Seriously cool. Like seriously. It's hidden in the middle of…read morethe Bristol Harbour Hotel, and I would have had no clue it was there if I wasn't staying. All I'm saying is I'm glad I did. What a find! I was literally the only one in there (on a Monday) which was a shame as I imagine when the word gets out about this place, the cocktail crowd will flock here of a weekend. Some great sounding cocktails on the menu, along with plenty of classics. I went for the brass money, which was a deliciously delicate and smooth combo of Monkey Shoulder, PX sherry, aperol and grapefruit bitters, perfectly blended for one of the most moreish cocktails I've had in a while. Prices are dece too - talking £9 a pop for the specialities and £7-8 for the classics. Well worth a visit and a cracking addition to the growing Bristol cocktail scene

A very chilled out place, you'll have a very enjoyable drink at The Bell. It has managed (or ended…read moreup with) just the right tempo. It's never too noisy or too quiet here, and you shouldn't have to wait too long at the bar. There's a pretty garden with plenty of seating. Plus, it's not set against a road, which means you can properly relax with your drink. I like this place because of the music on offer. There are various genres played over the sound system here, and you'll probably be exposed to something new when you go. They have live music too, which will probably expand your horizens a bit as well. It's a good pub regardless of the music, though.

Great real ale pub with a friendly mixed crowd of locals, hippies and students. I would feel…read morecomfortable sitting here alone to wait for someone. Beer is excellent - the full Butcombe range and I love that it closes after lunch like a proper pub. There is a good range of snacks including nachos and wraps, lots of flyers for local music and arts event. The garden is covered and lovely for smokers and non-smokers alike. Indoors is wooden and comfortable.

Formerly Hush Hush, The Bootlegger is a massive improvement and one of the newest and coolest bars…read moreon the Cheltenham/Gloucester Road stretch. My girlfriend and I were on our way to one of the other bars on Gloucester road, but couldn't walk passed Bootleger as it looked and sounded really cool from outside. The open front, tables on the street and electro-swing music were a perfect combo to draw us in. It is pretty unbelievable what they've done with the place. From being a pretty terrible club that was mainly used for birthday and drum and bass parties - it is unrecognisable and really cool! It is a really narrow space but every inch has been used really well. The staff were really friendly and you could tell try we're pretty excited to be working in the new bar on such an infamous party street! The draught options are pretty basic but good enough. They have a couple of really nice pale ales that they were happy to let me 'try before I buy'. We shared a Mac n cheese which was good. I'd say a little more seasoning was needed; it way lacking a little umph! But we demolished it in seconds! I'm really interested to try the rest of the menu coz it sounded great, if not a little familiar. Bristol seems to a breeding ground for pulled pork and American style dining/menus at the moment! All in all a great place and an incredible turn around from its former self. They should be proud and I can see them doing it well. It was busy enough when we were there, so it looks promising!

Sat with my friends having a few dark and stormy cocktails. Listening to blues music and watching…read morethe world go by on Gloucester road. This place is awesome and their food menu looks great, although I haven't eaten here - yet, but I will, soon!

Everything and anything you expect from a speakeasy cocktail bar. Very talented mixologist and very…read morewilling to please with customizable drinks to perfection. Extremely precise, kind and funny. Most fantastic playlist I have heard in a very long time at any bar. I Took some photos and filmed some film and they were very appreciative and excited about the beautiful results. The decor is specific. Not my personal taste as a vegetarian but because of the extra dim pretty lighting I got over it. The only thing I didn't like. Best I've been to in Europe.

Knock and enter. Pre book is advised. Knock at the door and you are greeted and welcomed. There is…read morea small sign outside that shows this place but it is NOT a loud bar. Could be described as a speak easy. Classy place to bring a date or your partner. Just pleasant! Great cocktails and not much of a beer place for sure. Romantic and classy.

At the very top of Whiteladies Road/Blackboy Hill, looking out to the downs, this bar was whispered…read moreto be a secret exclusive establishment which was very hard to get in to. My friends and I had long been planning a trip to try it out and finally made it last weekend. To get in you have to ring a doorbell and wait for the door to be opened - they assess the look of you from the video camera that's situated just above the front door. If they judge you worthy enough, you'll enter a bar that is extravagantly furnished and really well set out. The space is quite narrow, with a long bar along the right hand side, and comfy seats and tables on the left. The bar staff are cocktail wizards; there's an extensive menu of cocktails organised by the predominant ingredient. From champagne cocktails to whisky sours you'll be bound to find something that appeals. At £6 it's well priced - they could charge upwards of £8 in a place like this. The clientele are clearly the rich and beautiful of Bristol - if you want to know what a Cliftonite is then come here for some animal observation. It's no bad thing in my opinion though, as it just plainly suits the place. It's not as secret as it's rumoured to be, especially as they've started leaving flyers in equally high class establishments across town. If you're after a sizeable helping of class with your drink, Hausbar is the place to come.

Rumour had it that there was a secret bar at the top of Whiteladies road. A couple of months ago, a…read morefriend and I drove past the entrance, which is underneath an Indian Restaurant called Rajpoot. It took til last night to get around to actually visiting but we weren't disappointed. Hausbar, I have since learnt, is based on the Berlin cocktail lounges and is very popular with the upmarket Cliftonites. Having lived in Berlin for several months, I can see the similarities. When you arrive (only groups of less than 5 unless you've booked) you ring the door buzzer and are surveyed by the camera outside. We weren't particularly smart but we got in anyway. My cocktail was strong and delicious and not too expensive at £6. I'd come again, but I think I'd have to dress a little smarter to fit in with the affluent crowd.

Home to Dancing Jesus! IYKYK. Ok if you don't know, I'll tell you. They've got a huge mural that's…read moredubbed "Dancing Jesus". It's a favorite spot and fixture in Stokes Croft to grab a pint and something to eat. Sitting outside lends to great people watching. Soup and toastie of the day is my go-to for lunch when in the area. Everything is locally sourced meaning fresher ingredients. A toastie may sound just like a toastie but there's something about the way they grill it here. A perfectly crisp bread with properly melted cheeses. I like that they use butter for pan-frying the toasties. Some places use mayo and that's a big ew for me.

This place has confused me for a long time…read more... Firstly I just thought it was a big disused office building where the drunk, jobless people would hang out at all hours of the day. Then they put massive amounts of scaffolding up (carefully avoiding Banksy's 'Mild, Mild West' piece) but yet again, more people would congregate outside it with pints of beer and glass of wine in hand. Then the scaffolding came down, but apart from a new graffiti piece on the side wall I couldn't see any difference. I must visit I thought to myself. I was pleasantly surprised (and slightly ashamed that I thought it was a communal area for the homeless). It's a large bar area with enough seats to hang with your mates and put the world at rest, yet small enough to retain a good atmosphere. There are some comfy sofas if you fancy a coffee and weirdly (in what is essentially a pub) a bookcase with second hand books and magazines. It's a bit of everything but it works. I am not exaggerating when I say that everyday it is packed to the brim so they are obviously doing something right!

The first pub you get to from the bear pit going to Stokes Croft. This looks generally like a good…read morepub for groups of people (which it is) but it has a surprising secret in also having great food and well-looked after beer. Their food is organic and very tasty. They aren't mean on their portion size either. They have six beers on at a time, often Gem, Doom Bar and Deuchers IPA and last time I went they had Golden Hare and Butcombe. They have a full bar, interestingly some vegan wine, and live jazz on a Monday (8-10pm) which means they get a mixed crowd of friendly crusties, backpackers staying upstairs and those who like food and beer which is not a bad thing. Vibe is always friendly and chatty. I have felt comfortable here as a couple and with a group of about 20 of us trying to organise a new year party whilst eating lunch and having a beer - the staff handled our comings and goings with ease. Pub is open til 11-ish (12-ish on the weekends) and they have the next door Attic Bar for later nights.

The Full Moon's rising over Stoke's Croft - a backpacker hotel, a bar, a club, a party venue, and a…read moredamned fine attempt at a gastro-menu - this place has got it all. For banging tunes - hot new DJs in the Attic Bar - fluro lights and fancy cocktails. For chilled largers and perfectly cooked organic steaks head for the Full Moon pub on the opposite side of the courtyard. Fancy a kip in a comfy (if basic) room for less than forty quid a night? Head upstairs to the hostel. To top it all - they play host to the Bristol festival, Drum 'n' Bass nights and great gigs - officially the hottest venue in the 'up and coming' Stokes Croft area right now, and deservedly so, methinks.

One of Bristol's oldest music venues, this intimate pub is a bit of a halfway house where you can…read moresee the wannabes on their way up and the never quite weres coming back down the other side. If you know your stuff you can catch some really big pre-fame names (I saw Radiohead for £3.50 many, many years ago, though once turned down the chance to see some new band called 'Oasis' in favour of watching the footie in a pub down the road). Weekends are dominated by tribute nights, which can be fun if you get the right one, while up-and-coming acts vie for your attention during the week, when there are also cheap drinks offers early in the night. Be warned: when stage diving keep an eye on the pillars as a mate of mine almost knocked himself out at a Moonflowers gig in the early 90s...

Just over the Bristol Bridge from town, The Fleece is a small pub and music venue mostly catering…read moreto the rock scene. The floor is paved with flag stones, convenient if you spill your drink! Probably easier to keep in a decent state with the dancing and moshing that goes on here too. It's on the circuit for small bands trying to get a break. That means the odd act that will be topping the charts in a few years time and not a few bands that definitely won't It's a good space for a band to play, perhaps not quiet enough for singer songwriter type acts. The drinks on offer here aren't too badly priced (and a lot cheaper than the O2 academy, which also has a very dire range on offer, thanks to the corporate sponsorship). Things tend to be a bit calmer here too. Although this might just be because it's not such a big place. A gig here generally gets going towards the end, and their will be the risk of crowddivers falling on you, but I've never been there when things get out of control. If you like live music have a look for a band you know (or a tribute to them) and get a ticket for a good night.

Cosies Wine Bar has a few different faces. It's located in stateley Portland Square, and during the…read moreday it maintains a quite respectable face. At this time it pulls in office workers and other up-standing member of society sorts. They have a good lunch menu, and the place could pass as a reasonably high end restaurant. Things degenerate (or improve, depending on your point of view) as night draws in. Cosies is also a night club and dubstep, afrobeat, and hip-hop nights, along with various others. Very cool in the evenings, this is about a million miles from Syndicate et al. not so far away in the centre. The different between the its night and day time faces is quite a contrast and makes Cosies worth two visits. Down in a basement, it has a cosy feel to match its name. The best time to vist in the day time is when its a bit cold and damp. During the evening just make sure to get there early to avoid disappointment.

There seem to be a few places around Bristol that have a bit of a cavey feeling, due to their…read morebasement locations. Cosies is another place to the trend, situated in the basement of one of the grand Georgian houses in St Pauls' Portland Square. It's open all day and night, catering to the office workers of the square in the daytime, and turning into one of Bristol's in-the-know clubs as night falls. Some of the best djs can be found playing here, spanning genres from Dub and Reggae to Drum'n'Bass and hip hop. The seats outside, carved out beneath the pavement, are maybe where the place gets its name from, as there's a really great 'cosy' atmosphere in one of those seating hubs. As a result, it makes for quite a smokers paradise, and there's definitely a hint of a few blind eyes being turned. Walking past in the day there's always a board offering some sort of exotic food (always below a fiver, so good value), proving a real temptation to descend the rickety stairs mid-afternoon. Also, there's late evening grub on offer to help the pints go down, the last time I was there goat curry was being sold around 11. You might have to pay a few pounds to get in on a weekend, but I'd safely guarantee you'll have a night worth remembering.

Crofters Rights is a decent pub on Stokes Croft. It seems like a millions years ago that it used to…read morebe 'The Croft' and while I kind of miss it, The Croft is now a welcome addition to the most bohemian part of Bristol. It's a surprisingly big space, with a few long, tall tables for groups and a few smaller tables and comfy chairs. The bar has around 12 mostly unlabelled pumps but with guest ciders and ales written on the large board behind. It's a nice touch and you can tell they change their beer/cider menu around quite a lot. One of the staples is Orchard Pig, which I Love. The Crofters Rights isn't somewhere I'd go very often, but I've enjoyed myself every time I've been. The atmosphere is super casual and quite skatery. You'll find a few skaters smoking at the large open end most nights and it always seems to stay open quite late. It's not the best pub in the area, but you could do a lot worse.

Craft beer with our the trendy rubbish of most beer bars. 20 odd beers on tap and interesting…read moreseating. Busy.