Heraghty’s Bar
Whenever I visited family during my time away, Heraghty’s is where we’d end up, and it’s still where we meet up today. It’s small, nondescript and excellent. This has been a local boozer for well over 100 years now and still has a community vibe to it. Clientele is a mix of young students living nearby and making good use of the affordable prices and regulars who have been drinking here even longer than I have. There are over 100 bottles of whisky open at any one time, and on a Monday night local musicians play in the corner to add to the atmosphere. If you catch them, tell the bassist I sent you – he’s my uncle.
708 Pollokshaws Road; @heraghtysbar
The Pot Still
This one isn’t much of a secret as it often appears on “Best in the World” lists when it comes to whisky bars, but it’s an institution that simply has to be experienced. The whisky collection numbers over 1,000 bottles, the drinkers are as diverse as the drams on sale, and the end-of-night pies for those who make it to midnight are delicious. It’s another compact little pub which is far more popular than it has space to be, so expect to make new friends fast, but remember you’ll always have a mutual love of whisky to bond over. If you only have time for one bar in Glasgow, it should be here.
154 Hope Street; @thepotstill
The Bon Accord
Another family-run, oak-panelled, classic Glasgow pub, The Bon is a wee bit out of the way and boasts no real frills, but when you see the bottles lined up on the gantry you’ll realise it’s because they don’t need any. Plenty of real ales are available to chase more than 300 malts – order a “hauf and a hauf” if you think you can drink like a real Glaswegian. It may look small from the outside but once the doors open the pub unfolds in front of you, stretching impressively far back and packing in plenty of thirsty connoisseurs. If you taste something you especially like, the Bon Accord shop may even have a bottle you can take home as a souvenir.
153 North Street; bonaccordpub.com
The Gate
The Gate is a relatively new addition to the Glasgow bar scene, located directly opposite the legendary Barrowland Ballroom. A stylish interior and cutting-edge mixology juxtapose it slightly from the gritty surroundings of the streets outside. The beauty of this bar is its focus on mixing whisky with all manner of other drinks – literally and figuratively – to make the experience accessible to as wide a range of drinkers as possible, simultaneously creating new whisky fans and educating old aficionados in new ways to enjoy it. Glasgow has always been Scotland’s egalitarian city, and this bar captures that ethos perfectly. It’s a place for everyone, and well worth the trip east from the city centre.
251 Gallowgate; @thegateglasgow
The Lismore
In a relatively residential section of the city’s West End is The Lismore, giving the impression of “ordinary local” from the outside but revealing a malt-laden treasure trove of bottles once you make it inside. The stained glass adorning the windows – which has drawn many a film crew over the years – depicts scenes from traditional Scottish life rather than biblical moments, and the reverence is very much deserved by their whisky collection. Tributes are paid throughout to the Highlanders who once frequented this part of town, many having fled the Clearances, and the feeling of community is strong. A local pub for sure, but one which happily opens its cellars to strangers.
206 Dumbarton Road; @lismorebar
The Ben Nevis
A small, trendy bar for a small, trendy neighbourhood. The Ben Nevis can be credited with attracting a younger crowd to the wonders of whisky and everything about the place today is an elegant blend of modern and ancient. The bar occupies the traditional “pub” spot at the bottom of a classical tenement, and the interior displays plenty of exposed sandstone alongside distressed wood and contemporary furnishings.
What it lacks in space it makes up for in character, and there’s an open fire and a constant crackle of conversation to warm souls who have been stricken by Glasgow’s dampness. That, and the whisky – a broad collection of classics and rarities is stylishly arranged across the soaring high walls, looking more like an exhibition than the usual cluttered gantry and making it easier to spot things you’ve never tried before, but should.
1147 Argyle Street; @bennevisbar
Nick Hendry is a journalist, model and photographer covering travel and menswear
