10 Best Breweries and Beer Places in Cockenzie and Port Seton

"What: Edinburgh Castle is one the city’s most recognisable sites and Cold Town House’s rooftop terrace offers some of the finest views you could wish for of the landmark. The après ski-themed outdoor area comes complete with gondola seats and vintage Nissan van-cum-bar, with food options at Cold Town House ranging from Neapolitan-style pizzas to hanging grills. Make sure to try one of beer’s brewed in-house with your food too.Where: 4 Grassmarket, EH1 2JU"

"Cold Town House, an après-ski-themed beer garden on the Grassmarket in the heart of the Old Town, is a relaxed urban venue, with views of the castle. Owned and run by local brewery Cold Town Beer, it serves its own craft beer, as well as prosecco and warming whiskies. Great value pizzas can be ordered from the vintage van parked on the pergola-covered rooftop."

"Brew Dog was established in 2007 by two young men who were passionate about craft beer and tired of uninspiring industrially produced beers and ales. They began to brew headline grabbing beers such as Tactical Nuclear Penguin (with an astonishing 32% ABV) and Sink the Bismarck (an incredible 41% ABV -the result of a beer arms race between Germany and Scotland). They opened their first bar in Aberdeen in 2010 and the following year opened a Brew Dog pub in the heart of Edinburgh which quickly became a local sensation."

"Born and bred in Scotland, Brewdog is such a successful brand that it’s gone global, with 78bars spread around the world. Though founded in Aberdeenshire, three are located inEdinburgh. Choose between the Lothian Road or the Cowgate location (which is a little bit more central)."

"Offering some of the best beers in the city, BrewDog's Lothian Road is about both quantity and quality. A huge space boasting over 20 craft beers as well as a menu of hearty eats, from beefy burgers and healthy salads to delicious chicken and cauliflower wings."

"Perhaps a controversial choice as an essential Edinburgh craft beer, given that Paolozzi, the Edinburgh Beer Factory's flagship brew, only launched on October 18 - but in that short time, the crisp, sparkling lager has gained enviable comparisons (in our local bottle shop, anyway) to Munich's much-revered Augustiner Hell. Perhaps such a success straight off the mark is due to the wealth of experience behind it - the EBF is headed up by John Dunsmore, former boss of both Tennent’s owner C&C Group and macro brewing plc Scottish & Newcastle. Of course, the beautifully-labelled bottle (sporting designs by Leith-born Pop Art figurehead Eduardo Paolozzi) makes it a lovely drink to be seen holding as well."

"If you’re planning a road trip of Scotland we suggest celebrating your arrival into Edinburgh Airport by immediately sipping suds at Edinburgh Beer Factory. The brewery is located a short 8 minute drive from Edinburgh Airport, making it the perfect first or last stop on a Scottish beer tour. Edinburgh Beer Factory first opened in November 2015."

"Founded and operated by veteran brewer Andrew Barnett in the Summerhall former vet school, and on the site of the historic Summerhall Brewery (demolished circa 1913), Barney’s is a micro-brewery literally rooted in tradition. There’s no pasteurisation or filtration in the process, which is 100% natural. All of Barney's beers – including the humbly-named Good Ordinary Pale Ale plus a lager, a red beer and a dark porter – are cask-conditioned or bottle-conditioned."

"Barney’s Beer is a craft brewery located at the southeast corner of Edinburgh’s Meadows in Summerhall. Ranked as one of the best Edinburgh breweries, Barney’s Beer is housed in the stables of the city’s old vet school. Barney (Andrew Barnett) started working in his hometown brewery in Wolverhampton back in 1983 at 16 and has been in the industry ever since."

"Barney’s Beer offers public and private tours|Courtesy of Barney’s Beer. Housed at Summerhall in a former vet school’s stables, Barney’s has been brewing for the people of Edinburgh since 2010. The use of the Summerhall site as a brewery actually predates its use as veterinary college."

"It represents an extensive selection of wines, whiskies, fine spirits and a range of world beer. Their wine list includes Champagne, Dessert wine, Fine wine, Fortified wine, Fruit wine, Port wine, Red wine, Rose wine, Sherry, Sparkling wine and White wine. Apart from wines, they also offer grape spirits, fruit spirits, rum, agave, gin, vodka, anise, liqueurs, and cocktails."

"Staying on Dundas Street, Archipelago Bakery is a lovely little artisan bakery, serving up freshly baked goods made with organic ingredients and a big dose of love!. It's a gorgeous store, producing delicious breads, cakes and savoury tarts. They supply to some of Edinburgh's best restaurants, which goes to show the level of care and quality in their ingredients and baking."

"Cake lovers won’t want to miss a pit stop at Archipelago, a beloved bakery city-wide that serves up the most delicious bread and baked treats, all made from 100% organic flour. I found out about this bakery from their beautiful cake loaves being served at Lowdown, and promptly decided to head straight to the source myself."

"Lastly, Archipelago is another bakery who are passionate about producing ‘Real Bread’. Their bread is made by hand every day, using organic flour and traditional methods. They have a wide range of yeasted loaves and sourdoughs and always adding more to the selection!"

"3D Cakes Store has a large selection of cakes most especially for weddings. Aside from this, they also let their customers design their own cake to make sure that they get exactly what they want. These cakes also vary from small to a truly enormous one."

"As its name suggests, Edinburgh Food Studio, located on a nondescript road a short cab ride from central Edinburgh, is the city's apex for gastronomes. Although it's a bona fide restaurant, EFS has the hum, chatter, and excitement of a pop-up. James Murray, the chef, and Ben Reade and Sashana Souza Zanella, the young, supremely knowledgable founders, sometimes appear to chat about ingredients and dishes."

"Far from the city centre throng, Edinburgh Food Studio is a tiny unassuming restaurant and ‘food research hub’ dishing up some of the most creative, nerdy and – fear not – delicious cuisine in the capital."

"This is a definite hidden gem tucked away on Rose Street and is only a 10-minute drive from Straits Meadow and a 15-minute drive from Goods Corner!. You won’t have to wait too long for your tasty middle eastern cuisine from the comfort of your own luxury accommodation with them both being so close. Meze Meze do serve meat, but there are plenty of vegan options available, whether that be hot or cold meze."

"Established way back in 1962, this affordable veggie restaurant sits pretty on a sloping New Town terrace, a stroll away from Princes Street. Diners queue to have their plates piled high with salads, quiche, vegetarian haggis, crepes and more, followed by surprisingly indulgent puddings. Hendersons runs a deli upstairs from the basement restaurant, as well as a couple of vegan offshoots elsewhere in town, but – especially when there’s live jazz on a Friday night – the homey cosy vibe makes the Salad Table in particular an Edinburgh stand-out."

"Henderson's is a well-known and very popular vegetarian restaurant on Hanover Street but they also have a presence in the west end under St. John's church on the corner of Lothian Road and Princes Street. This fantastic location caters for up to 80 people in an atmospheric, barrel-vaulted dining room. Whether you want a light snack and a coffee, soup and a sandwich, or a tasty veggie lunch with a glass of wine, you can find it here."