Blue Dog

Visiting Glasgow recently on business and to catch up with some old friends who suggested we meet at The Blue Dog on Saturday night last at about 9.30 pm. We stepped out of our taxi outside the premises just as they approached having come from their respective homes. We greeted them and turned to enter the bar whereupon the doorman stretched out his arm in front of us and said "not tonight"! We were astounded and stared at each other in total dismay. He went on to say "I was watching you (pointing to one of our friends), and you were walking kinda' funny coming down the street"! Our uncomfortable laughter at the absurdity of this statement quickly turned to indignation when he followed up with "you could try the karaoke bar around the corner"! The absolute effrontery and impertinence of this character was uncalled for and thoroughly insulting. I'm not so sure what the desired clientele of The Blue Dog is, but clearly not sober Managers, Company Directors or Teachers in their 50's. We will not be returning. ever!

Having heard of this bar I thought myself and my husband Frank, should pay a visit on a Friday night. We had finished a meal and had fancied a wee nightcap.

We tried earlier in the night (around 8:30pm) and the whole bar was full. Ho Hum we thought as we returned later (10:15pm) we were promptly seated and given a wee run down of the new COVID regulations. A good start. The bar seemed to have a good system in place but I couldn’t help but think the tables were quite close together.

We took our seats and examined the menu. It looked like the team were short staffed and spread very thin. We gave them the benefit of the doubt and my husband Frank decided we would give them 10 minutes to take our order. Not unreasonable in our eyes. The 10 minutes past and apart from our initial seating we hadn’t had a single exchange with either of the 2 staff members. Despite 3 tables being sat after us and their orders being taken. We were ignored.

Begrudgingly we had to leave. In these uncertain times we can’t allow ourselves to patronise venues that don’t want to make the effort.

A shame as we had heard good things yet we were let down.

A lovely bar down the road were happy to have us and gave us prompt service. Disappointing as we know many bars are struggling.

Susan, and Frank, Matthews

Having had a fantastic night in Blue Dog back in July, 70+ work colleagues attended a night in Blue Dog last week and what a night had by all! The bar staff and the door staff were fabulous. We ordered in food from Nonna Said which was also fabulous. Everything was seamless and everyone had a ball. Everyone was captivated by the entertainment from Hannah Cochrane. Thank you to Bartek, Alfonso, Karen, Ewan (and the other member of bar staff whose name I didn't get - sorry) and also to Alison on the door for her cheery wit, humour and patience. See you all again soon.

Looked forward to a visit post refurb, and wasnt disappointed in the quality of the bar and how it looks. Done well, but unfortunately the money seems to have run out before they reached the loos which were as unpleasant and untouched as I remember them. Menus difficult to read (why have dark menus in a dimly lit barstyle trumps practicality), reduced menu, overly loud live pianist (both were great, just if you have to shout to be heard by your drinking partner, you need to turn the amp down), and service was very variable depending on who you got behind the bar - lady was very chatty about the cocktails and ingredients, whilst male server literally didnt say a word, communicating by raised eyebrows, a nod of acceptance and a look at the cash machine for payment. He wasnt mute because he was chatting to other bar staff - it just gave off an elitist vibe and meant we didnt tip consistently.

In summary - bar was cool, but it wasnt somewhere I enjoyed going, suspect it would be more fun in a large group.

Great, friendly atmosphere of people all ages. Cocktails were fantastic we tried Pretty in Pink, Blue Dog, Strawberry Daiquiris, Negronis and they even made us a Lemon Drop which wasn't on the menu. Only cocktail that wasn't so good was the White Russian, it was a bit too sweet and sherbert taste from it. The pianist was so good, playing a wide variety of songs. Great night for a birthday celebration.

Good points - good atmosphere and nice cocktails
Bad points - service was extremely slow, we were waiting over 20 minutes for one round. We also had to ask for water 4 times before we went to the bar and had to pick them up ourselves. We are also told that we had to leave our table in 20 minutes despite the fact no one told us this when they sat us and would have stayed longer. When I pointed this out, I was told simply we have a booking that is booked for there and very much a tough luck attitude

Popped by on the off chance to see if it was open. So glad we did. First class service, nothing too much trouble when asked to make a cocktail which was not on the menu. Music great to. Will definitely be back

We came here for some cocktails after eating at a nearby restaurant. On arriving, we were greeted by a grumpy fella with a laptop, who pointed us to one of the tables by the curtain as you walk in as we hadn't booked.

The experience quickly improved, however, as we were actually greeted by a really friendly waitress who left us to choose our cocktails from the great selection there is. She even took our picture for us when she saw me struggling with the selfie mode on my camera. It is very dark in there, in my defence (which does also make it almost impossible to read the menu, too - we ended up using the torch on our phones!).

The cocktails themselves were absolutely delicious too.

I don't usually leave reviews! But I was just blown away on Saturday by this place.

Drinks are to die for, lovely romantic setting & service was top class.

Amanda really added to our experience. She made you feel like a friend. Very genuine & checks in every now and again to make sure your night is still going as planned. We felt so special!

Open mic night is the next stop on Tuesday, told us all about it and seems like its going to be a great event.

100% reccomend you head there for your next night out!

Cocktails are excellent and the bartenders were all knowledgeable in the ingredients and provided good recommendations. The pianist was great and gave the atmosphere a real 1920s feel.

Although on the expensive side I will definitely be back