Biblocafe

If you want real barista banter, get yersel down to the Bibliocafe.
I’ve been frequenting Biblio more often these days since my pal is in hearts with it, and I can see — it’s easy to mould myself nicely into the furtniture for a few hours.
Possibly the best level of banter in the city, the owner is going to start playing the guitar riffs from Friends when we walk in here! Like the (much more attractive… and female) Gunther to our Rachel’s and Ross’s, the lovely owner will go out of her way to put a big chocolate smeared grin on your face if you’re good. Lou — I love yer pie.

If I could live in Glasgow, then I’d live in the neighborhood around Biblocafe. On Saturday, I would walk around the park, take myself down Gibson St. for a fancy flat white, then amble my way over to Biblo for a peep at their grand selection of second-​hand books, order a tea, and plop myself down for a comfy sit.
On my visit to the shop last month, the young gal behind the counter who helped me determine what books were where (‘fiction’s upstairs, mysteries and sci-​fi are…’) was also helpful when it came time for me to purchase a book. As luck would have it, the book I picked up was without a sticker, so she eye-​balled a 1950s edition of a collection of short stories by top-​notch writers like Aldous Huxley and HG Wells, and let me have it for under two quid. Warm-​fuzzies all around.
Biblo, you’re in my thoughts.

The Biblo café is a great place.
at first it can be a bit daunting as there is a detonate clubhouse feel to it BUT don’t be put off, by the time you are half way through your first cup of what ever you are drinking (I recommend the Chai) you will feel very much at home as you will most likely be included in some of the marvelous and bizarre conversations that are banded about the room.

Vegan café with the walls covered with books? Sounds a lovely place to visit.
The folks working behind the counter are really nice which is not always a certain thing at the time of the morning that we appeared. Veggie coffee places are not always easy to find in the West End. Sure other places have soya milk and such but the Biblocafe folks have found a little gem.
Smashing Tarts distribute their baked goods through them.
The Vegan tried a Cherry Bakewell there while I had the coffee. She forgot about the books and fell in love with this confection. Not an easy thing to do.
So, if you are looking for some place that features amazing Vegan baked goods and reasonable coffee at the end of Argyle, then shuffle past the big roasters up the street and get yourself in here.

Top marks all round. Excellent Tchai, friendly staff and good banter. And the books, did I mention the books?
Don’t bother going anywhere else for coffee round here.

Oh how I love Biblocafe.
It’s such a cosy little place, especially upstairs — I feel like I’m snuggled up in a lovely living room. The employees are lovely, because they are normal people, not shop autonomans, who interact with you like a proper person. That sounds a bit mad but I’m sure you know what I mean. The owner Lou is hilariously sharp and very accomodating.
And best of all, for a non-​vegan place, they do lots of vegan stuff! The soup is always vegan, they’ve got Vegan Stevens wraps (tapenade and veggies = deelish), and the cake. Oh the cake! A choice of vegan cake, mostly made by the amazing Smashing Tarts. I was there last weekend and I think the Bakewell had just been freshly made, as it was still warm, with a texture like angels had baked it. Amazing!
There’s also free wi-​fi, and if you like books, then this is the place for you as there’s hunners of them. You can read them or buy them. Really, there’s nothing else you would wish for in a coffee shop/​café.

I’ve always dreamt of running my own coffee house come bookshop so imagine my delight (and slight envy) when I found this wonderful place! It’s everything I think a coffeehouse should be — quaint, individual and cosy; plus it’s run by THE nicest people. It is a little on the expensive side (my white hot chocolate and slice of bakewell tart came to about £6) but it’s absolutely worth it as not only are they very generously sized portions, but they were, quite frankly, two of the most delicious things I’d ever tasted! It is hugely popular, and therefore gets very busy, but despite that you’re never made to feel rushed and can enjoy a long chat with friends or browse their fantastic selection of books.

On my walk home last night there was an ominous looking cloud chasing me — i managed to get to woodlands road before it caught up with me. Being bucketed upon just isnt my idea of fun so I jumped into the nearest place that would shelter me, preferably with a brew.
Oh hello Biblocafe, we meet at last.
Nice café, nice cup of Earl Gray and nice music. The books make the place look cosy but I didnt see anything I would buy, but I was sat near the Dan Brown section.
However, I’d like to share with you a little story with you which took Biblocafe from a damn fine 4 stars to a woo-​hoo worthy 5.
A lad came in with his CV looking for work, a soon-​to-​be-​student I should reckon. The owner said no, it’s really quiet this way at the minute… and then went through a blow-​by-​blow account of everywhere that would be worth a bash nearby, including tips and tricks about where to hand your CV in at Oran Mor (they dont share CV’s between bar & brasserie apparently) ending with a ‘Central Station as a last resort’ tip. She knew the area like the back of her hand, offered him lots of info, and actually cared.
This is the type of person we are lucky to have running a business near us.

I really love this little place I wish it was a bit nearer to the other end of woodlands rd and my work I go way more often, I love all the books they are fab and the staff are bloody lovely
Best thing however I don’t like cows milk and I’m not a great fan of soy if I take my own hemp or almond milk in they’ll make up my drink with one of them ~ most places just won’t do they and it’s such a nice service

I love this wee place! This place has so much warmth and character, just like Louise the owner, that every time I visit here, I feel happier.
The coffee and tea selection is excellent, so even if you don’t like books, get yourself along for a morning latte. This is the only thing I wished actually — that they were open just a wee bit earlier through the week, as I think they might be missing some trade by opening around half 8, however hopefully not everyone in the Woodlands works as early as I do sometimes!
If you are interested in the book side of things, all you need to know is that: you can buy them off the shelf, the range is of course limited to what is out on show (don’t annoy poor Lou and ask for something specific — look for yerself, raking is part of the fun!) and there are some lovely periodicals you can buy written by Glaswegians all about Glasgow in the shop too. You can also take your old books in and get credits to buy books from the shop too. A loyalty card is also on offer, and I think unlike most places, you only need to buy 6 drinks to get the 7^th free, not 300 bloody drinks like the feckers Starbucks.
Their iced lattes are great, as are their cakes, and the whole business is so lovely and homegrown. If I were to be lucky enough to be a Secret Millionaire, Lou and her wee café would be one of the first recipients of a big payout!
Oh and — it is bigger inside than it looks, as there is a whole part upstairs which is also home to the general fiction section :)
Go, visit, enjoy, re-​visit, become a regular :)

You know when you’ve walked by a place a huge number of times and inwardly thought ‘I should really check that place out… I looks like my kinda joint’? Yeah, well that’s Bibliocafe for me. Ok so i’m not being entirely honest, as I have popped in here a while ago for a coffee jab on the go (sweet sweet coffee how i love you so), but i’d never plonked my little (ahem) behind down, fired up the computery-​bob and got to know the place… well, I have now and I ain’t leaving.
So what’s it got? First off, it’s got a cool name. If you argue that point, you ain’t cool.

Great coffee and nice cakes, but not a great place for lunch as they only have a few packaged sandwiches in the fridge (though if toasted they ain’t bad). Friendly, but perhaps a little bit too intimate for my taste.

I love the concept of Biblocafe, a second hand bookshop and a coffee place rolled into one. It’s located on Woodlands Road and is a great option if you want to catch up with a friend or if you’re by yourself on a cold day and just need a hot cup of tea to warm you up. I have to agree with Daryl — the white hot chocolate is amazing! After a few you might feel a little bit nauseous but once in a while it’s delish!
It’s not the biggest shop but that just adds to the cosy atmosphere of it and it kind of reminds me of the bookshop at the start of The Neverending Story minus the creepy old shopkeeper.

An underwhelming bookshop, certainly. However, it’s more about the café than the biblio with this Woodlands Road business.
Although nearby Offshore tends to receive all the plaudits from the West End café connoisseurs, for me, the relaxed atmosphere in this place feels a little more homely and a little less contrived.
With good value food and drink and friendly staff, it’s the ideal place to kill an hour or so. It also offers free wi-​fi and has developed a strong reputation for its choice of soundtrack. Well worth a visit.

Although coffee and books are my twin chief pleasures in life– romance having abandoned me and sport being a mystery– I have never actually bought a book at The Bibliocafe. I am not that wild about the range– there are far too many popular and new books on the shelves, and not enough of the weird old things I like to pick up in charity stores. I am aware that for most people, books that are actually readable is an advantage…
The coffee and cakes more than make up for this, however. They do takeaways as well, but it is lovely to sit in, upstairs, where it is really quiet and let the afternoon drift past. The location, just across from the park and before the University starts to dominate the landscape, is ideal. Once around the corner from Scottish Ballet’s HQ (they moved to Tramway last year), it did mark a sort of cultural quarter. Now it is proudly aloof, on a street better known for bars than cafes.

Upon entering Biblocafe i was freezing cold and miserable. When i left i felt cosy and chipper.
Previous reviewers have commented on how the place doesn’t look appealing from the outside, i dint agree with this. I think it looks welcoming and not pretentious in the slightest. Especially now there is a new coffee shop across the corner which looks like a operating room in comparison.
Inside is laid back, with some seriously chilled out tunes playing. You instantly feel at home and comfortable. The coffee was great too, although the mug was totally impractical. A great big round ‘central perk’ style vessel with a handle which was only big enough to get a solitary finger through. Could i have a huge mug with a equally huge handle to grasp it with please?
The selection of books isn’t great in comparison to the likes of Alba books down Otago Lane. As a result this makes the Biblocafe a not-​so-​middle man, a better coffee shop than it is a book shop.
I’ll be coming back for the wi-​fi and a coffee but probably not to buy any books from.

It was a surprisingly pleasant day in early spring when I first dawdled — slightly hungover — into Biblocafé to meet a friend. My nausea faded almost instantly with the scintillating aroma of coffee and paperbacks — drink it in! Lou, the owner, was busily shuffling back and forth between the till, the coffee machine, and the snack fridge, all the while conducting a quick business brainstorming session; but she still made time for a chat.
The Biblocafé instantly became one of my favourite Glasgow hang-​out spots. The coffee is delicious and fair trade, they stock every tea you can imagine, the sandwiches far from plastic, and it’s so homey I feel I could never leave.
Downstairs is your classic coffee and bookshop rolled into one. The full-​length windows make it bright and welcoming, as every West-​end business strives for. Second-​hand books line the far wall, and a little corridor takes you to another room full of — you guessed it — books. A teeny-​tiny staircase, also lined with paperbacks, takes you to the mezzanine room. Upstairs is complete with comfy leather reading chairs and tables, like your own little reading den. Cosy doesn’t even begin to cover it.
Books prices seem to be tiered depending on binding and condition. From crime to romance, Biblocafé has it covered. You can also trade in your own second-​hand books in exchange for a credit note or trade (credit notes can be redeemed on books, but not coffee). Gift vouchers are now also on sale.
Biblocafé also provides free wifi. Events include a Book Group, Gaelic Book Group, and Craft & Quip. If you love coffee and books, Biblocafé truly is Glasgow’s best-​kept secret.

A great option if you find yourself on Woodlands Road and you need to escape the rain.
I agree with the other reviewers– the outside of this café doesn’t do it justice. Infact, I only visited for the first time after it was recommended by a friend despite having walked past it on a regular basis.
The coffee is good, the setting is cosy, and the staff are friendly. I’ll be visiting again.

Fantastic idea! Good coffee and browse through some easy reading. You can buy the books (second hand, so they’re cheap) or swap over your old second hand books for other novels.
The service is really friendly and Lou (owner) is a lively personality who is quite enthusiastic about her coffee, her business idea and her local community groups.
Several types of organisations use biblocafe as a place for their club meetings. Definitely one of the best wee gems in the West End of Glasgow.

It doesn’t look much from the outside (serious 70s sign, right?), but this place is great. As the reviewer before mentions, you don’t quite know what to expect (the windows are filled with books/​people typing away on laptops), but as soon as you go in, all preconceptions evapourate.
The café-​come-​bookshop-​come-​wifi spot idea is brilliant. Totally informal, and possibly one of the cosiest places to sit, especially in the winter — I could spend days hidden upstairs reading book after book whilst drinking their White Hot Chocolates (yes, that’s right, WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE!). Amazing.