Bath Street Palomino

I love Bath Street for several reasons:
First up, it’s not a shopping street, thank feck! After you’ve wandered through the other shopping streets Glasgow has to offer, Bath Street makes a nice (and quiet) change.
It’s full of basement bars — which are totally my favourite kind. Here you’ll find some awesome (and late licensed) bars and music venues, like Slouch, Howling Wolf, Bloc+, Butterfly & Pig, and Tiki Bar — and there’s loads more for you discover.
Apart from the nightlife, there’s a couple of restaurants (like the new Noodle), some art galleries and various lawyers and property management companies.
Even if you’re not wanting to go to anything here, for a quiet walk, Bath St runs parallel to (the often mentally busy) Sauchiehall St.
Oh, and it has the King’s Theatre!

A quick beer and a portion of chilli fries is all I’ve got to go on but I like this place.
It’s nothing special in terms of style and décor, a lot of wood and benches (with a lot of large booths, I took one to myself and did feel a little guilty but then there are only two tables that look suitable for 1 person, the rest are all set for 4… but it’s not a restaurant so… hmmm odd).
Free Wifi (hence I’m writing this review whilst still finishing off my beer) is good, and the bar is well stocked with some nice looking cocktails on the menu.
Food wise the menu has an American feel to it which I like, and as the bar has Sam Adams on tap (I tried it twice, it’s pretty good) I definitely think they are after that market.
I only had a snack, the chilli fries come with burnt end brisket (strips of tender brisket) which was a nice addition. Tasty though!
Ohhh and they play music but it’s in the background so you can have a conversation!
The staff are friendly, prices reasonable and yeah, I think I’ll be back. It does look a little ‘corporate/​chain’ from the outside but it’s a nice space and at 6.45pm on a Friday isn’t rammed with weekend drinkers, WIN!

Really underwhelmed. The bratwurst hot dogs aren’t bratwursts — just a skinny little sausage. The bread to meat ratio is also very much in favour of the bread. Ended up discarding half the roll in the end. The onion rings are also pitiful. Skinny onion with too much batter and overcooked. Just because it’s 2−4−1 is no excuse to skimp on quality or quantity. Although I should say the service was excellent. Quick. Polite and attentive. Wouldn’t be back for food that’s for sure. But for drinks, yes

I’ve had great food here in the past but the pizza on my last visit was really poor. Bland and dough was undercooked. It was sent back (the first time ive ever done this!) and replaced by slightly better offering, we got some free fries while we waited. Macaroni cheese was bland too. The staff were great, apologised and discounted the bill. Maybe an off day or a new chef? Will still come for drinks as the cocktails are good and good service from the bar staff but won’t be back for dinner.

In short, this was great for a quick meal before a show at the King’s but I wouldn’t head back for the food alone.
Next door to Slouch is Bath Street Palomino — it’s a lot brighter and lighter than I expected as the main area isn’t in the basement like Slouch. We’d booked, but the guy couldn’t read the bookings note so we were seated at the back in a slightly strange half-​booth half-​seated arrangement. It was comfortable for me on the booth side, and could fit 4 people if needed, but Graeme was a little uncomfortable trying to get his stool seat close enough to the table to eat.
There’s an express menu which comes in at £9 for 2 courses which is crazy cheap compared to other city centre places. There’s options like beef brisket, ribs, street buns and pit smoked chicken — some people are going to love it, some people aren’t. For me, I think this kind of thing is overdone in Glasgow so I struggled a little to find something I was interested in. There’s also not much choice if you’re trying to avoid gluten. I opted for deep-​fried pickles with blue cheese dip followed by cajun crumbed fish supper with fries for a main.
Food arrived quickly which was great — there was a good portion of pickles and a HUGE bowl of blue cheese sauce. The pickles were pretty greasy, and cut pretty thinly so there was just as much batter as there was pickle — and it needed a good dash of seasoning to pep it up a bit. The blue cheese sauce was really lovely though so that was a bonus. The fish supper wasn’t much of a wait either and was a large portion of fish (despite the «wee» description on the menu) with a very crispy crumb. Pretty standard fish supper, and again needed seasoning.
I had a cocktail while we were there too — the nutkrakerr — strawberries, cracked black pepper, Kraken spiced rum, hazelnut liqueur, lime and sugar syrup. It was a decent cocktail, it pretty much just tasted like a daiquiri although there wasn’t any hint of pepper.
Overall there isn’t really anything specific to point at, but Bath Street Palomino just left me feeling a little underwhelmed. I’d head back for cocktails but not sure I’d venture back for the food.

Popped in here for post Inverarity wine fair drinkies in here with Unilocaly type nice folks. I have to say that I’m not sure I got the best out of this place as I opted to go down the beer route rather than partaking in any of the cocktail shenanigans that this public house offers up.
The beer selection, I have to say, is a tad disappointing given the growing level of awesome selection that many Glasgow bars now have on offer. Time has well since passed when I’ve looked upon a pint of Heineken as being the fancy choice!
Other than that, this place has a ton of potential and scores a very (VERY) solid three stars, that entirely threatens to spill over to four with a return visit.
Things that make you go ‘OOH’:
— Flippin’ table service! I know! No honestly, I don’t think you’re taking full appreciation of this. Table service. Like, you sit. They come. Take order. Bring drink. You sit. You sit. Sitting is good.
— Table service… wait.
— Cocktail and spirit selection. Muchos better than the beer selection and really quite impressive.
So yeah, a return visit is on the cards where I’ve been advised to check out the grub too (cheers Martyn!).

Pony did me proud for a last minute pre-​theatre meal, managing to secure a table for three on two hours’ notice — meaning I didn’t have to traipse my mother and friend around Bath Street looking for a Kings-​handy eatery. Their ‘express’ menu is a great idea, and had a well chosen range of dishes for those wanting to get in and out relatively smartish. My mum’s macaroni cheese was lovely, and she felt terribly guilty that her toothache/​tiny appetite combo led to her leaving half of it. I had a mouthful and I can confirm it was great — and a mouthful was all I could have, because I was already full of of the nicest mussels I’ve ever encountered. Smothered in a lovely tomato sauce, nice little bowl of fries on the side, and also provided with an extra bowl for the shells and warm lemon water for the washing of fingers (you’d be surprised how many places forget to provide these things). Our friend’s fish was also approved of, and the portion sizes all round were just right for a quick bite — something I now appreciate after being presented with the challenge of chowing down a mountain of pasta in 15 minutes in another restaurant recently. The prompt food service also left us time to enjoy a quick extra glass of wine before the 7.30 performance at the Kings — we arrived at 6pm and had finished our meals by 6.45pm — express indeed! We didn’t have much spare time to take in the atmosphere, but certainly Pony seemed nice enough (and the staff certainly friendly enough) that I would probably pop in again pre or post-​theatre.

Popped into Pony last night with Colin for a quick dinner before going to the Elite Event at Inverarity. I Unilocaled a cheap place to eat before going into the city and found that Pony was only 2 seconds away from the wine tasting place that the event was being held in, so it sounded like the best idea!
We arrived about 6:25pm, and I was a bit worried we would miss the event at 7pm, but if we were trying various wines then I thought we’d definitely need full stomachs first! We were seated at, luckily, the last remaining table in the bar and drinks were taken and brought out right away. Wonderful draft lemonade I must add! We looked at the ‘Express Menu’ and noticed that it was two courses for £9.95. Sounds good to me! It wasn’t a particularly extensive menu, with maybe only about ¹²⁄₁₃ things on it, but what they did have all looked lovely. I ordered their bruschetta, as some of you may have noticed on the talk feed that I’m on a wee mission to find Glasgow’s best bruschetta! Colin ordered the potato and nutmeg soup, and both of us ordered the char-​grilled chicken linguine for our main. We asked for both courses to be brought out at once for speed, and I’m incredibly surprised at the speed they were brought out at considering they were making two courses for two people.
We got the food at 6:50pm, and I tucked right into my bruschetta, which was made with a pesto sauce, and wow, this could be a contender for the best bruschetta! It was absolutely beautiful, and I think I finished it in about 2 minutes. Twas a perfect partner for my taste buds! Colin’s potato and nutmeg soup was absolutely lovely, I don’t think I could’ve had a full bowl of it though, as it was quite heavy. The main was a char-​grilled chicken linguine with pancetta, garlic, chili and fresh parsley. Scrrrrrumptious! It had a piece of garlic bread on the side and the plate was definitely wiped clean! The bill only came to £27 and we both had two drinks, so that was superb! I’m definitely going to go back when I have more time and try the full menu and make my judgements on that, but for a first time I was wonderfully satisfied with what I had!

Wasn’t planning on going here yesterday, but I’m glad we did.
Excellent service, with a sleek interior and well stocked bar was my first impression swiftly followed by a claim of winning a Dram cocktail bar of the year 2011. Impressed, I ordered up a cocktail I’ve never heard of. It was fantastic.
Clean plates all round from my party of 4 who all ordered different starters and mains, yet still complaining there was more food options we would’ve liked to try! I was bowled over by their roasted peppers with a garlic oil sauce. Food also came incredibly quickly.
An all round win. Would love to go back and ordered some of the different mains.
Recommended.

Went here on a Saturday afternoon, booked yet another 5pm deal (it was pay week!)£15 for either a seafood platter or steak and glass of wine. When we arrived we told the waiter we had a reservation but he didn’t even take our name just said ‘ok theres a table free at the window’, which annoyed me slightly as the place was packed and the table didn’t have a reserved sign, so seemed to be luck that we got seated. Nice place, very modern, lots of wood and floor to ceiling windows, low lighting. I chose the seafood platter, and was brought a huge glass of wine while waiting. It arrived quite quickly, on a big rectangular plate. It had 4 big scallops, 3 different kinds of fish, calimari and 4 big prawns, served with salad, toasted ciabatta and a pot of garlic mayo. It was all gorgeous, especially the scallops. My friends had the steak, which looked great, big portion, looked nice and lean and the chips were homemade with skins on. The service was good, our waiter asked us the usual how was the food, black pepper, anymore drinks. For £15 I would definitely come back for food, think it would be nice for drinks at night aswell, the bar looks trendy without being too pretentious.

The Pony looks very glossy and corporate from the outside, and inside it’s as trendy as you may have guessed. But rather than being faceless and high maintenance, it seems like the kind of place you can spoil yourself with a very swanky meal and some cocktails!
When I visited with my friends tonight we were given superbly friendly table service, even though the girl knew we were only staying for a couple. She rhymed through the cocktail list with ease and offered us some specials for £3 which turned out to be delicious. My friend ordered one called «The Drunken Sailor» which looked as murky as the bottom of the ocean and was tasty as hell. I ordered a cocktail, the name escapes me but it was very refreshing and Makar’s Mark was the main component.
It’s a very smart bar that serves up good food. A stylish option for a first date or family night out. I was suitably impressed!

One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, FLOOR!
We heard about the Pony through a friend who happens to play hockey with the owner. Upon our first visit, it’s quite a sleek place. Very contemporary furnishings, big horseshoe booths in the main area, and a huge long screen on the back of the booth area. Head downstairs, and you’ll find additional seating and another bar.
I love the Pony purely because they serve Patrón tequila… Oh Señor Patrón. I have developed and fostered a loving relationship with Señor Patrón since my undergraduate days at Arizona State University. I was in shock and awe that the Pony served Patrón, because it’s ultra-​premium tequila and is amazingly smooth. None of this José Cuervo crap. I haven’t been successful in locating Patrón in any other bar in Glasgow. Even more surprising they serve it how I would normally take it as if I was back home in the US (Arizona)… with cinnamon and orange, mmm… The boyfriend normally detests tequila, but once I introduced him, he was converted. We managed to find Patrón in duty free and decided to stock up our flat. I’ve created a monster…
In addition to the Pony serving my favourite tequila, it’s a pretty cool bar. The food is pretty good, the atmosphere pretty laid back, awesome tunes, and the patrons pretty mixed. I’ll definitely head back if we’re in the City Centre for a night out and ready for GOOD tequila!

A nice little new spot on the corner. The Pony Bar was a surprise to me as I walked by minding my own business. Mentioning the popping up of this new bar to a friend they went for a look and ended up booking their party there.
The small place was packed full of people, granted these people were all invited to the party but I can find no reason why this bar would not be busy at weekends for a pre-​club drink and a chance to be in a room completely made out of wood. This interestingly gave the place an Asian feel, but I suppose this was unintentional, perhaps it was an opportunity for them to carry on the horsey theme putting everyone in a stable. The bar is nice to meet with friends, but bigger groups I think would be hard to squeeze into the static seating areas along the wall.

The Pony Bar is a fairly new bar. Located on Bath Street, it’s a couple of blocks up from The Butterfly and the Pig and Hummingbird. Clearly, the proprietors of upper Bath Street bars have some kind of animal fixation.
It actually took me awhile to re-​find this bar. I passed by one night and idly snapped a picture, then returned home to find that I had no idea what it was called. The Horse? The Unicorn? Luckily, after my third or fourth time passing by, I realised that it was, in fact, the Pony Bar. Ohhhh.
This spot used to be called Brick, and must have been bought over in the past year or so. With nice wooden interiors, it looks as though it has been refurbished, and has been kept in very good condition. The front window is lovely, all glass and decorated with fairy lights and — duh — a huge vinyl silhouette of a *pony*!
I finally made a trip here with a friend on a Monday night (the beauty of freelancing). The staff were very friendly and even provided table service for drinks. This may have been due to it being so quiet, but they didn’t bother us too often and were happy to help. The drinks are a little more than typical, about £11 for a round of 3. Not breaking the bank, but there are cheaper places around.
The music was very good — not too loud, and not one of those horrible style bar types where it’s all weird rave stuff and no lyrics. Nope, just some good tunes with real people playing real instruments. (I know, right!)
It’s a new bar, still finding its feet, and could use a little polishing around the edges. However, it is promising and a great place to hang out and enjoy a couple of drinks. I will definitely be giving it another shot soon.