Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in Glasgow for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in Glasgow for grown-ups.
The Pot Still is a fourth-generation whisky bar on Hope Street in Glasgow, pouring from more than 1,000 bottles under the eye of the Murphy family.
DrinkA dram from the 1,000-plus whisky range
FoodPies and toasties
TipAsk the staff for a recommendation by flavour rather than name; they will find you a dram to suit and a pie to match.
The Kelbourne Saint is a neighbourhood bar on Queen Margaret Drive in Glasgow's West End, mixing craft beer, cocktails and a well-regarded pizza kitchen.
DrinkRotating Scottish craft beer
FoodWood-fired pizza
TipThe pizza kitchen is a genuine draw, not an afterthought, so come hungry as well as thirsty.
The Ben Nevis is a snug whisky and folk-music bar on Argyle Street in Glasgow's Finnieston, with over 100 malts and traditional sessions most weeks.
DrinkMalt whisky from over 100 bottles
FoodBar snacks
TipTurn up for a midweek folk session; the bar works first-come-first-served rather than taking bookings.
Kelvingrove Cafe is a dark, seasonal cocktail bar on Argyle Street in Glasgow's Finnieston, reviving lost drinks in the old cafe's original room.
DrinkSeasonal cocktail menu
FoodSmall plates
TipThe cocktail list changes with the seasons; ask the bartenders what is new before defaulting to a classic.
The Horse Shoe Bar is an 1884 Victorian gin palace off Buchanan Street in Glasgow, home to the UK's longest continuous bar and cheap pub lunches.
DrinkA pint at the UK's longest bar
FoodCheap pub lunches
TipThe upstairs lounge does a famously cheap three-course lunch; the ground-floor island bar is the historic draw.
Sloans is Glasgow's oldest bar and restaurant, an 1797 room in the Argyll Arcade off Argyle Street, all mahogany, mirrors and a famous ceilidh upstairs.
DrinkCask ale in the wood-panelled bar
FoodPub classics and fish and chips
TipThe Saturday-night ceilidh in the upstairs ballroom is a proper Glasgow night out; book if you want to dance.
Brel is a Belgian beer bar in a converted Ashton Lane mews in Glasgow's West End, pouring Trappist ales and mussels with one of the city's best beer gardens.
DrinkBelgian Trappist and abbey beer
FoodMoules-frites and Belgian dishes
TipThe covered, heated beer garden means it works year-round; it is one of the few Ashton Lane spots with real outdoor space.
Inn Deep is a craft-beer bar in the railway arches beside the River Kelvin in Glasgow, pouring 33 taps and Sub Rosa pizza on a canalside West End terrace.
DrinkRotating craft beer from 33 taps
FoodSub Rosa pizza
TipOn a warm day the riverside steps down to the Kelvin fill up fast; grab a pizza and a can and head outside.
Nice N Sleazy is a Sauchiehall Street bar and gig venue in Glasgow, a long-running city-centre institution with an upstairs bar and a basement stage.
DrinkCheap house spirits and craft cans
FoodBar food, meat and vegan
TipThe upstairs bar serves food until 9pm; the downstairs venue opens at 7:30pm for gigs and club nights.
Brutti Compadres is a candlelit tapas and cocktail bar hidden in cobbled Virginia Court in Glasgow's Merchant City, set in the old tobacco exchange.
DrinkHouse cocktails and sherry
FoodMediterranean small plates
TipIt is tucked down a lane off Virginia Street and easy to miss; look for the courtyard entrance.
The Butterfly and the Pig is a quirky, vintage-styled bar on Bath Street in Glasgow, mixing cocktails, Scottish comfort food and live music six nights a week.
DrinkRetro cocktails and tea-time serves
FoodScottish comfort food
TipThe tearoom next door at number 151 does an old-fashioned afternoon tea; the bar downstairs is the night-time draw.
Òran Mór is a bar and arts venue in a converted church at the top of Byres Road in Glasgow's West End, famous for its lunchtime plays and painted ceiling.
DrinkWhisky and Scottish beer
FoodScottish brasserie menu
TipA Play, a Pie and a Pint runs weekday lunchtimes; you get a short play, a pie and a drink for one ticket.
The Spiritualist is a grand cocktail bar and dining room on Miller Street in Glasgow's Merchant City, set in a former bank with a long list of drinks.
DrinkLong list of signature cocktails
FoodSmall plates and boozy brunch
TipThe Thursday-to-Sunday bottomless brunch is the busy shift; weekday evenings are calmer for the cocktail list.
The Absent Ear is an award-winning hidden cocktail bar on Brunswick Street in Glasgow's Merchant City, a Van Gogh-themed speakeasy with a hidden door.
DrinkVan Gogh-themed signature cocktails
FoodBar snacks
TipReservations are strongly advised and are taken through the bar's own site; it is closed on Mondays.
Babbity Bowster is a Merchant City institution on Blackfriars Street in Glasgow, a French-Scottish bar, inn and eatery pouring cask ale since 1985.
DrinkCask ale and Scottish whisky
FoodFrench-Scottish pub menu
TipIt is a rare Merchant City pub with a beer garden and folk sessions; the upstairs eatery does a fuller menu.
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