New Venue Openings: Glasgow, November, 2019

It's been a busy few months for new places to visit in Glasgow. We take a look at underground nightclubs, raw cakes and a heartening bunch of exciting non-profits

Feature by Tara Hepburn | 25 Oct 2019
  • Rawnchy

Rawnchy

If you’ve been wondering where in Glasgow people are snapping pictures of those pink and purple lattes on Instagram, Rawnchy is the place. And while you may come to their St George’s Cross café for that sweet social media content, you’ll stay for the even sweeter raw cakes. Rawnchy is the brainchild of effervescent cake-maker and businesswomen Poppy Murricane, who first experimented with the idea by cooking up – or rather, not cooking up – a raw cake for a gluten-free friend. Three years later, she has just taken out a lease on a second premises in Dennistoun, which will open its iconic baby pink doors in a few months time. 58 Maryhill Rd, rawnchy.co.uk

The Gate

The Gate is the latest cool pub to hit the Gallowgate strip. Duck in through their cheerful yellow door and you’ll find yourself in familiar territory, specifically the unmistakeable remains of an original tenement close. The preserved features don’t stop there, with exposed brickwork, oak ceiling beams and even a living room fireplace. All good pubs should be homely, and this place really nails it. The drinks are great too, with a special mention going out to their heaving whisky selection. It’s this detail that recently brought footballer David Beckham into The Gate on a visit to the city. A pretty solid stamp of approval. 251 Gallowgate, facebook.com/thegateglasgow

Soul Food Sisters

Soul Food Sisters is a thoroughly nourishing place in every sense of the word. Set up by a group of migrant women in Glasgow, this social enterprise serves up café comfort food with an international twist. The dishes of the day depend entirely on who’s in the kitchen. Cuisine from the chef’s homeland always takes centre stage, with menus from Lebanon, Eritrea and Algeria featuring recently. Cookery classes run on a monthly(ish) basis, bringing people together to cook along while learning kitchen secrets from one of the Sisters. 1 Ross St, soulfoodsisters.org

Lunchtime Gallery

Lunchtime Gallery is the newest face in a quite literal long line of creative pursuits to set up on St Andrews Street in recent years. This exciting non-profit gallery and project space shares the address with Good Press and Sunday’s risograph print service, who have given them the time and space to showcase the work of vibrant young artists in Glasgow. Their programme of events for the rest of 2019 is bustling with showcases from hand-selected GSA graduates and varying from immersive film projects to painting and sculpture exhibitions. 32 St Andrews St, lunchtimegallery.co.uk. Photo: Caitlin King

SaltSpace

SaltSpace is a non-profit co-operative set up by and for graduates and students of Glasgow School of Art. Based across three addresses they acquired under Glasgow City Property’s 'meanwhile spaces' initiative, the artists behind SaltSpace successfully crowdfunded to transform the spots into a gallery, studio and community space. Membership is open to anyone affiliated with GSA and unlocks a bunch of benefits, from use of the studios to having work displayed and sold at a small commission rate. For punters this is a great place to talent spot and maybe even invest in a young artist. 98 Saltmarket, facebook.com/SaltSpaceCoop

Mode

Glasgow’s newest nightclub Mode is a mysterious underground spot on Queen Street from the team responsible for the nearby La Cheetah Club. Currently popping up for one-off club nights and private events, there’s still lots to learn about the city centre’s latest late night spot. With their hearts firmly set on electronic music, the space and soundsystem look promising. Watch this space for how Mode establishes itself in the coming months. 43 Queen St, facebook.com/ModeGlasgowQueenSt/