Bittersweet in Leith named Cocktail Bar of the Year at the Scottish Bar and Pub Awards

Leith has a new national title to celebrate. Bittersweet, the cocktail bar and restaurant on Henderson Street, has been named Hendrick's Gin and Monkey Shoulder Cocktail Bar of the Year at the Scottish Bar and Pub Awards 2026.

The awards were presented at a ceremony in Glasgow on Tuesday 1 September, when more than 600 guests filled the Doubletree by Hilton for a night with a glam rock theme. Now in their 31st year, they are Scotland's longest established trade awards, and more than 100 venues, teams and individuals were shortlisted as finalists. Jimmy Badgers in Inverness was highly commended in the cocktail bar category.

It was a good night for the capital overall. Black Ivy was named Dog Friendly Pub of the Year, Boston Bar New Town took home the Best Irish Bar award, and Michael Maclean of The Dome was named Mixologist of the Year.

Bittersweet is a family venture. In 2022 Fabrizio Cioffi and his family, who run The Old Poison Distillery at The Biscuit Factory in Leith, took on the lease of the former Steel Coulson taproom on Henderson Street to create a new cocktail bar and restaurant.

The bar describes itself as founded by two Italian brothers with a passion for bringing the essence of Italian aperitivo to the city. Fabrizio, director of the Old Poison distillery, crafts in-house fermented drinks such as mead wine and kombucha, while his brother Simone, the chef, blends traditional Italian dishes with the flavours of Italian street food.

Food is very much part of the experience. The menu is built around informal, high-quality dishes inspired by the aperitivo style and designed for sharing, so a round of cocktails can easily turn into an evening.

Sustainability sits at the heart of the business. Because the distillery is so close by, the team can batch, refill and reuse on a scale few bars can, keeping production local and reducing reliance on transport-heavy supply chains. The bar follows zero-waste principles, aims to use every ingredient to its full potential, sources local and organic ingredients for its cocktails and supports local producers.

Bittersweet is at 24 Henderson Street and opens from 5pm Tuesday to Saturday, closing at 11pm from Tuesday to Thursday and at midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. It is closed on Sundays and Mondays, and reservations can be made through its website.