The Cellar Monkey

I felt so old in here!
It’s been a while since I headed somewhere with student deals but it definitely made me want to go back. None of us had valid student cards so we couldn’t avail of some of the better deals but still managed a 4 person round for about a tenner.
In exchange, we were in Messville. Their £9 bottle of wine definitely lead to some ‘bad times’ on a Friday night. There was a guy who I was sure had completely passed out until his friend showed up with another pint and he managed to flutter his eyelids and throw out his hand to take it.
The décor is funky and in keeping with the rest of the Brass Monkey venues. Monkey themed stuff on the walls, but the lowish (was I imagining that?) ceilings, small room and lack of light give it a bit of a claustrophobic feeling.
I think I’ll reserve this for a drink before I head out and not for a whole night out!

The newest addition to Marchmont’s bar scene (ahem, get the sarcasm there?) and part of the Brass Monkey family, the Cellar Monkey is a welcome (and welcoming) haven.
Hidden under the Argyle bar, the place is cosy with comfy sofas, wooden tables and candles. It has a TV in a corner near the bar. The bar itself is pretty small but there is a fine selection of imported bottled beers, a good selection of spirits and the prices are very much like the other Brass Monkey bars.
When it comes to going for a drink in Marchmont, certainly the best place!

I came here last night with some people from my Italian class, and stood outside for a while thinking no one was here, as I was looking upstairs in the argyle bar. Oops.
Downstairs is quite cosy, there are proper armchairs. There’s a tiny bar, which actually has a good choice of wines, cocktails, beers and other things to drink. I had a gin and tonic, then later a red wine. The gin and tonic was made with hendricks gin, and tonic on the side. I like being given the option to add it myself. The prices were pretty good, £3 for a glass of wine, £3.10 for the gin and tonic.
That said, I always feel terrible about spending money on alcohol, considering how cheap it is to drink at home. I’m not a big drinker either, I’d rather spend money on coffee or cake, but it was nice to meet up with a few friends.

hmmm i have rather mixed feelings about this place. i love the brass monkey in leith! it’s a fabulous bar that is literally a five minute walk from my flat and has an awesome pub quiz on monday nights. but the cellar monkey, which is the newest offer from the brass monkey people left me wanting for something more…
saturday night, i went along with a group of friends for some birthday drinks. when we arrived the bar was empty save two people that were meeting us there. this was saturday night at 8pm… in a bar that is surrounded by student flats and has comfy sofas to sit on while having a drink. i found this emptiness odd, given the area and the night and felt that the bar lacked an atmosphere. more people did eventually come in, but save for the group of guys that sat in the corner the rest were there for the birthday drinks. so either this bar isn’t overly popular (which would be sad) or people don’t really know about it.
it would make me sad if this bar wasn’t popular as it’s such a lovely cosy wee spot that should be ideal for those students or non students living nearby. there was loads of seating, most of it in big sofas or comfy arm chairs that gave the bar a bit of a living sort of vibe. also plently of drinks on offer at a reasonable price with friendly bar staff. so maybe this place is still bedding in as it’s not long since it opened. i’m hoping this is the case as the bar has great potential and it would be terribly sad to see it close due to lack of customers!

So I’ve been back and I’m bumping it up to five stars.
It was homely at first, in a put-​together way. Now it feels like home. I can’t work out what they’ve done to pull it together, but there’s more furniture, matching couch sets that are actually comfier than my couch at home. Read: I may come here, curl up, fall asleep, wake up, make a little nest, hibernate like a hamster over the winter. It’s that homely, and cosy, and just nice.
There’s a brilliant range of spirits behind the bar. When I asked for a bourbon, I was recommended a Woodford Reserve. I’ve hardly seen that anywhere and it was brilliant, just what I needed in my drink. The bar folk here love their bourbons, rums and beers so if that’s what you’re after, you’ll get good recommendations.
I also saw some AMAZING looking food come out of the kitchen. that’s another new addition and one I approve of. Yes please!
With the Dr Paul quiz on a Thursday, it’s really the cherry on the cake to making this place my local. It’s got everything I could want in a neighbourhood bar. Thankyouplease.

So aside from the fact that I feel like I am stalking the barman, this place was fab. I had a few lovely gin and tonics with an GOOD amount of cucumber in each one (true test to a good g&t) and I was overly chuffed to see an amazing selection of classic games… I don’t know what its like on the weekends but on a weeknight for a cheeky drink this place is a keeper. I had the nicest time & can’t wait to head back to try downstairs (question though… if boys don’t know downstairs is there… and they don’t use the ladies bathroom, how do they know it exists) secret women’s business maybe xx

How could I not love this place.
They still have the good selection of beer and spirits that the other two Monkeys have. They have big comfy sofas, some awesome/​funky textured wallpaper that I couldn’t help but touch, they have cocktails, word on the grapevine is a Dr Paul Quiz, and just generally an ace space.
Opening night. What a blast.
And this is precisely WHY I am going to love this pub.
I can buy myself a beer in the supermarket quite easily and still enjoy it, BUT the whole point of a pub is banter, chat, awesome staff and familiar faces. Which this place is chucking about by the absolute * bucket* load!!? In my opinion, businesses and places are made by the people, and for this reason alone the Cellar Monkey just cannot go wrong?!

The newest addition to the ‘Brass Monkey’ family launched on Friday night, and it was a pleasure to be there to help them celebrate!
This basement bar sits under ‘The Argyle’ in Marchmont, and has entrances from either side of the bar above. I know this place well, as we used to come and do the pub quiz here every week (although we’ve now de-​camped to the Brass Monkey Leith quiz on a Monday!) and I’ve certainly never seen the bar as packed as it was on Friday!
With it’s low ceiling, comfy sofas, chunky wooden tables (some of them a wee bit wobbly by the way… that may need sorted!) and cosy candles, it’s a great cellar bar and the music selection was varied and brilliant (Pearl Jam on a playlist always makes me happy!)! I also noticed a new giant television up one end of the bar, so I’m presuming there’ll be great films on show as there are in the other Brass Monkey bars.
The actual bar is small but there was a good selection of draught/​bottled beers on offer, and all the spirits you may ever want. I heard tell there was a cocktail menu too, but didn’t get the chance to try any on this visit.
As for the toilets… there was only one and, because the bar was so busy, we quite often ended up in a giant girly queue. However, it gave us time to discuss how we were mightily impressed with the power of the new hand-​dryer, and how lovely they smelled too!
The Cellar Monkey is a perfect place to head for a drink, blether, and read of the paper on a cold winter afternoon, and it’ll warm the cockles of your heart on a equally cold winter night! It doesn’t quite have the same atmosphere that the other bars have, but I suspect that’ll develop through time as they settle in and really make this bar monkey-​tastic!