'The platonic ideal of a pub': The Old Toll Bar, Glasgow
'Your local' doesn't have to be local to you, as Jamie Dunn – frequent traveller to The Old Toll Bar in Kinning Park – explains
What makes a pub ‘your local’? The obvious answer is to do with proximity, surely? It’s that place around the corner where everyone knows your name. In an ideal world, that would be true, but the pub that you love spending time in the most rarely correlates with your postcode. I’ve lived proximus to many a boozer in my lifetime, and often I wouldn’t spit on them if they were on fire, despite them being spitting-distance away. More crucial in my mind is familiarity; it’s the place you’re drawn to again and again, the place that feels like home, even if it’s nowhere near your actual abode.
I’m lucky enough to have a handful of fine pubs less than five minutes from home (Phillies, Henry’s and Eala Bhan are all as close to my heart as they are to my front door) and plenty more within a mile radius (The Bell Jar, Allison Arms, Ryan’s Bar, The Rose Reilly), but for some reason the pub I choose to spend most of my time in is around 50 minutes away by foot in a part of town I would rarely frequent otherwise. I make this pilgrimage as there’s no other third space in Glasgow in which I’d rather while away a couple of hours: The Old Toll Bar on Paisley Road West.
Conspicuous among the Rangers bars that dot that thoroughfare, The Old Toll Bar is the platonic ideal of a pub. It’s a proper old man boozer, with an interior of deep mahogany that's lit by colourful light streaming through stained glass windows by day and candlelight by night. But while its aesthetic is set in aspic, its ideas of what makes a pub feel welcoming are not. Its vibes are immaculate, its schedule of gigs and DJ spots eclectic, and its clientele a cheerful mix of locals, people who work nearby, and, I suspect, plenty of punters like me who’ve trekked here from far-away neighbourhoods. If the latter group look smug, it’s not because they’ve just got their steps in, it’s because they know they're in the best pub in the city.
The Old Toll Bar, 1 Paisley Road West, Glasgow; Mon-Tue 3pm-11pm, Wed-Thu & Sun 12pm-11pm; Fri-Sat 12pm-12am
This article is from issue two of GNAW, our new Scottish food and drink magazine. Free copies are available in venues across Scotland, or read the full thing via Issuu. Follow GNAW on Instagram @gnawmag