Sometimes you need to escape the madness for a cheeky pint. Sometimes nothing else will do but a pint with a handle in an old man pub. If you are near the Royal Mile, you could do a lot worse than the peaceful haven of The Waverley.

The Venue
This often overlooked pub is tucked around the corner from the World’s End on St Mary’s Street. Stepping through the well kept gothic facade is like entering a time warp that instantly transports you back to another era.

It is an extremely bizarre piece of interior design. Seating is limited to slightly wobbly bar stools and tiny tables in a narrow horse shoe shape around the enormous bar. It is not clear why the bar staff are allowed so much room. There is enough room that if the barmaids were tiny, they could easily complete a gymnastic floor routine behind the bar without threat of injury. There are two theories to explain this curious design. Theory 1 is that the seating area used to be a lot larger, but the constantly updated layers of festival posters on the walls and ceiling have slowly encroached, leaving only a disproportionate sliver of floor area left. The more likely reason, though, is Theory 2 - the smaller seating area ensures that the bar will never become too busy. There is a real feeling that this place is quiet and they would like to keep it that way. There are rumours that Old Man Waverley, the proprietor, has previously closed the bar if it gets too raucous and refused service to groups of cackling young ladies, even if they have ID.

Contained within are all the usual things that you would expect from an old man pub: pictures of the royals, wartime jazz music, sweaty windows, dirty postcards and an unusual smell in the toilets. But there are also a few more unusual things, like a huge Swiss cheese plant, a taxidermy crocodile and a lot of dark wood that gives the feel of the galley of a ship.

The People
The staff are courteous and efficient, but don’t expect a lot of love. The clientele have seen a few summers, which living in the land of the eternal winter, means that this is not hippest hang out for the young ‘Burghers. But it is not supposed to be.

The Drink
The Waverley doesn’t have the most extensive selection of beverages. What it does have though, are very well kept and very reasonably priced. The Tennents is clean and crisp, and there is no hint of the usual bitter chemical aftertaste usual associated with the tipple. Gin and tonics come with a good old fashioned slice of lemon and pints of 80 shilling are bounced off the bottom of beautiful dimple pint glasses. A few more real ales and malts would go down a treat. But then there is a chance that more choice might attract more people.

The Last Word
The Waverley will never change and nor should it. A gentle pint in this pub is good for the soul and makes you feel proud to be British.

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