Transitioning Out of Tourism

Last week I skipped my weekly post because I felt like we hadn’t done anything “exciting” enough to put on the blog. But what’s really happening is that we aren’t tourists anymore – we LIVE here and our weekends aren’t going to be full of exciting travels all the time. Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland, and there is certainly a lot to see and do, but we won’t get to all of it in a few weekends. And that’s ok! My obsessive planning self is finally starting to settle.

We spent the last two weekends in the West End. It’s a slower pace of life over there – quieter and more lived-in than the city centre. Last weekend we took the Glasgow subway, which is comprised of an inner and outer loop around the city in what feels like a toy train. There was a football game going on in the West End so the queue was long and the trains were packed with drunk, singing Scots.

We got off at the Hillhead stop and took our time walking up and down Byres Road, which is full of shops, restaurants and bars. It is still crazy to me how many people sit outside to eat in the 50 degree weather, but I love the idea of afternoon fizz on the patio (even if it is freezing). A hideous panda sweater lured us into a vintage shop, where we found the best selection of leather jackets and cowboy boots (both purchased and both cheap at £20 each).

Thrilled with our vintage finds, we went in search of craft beer at Inn Deep.  The bar appears to be in a basement, but has a great beer garden set in an old tunnel along the River Kelvin. The beer selection was ok, and the tunnel beer garden provided shelter from the rain. When it cleared we ventured back out for dinner at the Crafty Pig. The Pig was packed with football fans, but we managed to snag a table for pulled pork, fried pickles and Founders (!) beer.

Fast forward to this weekend and we’re back again, this time making the 3 mile journey on foot. We stopped to enjoy the sunshine and the view of Kelvingrove at BrewDog, then made a pit-stop at Bar Gumbo for more Founders (we have to get it when we can). We got a little lost on our way to our original food destination, Tomboy Burritos & Beers. One minute we were in an alley behind an apartment complex and the next, BAM: Ashton Lane. The cutest street I’ve ever seen.

Tomboy is a trendy, upstairs venue (with a nightclub) that has only been open for 3 weeks. I found them through a discount app and couldn’t resist a 241 burrito and homemade margarita deal. The drinks were awesome and the burritos were spicy (and maybe a wee bit small) but this place really knew how to make you want to eat there. After one burrito we were still hungry and, after a mixup with the credit card limits, ended up splitting another quesadilla and side of chips/salsa. Steve was also brave enough to sign a disclaimer to try their hottest hot sauce – he survived 🙂

Until next time, West End. I’m sure I’ll find many more things that will bring us back to you.

City Centre Weekend

So forget what I said before about having found our “neighborhood bar” – it was too soon to tell. Living in the city centre puts us within walking distance of some of the best bars and restaurants in Glasgow and this past week we found a few more local favorites.

Citation’s classy patio

Too much Strongbow at The Libertine

First, there was the global selection at Beer Cafe, followed by the accidental Strongbow at The Libertine and a ‘Raging Bitch’ brew at Blackfriars (our second time to this traditional pub). Then during the week we had two outings with my new co-workers, one for a mojito at Metropolitan and another for wine and “fizz” on the sunny patio at Citation. Did I mention these are all within 0.1 mile of our flat?

The WEST beer garden

Our tour of breweries in Glasgow continued this weekend with a visit to the surprisingly fancy WEST brewery in Glasgow Green.  We were slightly taken aback when a waitress (who was wearing a floor-length apron and white button-down shirt) asked if we had a reservation to sit in the restaurant – not very craft beer like. So we opted to sit outside with everyone who had brought their dog. Literally EVERYONE had a dog with them – Frenchies, Maltese, Labs, Airedale, Yorkies and (much to my dismay) a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppy. We were a bit disappointed with the selection and variety (only four beers on tap, mostly German-style lagers) and left after one to head to Drygate.

Now this was more our style: industrial feel, sunny beer garden, awesome staff and a great selection. I almost cried when I saw Founders in their bottle shop and would be lying if I said I didn’t get a little homesick. Then the bartender asked Steve to help him with his Fantasy Football lineup* and I knew we were really going to like this place. Oh, and this is a half mile from our flat.

This post seems to indicate that we do a lot of drinking, but don’t worry (moms) we’re not that wild. With only one drink at most places, we’re usually home (and sleeping) by 10:30pm. And we do eat…

Pre-Theatre

…but eating out is expen$ive in the city. An average restaurant would probably cost roughly £16 (~ $26) per person mostly because everything is a la carte. A lot of bars will advertise “2 meals for £7.95 – every day, all day!” which is usually a set menu of generic, ok-tasting items (that are the same no matter which restaurant you go to). So we haven’t been able to get to the foodie side of Glasgow living.

But this week my co-worker told me about the amazingness that is “pre-theatre” – a set menu that most upscale restaurants offer before 6:30pm. I had seen these menus and just assumed you had to have theatre tickets (midwest upbringing), but turns out it’s just an early-bird special to get butts in seats. So Friday night we went to Qua, an Italian cafe next door to our flat. For £10.95 per person, Steve and I each enjoyed three courses: minestrone, mozzarella fritta, flatbread pizza, spaghetti con salsiccia, lemon cheesecake and hazelnut spongecake. We left stuffed and happy that the only thing more expensive than our food that night was our bottle of wine. Surely this won’t be the last of our Pre-Theatre excursions!

*Steve here* I should make it known that I gave the bartender rational, but eventually crap fantasy advice. It was RG3 v. Jacksonville or Luck v. Philly. I reasoned that his choice was not RG3 v. Luck, but to either start RG3 this week or cut him– if he can’t put up numbers v. Jacksonville, when will he? RG3 was carted off in the first half with a dislocated ankle….

I leave you with a few more photos from our ‘hood:

Pre-Theatre at Qua