Montague Bar

We where here last Saturday after the rugby for the Open Mic: good atmosphere and a good mixed crowd of all ages.

Plenty of comfortable seating, small food menu, nothing special but it does the job I guess, decent Pint of Stewart's as well as Coconut Porter, California Common and some other ok beers..

Hello,

I run the PubQuizzy website and can confirm that when we went to the Montague we liked the pub and the quiz very much.

We also seem to have had good feedback from other quizgoers on the quiz's page - have a look for yourselves: http://www.pubquizzy.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=100&Itemid=57

Cheers

Just a quick point regarding reveiwer number 4 describing the quiz as'patronisingly easy'. I run the quiz and the first round is indeed fairly straight forward but it does gets more difficult as the rounds progress, as anyone who has stayed until the end will testify. The quiz was reviewed last year by people who run a site called 'PubQuizzy' who awarded it five stars. Feel free to have a look. If you actually knew anything about the art of writing and presenting pub quizzes then perhaps you wouldnt have written such crap!.

Went to The Montague on Tuesday and it was awesome!

It was very busy but the vibe was great when I got in!

Fab music!

Tuesday nights at The Montague are FANTASTIC!

I've been a few times since the maltings reopening as the montague and always had a good time. The bar staff are friendly and I'm currently making my way through the extensive range of whiskys they have. The whiskys are very reasonable priced as most are single malts. Last time I had a meal as well which was pretty good. Well worth a visit.

Paid my first visit to the Montague last night and I really liked it.

Clean bar, friendly staff, great atmosphere and good food.

I was there on my own for a wee bit waiting for late friends - the bar staff were nice and chatty so I didn't feel awkward hanging about on my own!

Nice pub - would recommend.

I have only visited the bar a couple of times, as I don't live in the Southside. I had visited the old Maltings on a number of occasions over the years, and frankly the place was a bit of a dump back then.

The makeover has given the bar a new lease of life. Different crowd frequenting the bar, more ladies, a bit more stylish overall, and (importantly) cleaner than the old Maltings.

One poster here sounds like a regular of the old Maltings who seems to be very bitter about the pub changing, which is a bit sad. The world has moved on, and the Montague is part of a changing city. Nothing wrong with that as far as I'm concerned. I'll certainly visit again, quite a nice pint of Deuchars...

More suspicious "reviews" for this place. Two 5 star reviews just 5 minutes apart?

The highly unethical approach of the owner in pretending to be a "customer" and writing a fake "review" (no 2) is enough on it's own to ensure I don't visit this place again regardless of any other glowing reviews which may appear on here.

i enjoyed my visit to the bar, can't say the ale meant much to me but i can say that the atmosphere was great and there was a distinct difference in the clientele which was for the better
the food is alright, what do you expect out of a little kitchen? at least its clean now
I was there quiz night last week, lite and easy, didn't want it too hard!!! you scotsmen trying to say you're too brainy now are you?

I went along with my family and friends for an afternoon children's Christmas party and was made to feel very welcome by the staff. I wouldn't normally go to a pub but because this has a children's license I was able to. What a lovely place with a beautiful view of Arthur's Seat. We all had delicious food and drink and the wee ones were delighted with the visit from Santa and all the lovely food and presents they received! It's so hard to find child friendly pubs so I will definitely be back and maybe one night without the children in tow!

This bar has had a well needed do up. restored and cleaned without losing any of its original features, the plain colour scheme perfectly shows off the beautiful cornicing and original light fittings. The new owners have put up interesting original film and cafe posters all over, and generally it looks great.
i cant help thjinking some reviewers are judging the bar with a big dose of nostalgia regarding when it was "The Maltings" , which was, in its day a great pub, but had sadly been passed through one to many hands and had completely lost its appeal. to be honest, the last time I was there, It was more than a little scary with drunks rolling around hassling me and the girls when all we wanted was a quiet drink, and the smell from the Gents loos was unbearable!
The Ale was as far as I could see no better at all than the selection now, and as for the wine... well they had none at all when I was in.
recently, as The Montague, it has been given a new lease of life, and is now definately a place I feel comfortable in as a woman.
They offer great malts, wines and coffees, The I.P.A is in perfect condition (according to my other half) and it is generally very clean.
I like it, and I like the new owners, and I wish them all the best. We will definately be back.

Agree with kegaline, they had a better ale selection when it was the Maltings.

Review 1 and 2 are a bit suspicious, seeing as they were both posted on the same day within half and hour of each other. Also think the tenuous name dropping of Marcus Mumford is a bit cheap, especially when it was a completely different open mic and a completely different pub when he played there.

The pub is ok. The colour scheme is a bit bland and generally a bit odd. The beer selection is pretty poor, especially on taps. You'll find the usual massive lager brands and Deuchars - which pretty much every pub in Edinburgh serves, and is a pretty poor IPA. I saw Innis & Gunn in the fridge, but that tends to be everywhere these days too. Would be good to see some brew dog, or Williams Bros or anything else.

Can't speak for the food. But the new open mic is good. Generally a good standard of performers so it's worth going down on a Tuesday to see it.

I have to say side with reviewer 3 mostly. (If you read the Montagues own advertising eg on facebook they always talk about their food, their malt selection, they mention mumford and sons and also mention their simple pub food - review 2 is very suspect). Oh and also reviewer 3 - the maltings may have been a bit rough but their ale selection was generally better than just IPA.

The montague is a change from the maltings and it does look much better now that it's clean and tidy on the inside. It's still pretty soulless though. Some decent ale would be a bonus too. I've eaten there once, 3 of us ordered the 3 different dinners (I think lasagne, cottage pie and nachos). The kitchen is TINY though and food is all microwaved in one microwave. This meant that our dinners came out one at a time and I'm not convinced they could be home made due to the size of the kitchen. We're been the the quiz a couple of times but it's a bit patronisingly easy. It's a shame really because I think this pub has good potential. If they sold some decent ales, stopped offering microwave meals and somehow got a bit busier I'd consider going back.

Review No 2 is by JYvdK and the manager of the Montague is... JY Van de Kieft. Very poor form to pretend to be a customer reviewing your own bar! Bit suspicious about the number 1 review as well to be honest, given that it appeared only 28 minutes before the 2nd one!

I like the Montague.

I ended up here via the Out of the Bedroom open Mic last Tuesday, and I liked the atmosphere!They serve a good pint of IPA, and their spirits are good, specially the whisky.

It feels like a proper Southside pub, and the music on Tueday was great, some real talent here, I was told by one of the Performers that Marcus Mumford used to attend the Open Mic here in 2009 and that most of the songs of the first album where first played here when it was called the Maltings.

They have a food menu serving basic Pub dishes, which I will sample the next time I visit the Montague, so far, so good

What a change!!!!!
It would be a lie to say that i frequented the 'Maltings' but this was entirely due to the poor quality of choice (ale/spirits) combined with the customer service and poor clientel. I am delighted to see the establishment in such a different light!! There is now a fantastic selection of spirits, premium and the old favourites. The jewel in the crown however has to be the impressive selection of single malts on the shelve, easily the best in the area. I recently took part in the quiz last week with some freinds and although it is not something i would normally take part in, it was a great night had by all, (although it would have been better had we won!!!) So BRAVO to the Montague and a big thumbs up from me!