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Detail Pages
Babbity Bowster, Glasgow
Glasgow
G1 1PE
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 7½ of 10) see review guidelines
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Steve C left this review about Babbity Bowster
The Babbity Bowster has an L-shaped bar counter in the left rear corner that faces open plan L-shaped seating. The décor is very basic and devoid of any character like any non-descript city bar. The television was off, and background music was playing. The bar supports three hand pumps, one of which was unused which left Fyne Ales Jarl and Kelburn’s Cart Blanche as the cask options. Standard and premium keg is also available, but I went for the Jarl which was in very good condition. The same food menu as Rab Ha’s up the road is available, although the burger is 50p cheaper in here at £12.00. The pub’s website confirms that these two pubs are run by the same people. The service was meh, either the barman is a rude arse or he’s thick as mince. To sum up, the Jarl was excellent, but the pub was forgettable.
On 25th November 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 5268 recommendations about 5236 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about Babbity Bowster
Looked upmarket from the outside. Inside is a bland stripped-back cacophonous headache, devoid of any real character (‘extensive refurbishment’ in 2020 says WhatPub), although there were attempts at humour on the menu. Three cask on the go; Kelburn Gold Hops, Belhaven 80 (NBSS 1) and Fyne Avalanche (4) – these were all handpump, air dispense has been…dispensed with. Didn't really take to it, despite the GBG listing.
On 2nd March 2022
- rating: 6
[User has posted 5108 recommendations about 5091 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Babbity Bowster
Good Beer Guide Regular and a perfect introduction to the City.
We were on a city walk and popped in on a Saturday afternoon. Full on orchestra of folk musicians and singers - with many tourists (ourselves included) soaking up the entertainment.
Single room downstairs - garden patio and I believe an upstairs restaurant.
Fyne Ales Jarl in perfect condition.
Worth seeking out. An original.
On 2nd October 2019
- rating: 10
[User has posted 1345 recommendations about 1331 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Aqualung . left this review about The Babbity Bowster
This has been more than well described below but I would add that there is a doorway on the right that leads to a stair well. There are Gents toilets downstairs and upstairs and apparently there is also a dining room or restaurant upstairs. I was the first in before midday so there was no sign of any food.
There are just three hand pumps here but with one unused there was a poor choice of the ubiquitous Deuchars IPA or Fyne Jarl. I went for the Jarl which wasn't clear and at £3.90 on the expensive side.
This is a pleasant enough and friendly place but for me it was let down by the poor choice and quality of the beer. It's GBG 2018 listed,
On 18th May 2018
- rating: 6
[User has posted 2143 recommendations about 2143 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Babbity Bowster
This is quite a smart, modernised little pub which has a few hints to a much older history. You enter into a roughly L-shaped room with nice modern floorboards and a deep, square servery to the rear left with a huge mirror on the bar back, surrounded by a pleasant decorative tile strip. The bar has a nice dark wood counter, broken at the corner by a small wooden pillar against which a board is stood listing the ale options. The room has been fitted out with smart padded banquettes with grey and white wooden backs, standard tables and chairs and a few nice-looking bar stools. The walls are painted in neutral shades and there are floral prints along the ceiling beams, creating a clean but somewhat sterile feel. The left side of the room has minimal décor but there were a few old black and white photos on show plus some evocative paintings. Similar décor can be found in the cosier right-hand side of the room where you will also find a marvellous carved stone pub sign above a small fireplace, an old map of Corsica and the framed sheet music and lyrics to La Marseillaise, for reasons I couldn’t quite fathom out. There is just the one curved banquette to the rear, opposite the bar, where you will also find some bookshelves, various bits of pub literature and a TV screen that remained turned off throughout my visit. Unusually, there was a garden spade mounted on the back wall, again with no real indication as to why. A door to the right leads down to the toilets and on your way through, you pass a nice mural depicting what appears to be a live music session in the pub, whilst the landing area beyond is liberally papered with live music flyers.
Just the two ales available on this visit – Kelburn Jaguar and Tryst Brockville (£3.70). A friendly barman served me a pretty satisfying pint of the latter which I enjoyed whilst exploring the pub on a fairly quiet Sunday night.
This struck me as a relatively upmarket alternative to a lot of Glasgow’s city centre boozers – the sort of place you’d bring friends who aren’t necessarily big pub fans. The warm welcome and good beer were big plus points and whilst the interior only worked in part for me, I’d still be more than happy to return.
On 20th March 2018
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
hondo . left this review about The Babbity Bowster
Bar/restaurant serving 3 real ales.i just caught the end off a traditional acoustic music session.
On 4th September 2012
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 2883 recommendations about 2820 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Roger Button left this review about The Babbity Bowster
This was one of the pubs in my extended weekend that had been recommended to me so it was always going to be on my list of must visits and I was certainly not disappointed.
Named after a traditional Scottish dance, the pub is housed in a grand looking building built in 1790 that was formerly home to a tobacco merchant but was a derelict banana store before being renovated and opened as pub in 1985 by the current owner. The interior has bare floors and bright and airy predominantly white décor that complements the black edged furnishings, mainly banquette style pews. Above the open fireplace stands what looks like an old pub sign. There are no TVs, music or games machines but live traditional acoustic music is held at weekends. To one side is a rarity for central Glasgow in a beer garden, a pleasant spot when the weather allows.
The 3 ales available were Kelburn Misty Law, Caledonian Deuchars and Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted along with some top end lagers and craft beers that I didn’t note. The ales are all dispensed from taps under air pressure rather than the now common hand pump. The menu had plenty of traditional Scottish dishes with prices ranging considerably to meet a good cross section of people wishing to eat.
Fraser, the charismatic owner is very welcoming (you can’t miss him – he wouldn’t look out of place in Dr Hook & The Medicene Show) and both he and the custonmers I encountered were quite chatty. Any mention of the, shall we say, premium beer prices, Wetherspoons or Car Parking charges will be guaranteed to kick start an interesting conversation.
It was a fairly quiet Saturday lunctime for my visit and I probably didn’t get a real feel for the place but would love to see it in full swing. It’s a certainly that I will have an extended stay on my next visit.
On 23rd November 2011
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1239 recommendations about 1233 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
E TA left this review about The Babbity Bowster
The Babbity Bowster is an old Georgian house in the busy Merchant area of Glasgow, more in the style of a French restaurant than Scottish pub, but the combination works well. The food is pricey, but you get what you pay for - fresh local ingredients, well cooked and sensible portions. There is a regularly changing selection of guest beers, many from Scottish micros. The barman is a grumpy bugger, but once you get used to him, his style and (well-disguised) sense of humour add to the charm. A plate of haggis and a very welcome pint of Kelburn's have re-affirmed my view that this is my favourite Glasgow pub, though I can see why it doesn't appeal to everyone. I wil definitely continue to come here when I'm in Gleska, and I can recommend it for a decent lunch or a good evening's drinking. Also makes a good crawl when paired with the Blackfriars just down the road.
On 9th August 2010
- rating: 9
[User has posted 3289 recommendations about 3254 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Old Boots left this review about The Babbity Bowster
Spartanly decorated bar in the Merchant City, plain white walls with some interesting art work, mainly drawings and photos. Laminated floors in a decent refurbishment with a mix of seating that suits its drinking/eating mix. It is ever so slightly pretentious. Three old air pumps serving Deuchars, Kelburn and on my visit a guest from Houston, Peters Well a sweetish golden ale for the Scottish palate. Scots delicacy Cullen Skink is sold here.
On 9th November 2009
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3276 recommendations about 2982 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Soup Dragon left this review about The Babbity Bowster
Fantastic exterior to the place; a Georgian neo-classical style, with pediment and columned porch entrance. The interior is open plan, like a lot of bars around the area, but there was a nice beer patio outside, which we went to as it was very busy - so cant say much on the interior.
Service was functional, but as i said, the place was very busy. I didn't eat.
The beer was the usual stuff, with Inveralmond Ossian and Kelburn Misty Law - which was nice and the only place i saw it.
Next time i am in Glasgow i would visit here again, happily
On 27th August 2009
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3067 recommendations about 3062 pubs]