Blog

Jul 08, 2023

The 17 Best Places To Eat And Drink In Glasgow On Your Next Visit

Glasgow's food and drink scene is definitely not to be missed, so whether you're

Glasgow's food and drink scene is definitely not to be missed, so whether you're visiting this Scottish city for a day, spending a weekend here, or planning a move to this beautiful part of the world, you really will be spoiled for choice when it comes to places for drinking and dining. From eateries showcasing far Eastern flavors to cocktail bars serving up creatively named libations, and Michelin-starred dining establishments to cozy neighborhood noodle bars, there's something to suit all tastes in Scotland's largest city.

The only problem is, with so many fantastic restaurants and bars to choose from, how do you know where to start? We hope our pick of the 17 best places to eat and drink in Glasgow inspires you to explore the city's vibrant food scene. Pick one, visit a couple, or work your way down the list during your stay, if your appetite's up to it!

We can't say enough good things about this gorgeously Instagrammable restaurant with its neon lighting and hundreds of colorful hanging paper lanterns: Panang is truly magical. Designed to evoke a feeling of being in lively, vibrant Bangkok — something this place nails — the menu is a mix of Eastern small plates and hearty mains like the moreish pad thai with chicken and prawns, served with a side of fresh lime, chili flakes, and crushed peanuts for sprinkling.

Fancy a curry? All the usual Thai favorites are on offer here, like creamy Massaman Beef Curry with coconut milk and lemongrass or Lamb Panang, the eaterie's signature curry, a spicy, creamy, rich concoction with red chilies and kaffir lime. The main reason to come here, though, is those small plates. Much like tapas — or mezze — they're great for sharing with friends, and you can all order your favorites. Highlights include Sunshine Beef, crispy Thai wok-fried beef in a sweet, spicy sauce, deep-fried Thai donuts with shrimp and pork, served with sweet chili sauce, and Pin Pin King Prawn, house rice pancakes topped with spicy, sweet minced king prawn and chicken, rich with the aroma of lemongrass.

The cozy, casual vibe and gorgeous interior make this an excellent spot to impress a date, and there's an eclectic cocktail menu to sample. We recommend the frozen Sangsom Slings: Thai rum punch in mango, strawberry, banana, and coconut flavors.

The name Stravaigin comes from an old Scots word meaning, "To wander aimlessly with intent." That pretty much sums up the menu here: experimental flavors and ingredients with a focus on local and global sustainable sourcing.

Opened in 1994, Stravaigin's lively, warm rustic interior is the perfect date spot or a great place to catch up with friends or family over a delicious meal. Awarded the Michelin Guide's Bib Gourmand in 2012, 2013, and 2014, this restaurant is no stranger to unusual ingredients, with squirrel, rook, goose barnacles, and rocky mountain oysters all appearing on the menu from time to time.

Try the award-winning homemade haggis, treat yourself to the Borders' ox cheek, stout caramel, Irish boxty, shallot and parmesan, or dig into the Ayrshire pork belly with wild garlic, heritage carrots, and a treacle and oat crumb. On the weekends, Stravaigin also serves up roast dinners and brunch. With small and big plates on offer, there's something here to suit all appetites. Alongside your meal, you'll find a carefully curated wine list and plenty of Scottish gins to choose from.

Any foodie visit to the city simply must include a meal at The Gannet in the hip and happening Finnieston. Named for the seafaring bird spotted by the owners on a trip to the Outer Hebrides, the restaurant opened in September 2013 and bagged a Bib Gourmand award in its first year, as well as featuring in the Michelin Guide.

This is modern Scottish fine dining at its best, with a set, multi-course menu that changes with the seasons, and intriguing wine pairings from small, artisanal growers. The Gannet's sample dinner menu includes tempting dishes such as Red Deer with beetroot, black garlic, and bitter leaves, Cured Gigha Halibut with smoked eel and apple, and North Sea Cod with parsley root, smoked mussels, and samphire.

The sample lunch menu is every bit as mouthwatering, with highlights including Braised Hogget Ravioli with celeriac and greenheart leaves or Borders Lamb Rump with white bean, courgette, and capers. All this is served in a cozy, informal, relaxed dining room with dark wood, exposed brick, and dark brown leather accents.

Located on Sauchiehall Street, Ox and Finch is a great spot for lunch or dinner after a spot of retail therapy. This delightfully rustic bistro serves up a range of Mediterranean small plates and the menu here is classic with a modern twist, earning the restaurant a Michelin Guide mention.

Tuck into the pan-roasted chicken thigh with Jerusalem artichoke and chicken butter sauce, order cod cheeks with chorizo, tomato, and morcilla on toasted sourdough, or enjoy roasted carrots with carrot beurre blanc and orange and walnut gremolata. Alongside these favorites, there are regularly changing specials such as Barra scallops with saffron crispy polenta, lemon, and sauce vierge.

In the summer months, order a cocktail (or two) and some plates to share and grab one of the coveted outdoor seats for a spot of sunshine and people-watching. When the weather is colder, the cozy dining room is the perfect place to brighten your day with vibrant dishes from around the Med.

There's a reason Lebowskis earned a place in our roundup of the 15 best cocktail bars in Scotland: those White Russians, currently renamed White Ukrainians on the bar's website. The dude certainly abides here, with thirty White Russians on the menu. The only remaining Lebowskis in Scotland since the Edinburgh branch closed its doors in 2021, we'd recommend booking a table at this cool Finnieston establishment, especially if you want to try the food menu alongside your cocktails. The bar is particularly lively on weekends.

Dive into the White Russian Menu and try The Bunny, with Mozart White Chocolate, Giffard Creme de Fraise, and 50/50, topped with skooshy cream and sprinkles. Or keep it classic like the Dude himself and get The Dude with Ketel One Vodka, Kahlua, and milk, dusted with cocoa powder.

Alongside your drinks, you'll want some delicious grub, and the usual pub favorites are on offer here, from loaded fries to fish and chips. The burgers come highly recommended. Try the Jamaican Me Crazy burger with jerk-infused chicken, chargrilled pineapple salsa, crispy Ayrshire bacon, and chipotle mayo, or the Glasvegas with a Dingwall haggis and Stornoway black pudding fritter, smoked applewood cheese, and Johnnie Walker whisky and three peppercorn sauce. You'll need a taxi back to the city center afterward!

Porter & Rye is a New York-style restaurant serving up dry-aged meat and innovative cocktails. With a focus on carefully sourced Scottish ingredients, sustainably farmed beef comes from John Gilmour butchers and is dry-aged in-house. Locals flock here for the Wednesday and Thursday night "Meat-Up" events. On Wednesdays, you can get a 28oz Porterhouse for two with as many sauces, sides, and glasses of house wine, bread, and amuse bouche for a fantastic price. On Thursdays, order up an 18oz Chateaubriand for two with all the same sides.

There are plenty of steak alternatives on the menu, including small plates and Sunday roasts, but the main attraction here is most definitely the meat. Every steak from sirloin to rump and flat iron comes with pearl onions, romaine lettuce, and migas crumb. Sides include truffle and parmesan fries, roast black garlic and rosemary mash, and the delicious-sounding bone marrow and smoked pancetta mac n cheese.

Accompany your food with a selection from the extensive wine list, order a cocktail, or complete the experience with a tipple from the Digestif menu. We recommend the Californian "Elysium" Black Muscat dessert wine for the perfect end to a meatilicious meal.

Glasgow's best gin bar is also one of the city's finest Scottish seafood restaurants serving up ethically-sourced seafood. Its cozy setting in an old Drovers tavern dating back to around 1800 ensures this Finnieston spot is the perfect place to soak up some of Glasgow's history — who knows, you may even spot a ghost or two.

The seasonally changing menu includes delights such as oysters, fruits de mer, Isle of Mull scallops, lobster, mussels, and langoustines. For those who don't enjoy seafood, there are a couple of menu options, such as steak and gnocchi, but make no mistake: Seafood is the main attraction here. In the summer months, locals bring friends to bag a coveted outside table and order up imaginative cocktails. The cocktail menu showcases the bar's extensive gin selection — there are over 60 to choose from – with almost every drink featuring a homemade element.

The rather unusual-sounding Monster Munch Martini is inspired by the popular snack, the Breakfast at Finnie with Reyka, Pastry, Abricot de Roussilon, and lemon verbena honey and breakfast tea is a must. Then, of course, there's the classic Finnieston Signature Martini.

Head Chef Lorna McNee is the only current female chef in Scotland to hold a Michelin Star, achieved in just over five months. Cail Bruich's name means "to eat well," and you'll certainly leave this Glasgow eaterie feeling well looked after, and well fed.

Cail Bruich's menu uses the highest quality ingredients, with a focus on keeping ingredients to a minimum while showcasing creativity. Its busy West End location ensures it's a great spot for people-watching, though chances are your attention will be diverted by the elegantly presented dishes. There are two seasonally changing menus to choose from here, with one tasting menu served at dinner or lunch and one specific to lunchtime. Or you can treat yourself and a loved one to an unforgettable experience at the Chef's Table Tasting Menu, where you can witness the team at work in the open kitchen.

Sample dishes include Oxford Sandy and Black Pork with apple, Denhead Farms green asparagus, and morel, Isle of Sky Langoustine with west coast brown crab, mussel, and king's oscietra caviar, and Yorkshire rhubarb with preserved elderflower and ginger. Wine pairing options are on offer to complement both the lunch and dinner menus.

Located on Elderslie Street between Woodlands, Finnieston, and Charing Cross, Five March lies close to the entrance to Kelvingrove Park, and it's this quiet location that gives the restaurant its laidback vibe. Come here for a Mediterranean-style brunch or enjoy the small plates for dinner alongside a selection of cocktails and organic wines – there's even a beer garden to enjoy in the summer.

Try the cured mackerel with pineapple, espelette, and tapioca crisp, the crispy cauliflower with lemon pepper and satay mayo, or the pork belly with radicchio, orange, jus, and mustard frills. Dessert is pretty tempting, too, with a rhubarb and custard donut with sherbet, lemon posset with honeycomb and bee pollen, or chocolate mousse with mango, coconut tuile, and mint on offer.

Add in reasonable pricing for a few sharing plates and a bottle of wine or a couple of cocktails each, and it's easy to see why Five March has such a loyal neighborhood following. Yes, it's a little out of the way unless you're visiting Kelvingrove Park, but on a sunny day, it's most definitely worth the trek.

Craving South-East Asian-inspired food? Ka Pao was awarded a Bib Gourmand in 2023 and named in The Good Food Guide's best restaurants in Glasgow for 2023 – and it's easy to see why. The menu here is packed with flavor; a blend of East meets West with Scottish ingredients.

Order a medley of dishes from the sharing menu and bring your friends and family. Highlights include Arbroath Smokie Miang with galangal, spinach leaves, and peanuts, or Green Curry of Lamb Shoulder with broad beans, peas, and banana chili. If you're feeling hungrier, there are delicious mains on offer, too, like the Soy-Braised Pork Belly with yellow carrot and pickled krachai, or Cured Seat Trout with orange, lime, and cashew.

We'd recommend filling up on small plates and mains and skipping the dessert menu, as it's a fairly standard selection for an Asian restaurant, including ice cream and froyo — though the banana creme diplomate with peanut caramel and black sesame filo sounds tempting if you've got the room. Wash everything down — and temper spicier dishes — with an interesting cocktail such as the Burnt Orange Margarita with El Jimador tequila, lime, burnt orange syrup, and smoked salt or a Lemongrass Negroni with Tanqueray gin, Belsazar vermouth, Campari, and lemongrass.

Set on bustling St Vincent Place in the old offices and printing rooms of the Glasgow Evening Citizen newspaper, The Citizen is a popular lunch, dinner, and cocktail spot with locals and visitors to the city alike. The food menu focuses on Scottish produce and includes dishes like the 28-day dry-aged Chateaubriand for two with roasted garlic mushrooms and cherry tomatoes — a surefire way to impress your date. Dining solo? The Chateaubriand fillet for one comes with a side of goose fat roast potatoes, truffle mash, or rustic fries.

Other choices include burgers, steaks, curry, fish, and that Scottish classic, Chicken Balmoral (chicken stuffed with haggis). There are lighter options, too, such as the Grilled Halloumi Bowl with wild rice, quinoa, baby spinach, green beans, avocado, charred broccoli, grilled halloumi, sweet lemon dressing, and pomegranate and pumpkin seeds, the perfect meal to enjoy in the sun alongside a cocktail.

Soak up the city vibes from an outside table or cozy up in the casual yet sophisticated interior and order from the expansive drinks menu. Here you'll find everything from whiskey-based cocktails to gin perfect serves and signature cocktails like the Chocolate Orange Negroni — a twist on the classic Negroni, with Beefeater gin, Campari, Grand Marnier, cacao liqueur, and chocolate bitters.

Murphy's offers something a little different from your usual Indian curry. Here you'll find a wide range of pakora and small plates you can enjoy outside in the summer months. Pakora's definitely the reason to come here, with around 15 variations including some sweet offerings like banana pakora and pineapple pakora. On the savory front, there's everything from classic vegetables to cauliflower, aubergine, fish, three cheese, and even black pudding and apple.

From the small plates menu, you can enjoy dishes like the tangy Achari Prawns or Indian Fried Chicken Tenders in-house tandoori masala buttermilk. Also recommended are the Cauliflower, Amritsari Fish, or Lamb Bhoona Tacos with red cabbage, red onion, tomato slaw, curry masala mayo, coriander mint chutney, and a sprinkling of house tandoori seasoning.

If you've worked up more of an appetite, Murphy's also does a range of classic curries, from the Daal of the Day with lentils to Butter Chicken and Lamb Rogan Josh. Alongside, the small but perfectly formed selection of cocktails and wine should help quench your thirst, no matter how spicy the menu is.

Unalome is a Buddhist and Hindu symbol representing the path to enlightenment, and this sophisticated Finnieston restaurant holds one Michelin star. With a modern European menu focused on Scottish produce, Unalmone is housed in an elegant period building with a buzzy vibe.

Chef Graeme Cheevers draws inspiration heavily from Japanese cuisine, pairing this with traditional French cooking techniques. You can order from the A La Carte menu, or try the tasting menu with paired wines. The Sample A La Carte Menu includes dishes such as Veal Sweetbread and Black Truffle Mousse with black trompette mushrooms and vin jaune sauce, Saddle of Highland Red Deer with beetroot, maitake mushroom, baked celeriac, and redcurrant, and Guyot Pear Parfait with praline and yuzu pear.

From the Sample Tasting Menu, expect delights like Roasted Orkney Scallop with N25 caviar, leek, and Charlotte potato, Tuna Tartare with bergamot "tiger milk" and oyster cream. For dessert, you'll find sweet treats like the Coconut Rice Pudding and Yorkshire Rhubarb with rhubarb sorbet and cardamom poached meringue. There's also a Lunch Menu and a Sample Tasting of Vegetables Menu. For special occasions, the Kitchen Table is the place to dine: here, you can view the chefs in action with a special eight-course exclusive chefs menu — and optional wine pairing. Note, though, that if you're dining with less than four guests in your party, there's an exclusive use charge added to the per-guest price.

As its name suggests, Shucks is all about seafood, from its nautically themed interior to its seasonal, produce-focused menus with an occasional Asian touch. Located in the heart of Glasgow's west end, the team behind Cail Bruich — and Head Chef Shaun Haggarty – cure and smoke their own sustainable seafood in-house, serving up a fairly small but tempting menu plus the Taste of the Sea tasting menu with optional paired wines. There's also a fixed-price two-course lunch menu served from noon on weekends.

Though the menu is small, it changes regularly — sometimes daily, depending on the catch of the day. Tuck into dishes like the Viet-Cajun Shrimp Crumpet with Thai basil and cucumber, Brown Butter Poached Cod with truffled potato terrine and sauce véronique or the BBQ John Dory with romesco, grilled baby gem, wild garlic, jalapeño, and whey sauce.

Don't forget to leave room for dessert. Sweet delights such as Muscovado Custard Tart with Yorkshire rhubarb, shiso, and vanilla ice cream or Caramelised Blood Orange Cremeux with crispy feuilletine, chocolate, and sherry cream are to die for.

For a little taste of Tokyo in Glasgow, come to Izakaya. This informal Japanese restaurant serves up vibrant, colorful small plates and cocktails with an Asian twist. Chow down on street bites like Chicken Karaage and Gyoza, dive into a range of katsu curries and ramen bowls, or sample some tebasaki wings.

Menu aside, the interior of this restaurant is seriously Instagrammable, designed like a street food alley in Tokyo with buzzing neon signs, floors made to look like cobbled streets and communal tables. Is it kitsch? Most definitely. But it's also a vibe you won't find anywhere else.

Cocktails carry on the theme, with tipples like the Wasabi Margarita with lime, agave syrup, clement creole orange, and wasabi, or the Matcha Mocchi with your choice of Biggar Asian-inspired rum or Bathtub Gin Miso Cardamom, matcha, rice horchata, gentian, and Ceylon cinnamon. Unusually, Izakaya gives you a choice of two spirits for many cocktails on the menu.

The only Italian restaurant on our list, Celentano's is set in a small boutique hotel in the Cathedral Quarter and is listed in the Michelin Guide. This intimate, cozy restaurant packs rustic decor and is a great spot for a date. As expected, pasta heads up the seasonally changing menu, with Scottish produce at the fore. The restaurant focuses heavily on sustainability, with its own herb garden and a carefully curated drinks list with some organic and biodynamic wines available on tap to reduce glass waste.

Pasta dishes come in small or large dishes to suit appetites of all sizes, with options such as Agnolotti with Mossgiel ricotta, asparagus, Norcella olives, and wild garlic. Secondi include vegetarian options like Roasted Jerusalem Artichoke with walnut ragu and wilted kale, or meaty dishes such as BBQ Shetland Hogget Rump, glazed belly, cavolo nero, and salsa verde.

With a Feasting Menu served Wednesday and Thursday evenings and all day Friday through Saturday, plus a Sunday set menu of Antipasti, Secondi, and sharing sides for the table, there's plenty going on at Celentano's to tempt diners any day of the week. There's even live music on the last Sunday of the month.

Drygate Brewing Co. is the U.K.'s first experiential brewery, showcasing a laidback, industrial vibe that turns up the volume on weekends with live gigs and live sports. Enjoy drinks in the Peaks Bar, dine in the brasserie, or sit outdoors at ground level in The Yard or upstairs on the Terrace.

With 23 rotating taps plus a vast selection of cans and bottles, there's a beer here for everyone, whether you're into IPAs, lagers, or stouts. Peaks Bar won Best Pub & Bar in Glasgow in the National Pub & Bar Awards 2021, and it's easy to see why — the beer selection here is unmatched, and you can enjoy your beverage with panoramic views over the brewery.

Come mid-week for a game of ping pong, bring your furry best friend for the dog menu with sausage, chicken, beef burger, and doggy ice cream, or pair your beer with small plates for sharing, a burger, or pub favorites. We highly recommend giving the Poutine with bacon crumb, beer onions, cheese curds, and spring onion a go alongside your beer of choice.