Atmosphere the style gurus can't match

Place: The Hermitage Address: 1-5 Comiston Road, Edinburgh Telephone:

0131-447 1205 Opening hours: Mon-Sat 11am-11.45pm; Sun 12.30pm- 11pm Other information: Snacks served all day. Pints around #1.90.

Taking tea in Edinburgh's Morningside area is an easy enough task. The blue-rinse brigade are forever ducking and diving from one cafe to another.

Finding a decent pint, however, is a different kettle of fish altogether. It's a toss-up between downright weird or impersonal and overpriced. It would probably never occur to you to give that scaffy old man's pub on the corner behind the clock a try.

Yet what awaits you if you do dare venture inside is a real wee find. Okay, so it hasn't seen a lick of paint in years - as the yellowing, nicotine-stained walls make clear - and they probably haven't heard of your favourite Chardonnay. But that's because this is a real boozer for serious drinkers.

Sure, the lightweights are welcome to pop in for a Babycham, but in the Hermitage they could not give a stuff for the fickle fluctuations of alcohol fashion.

They've been serving up good, honest beer for the past 30 years, together with a damn fine bacon sarnie, and there's enough folk out there who are more than happy to do away with the fancy stuff if that means 30p saved on a pint.

Old codgers gather to play pool and exchange quips over the fruit machine during the day, while others prop up the bar and enjoy a blether with the barmaid.

In the evening a slightly younger crowd of locals join them - and, while it all feels a tad subdued when you first walk through the door, just give it a couple of minutes for the crack to start flowing.

Who needs to lounge around on Philippe Starck furniture when you've got this much atmosphere?

Claire Prentice

Copyright 1999
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