Ryries Bar, Edinburgh

Lovely old building very handy for Haymarket Station. Part of a group that includes The Abbotsford and The Guildford Arms. 8 real ale taps.

A well known pub outside Haymarket station, a brown building in vaguely Scottish baronial style with its crow steps, the lower part with wood and stained glass. A long counter in the first of two rooms as you enter from the very busy crossroads outside, its fairly narrow with tables at banquettes down the outer walls. The counter is home to 8 pulls, 1 Thistley cider, 2 blank, Taylor’s Landlord,  Vocation Chop & Change, one each from Swannay, Fyne, and Orkney. A couple of low T-Bars have the usual keg stuff. Plain decor apart from the thistle wallpaper and the odd mirror, a fair bit of old wood is still in situ. Very busy on my Friday afternoon visit with bar blockers and at the tables, maybe discerning drinkers or those just waiting for a train, there’s a train describer screen in the main bar. Famous it may be but I found it lacking in atmosphere and warmth. Cocktail bar and dining upstairs which is for hire.

Visited 05/11/25 Cask was quite impressive here with Jarl from Fyne Ales, TT LL, Orkney IPA from Swannay Brewery, Mothership from Ascencion cider, Dark Island Dark Ale from Orkney Brewery, Snake Eyes Pale Ale from Two-by-Two Brewing, Nonchalant Shark XPA from Lost Pier. Keg was Cromarty Raptor pale ale, Cold Town Lab Doddie Bier, Leith Juice from Campervan Brewery, Hazy IPA from Stewart Brewing, Tennent's, Paolozzi Helles lager, San Miguel, Staro, Caledonia Best, Thistly Cross and Guinness. Very lively pub on my early evening visit. Impressive stained-glass windows. Herringbone patterned wooden block flooring. Bar counter with tall, backed stool seating along its length on the right-hand wall starting from near the entrance. Banquette serving regular tables in front window to left of entrance and then down the left-hand wall opposite the bar counter. There is an area down a step at the rear with a fitted leather banquette around the rear corner. The venue has plenty of standing space in both the front and rear part of the venue. There is an upstairs bar and dining area that I didn't check out. A single screen was showing train departure times from nearby Haymarket station. Thought this one was high in the pecking order on my two-day visit to Edinburgh Central.