The Cauldron
The Cauldron
3.5
3:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Wednesday
5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Thursday
5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Friday
5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Saturday
3:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Sunday
5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
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Suggested duration
1-2 hours
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: New Town
Suits and shopping bags rule the streets of New Town, until after dark when strappy dresses come out to play. This is the city’s central business district with its smaller offices, clothes boutiques, and many of the city’s flashiest restaurants and ritziest clubs. The architecture along roads like George Street helps give it a swank and formal feel: it’s a planned Georgian development of regal townhouses, geometric squares, and self-important statues. But it’s also a very wanderable neighborhood, with a healthy bustle at almost any time of day and fine people-watching in places like St Andrew's Square which fills with picnickers around lunch. You’ll also find a series of cheerful basement bistros on Hanover Street, while dark Rose Street has something of the feel of an undiscovered back alley and is chock-full of characterful pubs and small independent shops.
See what travelers are saying
  • ANGEE
    Glasgow, United Kingdom137 contributions
    Wands and wizardry but not so magical
    Before I begin this I would like to say that I am a primary teacher and so I am all about the drama and finding ways to make experiences fun and exciting. When my husband saw this advertised, he immediately booked it because he thought it would suit me down to the ground. It all started so well. On arrival we were given a wand and robes and even got to use the wand to help us pour our first cocktail from animal "heads" in the wall. At this point, I was in! I loved it! But then, it all got a bit disappointing...I felt that they have the germ of a brilliant idea but it just needs to be honed. The group across from us were working on some cocktail that had fire, and lots of excitement...we didn't get that, which was a bit of a disappointment. All the ingredients are left there for you so you are just pouring stuff into a bowl and that's it. I would have preferred going to 'hunt' for ingredients or doing something to make it more of an experience. There was a lot of just sitting around, doing nothing much. The whole thing finished early so we were told we could stay and shown a cocktail menu, but it wasn't clear if those cocktails were free or if we had to pay and, given that we had already paid a lot to make two pretty poor cocktails, I wasn't willing to shell out any more. I was really looking forward to this - we both were - but we both left feeling quite flat.
    Visited February 2020
    Written February 23, 2020
  • Uberbiatch
    Dunfermline, United Kingdom8 contributions
    Great concept and fun but food a let down
    Booked for two adults and two children for the wizarding afternoon tea at a cost of £108. Strict time slot provided but on arrival we had to wait 20 mins to be shown to our table. That was after having to choose two wands even though there were 4 in our party 🤷‍♀️ This wasn’t explained but the children loved choosing their wands. On arrival to the table it certainly had the wow factor and the ‘magic’ of lighting up the dragon canopy and locking the tea volt entertained us no end. Mixing our own teas was novel and entertaining however half the ingredients were missing and we had to wait around 30 mins for the food to arrive. Afternoon tea….so not as deceived and highly disappointing. Sandwiches stale and hard around the edges. Flavours so so. Scones rock hard. Macaroons beautiful. Brownies…god awful, stale and hard and I’ve baked better myself. Coffee popcorn I liked but not really what I would expect in an afternoon tea. There were also non interesting cheesecake squares….all in all if you are looking for a Harry Potter style event you will enjoy the quirkiness of this. If you are booking for an actual enjoyable afternoon tea full of delectable treats, you won’t find this here. Not worth the money, there was a table behind me who booked a birthday and asked for full refund due to the inedible food!
    Visited August 2021
    Traveled with family
    Written August 16, 2021
  • Tastytravler82
    48 contributions
    Magic
    Positives - the place is set out and themed nicely with the staff that we interacted with performing brilliantly. The wands aren't just sticks and do actually perform magic! (well they do stuff anyway). It's not just for Harry Potter fans as all people could appreciate the experience. Negatives - the ticket told us to arrive promptly but then had to wait around at reception for a lengthy amount of time. There could have easily been a third cocktail slotted into the session and the cocktails could have been a little fancier. Drinks after the session are a little pricey at £10 each but you are getting the theatre as well
    Visited February 2020
    Written March 2, 2020
  • linda h
    Livingston, United Kingdom129 contributions
    Go somewhere else for a better experience
    Despite the negative reviews was hopeful of a good experience 12 of us at £44 each for a magical cauldron experience was a lot of money what did we get Arrived on time seated 15 min late no instructions given other than scan in and read the instructions from your phone - not good enough , one waiter serving 18 people all doing same thing at same time he could of instructed us all through it and this would of helped the experience - needs more staff and they need trained on customer service as does the manager/owner mr duckworth. Who insinuated we had already had enough to drink and that it was not advertised as interactive. His parting words were I encourage you to leave a negative review Emm word of advice that is not how to run a business , One staff member said oh we will have you singing and dancing well our server never got that memo. The package sold said upgrade to a Bellini 3 cocktails props and popcorn We’re given a tiny tea plate of popcorn between 6 had to ask for it and props and say what package we paid for got a glass of Prosecco he tried to say was complimentary at end and that the working of package does not include the belleni so extra each more is for a tea plate of popcorn and some props for last ten minutes then ushered out early to get ready for next seating really not good enough Decor good and idea great but experience of 12 of us on sat was not one we would recommend to others spend your money somewhere like rabble who’s service for boozy brunch at £30 was much more worth it included great food and decent drinks and amazing customer service !! I appreciate the Prosecco was given as an attempt to address the situation but as that’s what we thought were getting the ad really needs changed so it’s clearer this may help others avoid this same situation and train staff to be more theatrical if that’s their job as it could of really made the experience and would make up for the fact the alcohol in cocktails is disgusting - in one we were told to put all the angostura bitters in making it undrinkable and us potentially sick and one of the gin bottles was empty n he wouldn’t believe us at first suggested we had drunk it !
    Visited November 2021
    Traveled with friends
    Written November 28, 2021
  • Mark B
    4 contributions
    Magical Experience
    A truly magical experience that I would highly recommend to try if your in Edinburgh. To start the experience you are greeted by one of the hosts who will give you a brief overview of the evening and will issue you with your wand and cloak for the experience. After this we where treated to the truly wonderful Justina, not Christina as I accidentally kept calling her, talking us through how to make each of the cocktails for the evening. It is a self guided making however, the staff are always on hand to assist if needed. Once you have finished your session you are then provided with the bars menus of other cocktails to try. I highly recommend staying and trying at least one, the Dragons Breath is wonderful and presented with a giant ball of fire! Overall this was a wonderful experience that I highly recommend and thank you to Justina you where amazing and kept us laughing throughout the whole experience.
    Visited January 2020
    Traveled as a couple
    Written January 22, 2020
  • Kerry D
    Broxburn, United Kingdom3 contributions
    Good concept, bad news
    Arrived on time and joined the people at the desk. Our time slot was 7pm and we didn't get taken through until 10 past 7. The cocktail making experience was quite enjoyable, even using your phone and it did feel covid safe however a lot of people were missing equipment and ingredients and the staff were running around the tables trying to deal with the rest of the group booking so felt a little unorganised. The absolute killer for us was that you have to book tickets which aren't very cheap and you get a hour and 45 minutes time slot. The actual cocktail making takes around 45 - 60 mins so the rest you would assume could be used to sample some of the other cocktails. What we weren't made aware of was the fact they were very understaffed (due to covid) and there wasn't anyone to mix cocktails. This was fine as the table next to use ordered just some normal drinks however when we asked 30 seconds later we were told it was only the potions experience that night at the bar was closed. We then left and it just didn't feel like a worthy experience at all. I understand covid can have effects on establishments however there should have been communication before going in stating what to expect due to this and possibly offering a refund or a change of booking day as this really wasn't worth it.
    Visited September 2021
    Traveled as a couple
    Written September 9, 2021
  • Sandra
    2 contributions
    I would not recommend for large groups.
    I contacted in advance with a booking of 7, anymore than 6 they ask for payment in advance, but give you 5 days to resolve numbers and collect money and let them know if anything changes. One person couldn't make it because of covid so I let them know the booking had changed to 6. I tried calling 5-6 times over the 5 days, I emailed 5-6 times, no response. Eventually, the countdown began before I lost my booking, so I paid for the 7 and hoped they would help. The day before my booking I received confirmation for 6. When I arrived, I asked for a refund and the host said I would receive it in my bank account in 5-7 days. It's been 2 weeks. Someone did offer to chase, but again I've been left waiting. Incredibly frustrating, and a lot of unnecessary stress.
    Visited September 2021
    Traveled with friends
    Written September 26, 2021
  • Manisha G
    London, United Kingdom12 contributions
    Let down!
    Booked this spontaneously as we were in Edinburgh for the long weekend. At the price of £60 for 2 people it was a major disappointment, feel like I've been conned out of my money. The staff were very much in character through the experience and you feel Covid safe BUT apart from that it's all downhill. We were offered a welcome drink and then made 2 cocktails. The flavours weren't quite what I liked and was offered a pre-made welcome drink as a replacement NOT an alternative cocktail. The experience overall only needs an hour. You just about finish making one cocktail and within 10 minutes move on to the next. There's no food available at the venue and staff push you to buy one of the other cocktails from the bar (£10 each), no robe to wear and a wand to share between two of us and NOT one each. Not much to see around the venue even though we were encouraged to walk around and see the displays (there weren't any) the main display is on your bench. Overall please AVOID.
    Visited September 2020
    Traveled as a couple
    Written September 3, 2020
  • Sophie J
    2 contributions
    Not worth booking
    Booked onto this for myself and my boyfriend whilst we were staying in Edinburgh. Definitely was not worth the money. We paid £72 for the both of us for the cocktail making which lasted under an hour. We were not taught anything and was made to get up the virtual instructions on the internet to follow. We made 2 (small) drinks which were not very nice. We could not understand the waitress as she was speaking so fast. There was no music on I assume due to lockdown restrictions which made it quite awkward. We were also sat on a table which was very dark and hidden away.
    Visited September 2020
    Traveled as a couple
    Written September 14, 2020
  • Katie B
    Plymouth, United Kingdom42 contributions
    Not worth the time or money
    When we first walked into the food area, I was impressed. The seating areas are well decorated and the initial interaction with the staff seemed positive. Unlocking the first part of the tea experience and mixing a blend was fun, but after that it went downhill rapidly. The food was clearly cheap, mass production style cakes and the sandwiches border on pathetic. Reading the instructions via QR code was clunky and did not relate to the equipment we had. A member of staff commented that it was designed for the London experience and they did not have everything mentioned. The second drink we made required us to tell a member of staff each time we completed a step. This was clunky and the lady serving us was rushed off her feet. We waited 10 minutes for the last instruction/stage, which turned out to be giving us a cup. Given we were sat next to the cups, and several member staff were in the area this seemed somewhat ridiculous and completely derailed the atmosphere of the experience. Finally, whilst waiting for the said cup, we could hear several members of staff at the till area voicing various complaints about the job. Completely unprofessional and unmagical, and a downer to hear. It was a shame, as one on one the staff were polite and fun, the main reason I'm giving this place 2 stars rather than 1. Avoid this place, it is cashing in on the Harry Potter fandom without delivering anything worthwhile.
    Visited October 2021
    Traveled as a couple
    Written October 23, 2021
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions

3.5
344 reviews
Excellent
185
Very good
36
Average
20
Poor
41
Terrible
63

Emma S
1 contribution
Aug 2023 • Family
Lovely potion making evening with Potion Master Austin. The staff and our neighbour tables were lovely, all embracing the magic and wonder which made the whole visit vibe super.
Written August 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

2016Annette13
Baden, Switzerland153 contributions
Aug 2023
We booked the afternoon tea, 1 regular and 1 gluten free. I love that they offer that! Thank you!
I added a potion for us, alcoholic, that should smoke and sparkle and whatnot. Well. One potion did smoke, but had no alcohol. The other drink did nothing, but had all the alcohol. That was funny in a way, but can be improved.
The location is cute, with many little details. Some details lack a bit and need some work. Electric cable mess on the floor, wobbly tea cup stand and a bit that feeling of not too spanking clean, but that might be the cellar.
The staff was lovely and really did their best. The lady-boss told them off at one point, not to be chatting in front of the customers, and did so right in front of us. Hm.
The food: it was plenty, too much for us, which is not their fault obviously, not a fault at all in fact. The sand-witches were good, also the gluten free ones. Also the desserts, except the gluten-free scones, but they are hard to make, or to buy good ones. Maybe try them yourselves to see if you would want them served? Just a thought.
You book the experience for 1h45'. And although the room was almost empty, we were told 15' before the end of our time, that the time was up in 15'. That was a bit awkward. If your place is empty, let them maybe sit and offer a(nother) drink. It's business, right?
Written August 7, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Gem B
2 contributions
Aug 2023 • Couples
My partner booked this for a surprise for us when we visited Edinburgh for the Fringe.
We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Ruth was very enthusiastic and entertaining and made our experience all the more magical!
The service was fantastic and the little forest themed booth gave the perfect amount of privacy without feeling excluded from the rest of the bar’s atmosphere. The only thing we might change was some of the potions instructions were a little confusing but other than that we had a wonderful time.
Written August 3, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Matthew W
1 contribution
Aug 2023 • Family
Very fun. Kids (11 & 13) had a blast. Robin was a fine potions master. The room décor adds to the experience perfectly.
Written August 3, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

AdviserofTrips316
4 contributions
Jul 2023 • Friends
This place is a hoot! Came on a Tuesday while visiting from the US with my 63yo mom (I’m 34). Not super busy, but they were short staffed and I can see why you must make a reservation as there is a lot of work that goes into the experience for each party. The atmosphere and staff are great, sticking to the theme, even if you forget! Some of the initial tricks (welcome drink poured from a magical creature) were not pouring, but the compensatory story and drinks were still fun and delicious. I’ll also note that the main drinks are not only creative and entertaining, but also delicious - and boozy! Note that if you’re a party of one or two, you’ll likely be sharing a table with others. This was a highlight as we got to chat with some scots from outside the city. Great experience. Highly recommend!
Written August 2, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

kathyg812020
Boston, MA49 contributions
Jul 2023 • Friends
Scottish Highlands and Loch Ness tour also a hike which is pretty easy to Arthur’s Seat…beautiful view. Edinburgh Castle a must but order tickets a head of time. Take the tram or bus goes everywhere locally. We took the train to the beach and the bus back which was much easier. The beach is Portabello beach, beautiful ocean and places to eat and on high street there’s some shopping.
We took the train for a day to Glasgow that was fun. Always have a light rain jacket and umbrella with you, when it rains it’s pours but only for about 15 mins.
Also the Edinburgh Zoo was nice and also huge!
Written August 1, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Marjolein
11 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
What a magical place this is! really an experience! If you're in Edinbugh and believe in magic a bit, book a potion experience here.

Why not a 5* rate? A small downside: our Table host was sloppy in the preparation so not everything was right for making the potion, and could have taken a little more time for a bit of explanation, this caused ambiguity and the failure of the first potion. The second brew went well.
The alcohol-free brews should have their own description.

Tip! book in time because it is fully booked
Tip! please note the exchange rate at the time of booking.
Written July 29, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Graham
1 contribution
Jul 2023 • Couples
Truly Brilliant, Ruth our potion master was wonderful, so enthusiastic and bubbly made the whole experience very immersive
Written July 23, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Harriet L
1 contribution
Jun 2023 • Friends
I’ve been to a lot of afternoon teas, and this one is by far the worst I’ve ever had. Surprising as it wasn’t cheap either. It was bad from the stat, when we opened our chest of tea ingredients and were left to make our own tea bags - a few of the drinks required green tea and earl grey but they were missing. When we asked our server, we were told that they don’t have any of those ingredients EVER and they aren’t sure why it’s in the potions book. If that truly is the case then they should update the book because half of the suggested teas required them.
This is where it starts to go downhill really fast…the water in the teapot was luke warm, we had to ask for milk, and the food that was brought out was all shop bought and extremely poor quality. Nothing was homemade apart from the sandwiches which were stale and on cheap supermarket style bread. I could have made better at home. Nothing like the pictures on the website. The so-called warm wrapped scones - two shop bought stale scones that had been sprayed with glitter to be “magical”. The cake stand wasn’t even fully filled. The second cup of tea which you have to follow instructions for was basically inedible and, again, lukewarm. You’ve got to laugh at how insanely poor the whole experience was. Totally using a gimmick of wizardry to get people to part with their money. What a rip off. I will be telling everyone to avoid avoid avoid.
I’m genuinely hoping that I’ll be ok after consuming some of the things out of politeness (the experience was a gift). There was a mother and daughter behind us and they left early after saying how shockingly bad it was. Stick to being a bar, drop the afternoon teas which are definitely false advertising.
Written July 22, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi harrietl790, Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. First of all, I am very sorry to hear that you did not have a fully enjoyable experience with us for Afternoon Tea. This does not sound like our normal service or offering that we provide, and so I will be passing over all of the comments you have made to the venue management team, and I will ensure that they are all looked into. If you do wish to discuss further, then please do feel free to send us a direct message. Thank you again for your feedback. Best, Ryan
Written July 26, 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Ericka
Fukuoka, Japan52 contributions
Jul 2023 • Friends
We did the afternoon tea and this was such a fun and unique activity to do. Our Potions Master was Robin and they were so friendly. Never made me feel like I was inconveniencing them when I needed anything like more hot water.
The food was pretty good! And they fed us more than enough: we ended up needing to take some home with us.
I loved being able to create my own tea blends. If you’re doing a floral blend like I did, make sure to steep it long enough!
Written July 19, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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The Cauldron (Edinburgh) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go

Frequently Asked Questions about The Cauldron

The Cauldron is open:
  • Sun - Sun 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
  • Wed - Fri 5:00 PM - 11:00 PM
  • Sat - Sat 3:00 PM - 11:00 PM




The Cauldron Information

Excellent Reviews184
Very Good Reviews36
The Cauldron Photos310