#91. Joseph Pearce's Bar, 23 Elm Row, Edinburgh

Joe Pearce's is a bustling, Swedish-style (?) pub strewn across two levels. They serve food all day, along with a cocktail named for Bjorn Borg. A Swedish flag is proudly draped next to the busy bar.



Here the bartenders exhibit that characteristically Scandinavian trait of perseverance in the face of existential despair.



Despite her belief that life is pain, she somehow managed to pour me a Caledonian Flying Scotsman Ale, and for Tobi a Symond's Cider (pressed by Bulmers in Hereford, England, the mecca for cider lovers the world over... though Bulmers is now owned by giant Scottish & Newcastle, which is of course owned by Heineken, which is why you can find Bulmer's Strongbow absolutely everywhere on the planet). We hung out at the bar for a while, but I was fearful of bar-blocking, a social faux pas discussed previously. We retreated upstairs to the back. On the whole the place was too hot and too loud for my liking, but that did not seem to detract from the enjoyment of the many patrons out on the town for a meal with friends.