10 Best Breweries and Beer Places in Parkhead

"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."

"Cold Town House is one of Edinburgh's prettiest outdoor restaurants with an incredible space that overlooks the castle. Make your way through their menu of droolworthy pizzas and refreshing craft beers while topping up your tan in amazing surroundings."

"Located in the heart of Edinburgh’s old town, this bar is anything but old-fashioned. The styling is industrial featuring exposed brick and stainless steel but fret not, the atmosphere is warm and lively as residents and visitors flock to sample the now world renowned, headline grabbing beer. Perhaps unsurprisingly the beer offering is vast and not just from the brand itself, which can be sampled in a range of measures."

"In 2007, founders James and Martin started BrewDog with a mission to make other people as passionate about great craft beer as they were. BrewDog’s HQ can be found in Ellon, Aberdeenshire. The state of the art Scottish eco-brewery is also home to Overworks Brewery, BrewDog’s testing lab for sour beer."

"Brewdog is a popular anti-mainstream Scottish brewery, established in 2007. Its Edinburgh HQ is a former karaoke bar, renovated with stainless steel fixtures, reclaimed furniture and lots of exposed brickwork. Basically, it’s one of the coolest stag party bars in the Old Town."

"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."

"Combining old and new ideas and techniques, Edinburgh Beer Factory create beer inspired by the Edinburgh-born ‘Godfather of Pop Art’, Eduardo Paolozzi. Their brewery tours include a walkthrough of their lager-making process, from blank canvas to final product. You’ll even get the chance to taste the raw ingredients and the unfiltered brew!"

"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."

"When it comes to humble beginnings, Paul Gibson certainly takes a top spot. His home-grown brewing project began in his garage out of a green VW called Olive. After heading out on the road across the UK and creating beers on a shoestring budget, Paul set up a permanent (and much larger) home for his microbrewery in Leith."

"Situated in Leith, on the Edinburgh coast, thisbrewery started life on the road as a “mobile brewery” in a 1973 VW campervan (hence thename). Today, having opened a permanent location in 2017, it’s still going strong. Their spacious taproom is laid-back and unpretentious."

"What: Boasting four locations around the city, Mimi’s Bakehouse is a hit with young families and sweet-toothed locals. Mimi’s is best known for its selection of pastries and cakes, but its breakfast menu is not to be sniffed at. Swing by here in the AM to tuck into the likes of halloumi and avocado on toast, French toast topped with crème fraiche, and crunchy granola mixed with Greek yoghurt, honey and berries."

"This award winning family run bakery has three other outlets in Edinburgh, and is a popular spot for afternoon tea. Serving up a selection of homemade cakes, it’s also a good lunch spot especially if you can grab an outside table on a warm day. Photo: Mimi's Bakehouse"

"Sweet, moist and beautiful to look at, Mimi’s cakes are reasonably priced too – on any day you might chow down on a raspberry chocolate brownie, caramel shortbread or Mars bar crispie whipped up on site. Soups, sandwiches and tarts are available for lunch."

"This Grassmarket stalwart seems to exert a gravitational pull on small to medium sized groups of both locals and tourists looking for an impromptu food stop. Starters like sweet potato fries and macho nachos are decent enough, but their function is to…"

"Around a 15-minute drive from our luxury student accommodation buildings in Edinburgh is Bread Meets Bread, a super popular eatery perfect for a takeaway. They have four delicious vegan burger options, as well as plenty of vegan sides if you’re wanting that little bit extra. If you like a bit of spice, the vegan Caribbean burger is definitely worth a try!"

"This award-winning gourmet burger restaurant serve a range of mouthwatering burgers, crafted in-house daily. Situated on the bustling Royal Mile, their beer garden is a great place to enjoy beer & a burger as you people watch on this busy thoroughfare. Booking advised, but walk-ins also welcome."

"It’s often said that if you want to be a successful restaurateur, you need to specialize. At Burgers and Beers, they do exactly that. Burgers and Beers has the most extensive burger menu you’ll find in Edinburgh, and they proudly boast “Scotland’s Best Burger,” which I don’t doubt for a minute."

"This grill house reminds me of the restaurant we found in Nuremberg. The average menu item did not exceed 13£ and there is a dedicated children’s menu. The beer and drinks options are also fairly elaborate as well, suggesting there is a little something here for everyone."