The Salon at Blythswood Square

NB This is a review for the cocktail bar at The Blythswood. These comments also pre-​date the new owners, I hope they read this and take note — it’s the main reason I wrote it !
It truly pains me to write this review. I held off for months before writing it to ensure the bad experiences we had were not simply one off’s. I hoped my concerns were misplaced but sadly not. Once the best cocktail bar in Glasgow (and arguably Scotland) The Salon is in desparate need of attention.
It’s a place I hold dear in my heart, where over the years I have sampled some exceptional cocktails and service that went above and beyond. For a long time they had truly brilliant staff and ran a very smooth, slick but friendly bar. Everyone involved worked their absolute socks off and took real pride in ensuring it was the best bar around
Notably they were home to some exceptional bar staff — notably Mal Spence (now of Kelvingrove Café) and Aidan Bowie (Winner of the Auchentoshan Switch competitions, now at The Mondrian). Corey (hope I’ve spelt his name correctly !) was ace; less experienced but learning super fast and I’m sure will go on to great things. These are people who set standards and make your bar a sought after destination
If you’re claiming to be running a flagship cocktail bar you simply must retain, attract and develop staff of this calibre. In this the Blythswood failed.
Even worse, overall service took a nosedive. On one occasion — a quiet Tuesday night at roughly 6:30 we were completely ignored on repeated occassions. We could have ordered another two martinis but nobody seemed interested.
On another we saw a senior staff member throw a wet towel in the face of a female member of staff. Shoddy, deeply unprofessional and clearly not in keeping with a «classy» establishment.
I’ve no idea how The Blythswood lost it’s way — but the response (or perhaps lack of response) to increased competition from The Finnieston, Kelvingrove Café, Alston and others is simply not good enough.
So in early 2015 the new owners have an opportunity. Put cocktails first. Moreover make a real effort to champion innovation. Develop & mentor your staff. Make them proud to be a valued part of making The Blythswood a cut above the rest.
I look forward to returning soon and hopefully posting a much more positive review

What a luxurious place to spend an afternoon/​evening. It is just gorgeous inside.
I was there for cocktails and nibbles with my mate. The cocktail menu was extensive and informative! Who knew that a French Martini was invented as part of a cocktail range called Daisies! Thw wine list was not as extensive but had all the favourites, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir etc.
We were going to have afternoon tea but decided to go for a tapas platter instead. This was yummy. Buffalo mozzarella, Parma ham, roasted peppers, crusty bread, prawns, salami, olives, pickles… what’s not to like.
There were a couple of annoying things:
1. The waiters kept taking the cocktail menus away after we ordered. This meant that I could not pick my next cocktail whilst drinking current one (the menu was more like a book!!) and we had to keep getting a waiters attention to ask for menu. This was annoying. I am not sure if they just did not have enough menus but from a hotel like this, that’s a bit tight!
2. The waiters kept asking us what our plans were for the night! Now, I am not sure if they were asking as needed table back or if they were hitting on us!
I would go back as the cocktails were pretty and delicious.

The Blythswood is of course located on Blythswood Square, it is a stunning 1820s building, previously home to The Royal Scottish Automobile Club which is reflected in little touches throughout the décor. The interior of the hotel is amazing — its ultra glamorous & fabulous… think sexy lighting, beautiful intimate Saloon bar for pre-​dinner cocktails, amazing reception area and ornate staircase. It really is a spectacular hotel.
The staff were all really great, attentive and friendly. My only slight complaint would be that we had to chase drinks on 2 separate occasions, a tiny thing but Blythswood Square are charging absolute top dollar (like all hotels) for food and drink for that I expect sensational service.
To being the evening we had quick pre-​dinner drinks in the sexy Saloon bar on the first floor, which turned into an entire bottle of champagne making us 45 mins late for our bookin… woops! Sign of a good bar/​hotel/​restaurant they didn’t bat an eyelid and told us to take our time.
The menu is a good size, it has plenty of choice and a very nice grill section on the menu. My friends guided me to their favourites and gave some excellent recommendations. To being with I selected the Blythswood Square prawn cocktail which was delicious, it consisted of lots of baby prawns, 2 king prawns served with large parmesan crisps and some prawn cocktail sauce on the side. nothing much I can really add over it was really tasty and I would recommend it to anyone.
For my main, again being guided I chose the 10oz Sirloin Steak which is served with amazing huge hand cut twice fried chips, I went for a blue cheese sauce and added four Hebridean tiger prawns to the dish. It was delicious and perfectly cooked to my liking, the chips were crazy good and such a big portion cooked to crispy perfection. I would say as lovely as the steak was it’s not the best I’ve had in Glasgow, it wasn’t really charred enough on the outside for my liking and the blue cheese sauce was pretty thin and watery… however I did really enjoy the dish.
For dessert I went for a few of the small dessert plates which I think is a great idea — designed to share of if you’re feeling greedy like I was you can scoff the lot yourself. I opted to try the Sticky toffee pudding with caramel sauce, a
Treacle tart and a scoop of condensed milk ice cream. I am not even going to waste your time trying to tell you how amazing all three of the small plates were, the condensed milk ice cream was amazing… sweet, creamy, insanely good!
All in it was a great night with LOTS of alcohol consumed, the surrounding were very cool and the food was great. This is absolutely going to become a regular haunt for us now.

I have been here for drinks and food a few times now and it never disappoints me. I went again recently for afternoon tea and despite it not being the cheapest thing in the world, it was worth every penny. All the cakes and sandwiches were perfectly fresh, the cocktails were delicious, the décor, mood, service, in fact everything about this place I love. I think I need to stay over one time too…

Dinner at the Blythswood one Friday evening could be summarized thus: unfailing courtesy from the moment you step off the pavement, a sparkling airy room with dark wood furniture and accents in mirror tiles, friendly (not overly formal) service, a decent wine list with a New World emphasis and catering to all price ranges and some memorable food.
You can choose from the market menu and the usual a la carte, including a grill menu. No shortage of choice — mains, starters and desserts are grouped as ‘contemporary’ and ‘classic’. Prawn cocktail: huge and succulent. Fioe gras: amazingly smooth. Rump of lamb: perfectly cooked. Aberdeen Angus ribeye with peppercorn steak: arguably the best steak I’ve ever eaten — the handcut twice-​cooked chips here have convinced me that ‘frites’ are just NOT the right thing to eat with steak — it has to be good olé British chips. Date pudding and ice cream only required a large open fire and a big hairy dog to complete that «I’m at home and it’s raining outside on Sunday» feeling.
All fantastic? Well, the service could have been a little tighter (but the restaurant was at capacity) and the cheeseboard a bit heavy on the blue cheese but these are niggles.
It’s not cheap but well worth saving up for a special occasion.