Leith Depot Edinburgh

Music bar, tiny venue and eaterie

Mark from Edinburgh

""Leith Depot" in Edinburgh is a great addition to this, or any, city's music scene. For me it's the perfect combination of food, beer and quality music..."

Leith Depot is a great addition to this, or any, city's music scene. In fact, if you were to dream up the perfect combination of food, beer and music, you would come up with Leith Depot. It's tiny: the venue only holds 60, but that makes the atmosphere intimate. You'd think the sound would be ropey, but the sound engineer at a recent benefit gig I attended presented singer songwriters through to a five piece band with perfect attention to detail.

The food is reasonably (very reasonably) priced and delicious - largely it's pescatarian.

The staff are both cool and friendly (a difficult combination in my experience although they manage this at The Hanging Bat also).

And the drinks menu is sufficiently varied to appeal to most tastes (importantly, a good range of real ales) is available.

The name comes from the bus depot situated directly opposite but demolished in late 2017.

And, of course, it's situated on Leith Walk, £ for £ the best street in Edinburgh with its eclectic mix of bars, restaurants and shops.

As a guide to its coolness, they have a framed cover of The Stranglers' Black and White album, signed by all the band, on the wall. A brilliant choice of record.

And all night long the background music is clearly curated by a proper music fan. Ed Sheeran fans will be deeply disappointed.

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Edinburgh Spotter Mark

About me I'm Mark. Apart from my university days, I have lived in Edinburgh all my life. I chair Creative Edinburgh, the organisation that helps creative professionals network and grow their businesses. It promotes the city beyond its boundaries. I'm an ad man having worked in advertising since the mid 1980s but for a decade and more have done my own thing. I love art, travel, theatre, music, cinema, food, wine, beer, cooking, cycling, walking – sometimes all in the same day. Some would call me bohemian I suppose. My wife, Jeana, and I have an Air B'n'B room in...

About this spot

138 -140 Leith Walk

Main course:

Website

1315554738

Social

Oct 2, 2025

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