Tag: Biscuit Factory

Edinburgh Bar Awards announces 2025 Longlist with 150 nominees

The countdown is officially on for one of the biggest nights in Scotland’s hospitality calendar – the Edinburgh Bar Awards 2025, as the longlist of nominees is revealed.

Now in its second year in the Capital, the awards will culminate in the Edinburgh Bartenders’ Ball, taking over The Biscuit Factory on Monday 22nd September 2025. Promising an end-of-summer blowout like no other, the Ball will bring together Edinburgh’s bar community for an unforgettable night of cocktails, music, food, and celebration.

This year, more than 150 bars, bartenders, and hospitality stars have made the longlist across 11 categories, following an overwhelming public response to nominations. From iconic cocktail institutions and legendary pubs to fresh talent shaking up the city, the longlist is a true showcase of the people and places that make Edinburgh one of the world’s leading drinking destinations.

And now, it’s time to vote. The longlist will be narrowed down to five finalists per category, with results decided by a 50/50 public and trade vote. The final winners will be revealed live at the Edinburgh Bartenders’ Ball.

Every vote counts – nominations close on 31st August, so get voting for your favourite before it’s too late.

Speaking about the longlist, David Smillie, co-founder and organiser of the Bar Awards and Bartender’s Ball, said: “Edinburgh is home to some of the best bars and bartenders in the world, and this year’s Edinburgh Bar Awards longlist proves it.

“This city’s talent, creativity and community spirit is unmatched, and the Bartenders’ Ball is our chance to celebrate that together in style. We can’t wait to welcome everyone to The Biscuit Factory this September for what promises to be the ultimate industry party.”

Tickets for the Edinburgh Bartenders’ Ball, priced at just £35, are on sale now.

The event includes complimentary drinks, food, entertainment, and a night of industry celebration.

2025 Categories & Longlist
(alphabetical order within each category)

Best Bar
4042 • Bittersweet • Bramble • Chancho • Dragonfly • Hey Palu • Lucky Liquor • Old Pal • Panda & Sons • The Bonnington • The Cocktail Geeks • The Powder Room • The Raging Bull • The Volley Leith • Uno Mas

Best Pub
Athletic Arms (Diggers) • Bennets of Morningside • The Black Cat • The Bonnington • The Finch • The Golden Rule • The Hanging Bat • Joker & The Thief • Kay’s Bar • Malt & Hops • The Mother Superior • Nauticus • The Oxford Bar • St Vincent Bar • Teuchters (Landing & West End)

Best Restaurant Bar
The Alchemist • Bittersweet • Bonnie & Wild • Copper Blossom • The Devil’s Advocate • Hawksmoor • Leith Depot • Little Capo • Lucky Yu • Old Pal • Paradise Palms • Smith & Gertrude • Tipo • The Bonnington • Voyage of Buck

Best Bar Team
Bramble • The Bonnington • The Cocktail Geeks • The Mother Superior • Hey Palu • Lucky Liquor • Nauticus • Nightcap • Old Pal • Panda & Sons • The Powder Room • The Raging Bull • The Three Sisters • Voodoo Rooms • West Port Oracle

Best Late Night Venue
4042 • Banshee Labyrinth • Liquid Rooms • The Jazz Bar • The Mother Superior • Nightcap • NQ64 • Paradise Palms • The Raging Bull • Sneaky Pete’s • Stramash • The Street • Tonic • Uno Mas • The Voodoo Rooms

Unsung Hero
Adam Fraser Gray (Herman) • Anthony Crowther • Ben Leslie • Cam Chittleborough • Cullen Hutchison • Dom Cummings • Fiona Hamilton • Gavin Whyte • Jane Ross • Kaelum-Ian Mullen • Kristaps Baranovs • Logan Pope • Mon Nelson • Sam Baxendale • Sian Buchan

Rising Star
Cal Lister • Cameron Finlay • Emily Weston • Flora Luckman • Freja Kemp • Jack Smith • Ketan Mackenzie • Levi Reed • Logan Pope • Noah French • Pierre Martin • Saul Lavelle • Walt Webster-Curran

Best Shake
Alessia Impedovo • Ben Jones • Cameron Chittleborough • Connor Bleakley • Fowwaz Ansari • Jake Harris • Jay Braby • Kielan Davidson • Logan Pope • Pierre Martin • Sam Baxendale • Sam Milne • Saul Lavelle • Stuart McBain • Toby Peters

Best Cocktail
Baltic Bru • Bramble • Coco Colada • Feta Mezcal Negroni • Indominous • Make Love Not Warcraft • Paper Dragon • The Perfect Pear • Port Hayward • Porridge Colada • Spicy Peach Margarita • Spring Fizz • Stinger • Sweet Manhattan • Yuzu Margarita

Social Star
Ben Greig • Camille Le Courtois • Carrie Smith • Chloe Archibald-Ansari • Chloe Yeung • Gracie Goggins • Groundskeeper (Murray Tait) • Kaelum Mullen • Lara Sinclair • Millie Harley • Rachel Dixon • Ross Lawrie • Ryan Snedden • Tasha Corfield • Cal Lister

Far Side of the Bar
Adam Murphy • Ashton Williamson • Connie Macdonald • Damian Koval • Dan Bartley • Dana Crombie • Ellie Raeside • Josh Knox • Kaitlin Wilkes • Mike McGinty • Niamh Savage • Ross Lawrie • Ruth Mason • Ryan Snedden • Stevie Aitken

The Edinburgh Bar Awards take place at The Edinburgh Bartender’s Ball at The Biscuit Factory on Monday, 22nd September 2025. Tickets include complimentary drinks, food, and entertainment, and cost £35. 

Vote now or buy tickets from https://backshospitality.com/. 

Follow on Instagram: Instagram.com/theedinburghbartendersball

Fury as McVitie’s issues redundancy notices

Company refuses to engage with Action Group

Trade unions GMB Scotland and Unite Scotland, who jointly represent the vast majority of McVitie’s workers based at Tollcross, have reacted furiously to the company formally issuing redundancy notices yesterday. 

The McVitie’s biscuit factory, which manufactures a range of notable products including Hobnobs and Rich Tea Biscuits, has through its parent owners Pladis also ‘disgracefully’ refused to engage with the newly established Action Group set up to prevent the factory’s closure.

The group is chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Economy, Kate Forbes MSP, and involves the trade unions, Glasgow City Council, Scottish Enterprise, Clyde Gateway and Skills Development Scotland.

Following two meetings of the Action Group, Kate Forbes, wrote to McVitie’s requesting direct engagement with the parent company, Pladis, ahead of the next scheduled meeting on 23 June. The meeting is set to discuss a series of proposals which could maintain a presence of McVitie’s in the local area. 

However, Unite Scotland and GMB Scotland can confirm that the company has formally issued redundancy notices to its workforce and refused to engage with the Action Group.

In 2014, the Turkish owned Pladis acquired the McVitie’s business after its takeover of United Biscuits, which made it the third largest biscuit manufacturer in the world. In that same year, United Biscuits also cut its then 680-strong workforce at Tollcross by almost a quarter.

The Tollcross factory, which first opened in 1925 as part of the Macfarlane and Lang’s Victoria Biscuit Works, is a major employer in an area with higher levels of social deprivation and unemployment. The McVitie’s presence in Scotland goes back to the original Scottish biscuit maker, McVitie & Price Ltd, which was established in 1830 in Edinburgh. 

GMB Scotland Organiser David Hume said: “It’s an act of extreme bad faith on the part of the Pladis Managing Director David Murray, and a gross insult to hundreds of workers and their families who are fighting for their livelihoods and community. 

“The rules of the game have now been changed by Pladis – the clock is now officially ticking on nearly 470 jobs and generations of food manufacturing that has endured austerity and prosperity, war and pandemic.”

“David Murray needs to be hauled by the Cabinet Secretary before the members of the Action Group because this is a profitable business with an innovative workforce that can and should have a future in the East End of Glasgow.”

Pat McIlvogue, Unite industrial officer, said: “It’s an absolute disgrace and slap in the face to the workforce that not only has McVitie’s formally issued redundancy notices but they are also refusing to engage with the Action Group established by the Scottish Government.

“Everyone except the company is working together in order to bring forward options, which could save hundreds of jobs in the local area. Unite is again calling on Pladis to directly engage with the trade unions, the workforce and the Scottish Government to look at credible alternatives to closure.

“Pladis have a duty of care to hundreds of workers to jointly discuss with us what could be done to save jobs instead of this belligerent and arrogant approach which they have adopted.”

College photographers score with new Hibs kit

Two Edinburgh College photography students Suzi Kerr and Jimmy Reid were recently commissioned to shoot the new Hibernian Football Club 2017-18 kit. The shoot took place at the The Biscuit Factory, off Bonnington Road.

Greig Mailer, communications and marketing director for Hibernian Football Club said: “Through the Hibernian Community Foundation, the club has a strong relationship with Edinburgh College. The launch of the kit is vital and the club was extremely pleased with the contribution made by Suzi and Jimmy in producing an outstanding series of images for our campaign. The standard of photography being produced by the college Creative Industries department is a credit to the college and we would recommend Suzi and Jimmy’s talents to other clients in the future.”

The Hibernian Community Foundation sponsored the Edinburgh College Photography EXPOSED 17 exhibition at Out of the Blue, part of the college’s Glow festival.

Photography student Suzi Kerr said: “Being given this opportunity at the end of the HND course really cemented the hard work put in through the last two years. It was an honour to be asked to showcase our talents through the kit launch and especially for a club with such strong ties to the creative industries department.”