The Cocktail Geeks — Restaurant in City of Edinburgh

Had a bit of a mixed bag of an experience here last week. I had reservations for 4 as it was my birthday and we were celebrating.

We arrived and were shown to our table- a small leaky corner of the bar right by the entrance. The bar itself is small so I appreciate that seating options were limited however as I had a reservation I was expecting something a bit better, nonetheless the male staff member who seated us apologised for the leak stating that the building was old and that it shouldn’t interfere with our experience while there.

We were assigned a female staff member(as the bar is table service) and she was great at first, very friendly and knowledgeable and explained in depth about the unique features of the bar and menu.

As the night went on myself and other party members were being dripped on periodically so I politely told the female staff member about the issues. To which she quite dismissively and honestly with annoyance informed me that “it’s an old building and we’ve had lots of rain if there was anywhere else to put you I would “ and then walked away.

At this point I wasn’t very impressed, the drinks aren’t exactly cheap and after all, it wasn’t as if I had just walked in- I had booked in advance.

To give the bar it’s due: for the rest of the night our party was taken care of by the male staff member who was much kinder, he did try to offer a solution at least but that would have involved our party sitting separately. Also we did get 10% off our bill but I’m not sure if that was a kind gesture or damage control because we were visibly displeased.

All in all- I think this establishment has a lot of potential however they do slightly fall into the trap of style over substance.

1. if you can redecorate and retheme your bar every few months then maybe you should first put that energy into fixing your roof and making sure your toilet seats aren’t cracked.

2. if you cannot seat people comfortably do not seat them at all- if a seating area is unsuitable for guests close it off.

Hopefully these flaws will be improved on as I really do think the bar could be...

Vey disappointed with our recent experience. Myself and my girlfriend came here all the way from Glasgow, she’s a huge fan of fallout and really wanted to experience the themed cocktails. They asked us for ID as we’re were about to sit at our table. I’m 26 and she’s 27. I handed them my ID and she had forgotten hers. She offered to show a picture and then they said no and she said that she’d just have water while I had a drink and they refused and kicked us out. Absolutely ridiculous behavior. Not sure if they’re just homophobic or just unwilling to compromise. Either way very unpleasant experience. Definitely won’t be back.

Update in response to the below reply from the manager. I did in fact have proof of ID to show that I am 26 which I showed to the member of staff. My girlfriend is 27 so if your staff are going off the 18+ laws I think it’s safe to assume my girlfriend isn’t 17??? My girlfriend was okay with not having a drink and said it’s okay I’ll just have water or a non-alcoholic in order to experience the fall out themed bar which again is her favourite game and he proceeded to kick us out after walking us to the table and sitting us down. If your policy is not to allow under 18s on the premises he shouldn’t have left us waiting 10 minutes for a table outside and then walked us to a table and sat us down. ID should have been the first thing he asked for instead of wasting our time and then making an embarrassing scene in front of the other people in the bar. Poorly handled by your staff and poorly handled response. A sincere apology goes a long way. It shows that you care about your customers, just a tip for handling future complaints, it’s nice to be nice. I’m sure to learn...

Hello there! I was lucky enough to be in Scotland this summer and saw an ad for Cantina: A Star Wars themed bar experience by The Cocktail Geeks in Edinburgh. I have been a lifelong fan and so I couldn't resist making reservations and dragging my wife along as well (she's a fan, too, just not quite as much as I am). Every bit of our experience was top-notch, and the attention to detail they put in to the menu design, the drinks, the staff uniforms, and the decor made this Star Wars nerd very happy. You can start by taking an online quiz to determine "What Color is Your Kyber Crystal?" and then order the corresponding highball from the menu. They all have different taste profiles and strengths of alcohol (and yes, there are also mocktails for anyone that wants to skip the booze). They even put some cheeky lines in Aurebesh on the menu which I was thrilled to be able to read (I told you I was a big fan). The drinks were all very tasty and kept to the theme, with fun references to all eras of Star Wars. I tried several, my favorite being The Beskar which came in a silver metal cup and was chilled by a large ice cube stamped with the Imperial cog. The drink even had the shimmery look of the beskar ingots seen in The Mandalorian. The wait staff was all friendly and very knowledgeable and the service was very attentive, despite the full house. If you're in Edinburgh between now and September 2023, pop in to The Cantina and enjoy some of the finest libations in the galaxy far, far away. And may the Force...