Brewhemia
Have you been to Brewhemia yet? Unbelievably this was our first visit to Edinburgh’s largest bar. To say it’s a bar is an understatement. Castle Leisure Group have invested over two million pounds in what used to be Sportsters Bar and City Nightclub in the iconic Scotsman building basement. There’s something to suit everyone inside the building with a beer palace, tap room, caffè, prosecco bar, whisky bothy and cocktail boudoir filling the space.
Howl at the Moon
Brewhemia hosts different events most evenings during the week and we were invited along to sample their regular Thursday night, Howl at the Moon. This is Scotland’s only live duelling piano jukebox and it turned out to be a fun evening all round.
While Brewhemians gather in the spacious beer palace below, the band made up of two piano’s and a drum kit take centre stage above the main bar. Howl Girls (not sure about these dodgy outfits!) hand out cards to each table for guests to pop their requested songs on. Over the rest of the evening, the musicians play away and it’s time for a game of name that tune, around the table.
The Food
We dined from a blogger’s event menu which highlights the range of food Brewhemia serves. We shared a plate of bangers – a mix of Chorizo, Toulouse and Bratwurst sausages served with an IPA onion compote (£8) and Pretzel and Cheese with Brewhemia rarebit dip (£5). Both dishes were tasty stomach lining fare straight out of a Bavarian Brauhaus. If you fancy sharing and trying a few different dishes, they offer a mixture of three starters for £17 including crayfish cocktail, smoked haddock fishcake and chicken wings.
For the main course, we had a huge portion of Chicken Schnitzel served with Bratkartoffein and bonfire slaw (£15) and the vegan option of butternut spring roll. This is a combination of spinach and mushroom with sweet potato puree (£14). The menu has a lot to offer including hot rock steaks, burgers and decidedly non-Brauhaus healthy salads.
The dessert menu has an impressive array of Anglo/German sweet treats and we opted for the Apple Strudel (£7) and their Epic Schiehallion Brownie (£6) – the best thing you’ve ever had in your mouth apparently. I wouldn’t go that far but they were both pretty tasty and we can’t wait to go back try out the rhubarb Edinburgh gin crumble.
The Tank Beers
Brewhemia firmly believes that Tank fresh beer is the way to go and has the most beer tanks of any bar in the UK. They say:-
Beer is piped directly from conditioning and proving tanks in the brewery cellars straight into airtight, temperature controlled mini-tanks and then transported to Brewhemia. By maintaining exceptional cleaning and hygiene standards through transportation the beer can be delivered unpasteurised and unfiltered.
When we visited, Staropramen, Krušovice, Stewart’s Lager, Wild West from WEST brewery and Paolozzi were all available, tank fresh. The beer certainly tasted deliciously perky.
If beer isn’t your thing, don’t worry there’s plenty of other alternatives available. Our booth had a prosecco buzzer – Buzz for Bubbles! Prosecco is delivered straight to your table. There’s also a great selection of cocktails, gin, whisky and rum. The Whisky Flights and Rum Runners sound like a great idea for birthday gifts or a special treat.
Not free on a Thursday? Don’t worry! There’s something going on most days at Brewhemia.
Tuesday: La Vie Bohéme: The practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minding people and with few permanent ties. It involves musical, artistic, literary or spiritual pursuits.
Wednesday: Wünderbar Wednesdays: Struck by those Wednesday blues? Get over that midweek Piste at Brewhemia. The perfect spot for Après Work drinks and food! Grab some delicious Alpine Tapas to share with your colleagues, catch live music from Edinburgh’s most dynamic duo- BLEEKER, from 19:00 and then wash it all down with some Spritz or Tank Fresh Beer!
Thursday: Howl at the Moon!
Friday: Apres Chic Fridays: From delicious dining and drinking with friends, to tantalising entertainment and tabletop dancing – this is your Brewhemian weekend.
Saturday: Mystique La Brewheme Saturdays: Live music with the Brewhemian Haus band & electrifying entertainment from the Creative Clique.
Dog and Children Friendly.
Dogs are more than welcome at Brewhemia and they have regular events for your pooch. The next one is Pawhemia on Sunday 24th June 2018 – take your dog to town for Sunday brunch and doggy antics and help raise money for Edinburgh Dog and Cat home at the same time. Hopefully, your doggy is well behaved as it’s 3 barks and they are out! Children too are more than welcome when dining with adults.
Brewhemia
1a Market Street
Edinburgh
EH1 1DE
TEL: 0131 226 9650