The Curler’s Rest

Curlers Rest is one of the main pubs to go to in the Byres Road area. Situated right next to Hillhead subway station, it’s an open 2 floor bar which has a wide selection of drinks and also does food.
The layout of the bar is fairly open, with seating space upstairs and downstairs. The downstairs area is quite dimly lit, but I’ve never found it a huge problem. Upstairs is a bit brighter, with some large bench style tables, ideal for larger parties. There’s a bar both upstairs and downstairs.
The drinks selection in Curlers is very good, with a wide range of draught beers on offer. Though they are a bit on the steep side pricewise, the varied selection makes up for it. There’s also a wide range of bottled beers and ciders on offer as well.
The food in Curlers is very good, though the menu has changed in the past 6 months, and the options aren’t quite as good as the old menu. There’s some good deals, with a 2 course meal costing £10 through the week. The burgers on offer are the highlight though, very tasty and good value for the money.
Overall Curlers is a great place to visit in the West End, and should be a stop if you’re out for drinks

I’ve been in Curler’s many times, but I’ve always struggled to think what to say about it in a review.
It’s alright, I guess. I just find it a wee bit busy and a bit dark I suppose — rather than cosy, it feels a bit claustrophobic to me.
I’m told that it does a good range of real ales, but there’s only one which ever seems to catch my attention, and that’s the wheat beer, which is delicious, but also pricey. They don’t seem to do any porters/​stouts, apart from Guinness.
I’ve only eaten here once, and they had completely ignored the fact that we had phoned ahead to say that there were a couple of vegans in the group. We sort of mixed and matched things off the menu, but they did seem to have a wee bit of a ‘couldn’t care less’ vibe about it going on, which I thought was quite odd. I wouldn’t go back for food.
One good thing is that, despite it being so busy all the time. service at the bar is always quick.
Och I don’t know, all this is probably just me. It’s a very popular pub, I just don’t really get it.

I had lunch yesterday and it was good restaurant.
Really fast delivery, with a special menu price (8£ main dish + drink)
I ate the beef burger with fries and the meat was perfect!
I for sure will eat there again!

My 10 questions I always ask myself when choosing a bar:
1. Is this the type of bar where I’ll be judged for wearing brown suede shoes with black trousers?
2. Will there be annoying drunk women? If so, will they interrupt me when I’m cradling a beer to ask me to take their picture?
3. Will there be annoying drunk guys? If so, will one of them strike up a drunken conversation at the urinals with «Awright big man? Crackin’ talent in here tonight. The tunes are bouncin’!»
4. Speaking of which, is the puddle under the urinals gonna ruin my brown suede shoes?
5. What beers are on tap. Will I be judged if I repeatedly point at the taps and ask if it’s «anything like an IPA?»
6. Is the music so loud that all my conversations will involve me screaming «What?» and getting an earful of spit?
7. Is this the type of bar where some Taylor Swift tune is blaring and everybody acts like it’s ok to dance on the table? If so, can I get away with murder?
8. How far is the nearest police station. Would you say the police «respond quickly»?
9. Does the barman know a good lawyer?
10. What does good behavior REALLY mean?
Phew. A pass, but my secret 11^th question on price Is a bit of a downer :-/

Oh Curler’s, it was all going so well and then you had to go and attempt a menu update, always a risky proposition. Once a favourite spot for my colleague and I to pop in to for lunch, Curler’s is now languishing near the bottom of places we consider visiting. Gone from the menu are the lunchtime-​friendly sandwich options and in their place a selection of ‘small plates’ which definitely have ideas above their station. The aim is obviously to appeal to the gastro pub audience but in the end they don’t live up to the hype. The poutine in particular is little more than a plate of chips and gravy, not necessarily a bad thing but let’s not dress it up with fancy words…
Service has also been a tad hit and miss on my last few visits, with incorrect food orders being delivered and not quite enough staff on the bar at busy times. The majority of staff are super nice but just seem to be under a little too much stress.
Thankfully the beer choice remains good and is the bar’s saving grace. Still plenty to choose from both on tap or by the bottle, with regular promotions and a ‘beer of the week’. This will probably be enough to keep me coming back to Curler’s for now, but probably not with the same frequency of old…

It’s hard when somewhere you really, really love makes a change and it’s not for the better. And I’ve gotta say Curler’s Rest, I don’t love your new menu and that makes me really sad.
I’ve eaten here loads of time (as well as stopping in for drinks) and I always really enjoy the place. I’ve been in a couple of times for recently though and it’s just not quite as good as it used to be, hence the downgrade.
They have a new menu and it’s got small plates, larger plates and some burgers on it. You can get a small and large plate as two courses for £10 during the day on weekdays — the first time I ordered this I was overcharged which I didn’t realise til I’d paid. So make sure you check about that. I tried the calamari which was fine, and the Southern fried chicken. This sounded so good but what the menu doesn’t tell you is that the chicken is still on the bone. Now, I have no idea if that’s authentic but it is such a pain to eat and takes away the joy of the amazing crumb on the chicken. If it was boneless I would really rate this dish, but as it is, I wouldn’t get it again.
I also tried the grilled chicken burger when we visited for dinner on Saturday night. I can’t really fault this — a lovely brioche bun, a massive piece of grilled chicken and chips. Yum. As I was drunk and starving I also ordered the poutine. The menu does say «poutine — aka chips, cheese and gravy» but to me, poutine means one thing — and that’s curds. There’s no curds on this. They should just call it chips, cheese and gravy because that’s what it is. The portion is really small too and for £4.50 I want chips, cheese and gravy coming out of my ears. There’s another establishment in Glasgow which sells a massive sized poutine that will make you cry with happiness/​fullness for £4.50… that dish is at least 3 times the size of this one.
So — all up, I do still love the Curler’s Rest and I would not hesitate to recommend it as a great place to drink. But I don’t love their new menu and I’m not sure I’d return for food, I’m very sad to say.

I’m sure I’ve already reviewed The Curler’s Rest, but seeing as it’s always so fantastic, I’ll say it again…
I love Curler’s Rest; it’s been around (in various guises) for most of my formative years and my experiences there have been consistently excellent. This visit, it was for their Shakespeare evening; 3 courses interspersed with a local theatre group (Glasgow Musical Theatre) performing some of Shakespeare’s most famous scenes, with a drink and all for just £15. Say what now? Spectacular value for money! 3 choices for each course and a great range of alcoholic/​non-​alcoholic drinks to choose from within the ticket price meant this really was an absolute bargain of a night out.
My friend and I both went for chicken liver parfait, fish and chips and finished off with vanilla ice-​cream with crushed amaretti biscuits. Sometimes with events like this the food sometimes feels like an afterthought, something kept simple while the main kitchen continues to run, but Curler’s clearly pay great attention to detail no matter what. Their customer service is also excellent; on a number of occasions, I’ve had small issues but the staff are always attentive and helpful, so any problems are resolved quickly.
A night in Curler’s is always great, definitely somewhere to try in the West End!

Stuffed after a fab Sunday roast with big thick cuts of pork and yummy crackling, came with lots of roast potato and veg as well as a Yorkshire pud and lots of gravy. Ordered the side of cauliflower cheese too which was yummy and creamy.
Staff were really polite and friendly and in general it was a lovely chilled out lunch with some relaxing tunes in the background and the football on the screen (on mute) to keep the fella happy. Toilets were spotless too.
Too stuffed for desert but I will definitely be back for Sunday lunch and good value at £11.00-£12.00

Great, cosy, cute pub on a nice street in Glasgow. Came here for lunch and was not disappointed. The pub has such a nice warm vibe and everyone working there was very friendly. Lots of nice comfortable seating and loads of space for bigger groups. I ordered the fish and chips and a bloody mary which both came quickly. The fish and chips portion was massive and would easily be enough for two people. The mushy peas that came with were surprisingly good! Mushy peas seem to be quite bland most of the time but these were very tasty and sweet. The fish was fried nicely with a crunchy, crips batter. Prices were a little higher than some of the other places in town but it was worth it.

This update to my previous glowing review of Curlers unfortunately sees it drop down the star-​ratings; from a 4* to a 2*
Five of us descended on Curlers for Sunday dinner, having had good prior experiences here. Super-​excited for a hearty feed, we settled in to a large table on the ground floor near the bar. The staff were generally attentive, friendly and helpful, but that’s where the good vibes ended.
Curlers is at the upper end of bar-​prices — the only item under £10 on the menu being the burger (excluding toppings), and that was £9.95. Sunday roast dinner comes in around £12-£14 depending on the meat.
Our group ordered the burger, and roast dinners of chicken and beef.
Food arrived quickly, with the first thing noticed being the Yorkshire Puddings so overdone, they were essentially burned. The chicken was all on-​bone wing/​leg/​breast affair — not what was expected… not everyone enjoys eating food off the bone; this should have been made clear on the menu. The beef was good however, nothing exceptional, just good. All of the roast dinners were served with under-​cooked veg which was quite hard. Gravy had been poured over, with a couple of my fellow diners complaining it was too little. Gravy coverage is subjective, so it should really be served on the side.
The burger was small, but okay — except the bun which was hard and stale, and was left uneaten. The accompanying fries were excellent however — hot and crispy; the best thing of all our meals. Far better burgers can be had in Glasgow for less money however.
A final comment on the beers here — they seem to have reduced their range of cask ales, and charge a top dollar for others — £4.80 or a pint of Joker IPA is around £1 higher than elsewhere.
None of us really enjoyed our meal, and not in the mood to complain we paid up and left to relocate to The Chip round the corner.
At the prices charged, we all expected far better — the quality was that of lower-​end pub grub charged at upper-​end prices. The imbalance needs fixed!

Hardly ever venture in here for food but took advantage of their 3 courses for £11 5pm offer recently. It’s so handy for the subway station and was perfect for an after work catch up (which turned into an all night gin-​filled riot) with the girls.
I opted for the deep fried white bait to start. Bad move. I stupidly thought it would be deep fried in some sort of batter or tempura… But it arrived with eyes on show and all. Not for me at all. More of a personal dislike than a moan about the actual dish, which my friend had before and loved.
The main course was steak, chips and garlic butter. The steak was a great size and cooked to perfection (medium/​rare). The chips were decent and had a nice crunch to them. The garlic butter was a bit too oily, like it had been overheated, which is a shame.
Dessert was salted caramel cheesecake with clotted cream. I didn’t manage to finish this, it was so rich and filling. Maybe a little too rich.
Think I’d probably stick to having drinks in here, rather than dinner. May go back to try their £9 burger and drink deal on a Monday though, as the steak was cooked so well.
The service was quick and friendly, even though it was really busy. I think if they really nail it with the food, this place could be pretty amazing. They need to up their food game a little to compete with the Chip next door.

Headed here for Sunday dinner with a few friends. I wasn’t keen on the idea as I hadn’t been in since the refurb but heard good things.
But, it was not good at all. I had the roast chicken dinner. The chicken came all on the bone with very little gravy which left the chicken dry. The veg was cold, carrots hard and deep fried kale which tasted nice but the stalk was inedible. The thing I love most about a roast is the Yorkshire pudding, which arrived burnt and again inedible. No one with me enjoyed there meal and we all felt let down. The roast was £11.50 which I think is pretty pricey especially for what I got. I will defo not be going back here for food. Really disappointed

It pains me to mark down somewhere that I’ve previously enjoyed, but that’s what’s happening now.
Previously, the Curlers Rest was great and the food was awesome. Tonight, this was not the case.
A group of us went for Sunday dinner — I opted for the chicken roast. What I got was half a chicken (totally not what the menu description indicated), brick hard carrots, cold roast potatoes, wierd fried kale, burnt Yorkshire puddings, and a very skimpy serving of gravy.
When a member of our group complained about their dish, the response was just sorry, but no solution offered. I ate it because it wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen, but for £12 it was very overpriced. As was the pint of Joker IPA I had, which was a steep £4.70!
I won’t be back for food. But might give it another try as just a pub.

First time in this place and i was very happy with it. We had a wonderful christmas meal. A lovely starter of root vegetable soup with black pepper and lovely bread. It was well seasoned and very thick and lovely. A main of turkey with potatoes, stuffing balls, pigs in blankets and brussel sprouts. The turkey was very nice, potatoes a little charred but tasty and the portion was sooooo big! Lastly i had a lemon tart and some strawberry soebt ice cream which was lovely and creamy.
The reason it gets a 4 is the atmospher. One of the few places in Glasgow with a wood burning fire that you can feed yourself. Very cosy indeed and well decorated to relax you. This combined with some very nice mulled cider made for a great end to the evening!

Gosh, it’s been a very, very long time since I’ve been in the Curler’s — at the time we were on the latter half of a sub crawl and I really don’t remember much about it other than it was very crowded, noisy and seemed rather small inside.
No longer! Inside it’s been completely refurbished and opened up through the back, with plenty of bar space and lots of seating areas. There’s also a large upstairs area with its own bar and bench tables next to the kitchen counter at the rear, and comfy sofas at the front. There’s a real fire too, and even a chandelier over the stairs. All very civilised and worlds away from the hard-​core boozer that it used to be. There is almost something of a Wetherspoons about the place, except that the food is a lot better.
On this occasion we were partying with the Unilocal Glasgow Christmas Dinner squad, and the long bench tables upstairs were perfect for the couple dozen of us. With a wee glass of prosecco and a G&T under our belts (they have some nice speciality gins), we were ready for the nosh. Actually, we were ravenous by this point and wondering what had happened to the food, but then it all suddenly appeared, seemingly everything at once, and soon we were all tucking in to our starters. Kudos to the kitchen for their organisational prowess on that front.
We were having salmon as we don’t do the meat thing, and the main course was a healthy slab of the pink stuff atop a bed of purple potatoes, which are absolute yum-​tastic if you’ve never tried them. There was also an interesting-​looking deep-​fired crispy morsel which I had to be reminded was a mini-​crab cake.
Herself had smoked salmon to start, while I went for the root vegetable soup, again both delicious; and let’s not forget the lemon tart with raspberry sorbet to finish.
I’m tempted to give them the full 5 stars, and if the food had arrived a little sooner I probably would. Let’s say 4 and a half, eh?

Believe it or not my first visit to curlers was around 20 years ago whilst I was still at school! Since then I had popped in a few times as it went through various guises. I can say with reasonable certainty (I had, had a few beers by this point) that the most recent version of curlers is the best.
We sat up stairs to eat and I went for a beer and a burger with chips. The beer was brilliant. It was a bottle of Beaverton 8 ball and I would definitely have that again if I am back. The burger was good and so were the chips. Not up to current burger standards In other parts of Glasgow, but a good solid attempt.
All round it was a nice visit to a bar that is now a bit of a westend institution as it has been about so long. I would not rush back, but I would certainly not mind retuning for either a beer or food or both.
Nice place to have a pint.

Added an extra star due to the food; I hadn’t eaten in here before the Subcrawl effort last week. The fact I can still remember how gorgeous the mac & cheese was despite being on a Subcrawl says a lot.
Staff service was also excellent, keeping track of at least 15 different orders at once. Superb!

I have to admit I am a fan of Curlers — it was the first place I ate out in after having my baby girl — quite an adventure for a new Mum!
Curlers is great if you have kids/​babies as it is so spacious, the staff are also ver friendly and accommodating.
My latest trip to Curlers was for Sunday lunch a couple of weeks ago…
I opted for the Roast Chicken dinner, and it was delicious — succulent and moist with tasty trimmings. Not quite enough for gravy for me (though I like a lot), but the staff happily provided me with an extra little jug of gravy — phew! (I tend to panic if there;s not enough gravy).
Hubby had a halloumi and cous cous salad which was delicious!
We noticed when we were tucking in to our mains that you could get a free dessert if you tweeted about your food. So I obliged, and chose the Raspberry & Peach Crumble. I have to be honest — I was disappointed with this dish. First the fruit was overly sweet and runny with no texture, pretty much like a bowl of warmed raspberry jam. Secondly, the crumble topping was sparse and overly sweet. I love a crumble usually as it is a comfort dish, but I have to admit I left most of this uneaten. If I had been paying for it, I would have even been more disappointed.
Overall, I would give Curlers a 4 star review, as I love the space, the staff, and the food is mostly really good. The dessert definitely let it down on my latest visit — so maybe 3.5 starts would be more apt!

Once again the need for that half a star! 3.5
It was a cold night, we’d been standing about watching the fireworks at Glasgow Green and decided to head somewhere cosy afterwards. We hummed and hawwed over a couple of options and decided to head here as it’s always dependable.
I’ve been coming here for 20 years, and the current incarnation positions it somewhere between a posh gastropub and a good solid boozer. The staff are friendly, there is a good selection of beers and a mouthwatering menu.
We weren’t all that hungry so had two mains, I plumped for the pork and chorizo burger, my partner had the sausage and mustard mash.
When it arrived the first thing that struck me about the burger was the fact that it had two massive slices of tomato which I quickly removed (not a fan), which made the initially impressive looking stack seem a lot more ordinary.
I had plenty of fries, and the burger itself was well cooked, tasty enough although not much of the chorizo flavour came through. Quite how you lose a flavour like chorizo I have no idea, I can only presume that there wasn’t all that much in the burger in the first place (a few bites in suggests this was true, with mostly pork meat showing in the burger). I was definitely thankful for the addition of some caramelised red onion chutney which helped add some flavour.
The sausage and mustard mash provided too much for my partner, so I got a few bites of it to try and was disappointed to find the sausage a little closer to ‘burnt’ than I like. The mustard mash was far too strong and dominated the entire dish so much so that almost half of it went uneaten.
Overall not the best meal I’ve had there, and it won’t stop me going back but I hope this isn’t a sign of this establishment starting to drop its standards. Time will tell I guess.

After a bad meal experience elsewhere I needed to wash my mouth out with something other than listerine, in the distance we saw The curler’s rest bar on byre’s road, it must have been over ten years since l had last been in this bar and a lot has changed since then, the bar area looks all new with plenty of comfortable seating available.
There is a wide selection of beers and ales on tap and and there was plenty of variety available, l chose the strawberry beer for something different and enjoyed it.
They do serve food here but not sampled their goods yet.
This is an overal great bar if you are just around for a quick drink or night out, a great bar to start your night out in.