The Milk Thistle in Bristol, City of

Fun and interesting place to go for tasty cocktails. Friendly staff. Highly recommended!

One of my favorite cocktail bars in Bristol! It has a cool concept and great drinks. There are plenty of options and the staff were super friendly and helpful.

It’s too loud! I went with some friends for my birthday on a Saturday night, and it was like being at a rave. A cocktail bar should be conducive to conversation surely?

Not what I expected. Special occasion. Felt the meet and greet at the door was really aggressive and unnecessary. So much so we just left The guy checking the bookings at the door needs to realise some people are just out for a nice evening and expect to be met with a friendly welcome.

Such a quirky different place, cocktails were amazing, great atmosphere the place is really kinda special. Welcomed with such warmth it was like being part of a special club being let in ! It was expensive but i did have a great experience and it's more than a pub.

Very quaint bar. The cocktail menu is heavenly. Tad on the pricey side, a drink costs what a main at a less expensive pub might cost.

Expensive, underwhelming presentation and loads of ice in the cocktails - all show rather than substance

Had a fab night out and felt lucky to even get in. Top notch service and lively atmosphere. The cocktails were original and tasty, and really took us out of our comfort zone. For the less adventurous person, they also offer your standard, mundane drinks.

Great hidden gem in the centre of Bristol. Staff are super attentive to making sure you feel welcomed and talk through their cocktails. Some of the tastiest cocktails I’ve tried. Went in the day time but would love to see it at night

Great fun. Not the cheapest drinks but delicious. Fab personable service.

Terrific cocktail with exciting garnish , we went for late night on Saturday however all the staff are friendly ,active and suggested cocktail according to taste ..

Just love it. No matter which kind of cocktail you are looking for, you will find something suitable for you. They have amazing menu including the very light flowery cocktail and also something punching smoky and spicy whiskey. Will back regular for friends night and couple nights.

Amazing cocktails. The atmosphere was so relaxed with great music and perfectly dim lighting — Olie the bartender took care of us and made some great recommendations for London area restaurants and bars. This place is very unique and the staff was very knowledgeable and experts in drink making. Highly recommend this place

Very cool hidden spot, bar staff upstairs last night did a great job. Thoroughly enjoyed

One of the best speakeasy bar .. friendly service

Amazingly friendly, helpful and attentative staff. They were even cool when my wife accidentally set off the fire alarm. 😅 The biggest danger is that the cocktails are really nice and very easy to drink. You can find yourself emptying your wallet by the end of the night.

Clever place. You're made to feel like you're in an exclusive club with ladies being particularly friendly at your table but the reality is you pay 13 quid for a small, weak cocktail. The atmosphere is really good though. I just wish I'd thought of the idea to rip people off this way myself.

Absolutely fantastic bar to visit for some unique and tasty cocktails! We were initially a bit worried as I needed to adjust my booking and there was no answer on the phone but when we arrived and explained the situation, the host (never caught his name) informed us he was about to send an email to explain that it wouldn’t be a problem. Drinks were amazing! My personal favourite was the pico punch, which is a play on pico de gallo in a (very strong!) drink. I’m a fan of bloody Mary’s and this has a very similar taste profile (tomato, chilli) but the presentation was absolutely amazing! I don’t want to spoil the fun but it is fair to say I loved it. The best part of this bar is definitely the staff. The hosts and waiters we met (Shoutout to Will!) were so welcoming and informative. Something I really liked was when will sat down with us and talked through the menu, the story and how it works. They were also very accommodating (both myself and my partners phone had died and they very kindly let us charge her phone behind the bar which was very important once we stumbled out an hour and a half later! The decor is fantastic, perfect for setting the theme and the taxidermy is beautifully presented with a lovely personality for all of them! Overall I would recommend this cocktail bar to any fans of trying new unique drinks served by some of the loveliest people ever!

this place is so committed to its taxidermy-based whimsigoth aesthetic that i'm shocked the menus weren't hand-written in fountain pen. that being said, there is no place i'd rather spend £15 per cocktail than here, where they have to explain their "interactive drinks" to you. edit: special shoutout to Will. truly a cocktail king. order the pico de gallo drink.

Tricky to find, we were lucky due to a private tip :)

Delicious cocktails and awesome artworks in the menu. If you’re into whisky go visit the vault downstairs

A great experience, and some fantastic cocktails. A little loud with the music on though.

Great cocktails, really friendly service. A great unique setting. Couldn’t initially work out how to get it (just ring the bell if the door is closed!).

Amazing cocktails, welcoming and friendly service.

The service was phenomenal! Will was so knowledgeable, personable and friendly - highly recommend Milk Thistle for a beautiful evening out!

We only had cocktails which were nice but was rushed into drinking and then given the bill to pay up and leave before we even finished our drinks as they had another reservation for the table. I think we were only in there an hour and we did book. Considering its not cheap we felt very rushed. Drinks were very good though and the menu and cocktails were explained well (Our waiter did recommend some great choices to our individual preferences)

Great cocktails, great service, great atmosphere! I loved the menu it was very original.

Great speakeasy style venue, you have to ring the doorbell or knock the door in order to be allowed entry. The staff were friendly and welcoming, the waitress even decided our drinks for us based on what we liked - they were perfect. It's a slightly expensive venue, but this is to be expected. The interior design of the venue and the quality reflects the price.

Good atmosphere for late night cocktails. Recommended to book ahead by app.

Nunca había ido a un bar secreto, me gustó mucho la experiencia, ubicado en pleno centro, cuenta con 3 plantas, con un decoración exquisita, los bartenders son super profesionales y con una amplia carta de cockteles muy sorprendente a precio razonable! Todo el personal es muy agradable lo recomiendo 100%

Attentive, knowledgeable and passionate hosts, I hope Will is working when you visit! Delicious drinks and a massive variety of flavours and unique ingredients, evaporated red wine, Irish moss and cream soda reduction to name a few unusual flavours you can experience here! Music is a bit loud for my liking but the general decor and atmos is appealing to this type of 'secret buzzer' cocktail joint. Expect lots of taxidermy animals, interesting drink flavours, bowler hat light shades and occult paintings.

This place is truly exceptional whenever you are going for a date or trying to impress your mates. Booking is highly recommended to avoid disappointment. The staff will make you feel like you are a part of royalty offering potent alcoholic drinks and interesting snacks like goat cheese flavored popcorn. I'm not just sure if I enjoyed a present of stuffed animal above my head. I am looking forward to visiting the Raven and getting a tarrot reading

We have visited The Milk Thistle a number of times over the past few years and have always been impressed. Our visit last Friday evening for pre dinner drinks was as normal. Very good service and cocktails, but somehow they seem to have stepped up the mark on the cocktails. They were exceptional and that was the response from everyone in our group of 6. In fact if we hadn't had a table booked for dinner I am sure we would have stayed a lot longer.

Service and drinks at this venue are outstanding. The lady that waited on us was very knowledgeable and very good at recommending drinks. The atmosphere is a little off though. Music is slightly too loud. We had to shout to each other across the table which feels off as it's a smoking lounge vibe.

I booked what purported to be a Burn’s Night at a cost of almost £180 for the two of us. It turned out to be a sponsored advertising evening for a whisky producer. Drinks separated by food. The first course of smoked salmon on a blink with horseradish, delicious. The second course was steak and mash and something that might have been haggis but wasn’t like any haggis I have ever tasted. No sign of neps’n’tatties. What would you expect for desert on a night like this, cranachan? Not here, we had sticky toffee pudding. The meal was served right a the top of the building for some reason, up nine flights of stairs. As a disabled person, I struggled both going up and coming down. None of this was mentioned in the advertising. The whole place tried to develop an air of mystery from the onset.

Excellent spot for a cocktail and a really great atmosphere inside. Attentive staff who were more than happy to help and talk you through the menu. 100% recommend booking a table and not walking in - we booked in advance but when we got there they weren’t taking walk ins that night so one to prebook!

One of the best places for a nice drink. Gorgeous decor and amazing staff.

Just stopped in for drinks, had a great cocktail, friendly helpful service enjoyed it.

Went on a weekday, the atmosphere was very chill and cozy. Lovely staff who explained the menu thoroughly and were also good at giving drink recommendations. The drinks themselves are of high quality. It's pricey but I'd say it's worth it if you know what flavour profile you enjoy. There's definitely some unique cocktails here and their menu has an interesting design. Just don't go for the basic drinks because the price is not worth it.

Great cocktail bar with kind staff!

Will took the time to understand what I like in a cocktail and recommended a toreador (citrus loved it!) thank you will (p.s. I won at chess) thanks for a lovely evening!

Staying a night in Bristol we wanted somewhere with a chilled vibe but also something different. The Milk Thistle was the perfect place to go and the cocktails were simply Awesome, in fact I had the Smoking Barrels and it was the best cocktail I've ever had! Great service too, super friendly waiters and the guy greeting us for us a table even though we hadn't booked and it was super busy with Christmas. Most definitely would recommend and most definitely will be back one day!

Nice enough speakeasy, but by no means in top 5 in Bristol. Expensive, service wasn't great, music too loud. Cocktails are alright but some limitations. Not great that the menu items are pre-mixed.

Amazing from the minute we arrived. Will is a great host, James knows his stuff and Sebastian’s cocktails are amazing. A must visit for any occasion.

Really should have taken some pictures of the cocktails. Fabulous. Rich sumptuous decor, very good service. Cocktails a little pricy perhaps, but then I'm a little out of touch, and they were absolutely excellent! So, five stars. Note ... very easy to miss the entrance ...

Our favourite spot! Great atmosphere- always deliver on quality cocktails and amazing service.

Had a visit to Bristol and had pre booked a visit and what an experience it was lovely cocktails 🍸 and great staff

Great cocktails in a beautiful setting

Really cool cocktail bar, everything we drank was interesting, and totally different to what we were expecting— for example I don’t normally enjoy tequila but the tequila wasn’t a prominent flavour in one cocktail and it was really lovely to drink. Staff were not as frosty as some of the reviews on here would suggest, I found them really pleasant. Definitely book in advance to get a table, it’s a really popular spot and they don’t have loads of seating. Atmosphere was cool but not buzzing. We only had our table for 90 minutes so expect a pretty quick turnaround- I believe you can let them know if you’d like the table for longer when you’re booking.

An excellent selection of well balanced and novel cocktails. Would recommend to any cocktail lover.

We had our first time here for a special birthday. The service from Ali (apologies if not spelt right) was impeccable. Drinks were incredible and the most professionally mixed and blended we have ever had , and the suggestions that Ali made exceeded our expectations. Looking forward to returning again, amazing ambience and location and couldn't rate highly enough. No rating for food as only came for drinks and chess ! If you haven't booked in for this venue you are missing out!

Excellent cocktails. Staff treated us very well

Super ride host who made no effort to accommodate us

This is such a super space! Music, lighting, decor all spot-on. The charming menu has well-described drinks from the obvious to the obscure and everything in-between. The menu's striking imagery is a pagan-modernist blend as if Terry Gilliam illustrated a book on Cthulu while the charming and talented staff make the place so welcoming. Shout-out to Will for his added cocktail wizardry! Additionally, for the city centre of Bristol and its uniqueness, the prices seemed fair. I'm unsure about accessibility—make sure to check ahead of time if required.

If I could give a hundred stars I would. Amazing service. Great atmosphere. Most importantly, incredible cocktails/mock tails. Attention to detail. Personal table service. Fabulous.

Absolutely incredible spot for bespoke cocktails. They regularly update the menu with their own creations. Service is always spot on and the bar staff are super friendly.

Nice venue, decent drinks of the very limited that were available to us, just one snotty bar staff who was in charge of bar upstairs during a private function. Wouldn't rush to go to again.

Delicious rotating cocktail menu tucked away in downtown Bristol. Finding it is easy (main road from Google maps, black door, ring the call button to the right). The menu is complex and detailed, and there is a drink for everyone. This is a must see. We went on a quiet early Tuesday evening.

Very good cocktail bar “hidden in plain sight” there’s something unique about the way this bar operates. We booked here for early evening, pre dinner cocktails for our anniversary night. Once inside the bar has a lovely vibe to it. Everyone working here are happy and friendly, the menu is extensive and beautifully designed, the cocktails are creative and very nice. Everyone was very knowledgeable about the drinks and helped when deciding on the next cocktail. I would definitely recommend this bar. Excellent experience. Thank you!

Excellent cocktails, atmosphere, and service! Their new menu is fantastic. Ig: Bristolfooddude

We came her on the recommendation of a local waitress, and were not disappointed. The atmosphere is excellent, dark, good music, and generally luxurious. The cocktail menu is interesting too, with lots of things on there worth trying. The staff are very friendly and helpful, with explanations of the menu and recommendations. Prices are what's expected of a city centre cocktail bar.

Service was amazing and the cocktails with some of the best. bartenders are happy to talk to you and have a laugh which makes the whole environment lovely. Very very cool decor

Nice cocktail bar. Old fashioned stylish decor!

Dopo essere entrati dal portone, che non sembra l’ingresso di un cocktail bar, si arriva in uno spazio molto bello, su più piani, con una bellissima atmosfera. La lista di cocktail è interessante, il personale estremamente gentile e disponibile. Ci tornerei sicuramente!

We managed 10 cocktails over the bristol cocktail weekend. Milk thistle was the last stop, glad that we went because it is the best signature cocktail hands down. We had 4 drinks and left. Its only now i realize I’ve been incorrectly over charged…. I now have to wait till opening on Monday to call them to resolve this. Review subject to change depending on the resolution of the outcome. I didn’t take the receipt with, never just assume the bill is right!

This is one of my personal favorites, and absolutely recommend it. The drinks are very creative and good (I suggest following the staff’s recommendations), the staff is always friendly and the place and its decoration are so secretive and unique. Even the drinks menu is entertaining to go through.

Tom was fantastic... went for a cocktail experience and he nailed our flavour specifications to a tee! Amazing service ... recommended and will be back ASAP

Excellent cocktails in an amazing setting, served by fantastic people. Whisky tasting experience is also top notch

Amazing cocktails, really cool ambiance. Would definitely return

The theming of this bar is stunning, the drinks were excellent but unfortunately whilst the staff were all lovely, the service was very slow so we only had 2 drinks in the hour and a half we were there, it is also very expensive and noisy.

Great selection of cocktails. Nice atmosphere. Great for a date night

Large on self importance, low on achievement. Grubby unfriendly little bar. Embarrassing get up, pretentious staff. All in all best to skip this establishment. Klass with a capital K!

Superb Whisky vault with very knowledgeable staff .highly recommend a visit

Unfortunately this place is more of a ‘Shout loud’ than a ‘Speakeasy’ - think night club with just cocktails (which were reasonable) on the menu. If you’re planning on meeting with friends, having a good cocktail and chatting, then think again….imagine waiting a while for a drink to arrive and screaming into each others ear. Shame, but seems to be catering to stag/hen party’s as a opposed to high end cocktail bar.

The best cocktail bar in Bristol. Simple as that. Order whatever Seb recommends.

Feeling pretty humiliated by being accused of stealing a cup on the way out in front other customers! :( Otherwise a nice evening with friends.

Had a lovely time with my 3 friends. Cocktails were delicious. However it was most humiliating when the waiter ran after a group of 50 year old respectable ladies accusing us of stealing a vintage teacup in front of a whole group of people. A lovely evening turned sour by the rude audacity of the waiter

Great speakeasy atmosphere, hidden gem for those who enjoy a more relaxed cocktails and whiskey experience.

It was an okay experience. Pricy drinks for the quality being sent out

Cool cocktail bar. Brilliant, friendly service, and a great speakeasy atmosphere. As someone who lives nearer London I'd say the prices are more than reasonable as well.

Lovely atmosphere and a nice experience, however cocktail menus could do with more rotation and drinks description could do with more effort

I have just left your establishment and I must say, beautiful setting, however, the receptionist was awfully rude! Myself and friend was told that it was high end cocktail bar and that maybe it wasn’t for us! How rude! As a business owner myself, I would never, ever, say such a comment to my paying client! How dare he! Thought I’d just let you know as customer service is key !

Purchased three tickets to the 'Whisky and Cheese with Glenfiddich' event for over £30ea. On arrival we were told that the event was effectively cancelled, with no live music and that a private space was not available. However, we could still have the cheese, charcuterie and whisky, but with no reduction in price. Obviously, this was not what we had paid for and we requested a refund. What complicated the matter, however, was the fact that the bartender stated that their managed had emailed us to inform us. He had not - no evidence from either side could be provided. Why would the manager have emailed us to state that the event was cancelled, but still taken the trouble to lay out the cheese and charcuterie prior to our arrival? It seems as though they were encouraging us to not ask for a refund. I understand that a bar may not sell enough tickets for the event to be viable, however, lying to the customer and not providing any notice of the cancellation is unacceptable. I'm glad that a full refund was provided, however, I'm glad that we didn't travel far for this. Openness and transparency would have a much better option.

Great cocktails and service but the atmosphere was a little lacking on a quiet Tuesday night. A cool experience though and lots of fun.

We tried the gin tasting experience and we really enjoyed it. Our barman, Lorenzo, is knowledgeable and very pleasant. He guided us through the tasting introducing us to different kinds of gin, pairings and unexpected flavours.

We tried the gin tasting experience and we really enjoyed it. Our barman, Lorenzo, is knowledgeable and very pleasant. He guided us through the tasting introducing us to different kinds of gin, pairings and unexpected flavours.

A group of us were staying locally on a training course, we came to this bar as a small group of three and a larger group of seven a couple of nights later. There is something that doesn't get old about ringing a doorbell to get into a bar. The decor is really nice, an old and vintage feel. This same level of detail is in the drinks menu with some added modern twist. The menu is extensive and has something for everyone. The staff are really friendly and helpful, they know a lot about what they do, and really care about the customer experience. I will definitely visit again the next time I am in Bristol!

Beautiful setting, friendly staff. Drink selection is amazing. They have the menu in a order easy to understand from sweet to strong. so any one would enjoy the drinks here. It's advised to book in advance. I'd recommend a journeys end.

I found this cocktail bar on instagram and I was looking forward to taste their cocktails. The staff was so friendly and helpful. I was there yesterday with my partner and we tried different types of cocktails based on the staff’s recommendations . Indeed they were so lovely and authentic. They were the best cocktails that we have ever had in Uk. The atmosphere and the decor was so lovely and cosy too. We will definitely be back ! Good job!

Unique and interesting design. Great cocktails and very unique design of the menu. I love it.

Shallow, snotty, fake and expensive

Super interesting ’secret’ cocktail bar with absolutely delicious cocktails and excellent service! Bristol’s finest! ;)

Friendly staff and good cocktails!

Absolutely incredible! The drinks were insane! You have to come here!

Aside from their american tipping culture it's a great cocktail bar

Beautiful surroundings and very vibrant place. Drinks were immaculate and the staff was very friendly and attentive.

Lovely service, if you looking in a premium place where they offer premium drinks and food then here is the perfect place to be. They put lots of efforts on the drinks and service so the price will be premium. However is 100% worth it

Awesome vibe here at the Milk Thistle with a great selection of craft cocktails. The servers are great to help you find the right style of drink you might want during your visit. Beverages are made excellently and complex. Well worth multiple visits anytime you are in Bristol!

Quality vibe, excellent service and tasty drinks!

The best night of cocktails I’ve ever had. Absolutely everything was perfect!