Lebowskis Pop Up

I’ve been here twice now and given the strong competition locally from other great bars and eateries it’s hard to find a reason to go back.
Inside little has changed from the original décor which I don’t mind as it’s pop up and the dark wood works for me on a lebowskis theme.
Theres a great range of beer on offer but again you get that elsewhere in the Southside (literally everywhere)
I have eaten here on the two occasions I went. The menu is always limited to one type of food as they have a small kitchen and I can appreciate that as long as you nail that one thing you are serving
. First time we had sliders, very tasty but pricey and the fried chicken was burnt. Second time we had hotdogs and this is where I was extremely disappointed. It was like they just opened a can of hotdogs and threw it in a bun with some sauce on top. Not even heated up. It tasted very cheap, even with the chilli dog the chilli was average.
As a pop up they really should have popped up with a bang rather than feeling like it’s in a transition. Not to the same standard as their other establishments and the Southside deserve more

When I heard that Lebowski’s were coming to the south side, I was pretty damn excited. I finally made it along on the weekend to check out the space — I’d never been in the pub that was here before (Samuel Dow’s) but from what I’ve been told, it’s not really any different.
Essentially, it’s an old man pub. Lebowski’s have popped up here but I believe it’s a permanent thing and that they’ll be getting their own licence for the place in January next year. I like the West End Lebowski’s but this one is definitely lacking — it’s pretty much as though they put their name on the place and nothing else. I’m assuming changes are coming though, so I will definitely go back.
Onto the review proper. Dark timber makes this a kind of gloomy place and we were lucky enough to get a seat in a cosy booth until we realised the booth wasn’t attached to the ground and the whole thing would move when you got in/​out of the seats. I wasn’t drinking but there was West GPA on tap and a few other nice beers. I was interested in eating but the menu was just burgers — a couple of beef burgers, a chicken and a veggie burger. That’s a shame as I would have enjoyed something to eat but with that limited range of options, decided just to skip food and have a lemonade instead.
It’s dog friendly, the staff were really nice and it didn’t seem to be overly expensive. At the moment, I can’t see myself rushing here when there’s bars like The Rum Shack and The Bungo nearby, but hopefully in the new year it gets a facelift and actually becomes a proper Lebowski’s.

I heard a rumour that there were some vegan white russians being served in the south side so I rolled up my rug and cruised over to abide a while in Nithsdale Rd, at the Lebowskis Pop Up.
Pop up? What? Is this temporary or something? In fact the place is midway through its transformation to fully fledged Lebowski’s haunt.
Back in the day this was an old man pub, Samuel Dow I think. Now it’s been stripped back and painted black and become populated with hipsters and families, though there was one last veteran of the oldmanpub left standing, enjoying a nice friday ale to himself. I wondered what he made of all of us being so trendy and ordering almond milk cocktails.
Yes, let me come to the cocktails.
Being vegan, I’ve not had a white russian in many years. I have missed the delightful sweet creaminess of this most dudely of cocktails so when the waiter said they do vegan versions of all the cocktails using either soy or almond milk i was like hellsss yeah. Turns out the almond milk is quite a lovely aromatic combination with the kahlua. Of their temporary reduced menu of five white russians, I selected The Donny — «A long standing favourite with the staff — Disaronno, Kahlua Liqueur and milk.» But next time it might be The Toe (mint chocolate!) or The Bunny (white chocolate + strawberry!) or simply The Dude himself that I select.
We were feeling peckish and inquired about some snacks. Until they complete the full renovation, the place is working with a small kitchen so the selection is reduced but we got in some chips and onion rings. The chips were just fine, french fry style, crispy, served in a jar (of course! hipsterville.). but what struck me was the onionrings.
I like a good onionring at the best of times, but these, oh my. Freshly made, huge rings from a big fat onion, dipped in batter and fried to the most crispy perfection, they were juicy, sweet, crispy, hot. Incredible. Easily the best onionrings I’ve ever enjoyed.
So suffice to say, I’ll be back. I look forward to seeing what they do with the place when it’s fully renovated though I have to say I enjoyed the grungy, beer-​soaked, half-​done vibe of the place in its current state. I hope it doesn’t become too overpolished. Certainly I doubt that the last oldmanpub survivor will live long when the place is fully transformed.