Located in Glasgow’s lively West End neighbourhood, Ashton Lane veteran Brel serves well-kept beer and wine in a revamped setting which includes a spacious beer garden and conservatory. A laid-back atmosphere and an extensive menu that includes mussels, frites, and whole baked cheese make it a great place to stop for the evening.
Glasgow Nightlife
Glasgow is flooded with pubs and bars, there are over 130 music events every week, and numerous nightclubs catering for all musical tastes. Glasgow's nightspots cluster around the West End and Ashton Lane (a cobbled street lined with bars and restaurants), the city centre, and the suave Merchant City.
You can buy tickets for most events at Scottish Event Campus (www.sec.co.uk). The main guide to cultural events and going out is The List (www.list.co.uk). Tickets to events are available from the venues or from Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.co.uk).
Bars in Glasgow
At the top of Byres Road in Glasgow’s West End is Òran Mór (Gaelic for 'big song'), an eclectic venue with a lounge bar, whisky bar, two restaurants, live music venue and club and private dining. Set in what was once Kelvinside Parish Church, its main bar and Whisky Bar are open daily while the Brasserie Late Night Bar is open until 3am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Part of Glasgow’s legendary ‘The Ubiquitous Chip’ restaurant, The Wee Pub lays claim to being the smallest pub in Scotland, cosy with friendly staff and punters. It has been serving draught Furstenberg as its house pilsner for 30 years, and also specialises in whiskies and spirits. If it gets too crowded you can head to The Big Pub or Corner Bar for cocktails, also part of The Chip.
Clubs in Glasgow
A variety of fun club nights take place in the basement of this traditional pub. From disco, house, techno, funk, and soul on the first Saturday of every month to latin, freakbeat, and ska, this is a laidback venue. Admiral bar has a downstairs club, and a food and bar court on the upstairs.
Scotland’s best-known electronic venue is the longest running underground dance club in the world where DJs have been spinning techno and electro since 1987. Its flagship Saturday night Subculture is now the longest running weekly house and club night in the world with equally long-serving resident DJs. As well as regular club nights, it also hosts live bands and has one of the UK's largest bodysonic dance floors.
Live Music in Glasgow
Consistently voted one of the best small venues around, the 300-capacity King Tut's Wah Wah Hut is a stalwart of Glasgow’s grassroots music scene and one of the best places to see up-and-coming bands. It was here where the Mancunian band Oasis were signed in 1993. Other bands that played here at the start of their careers include Pulp, Manic Street Preachers, and Snow Patrol.
Dating back to 1792, The Scotia is considered to be Glasgow’s oldest pub on one of Glasgow’s original streets. A short walk from St Enoch Subway in the city centre, it has been said to be one of the city’s best live music venues for 40 years, famous for folk music with the likes Billy Connolly playing here. It hosts a combination of resident and non-resident bands playing everything from rock to blues.
SSE Hydro is a new addition to Glasgow’s urban riverscape, a 12,000-capacity stadium that will see the likes of everyone from Justin Timberlake and Beyonce to Dolly Parton and Il Divo. Some live music events will still take place at the SECC Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre next door. Both venues are served by Exhibition Centre station.
Classical Music in Glasgow
Home to the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, City Halls is also a base for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra – its Grand Hall is world-renowned for its acoustics. Dating back to 1841, it is Glasgow’s oldest performance space and home to Glasgow’s Centre for Music. It also includes the Old Fruitmarket, a refurbished Victorian building with vaulted roof and cast-iron columns, which hosts everything from classical concerts to jazz and pop.
Home to the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Scotland's leading symphony orchestra, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall hosts a range of concerts from classical to pop. Legends such as Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Corinne Bailey Rae, and BB King have all played here. The popular Proms concerts take place here in June and it is also the main venue for Celtic Connections, the world’s largest winter music festival.
Music and Dance in Glasgow
Theatre Royal is Scotland’s longest running theatre, dating all the way back to 1867. Its Victorian auditorium plays host to a variety of genres including drama, comedy, opera, children’s theatre, musicals, and dance. It is also home to Scottish Opera, the largest performing arts organisation in Scotland, while Scottish Ballet is the theatre’s resident ballet company.
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