Blackfriars
No Longer In Business


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84
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 10/10
  • SELECTION 10/15
  • FOOD 6/10
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 17/20
witthatsbier  (20) glasgow, Scotland | December 7, 2015
long time real ale bar in glasgow,s merchant city, 5 rotating real ales,and about 30 good bottles from belgium,holland usa,and uk,and others. great service real ale always in great nick. must visit for the beer nut in my opinion the best bar in glasgow
82
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 8/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 9/10
  • VALUE 6/10
  • OVERALL 16/20
Tim Webb  (626) Cullompton, England | December 5, 2015
I forgot to write this one up in the summer but revisited in the howling gales and it is the same. Just off Cowgate. The main drinks space is the bar-bistro (OK just to beer) which is reached ia the street or the toilets from the restaurant. clever beer list from the best of British modern mostly. Nothing on cask as it does not sell. Food is down meat rather than up veggie, but excellent. Very pleasant staff who know or will find out.
74
  • AMBIANCE 3/5
  • SERVICE 6/10
  • SELECTION 11/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 5/10
  • OVERALL 17/20
Spiderpig  (7) , Serbia | November 24, 2015
72
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 11/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 4/10
  • OVERALL 14/20
jjsint  (1327) Leicester, England | November 22, 2015
Worthwhile craft beer establishment just off Cowgate and within walking distance of BrewDog. Five well-chosen craft (e.g. a Kernel IPA and a Wild Beer sour) are complimented by about 20 craft (and quasi-craft) bottles. Service is pretty indifferent and atmosphere is staid, but that’s small beer (sorry!) compared to the excellent selection.
80
  • AMBIANCE 4/5
  • SERVICE 7/10
  • SELECTION 12/15
  • FOOD 10/10
  • VALUE 8/10
  • OVERALL 17/20
Smaskifa  (70) Oslo, Norway | June 21, 2015
Had a beer at this place before our dinner at the restaurant next door. The selection is the second best I’ve seen in town after the nearby Brewdog. We had an extremely nice milk chocolate stout from Wild Beer on tap. The service was a bit meh on a Sunday afternoon, but this is definitely a place to visit more than once. Stands out from the more boring real ales you find in many pubs around the city.
74
  • AMBIANCE 3/5
  • SERVICE 8/10
  • SELECTION 11/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 15/20
Stuu666  (492) Edinburgh, Scotland | February 13, 2015
Relatively new place with a reasonable selection - not too many taps from what I remember but does seem to change frequently. Have yet to try the food. Average prices though the bottles looked a little expensive.
86
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 9/10
  • SELECTION 11/15
  • FOOD 8/10
  • VALUE 7/10
  • OVERALL 18/20
McNeillR  (16) Edinburgh, Scotland | January 22, 2015
This is one of my favourite spots in town, the restaurant next door is tremendous (and you can sample the beer menu from the bar without any nasty price hikes) but the bar next door (the first entrance as you go down the hill) is where we’re at.

The bar used to be Black Bo’s, an adjacent bar separate to the vegan restaurant ran by the same folk next door - so the toilets and beer garden downstairs remain between the two. Sadly the piano and layers of candle wax have gone, but the interior has been peeled back a little more and the old long tin table beside the window remain - as well as the iconic "Bo’s" swirly neon blue sign - you won’t miss it! The piano has been replaced/covered up with a tall box with bar stools near the door, but mind your step down to the main bar! Here there’s long benches across the back so you can easily join up some of the small tables spaced out opposite the small bar area.

Drop for drop, the five keg lines are consistently the best quality in town. There’s always Williams Draught for a cheap/lager/pint option and a Wild Beer Co beer - which could be anything from a soft saison to a super sour. Thereafter things are usually of a high grade - very little room to carry many lighter pales and almost always at least one dark beer on. My last visit was Kernel Nelson Sauvin IPA (yes!), Bad Seed sour, Wildbeer saison and Almastay mild.
The bottle list varies depending on how much I assume they shift. Always available is big and small bottles of Breton cider, as there’s no cider on tap that I’ve seen, but it’s a bottle list I’m often perusing as the small number of lines means I’ve more chance to dabble here than others. As a result, I’m not sure how many other bottle lists some stuff is on - but certainly a few that I’ve not even seen for off-sales; Hawkshead Great White being one recent example.

If anything, the food is a big reason to stop off. Whilst not to the same level of decadence as the restaurant it’s the same kitchen and same staff that are preparing delights which include a handful of specials rotating every week. Their chips and Bearnaise sauce is probably one of my favourite meals in town, solid cheese selection and a vibrant dedication to vegetarian options - all priced leaning towards a café/bistro and more than good value. Normally there’s only one bar staff required, but despite this service is never short of attentive, accommodating and the right level of chat - including recommendations both from their wares, and where to go next. Food orders taken here can be delivered by waiting staff from next door, the bar staff or even the chefs - depending on how busy/quiet the different arms of this phenomenal little establishment are when you visit.

If you’ve got time and no restaurant persuasions, I’d recommend dining here and popping next door before and/or after. Otherwise, there’s no finer spot smack bang in the city centre for a sit down and some scran during the day - whether to break up a day of tourism or beer tourism.
As an aside, these guys were trusted with putting on a Wild Beer Co matched dinner in early 2014 and the next year invited down to help make a beer with Nanban from London for a 2015 matched dinner along with their Sake inspired beer...Safe pairs of hands all round.
78
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 8/10
  • SELECTION 10/15
  • FOOD N/A
  • VALUE 8/10
  • OVERALL 16/20
cgarvieuk  (457) Edinburgh , Scotland | January 22, 2015
A small bar tucked away on a little used side street, but a nice selection of decent keg beers, friends staff and fairly relaxed for a quiet drink,
90
  • AMBIANCE 5/5
  • SERVICE 10/10
  • SELECTION 11/15
  • FOOD 10/10
  • VALUE 8/10
  • OVERALL 19/20
Strebs  (232) St. Louis, Missouri | January 12, 2015
Blackfriars is really two storefronts...one a restaurant with very imaginative and well presented food, and the other a small bar. The beer selection was small, maybe 5 or 6 choices, but they were all superb. The bartender was knowledgeable and very friendly. Recommended as a stop for a great meal between sessions.

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