Bar Soba

Had a lovely Sunday afternoon meal here — beef massaman curry, chicken pad thai, edamame beans, a portion of fries with peanut sauce, and an irn bru — all for under £30. Really tasty food (surprisingly tasty!) and friendly service. I suppose my one note of caution would be that t seems to attract quite a young and boozy crowd in for just drinks, folk still a bit mangled from the night before etc. Not a big deal but maybe just to bear in mind if you are going to go with an older crowd or young kids or whatever.

The main thing this place has going for it is the drinks! The food was average and the poor service just makes for a frustrating dining experience. I can say the mojitos were on point. I think it’s a great place to grab a cocktail prior to heading out to tastier alternatives on byres road.

Stopped by with my brother for a quick lunch and for what we got, I was quite impressed. Not the best noodles I’ve ever had but by no means the worst, also students get 2 for 1 so at a grand total of roughly £12 for two dishes and a couple of soft drinks you can’t go too wrong.
The atmosphere was… well there wasn’t one. There was us and a couple at another table and that was it. I usually hate that, makes you feel a bit awkward but I suppose it’s not their fault if they have a quiet spell. And for £6 (give or take a pound) per person I didn’t care!
On another note, the cocktail list looked insane. I never had one but I had a peek and I’m definitely going to take some friends back for a few drinks some time.
If you have a student card, why have you not tried here?!

Bar Soba, I giving you back that 4^th star! After a couple of disappointing visits I’d felt gun shy about returning over the last few months. I was finally talked into it by Sara Day T. one lunchtime and I’m glad she did as my faith has been restored!
We both opted for the express lunch menu of 2 courses for under £10. It turned out to be great value as we got a starter plus main course (full size, no stinginess here…) for less than the main course would have cost alone. There was also reasonable number of options available to chose from for both courses. Sara opted for the sushi and Pad Thai noodles while I ordered the vegetable spring rolls and Thai green curry. I’ve had the spring rolls before and they were as tasty as I remembered, lovely and crisp and fresh. But the real show stopper was the curry: a wonderfully creamy sauce, tender chicken, lots of lime and just the right side of too spicy. There may have been several exclamations of ‘this is the best green curry I’ve ever had!‘
My other gripe in the past had been the speed of the service and I’m happy to say this was much better too. Even though we were seated after a large group of around 15 we didn’t have to wait too long for our order to taken or the food to appear.
Definitely can’t wait to head back for more of that curry but I think I might have to make my next visit post-​work as I’m dying to try their £3 apple and ginger mojitos!

Dining out often in Glasgow had made me write this review. The attitude of one the young waitress who served me tonight was truly awful. She was rude, unwelcoming and had no customer service skills what so ever.
It ruined my meal and I’m sad to say this really put me off coming back.
The quality of the food wasn’t great and was tainted by the level of service. I wouldn’t advise anyone to go to the byres road restaurant unfortunately. It really let me down as I had great expectations.

Following the strangest dance performance I had ever had to fortune of sitting though (well, at least the story line was bizarre, some of the aerial work was scary), we felt like a bite to eat, maybe something Asian inspired, and a bit of girlie chatting. I have to agree with Carolyn E. on this one, I’m torn between 3 and 4 stars.
We were strolling down Byres Road and with student deals in mind, we went into Bar Soba. Usually this place is buzzing but we were able to get a table no problem on this occasion. Now, this was not the first time I had been there, but usually although I find the dishes slightly on the pricey side, the deals on drinks are pretty special.
My friend, who was with Carolyn E and me, needs to follow a pretty specific diet because of her bowel. It was difficult for her to pick something on the menu, but I was pleasantly surprised when the bar and kitchen staff managed to whip something very tasty up for her. It was a vegetarian pad thai, with chicken but excluding everything she can’t have. She loved her meal, and I was so glad that it was finally sorted and she could actually eat there. At one point she was saying that maybe Bar Soba is not a Asian restaurant she could eat at.
I had my heart set on Pad Thai; I was in need of something I understood and some comfort food after the back and almost head-​ache inducing hour that had preceded our dinner. It was alright. In the grand scheme of Pad Thais, it was decent enough. It was definitely on the dry side, and I counted a total of 3 prawns in my dish (nothing to brag about, and they were all the way hidden under my plate of noodles). The chicken was very tasty though, and the peanuts were not intrusive. The beansprouts could have done with a moment in boiling water. The one thing I will admit, however, the portions are huge!
The staff was really friendly, and having previously waited for almost an hour to get my food, it arrived in a timely manner. I also like the rustic interior and the fact that the water is served with cucumber and strawberry (always a positive!) — the water could have been a touch colder; but strawberries and cucumber!
I’ve went for 3 stars, which is not going to stop me from coming again, and it’s definitely a decent place but for now it just doesn’t grab the 4^th star.

I’m on the fence between a three star and a four star. I’ll stick with the four star though.
We had a wee girls night last night and decided on Bar Soba for dinner. They have two for one mains for students, and you really can’t beat the price for what you get.
We were able to walk right in and get a table, which was nice. They had three or four staff on call, each one of them helped us in their own ways. Hopefully they split any tips made for the night.
Sophie K and I went for the two for one mains (yay for being broke students!!): she ordered the pad thai and I went for the singapore street noodles. I ordered the street noodles the last time I was in with my boyfriend, and for some reason I thought it would be a bit more tasty this time. They’re a bit too bland for my liking, and even though the menu said it came with atlantic prawns, there were none to be found. I’ve had the dish before and know they are quite wee, but there were literally none to be found. I only noticed once I’d almost devoured the dish, so I didn’t think it fair to mention it. No bother.
Our friend Julia has a few food allergies, so she needed to have her meal made around what she could and couldn’t eat. Having been to restaurants who turn up their noses to such requests, she was a bit reluctant to suggest having a meal made to her needs. To her surprise, the chef was able to whip something up along the lines of what she wanted that she couldn’t have and she was so happy about it. How great!
All in all, the atmosphere and the staff were great! They serve water in old Patron bottles with a slice of cucumber and strawberry. SO good. What’s not to love about that?!

Have been here twice during lunch hours with my friends.
First time we were 8 people and not allowed to choose our own tables, so we had to all sit together which resulted in a 5£ service fee. I got Pad Thai it was good but small portion.
Second time we were 12 people and when entering you could already feel the horror in the waiters eyes. It took 15 minutes until we could order our food and got water. After 1 hour and 10 minutes we finished eating. I go Singapore Street Noodles, after an hour of waiting. The portion was ridiculously small, I finished it in under 5 minutes…
In general the place is highly inefficient, everything takes forever.
The food tastes really good, it’s 2 for 1 for students which makes the food affordable (5−7£). Though, the quantity is bad, so paying the full price for a Wok dish would be absolutely unacceptable.
If you are two to four students looking for a tasty lunch the place is allright, otherwise it’s overpriced and slow.

Bar Soba has been open on Byres Road for ages now, although I’ve never eaten here before, despite living not far away for a couple of years. Anyway, one chilly Thursday evening this was remedied, and a fab evening was had.
My dining partner had booked a table on the 5pm website for 20:30, and when we turned up a little early, found the place was full and glad that we had done so. We were welcomed and asked to take a seat at the bar until our table was ready… we’d hardly taken our jackets off when we were shown to our table.
There were two menus — a fixed-​price offering and longer a la carte. The shorter fixed price menu didn’t have a price on it — I assumed the price was set as part of the booking deal. We both ordered from the fixed menu — I chose the vegetable tempura and Pad Thai, my dinner date opted for mixed tempura and Thai Green Curry. We also shared a bottle of Chilean Sauvignon blanc.
We soon had wine and water delivered to our table — my only gripe of the whole evening was that the wine wasn’t sufficiently chilled when served, although the cooler had iced water in it to chill it down. A minor issue however.
After a short wait, the tempura was served. Well presented, hot and crispy, cooked in a very light batter and served with a small sweet chili dipping sauce. We both thoroughly enjoyed it, no complaints whatsoever. The server provided us cutlery by default, although there are supplies of chopsticks on the table if you prefer to practice, show off your chopstick agility, or just do!
When our mains arrived, the presentation, temperature and taste hit the mark. My huge bowl of Pad Thai was steaming, with a super-​sized king prawn sitting atop a mound of ribbon noodles. His curry was a bowl of green sauce-​coated chicken and veg, with a side of sticky rice. We were soon tucking in, although the volume of my noodles didn’t seem to diminish despite munching away. In the end I couldn’t finish mine, a rarity! This was purely down to the portion size, the dish was delicious and I’ll not hesitate to order it again (but maybe skipping a starter).
To end, we both ordered a tea. Pleasantly surprised to have them served in good-​sized teapots — the kind with the central perforated metal chamber for the loose-​leaf tea leaves. The perfect end to the meal.
We really enjoyed the atmosphere; quite informal, with a mix of diners and people in for a cocktail or glass of wine, with quiet background music so as not to intrude on conversation.

I’ve recently started back on ye olde diet (this is going to be SO hard with all the awesome places to Unilocal about!) so when planning on going somewhere to eat, I thought Bar Soba was definitely a good shout for tastiness and — relatively — healthy food.
We turned up at about half 6ish to a pretty jam packed place — a bit unusual for a Tuesday night — and were promptly told we’d have to wait 45 minutes before we could order food, although there was a table for us. No worries, a drink or so and we would be fine while we waited. It turns out they were pretty badly short-​staffed, and the two women we saw serving were looking cheery, but pretty harassed.
When we did get served menus and told we could order, we were pretty hungry (we’d tried to preview a menu while we waited but had it promptly taken off us and chastised to wait for a bit longer). We both love gyoza and tempura, so asked if we could modify their sharing platter to include both but were told we couldn’t — although I’m still not sure why — so we ended up ordering one dish of each.
I had the thai red curry which was lovely with a really good sized portion — I couldn’t finish the whole thing which is always a good sign. N is a cook by profession so he asked about the sauce bases, we found out it is a bought in base which is a little disappointing as I would’ve thought a pan-​asian place like Bar Soba would make sauces from scratch but it tasted nice so I can’t really complain too much.
I’d like to come back to this Soba another night when they’re a little less busy — slow drinks, wrong bill when it came and rushed staff all equalled a not great experience but it’s definitely worth a try again.

If you fancy a bit of Pan Asian this is a good place to pop into. They have an express lunch menu if you are in a hurry which at just under £9 for 2 courses is pretty good value. Both plates are served at the same time for speedy eating! From the main menu the Nasi Goreng is fantastic along with the pork steamed buns. A pretty good selection of cocktails are on offer and Roz had the Pineapple and Basilito which was really good. Overall a nice friendly place which is good for a family lunch!

Maybe it was pre-​Christmas craziness, but Bar Soba was pretty disappointing yesterday so I’m sad to say we’ve landed at 3 stars.
We visited for lunch and were seated at the tall table on stools (shudder — I hate sitting on stools while I’m trying to have a relaxing lunch). I looked over the two menus we were given — one was obviously a set menu of some sort but didn’t have any prices on it which was pretty unhelpful. So instead we decided to order a bunch of dishes from the main menu and share them between us. We were left sitting for at least 10 minutes before our order was taken and then it seemed like ages before our drinks arrived (soft drinks, nothing fancy). The waitress did apologise for the wait.
Onto the food. The Malaysian sate ayam is lovely, soft chicken skewers with a tasty peanut sauce. Hoi sin pork buns were a little stingy on the filling and the bun was too sweet for my tastes. The salt and pepper squid was cold, I’m not sure if it was meant to be? Apart from that, it was really lovely, a nice crispy batter and served with two sauces — sweet chili and a creamy aioli. Vegetable spring rolls were fine, nicely filled and crispy. I thought the gyoza were a little cold too but then we did have a lot of food before us! We also shared a main of teriyaki beef noodles which had some nice bits of succulent beef through it.
Overall it was a decidedly «ok» experience and with the bill coming in at around £40 for lunch for two people (no alcohol), I think 3 stars is pretty generous. I’ve previous had a really good experience here at a Unilocal event so I will be back to give them another shot, just in case it was the pre-​Christmas craziness that let them down.

Having missed the recent Unilocal event at Bar Soba, I was grinning from ear to ear when my friend suggested that we head here for lunch midway through our charity shop marathon of the west end.
From the onset, Bar Soba is vibrant and fun. I liked the super-​cool industrial feel with the crafty oriental graffiti-​adorned walls. In this sense, the décor is charming and it gives the bar and restaurant an immediate burst of character.
It didn’t take long to decide what dish my heart was set on. It always is; it had to be… Thai green chicken curry. — Just hearing those words makes my stomach rumble with a deep, deep hunger for a creamy and fragrant helping of the Thai classic. So it was no surprise that my menu was closed in an instant. No sooner had we had placed our order and I awaited with excitement.
Firstly, the sauce… SO aromatic, SO thick and creamy and luscious. I wanted to lick the plate, I really did. It was a heavenly Thai green curry sauce. I commend you, Soba! Sadly, the rice was on the dry side which was disappointing. I’ve had Thai rice that’s completely blown my socks off. Wila Wan Thai in Stirling does the most fluffy and creamy sticky coconut rice and after finishing my portion, I’m already dreaming of my next visit! So for me, the rice offering at Bar Soba did leave me feeling a little ‘meh’ in both the flavour and texture department. If there are other rice options that we missed on the menu, I would be inclined to return to try them, but I do feel that for the price you pay it just isn’t as authentic Thai cuisine as it could be.
Our food was delivered on square plates which we felt were a bit of an inconvenience. Our eyes widened as the food was brought before us. And at once, we wanted to devour it! However, the combination of the small square plate and the pouring curry bowl left us thinking that a more traditional round plate would have made things easier. Too much thought, must eat food. Nonetheless, we concocted a devious plan in rationing how much of the curry we’d pour as to not create a complete and utter mess. Regardless, I still created a complete and utter mess and I continue to do so whenever there’s food involved. Cue death glare from waiting staff all over Glasgow!
We dined at lunch time and it did seem a little lacking in atmosphere. — Perhaps it comes alive at night. Service was A-​OK as my three stars would suggest. Having been to an authentic traditional Thai restaurant in the past, Bar Soba did not compare. However, their cocktails sure looked delicious! And if I were to rate the Thai green curry sauce alone, it would be the trusty five stars from me.

After the Unilocal event at Bar Soba I vowed to return and to take the incredibly fussy g. I knew that he would enjoy having a choice of dishes on the menu and that he’s pretty good at letting me taste his food. Although experience has taught me that stealing his chips is not a good plan.
When I discovered that I could use my tesco clubcard points to buy vouchers for Bar Soba I was delighted and promptly swapped £10 of clubcard money for £40 to spend on food I don’t need to cook myself — amazing !
With smudge back at school we decided on a wee hump day treat and arrived at a very quiet bar soba for lunch. We were welcomed at the door and with only one occupied table had our pick of seats — by the window, always up for a bit of people watching.
Unfortunately, what with g being a complete control freak and unable to let me drive and me being a bit of a non drinker I can’t tell you anything about the cocktail menu other than it was very pretty and that I wanted to order something far more exciting than a diet cola. I didn’t, but I wanted to.
With £40 of vouchers burning a hole in my handbag we opted for three courses and were pleased when g’s thai sticky ribs and my gyoza arrived promptly. Not too quickly that we were left wondering how long they’d be lying around the kitchen but quickly enough that I hadn’t forgotten what I had ordered — yes this might happen rather more regularly than it should.
By the time that I had got my phone to take a snap of our starters g had gone all caveman and destroyed the pretty arrangement of his ribs and devoured one — so no picture of them but he assured me they were delicious and judging by his lack of any attempt at conversation he appeared to be enjoying them. My gyoza were tasty with a lovely subtle blend of flavours that worked perfectly and left me wanting more. Which is just what I want from a starter.
Again the main courses were quick to arrive and looked spectacular. I really like when the presentation draws you in and the colours and arrangement of the food was certainly inviting. Unfortunately, both of our plates were badly chipped. If the place had been jumping and we could see that loads of crockery was out I could have excused this but with only us and another table in it was inexcusable.
Chipped plates aside, my Singapore noodles and g’s Dirty Bangkok burger were out of this world good. Everything was beautifully flavoured and was like fireworks in my mouth — a good thing! The noodles came with chicken, pork and prawns and there was a great amount of meat. I wanted more pork but that was sheer greediness because it was so good.
After starters and main courses we didn’t need puddings. But we did anyway, partially because they sounded so good. Despite my sweet tooth puddings often leave me with the rage. Why do restaurants go to so much effort with starters and main courses and then resort to a crappy bought in chocolate fudge cake and cheap ass vanilla ice cream?
Thankfully Bar Soba do not fall into this dimension of Dante’s hell and their desert menu was small but perfectly formed. The Cinnamon and Treacle Tart I had was the perfect way to end my meal, it should have been served with coconut ice cream which I asked to swap to vanilla as coconut is in my humble opinion the devils dandruff. The tart was sticky, sweet and cinnamony but had enough lemon to cut through so that it wasn’t sickly. G’s Rich Dark chocolate and peanut brownie was a big hit. From the very little taste I was allowed it was more fudgey than brownie but that is by no means a criticism.
This was a great meal and I would have loved to make it five stars as the food really was spectacularly tasty. Unfortunately, the chipped plates did take the shine off.

Popped in here the other night purely for cocktails.
Ohhh heavenly Apple & Ginger mojito, how do I love thee… yeah it’s pretty damn tasty and very moreish! Clare had a Caipirinha which also hit the mark well, it’s safe to say these people know their cocktails!
Unfortunately we had to sit inside as they ‘close’ the outside seating at 10pm — understandably to avoid noise for the people living nearby but a bit of bummer on such a wonderful sunny evening!
The staff were nice and friendly, and I love the relaxed vibe of the place. Must get back to sample more of the food!

I’ll start by saying that much of my score probably stems from being able to take advantage of the 2 for 1 student discount on mains, and also because I’ve only gone on days when I was able to get a £1 mojito from being on their student text list. I’d not have been as huge of a fan with a full price meal and drink.
Good:
The food, while not in especially large servings is tasty. I had the Japanese chicken katsu curry and my friend had the Bangkok burger. We also shared an order of the chilli fries with satay sauce. (where else can you get chips or fries with any sort of peanut sauce?) While neither was especially authentically Asian, they were very tasty and I’d be happy to order what I had again, although I’d prefer to try out more of the menu first.
While the cocktail list is rather unique looking, I’ve only had the mojito (although it was very good).
While the place was somewhat loud, I was still able to have a nice conversation without feeling like I was needing to shout.
Bad:
I did feel sort of unwelcome when I was shifted from the less busy section to the more busy one because I didn’t have a reservation, and then had to sit at the tall shared tables with stools for the same reason. Getting a real table on a Thursday night shouldn’t have been unlikely without at least an explanation of how they had more reservations than usual or anything along that line. It ultimately didn’t ruin my meal but did start me off feeling not well.
Summary: Go if you qualify for the student discount or if you can convince them you do. £1 mojitos make all things better.

A borderline 3, with the cocktails being the only thing that stopped it dropping to a 2.
Was here for pre drinks before a work night out, and then popped back in for a few more drinks after the meal. The best things were the cocktails — relatively cheap, with most of them sitting at £6/​7. I had the bog standard mohito (good but not great) and the dahkiri (sp?) which was pretty good. My friend had a couple of other cocktails that were very good indeed.
The rest of it was pretty uninspiring to be honest: I had the salt and pepper squid as a snack and it mainly tasted of grease — more like something you would get out of a chippy than anything else. On the second visit I had a vodka & coke which tasted more of postmix than vodka or coke.
If you are in dire need of a cheaper cocktail and you want to stay on Byers Road then go for it, but it’s a struggle to recommend it.

I was a bit skeptical going to an asian joint in Glasgow, and while they do try, Soba doesn’t leave much as far as an impression goes.
Star 1: How was the service and atmosphere?
I will say that Soba has the atmosphere down, especially in a town where pubs and restaurants can so quickly conform to the standard pub atmosphere. Soba is trendy and contemporary, substituting the authentic asian vibe for one that caters nicely to the uni-​aged clientele. Service is fast and friendly, and my experience was a good one as far as atmosphere goes. Star Granted.
Star 2: How were the portions relative to the cost?
So I opted for the «Nasi Goreng», which is a pretty classic meat and rice dish from what I understand. Being asian cuisine, I was hoping for some serious portions for £10.95, and was disappointed when my meal only went as far as is depicted:
Plain and simple, it isn’t enough. Sure, there’s some rice there and a small portion of meat, but most of the plate was a side salad and some bizarre fluffy potato crisps. No bueno, and not worth £10.95. No Star Granted.
Stars 3 and 4: How was the food?
Not great to be totally honest. While the meat was cooked well, the rice was bland and the egg a bit undercooked. The side salad? Nothing to write home about, and the crisps were a bit odd. I didn’t hate it, but I wasn’t really impressed. Single Star Granted.
Star 5: Would you eat here every day if you could?
There are simply too many great options in Glasgow to recommend Soba. No Star Granted.

We visited Soba on a very busy Sunday. There was only a couple of free seats in the entire place. Most people seemed to be in for drinks rather than food.
We both went in for a bit of dinner. They offer a augmentation of eastern food (mainly Thai) with western influences. I had the twice cooked port that was served with rice and was quite nice. My friend had a chicken satay based dish with rice and a fried egg served with prawn crackers. She felt it was nice but there was very little chicken in the satay.
Their menu is very varied with everything from Thai mussels to salt and pepper squid and sushi. A variety of wok based dishes and burger also a variety of Asian themed sides and some very unusual deserts.
The had an extensive cocktail list which we didn’t explore on this occasion. A few options for beers and a large range of spirits.
The service was ok but rushed due to the number of people in the bar, we felt it was hard to get anybody’s attention to get anything done. This was not assisted with the fact that their card machine was not working.
Needless to say we both enjoyed our meals, hopefully if I visit again it will be a little less crowded and hopefully we will get better service.

As days go, it was a biggie. My little girl had just finished her very last exam in her very last year at uni. The relaxed and friendly Bar Soba sounded like the ideal lunch-​spot for someone who had just pulled the last in a string of revision all-​nighters. Nicely potent flourescent-​green melon cocktail anyone? Don’t mind if I do!
All three of us had a curry of some description, and all three declared them exceptionally good. I had the vegetable katsu curry (vegetables coated in panko breadcrumbs, japanese curry, rice and pickles) all washed down with a chilled glass of lager. The food was reasonable priced at lunchtime, and for the student it was half price on production of university ID. Gotta love a discount! A pint of draught lager was priced at around £4 for the cheapest.
Sadly they were no longer serving my beloved St Mungos beer by Glasgow’s West Brewery. Not sure if thats a permanent thing. If it is I would implore them to reconsider. St Mungo’s is the perfect foil for Bar Soba’s much used fragrant spices.
Al fresco dining available out front for those welcome sunny days in Glasgow.