myself. The place was bustling.

    Fish and chips and the Mac and cheese fries
    Christopher W.

    We loved the vibe of this pub nearby our hotel. We stopped in for some food and the fish and chips were amazing! The Mac and cheese was also good but would have been better without the chili sauce on-top in my opinion. Overall would go back since the people were friendly

    Fish and chips
    Kelli P.

    I was looking for an easy going authentic Scottish experience. Great drink selections including local beers. The fish and chips were delicious! I would definitely come back here.

    Trina D.

    We headed over to the Black Bull shortly after dinner for a few cheap drinks. I ordered a Strongbow cider. The bartenders are friendly and quick to serve. We found a few tables in the back and sat down to enjoy our drinks. Great lively place to meet locals and tourists alike. There was a live act in that night but his performance was out in front so I didn't see what he was about. Others said it was just ok. This is a great pub to check out if you're ever in Edinburgh.

    Gibson A.

    I just don't get this place! Sure, the staff are nice enough and there's some comfortable seating to chill out on with your mates, but you can do that at just about any pub in the whole city. As soon as you walk in it feels like you've just entered a medieval dungeon and you just about need a headtorch the find the bar! That's an obscene exaggeration, but the lighting is surprisingly dim and the general ambiance is lacking warmth. The drinks are quite fairly priced with most pints costing under £3 and they do have quite a good selection of ales and spirits. I came here about two weeks ago and just found the whole place a bit depressing, but if you came here on a cold winter's day it might offer a little more atmosphere.

    A long bar

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    4 years ago

    I had a wonderful experience at the black bull, my waiter Rhea was so gracious. She made the experience fun!! Best bartender you could have.

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    10 years ago

    It's a jumbo pub, perhaps too big to feel personal. And I had to listen to an American guy sing wagon wheel. It truly is inescapable.

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    9 years ago

    Staff were fun and friendly! Sat down to eat, service for food was super quick! Haggis was excellent !!!

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    17 years ago

    absolutely dire avoid at all costs

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    Page 1 of 2

    The Black Bull Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - The Black Bull

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    The Devil's Advocate - Smoked fish plate

    The Devil's Advocate

    4.3(630 reviews)
    0.3 miOld Town, Royal Mile
    ££

    Just an awesome, rockin' final meal in Edinburgh - fantastic food, good service and energized local…read morevibe! Absolute must to get reservations! We tried on our first week in Edinburgh and failed, but were able to make reservations 3 weeks out for our last night in Scotland, and we are glad we did. Pork cracklins were a bit hard and crunchy, but everything else was perfect. We had fresh bread and langostinis for starters, along with a smokey whiskey cocktail, the Smoked Indiscretion! For mains we enjoyed the poached Cod, and the Pork with Barley. Service was very good, and wine selection was extensive. Atmosphere was loud with music and locals' chatter in the bar below, but dark tables and heavy wood panels made it a perfect place for a couple celebrating 3 weeks of travel. Highly recommend a visit to the Devil's Advocate, if you can book a table in advance.

    The Devil's Advocate is undoubtedly a treasure to find in Old Town Edinburgh, especially if you…read moreaccidentally take the News Steps to get there, only to realize you should have simply taken the steps up Advocate's Close from Cockburn Street. But they call these lessons, "character building," apparently. No matter, the Devil's Advocate is worth the search. Located in an old Victorian pump house halfway up (or down) Advocate's Close, the Devil's Advocate is known for a killer whisky shelf of more than 300 different bottles from various distilleries across the Highlands, Lowlands, Speyside, Campbelltown, the Islands, and Islay. I finally sipped on a 15-year Tamdu that has convinced me to keep a bottle at home. Then there's the Clydeside 2024 Limited Edition Cask Strength that was wicked impressive. The bartenders are class at making and serving seasonal and regular cocktails that have their spin and character. My wife enjoyed gin-based cocktails such as the Clean Slate (with St-Germain, citrus, and sugar), Rose Garden (with Yellow Chartreuse, Cocchi Rosa, apple, lemon, and mint), and Bee's Knees (honey and lemon). I went full speed ahead with the scotch cocktails, which are essentially classics with a scotch-substituted twist. The Double Shot is an Espresso Martini with Dalmore 12 in addition to Kahlua, espresso, and demerara -- quite smooth without being too sweet. The Scotzia is a Negroni with Fettercairn 12, while the Boxcar is a Sidecar only with Aberfeldy 12. We enjoyed the bar for a few hours, watching the bartenders make magic while sipping on cocktails, while listening to 80s pop tunes. A great evening indeed.

    Photos
    The Devil's Advocate - Whiskey flight tastings

    Whiskey flight tastings

    The Devil's Advocate - Fish Filet

    Fish Filet

    The Devil's Advocate - Double Shot with Dalmore 12, kahula, espresso shot, and Demerara.

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    Double Shot with Dalmore 12, kahula, espresso shot, and Demerara.

    The White Hart Inn

    The White Hart Inn

    3.9(113 reviews)
    0.0 miGrassmarket, Old Town
    ££

    Our first day in Edinburgh and as usual our first order of business is to ride the hop-on-hop-off…read morebus. Today when the Red route took us to old town and I saw The White Hart Inn I said to Jan let's do an early dinner there and she agreed. We continued the route and stayed on back to the stop in old town. We love Alfresco dining but it was too cold and windy today. We went inside and the restrauant was packed. It's open seating. No hostess, no sign in. We were lucky and just happened to be standing next to a table that opened. We had been there about 5 minutes. The restaurant/ pub is rich in history, established in 1516. It's small with limited bar seating and prehaps 8 to 10 tables. It is noisy from conversation, tosting and music, but we didn't have a hard time communicating. It has a great vibe. It's a fun venue and popular with the locals. The menu is not large and has several Scottish offerings. To start, Jan was cold and wanted an Irish coffee. I ordered an Innis and Gunn larger. Innis & Gunn is an acclaimed Scottish brewery founded in 2003 in Edinburgh. It had a slightly citrus flavor. Jan ordered muscles and I ordered the steak and ale pie, served with a charred Hispi cabbage wedge, buttered mash and Merlot beef dripping gravy. It was very tasty, very robust flavor. I loved the cabbage; great flavor. I had to look up hispi cabbage and it is a variety of green cabbage. The muscles were good and the broth very nice. We had a lovely time and a good meal. Our good luck at freelancing dining venues while we explore Ireland and Scotland continues.

    We chose this place for being one of the oldest establishments in Scotland dating back to the 18th…read more Century and a place where poets like Wordsworth, Burns etc gathered for a sip. The setting still looked ancient and the overall ambiance was befitting. Small place though. The food and drinks however disappointed. They could have put more efforts to turn the place into something much more than it is. Service was efficient without being really excellent.

    Photos
    The White Hart Inn
    The White Hart Inn
    The White Hart Inn - Cozy place

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    Cozy place

    Queens Arms

    Queens Arms

    4.4(114 reviews)
    0.5 miNew Town
    ££

    Out of all the places I've been to in Scotland, I think Queens Arms was one of my favorites…read more We had reservations for this place recently and when I took one step inside, I was already in love. I mean who doesn't love a good pub? You get great drinks and great food at an affordable price. As I write it makes me think of think of when Zidane reunites with Freya in FF9. Sometimes we don't wanna eat at fancy Michelin restaurant that has small plates but charges a premium. Sometimes we just wanna cut all the BS and just get a nice hearty meal. And thats what we got. When we sat down we found out that they were doing a Trivia night. Normally I would have told my girl to pick another spot to eat but for some reason I was cool with it. There was even a table nearby with kids(yuck). And you know what? It was fine. That's because we had been sipping on some amazing cocktails. If you also partake, Gin and Mezcal enjoyers will love the Bramble and Hibiscus Crush. What color are Luigi's overalls from Super Mario? That's such an easy question. Wait...what do you mean Luigi's overalls are blue? They are green. Look at this picture onli...Oh... One of the stars of our meal was the Haggis. This was the first time I had ever tried it and after trying it at multiple places Scotland, Queens Arms I feel has done it the best. I love the complexity of the flavors of the meat with the creamy and pepper flavors of the peppercorn sauce. If you've never had Haggis, you definitely have to try it here. The best part is that it comes with mashed potatoes too! Shoutouts to the Fish and Chips if you are also into that. One of my friends ordered that and I definitely had to go back in for multiple bites. Finally the roast. The Sunday Roast should just be an automatic order if you happen to come here on a Sunday. You get so much food and it's all so damn tasty. They'll cook a roast to whatever doneness your heart desires. We went with Medium Rare and it came out perfectly. If you didn't have enough flavors with all the extra sides it comes with, they also give you gravy to pour on anything you want. Thanksgiving basically came early this night. But as I looked around and admired all the bookshelf's and all the families have a nice dinner with their loved ones, I just thought about how happy I was. I was finally here! This was the start of my trip. Queens Arms has set a high ceiling on great experiences in Scotland. We even went back there a couple of days ago just because we knew we would be able to end the night on a good drink. But in the end I think if you are Edinburgh, you have to come to this place. It is one of my favorite experiences I've had in Scotland so far and I dream about when I can come back again.

    We got 3 reservations to split up our group of 8 adults and 2 kids, so we were all able to make…read moresure to get a table and have the Sunday roast. We shared the ultimate sharing roast and everything was delicious and so filling. It was also nice to be able to sit and watch a match while enjoying the food. The coffee was pretty good too. This is definitely a good option if you're looking for a Sunday roast in the area

    Photos
    Queens Arms
    Queens Arms
    Queens Arms - Wellington upfront and Mac and Cheese in the back

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    Wellington upfront and Mac and Cheese in the back

    The Black Bull - pubs - Updated May 2026

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