Details: Mere pst 6, Tallinn. www.scotlandyard.ee
Apart from the slightly bizarre accessories (more of these later), Scotland Yard is an interesting but unchallenging pub that wouldn’t look out of place in the UK, where it would probably be termed a “family pub”. The ubiquitous Guinness compliments a modest selection of local beers but bitter is conspicuous by its absence – the English theme extends no further than the decoration – and once you look beyond the scenery this is really just a local bar with a few bits designed to entice tourists from the nearby port (where the cruise ships dock).
Accessories? The doorman is dressed in a facsimile of a 19th century police sergeant’s uniform; the bar staff wear strange pseudo-uniforms that look rather like East-European secret police outfits. One wall is covered in bookshelves filled with hardback books; beneath it, red leather benches and dark wooden tables complete the picture. The other walls are displaying an assortment of items including flintlock muskets, small-calibre pistols, hand-cuffs and, for reasons that remain unclear, 25mm shells. To finish the illusion of an English pub, there is a very large fish tank above the optics running the length of the bar.
Should you visit? Certainly – the staff, decoration, menu and general layout are worth seeing for their comedy value, if nothing else. One drink ought to be enough (something short and alcoholic - the food is nothing special and the coffee is indescribable), after which you should abandon Scotland Yard for somewhere more atmospheric and less infested with tourists.
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