Cumberland Bar, Edinburgh

Very smart pub inside and out. Has a bit of an upmarket chain feel to the place. Does what it does well - good food, service and the Stewarts 80 shilling was fine. More "quirky" examples available nearby. Visit blogged at http://bit.ly/2Dga2p5

Very quiet at the time of our midweek afternoon visit, but this has the feel of a real locals pub and I'll bet it gets heaving later on. There's a bank of six hand pumps on the bar with five beers on at the time of our visit: Caledonian Deuchars IPA, Timothy Taylor Landlord and three guests, which were all at the pale end of the spectrum. This is a really nice old fashioned bar, with wood panelling and a tiny snug just opposite the bar counter. My notes say "beer not up to much", but to be honest I think that's more because I had Stewarts Pekko, which is not really to my taste (this was my first beer featuring this hop, and I've since had another from a different brewery and don't think it suits me). Date of visit: 21st March 2017

Old style bar in the new town. 8 real ales,"craft keg" and continental keg served. Part of a group that includes The Guildford Arms & The Abbotsford Bar.

One of my regular after work haunts in the late 90's when I worked on Fettes Row just down the road. I'm pleased to say it doesn't appear to have changed much since. A standard sized frontage goes back a long way, giving a large drinking space. There's a seating area to the left as you enter, a tiny snug on the left a little further into the pub and a further room at the rear which is often used for dining. There's also a further room to the right after the bar. There's a lot of wood panelling and green leather seating alongside standard dining tables and chairs. The bar is on the right and is quite long. The one thing that has changed in the last 15 years or so is that there are now 8 handpumps. These used to be traditional Scottish air dispense founts. The two bar staff were both friendly and both beers I tried were in very good nick. It's quite rightly listed in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide 2014. It's good to see it still going strong.