Edinburgh's roughest pubs from days gone by according to our readers - including notorious boozer The Gunner
We asked Evening News readers to tell us about some of Edinburgh’s roughest pubs from years gone by.
Hundreds of locals responded to give their take on some of Edinburgh’s most notorious boozers, sharing stories from yesteryear from a variety of venues including The Gauntlet, the Dundee Arms, the Willie Muir and the White House.
One resident argued there ‘were no rough pubs.’ He said the pubs mentioned ‘were welcoming enough if you were known or lived locally’ adding ‘strangers might have been viewed with suspicion initially but were usually welcomed or ignored once it was established that they were not police, tax or benefits inspectors’.
Nevertheless other residents shared memories that cast the aforementioned pubs in a different light – and one pub that stood out from the list was The Gunner, an infamous Muirhouse bar that closed in 2015.
Recalling the pub, one resident said: “I went in once whilst cycling back from Edinburgh to East Calder. I took a look at the clientele, had a half pint and beat it as most had live scars on themselves.”
Another added: “I was in the Merchant Navy and have been in rough pubs all over the world, but the roughest pub I have ever been in my life was in my home town - The Gunner in Pennywell Road in the early 1980s.”
However other locals suggested its reputation as a dangerous pub has been exaggerated, with many claiming the stories don’t reflect the experience other regulars had. That being said, a tradesman who worked in the area in the 1990s, said: “We were never out of that pub fixing windows and mirrors after some ruckus. I’m sure that pub kept that company in business - it was a full-time job on its own.”
One resident added it was the roughest pub he has been in ‘without a doubt’. He said: “I was terrified to look anyone in the eye. The guy I was with introduced me to his mate called Bleed. I didn't ask how he got that name…it was definitely a scary pub.”
Another notable pub which has since closed was the Dundee Arms, located on the corner of Dundee Street and Murdoch Terrace. But according to our readers most referred to this pub as ‘The Vietnam’ or ‘The Nam’ with one local explaining it got the name ‘because there was non-stop fighting’.
Broomhouse bar The Gauntlet also received a few mentions from our readers. Having served customers for more than 30 years, the bar made headlines in 2009 when a gangland feud took place outside the bar.
Speaking about the pub, one resident said: “I only went in once while I waited for the shop round the corner to reopen after lunch. Never drank a pint so fast in my life. The looks I was getting were unreal.”
Former West Granton Road boozer, the Willie Muir lounge was mentioned several times by our readers. Some said the Willie Muir was a great wee bar but others suggested it wasn’t the friendliest pub if you weren’t a local. One reader joked: “The Willie Muir was a place where you could buy back anything that had been stolen.” The pub would later close in the late 1990s after the building was damaged in a fire.
The White House in Craigmillar was also mentioned as one of the capital’s roughest pubs. Now a popular community kitchen and café, locals said the former pub had a fearsome reputation back in the day, with one local having added: “I saw some states lying outside there bleeding on the pavement when I lived there.”