The Guildford Arms – Don't forget to look up
A great central pub with a stunning ceiling.
It’s the ceiling that stands out at The Guildford Arms, located just off Princes Street behind the Apple Store. Navigate your way through the rotating doors (I imagine they get harder to deal with the more you’ve had to drink) and take in the fantastic design.
I’ve learned a little more about the pub’s history since my original review back in May last year. This is largely thanks to People’s Palaces, a book by Rudolph Kenna and Anthony Mooney which is about the Victorian and Edwardian pubs of Scotland.
The place was Guildford Arms Hotel until 1895, when it was gutted and remodelled by its new owner James Dodds, who also owned The Beehive on Grassmarket. For the redesign, Dodds enlisted the services of a Robert MacFarlane Cameron, a town councillor and magistrate of Edinburgh. In a time of temperance, Cameron was probably one of the few people who sat on the council who got on with publicans.
This likely brought him more business, as Cameron designed a few other pubs in Edinburgh around that time, including Ryrie’s by Haymarket station – so I’m sure he will crop up in future reviews.
For The Guildford, Cameron incorporated the first floor in the new design, turning it into a mezzanine which is now the restaurant, overlooking the ground floor. There used to be a central island bar in the front room, but that was changed in the 1940s to its current location set against a wall facing the entrance. The current gantry dates from the 1970s.
The Guardian reported in 1896 that “the work of demolition and subsequent reconstruction was one of great difficulty,” but that Cameron, Dodds and co. managed to finish it “without the slightest accident.”
Dodds must have sold up straight away, because the current owners DM Stewart claim to have had the pub in the family since 1896. They now run three other pubs in Edinburgh, all worth visiting. But The Guildford remains the most opulent of the lot. As I wrote in my original review, which you can find below, it’s Café Royal for the everyman. Or Spoons for the more discerning drinker.
The Guildford Arms – Train beers, pt. 3
This is part three of an occasional series on my favourite pubs near Edinburgh’s train stations. Check out my previous reviews of Ryrie’s by Haymarket and The Doric Tavern by Waverley.
The chaser – Clark’s Bar is back
A bit of pub news this week - Clark’s Bar on Dundas Street has reopened after a few months’ closure. There was some confusion last summer when the pub’s manager announced its closure, only for that to be disputed by the pub’s owner Caledonian Heritable, the pub reopening a day later, before shutting again in September.
It was taken over by Hugo Laughton, who also runs the Victoriana-infused pub-cum-cocktail bar St Bernard in Stockbridge. He reopened Clark’s Bar last week. Expect a review of it here in the not too distant future, and see some pictures of its refurbishment here.
I’ll be back next week with a brand new review.
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