Granary, Leith, Edinburgh

Blackthorn _ left this review about Granary

A large and prominent pub in an attractive cobbled street overlooking the water, it has large plate glass windows all along the front to make the most of the outlook, and a sign outside advertised that there was live music on later in the evening so we decided to return then.

Internally it’s quite contemporary although some remnants of it’s industrial past have been incorporated in to the design. The flooring is some sort of wood strip, whilst the walls are predominantly white plasterwork, although there was also an exposed brick wall to the left, as well as an old fireplace, although these days all it contained was a gas fire along with a few candles on the mantlepiece. It seemed very much geared up for food, and I’m not sure whether you’d have been able to get a table just for a drink earlier on in the evening, although the food service was drawing to a close by the time we arrived. It’s got a bit of a bling factor to it with large illuminated sliver bunches of twigs hanging from the ceiling, like you might expect to see as part of some Christmas decorations. A mezzanine level floor had been fitted at some point which made for quite a low ceiling at the back, although with the exposed and rustic woodwork on show from the floor above, this felt cosy rather than claustrophobic. In a nod to the building’s origins, a trap door was set high in to the wall, along with a couple of sacks of flour. As it happened, the live music turned out to be a couple of guys performing a fairly quiet acoustic set, and was presumably intended more as an accompaniment for people eating rather than the band that I had been expecting.

Unfortunately there were no real ales on tap, with just Bellfield IPA and Caledonia Best on keg, and ciders fared no better with Magner’s being the sole offering. Overall, this wasn’t unpleasant, and I would probably consider returning to try the food, but as a pub it really falls rather short.

On 15^th April 2024 - rating: 5
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