Glasgow’s best pubs, led by the Hope Street whisky bar on four lists this year

Three Glasgow pubs made Time Out’s ranking of the best pubs in Britain this summer, more than any other city: The Doublet third, The Laurieston eighth and The Rose Reilly 17th. On 29 July the magazine named Glasgow the country’s best city for pubs. Every pub below was trading this autumn, and most of them pour Scottish ale beside a long whisky shelf.

How we chose: the numbered seven appear on the most 2026 lists (two Time Out rankings, the Telegraph’s pub guide, CAMRA Glasgow’s awards and its quality scores); the rest are grouped by type.

1. The Pot Still

Order a dram from a shelf the bar counts at over 1,000 whiskies, then a pint from one of its four cask lines and a pie. It ranks first because it is the only Glasgow pub on four of the five lists: the Glasgow ten, the Telegraph’s UK guide in July, CAMRA Glasgow’s Pub of the Year 2025, and the branch’s top-scoring pubs for July to September 2026. It has been a bar since 1886.

Hope Street, two minutes from Central Station · daily 11am–midnight · walk-in, whisky tastings for up to 25 by arrangement

2. The Laurieston Bar

Drink Fyne Ales from Argyll or Jaw Brew from Renfrewshire at a circular bar, surrounded by the Formica-topped tables and 1960s fittings that got it eighth place in Britain. The local real-ale branch made it Pub of the Year in 2013 and 2018, and it made that July newspaper guide too, so it sits on three lists.

Bridge Street, south of the Clyde · Mon–Thu 11am–11pm, Fri–Sat 11am–midnight, Sun 12.30–11pm · walk-in

3. The Doublet

Time Out ranked this stone-fronted Park Road pub third in Britain and the best in Scotland, and in August its writer added: “If you don’t spend the evening chatting to extraordinarily friendly strangers, you’re doing the Doublet wrong.” Ask for a Scottish ale downstairs; the upstairs lounge hosts live music and comedy. It has traded here since the 1960s, a few doors from the curry house that claims chicken tikka masala.

Park Road, Woodlands · Mon–Tue 4pm–midnight, Wed–Sat noon–midnight, Sun 12.30pm–midnight · walk-in

4. The Rose Reilly

In a wood-panelled Govanhill room named after the Scottish footballer who won the 1984 World Cup with Italy, the order is a pint and a bag of Tayto crisps, with a stack of board games and old pint glasses on the shelves. It was 17th on the UK list and second on the Glasgow one.

Albert Road, Govanhill · Mon–Fri and Sun noon–midnight, Sat 11am–midnight · walk-in

5. The Lismore

Come for a whisky and the traditional music. The Partick bar opened in 1996 calling itself a “Highland pub in the middle of Glasgow”, and it shared the branch’s Pub of the Year with The State Bar in 2024.

Dumbarton Road, Partick · daily 11am–midnight · walk-in

6. The Scotia Bar

Cask ale earns it the place. The Campaign for Real Ale’s Glasgow members scored the Stockwell Street bar among their ten best for beer quality between July and September 2026, and the Telegraph put it in its UK guide the same summer.

Stockwell Street, by the river · opening hours not published · walk-in

7. Òran Mór

Book A Play, A Pie and A Pint, the lunchtime show that runs a new play each week with food and a drink in the ticket, in the former Kelvinside Free Church. Look up in the main hall at the ceiling Alasdair Gray painted, which the venue calls Scotland’s largest piece of public art. In September it was one of the first two places to pour the new Tennent’s Stout.

Top of Byres Road, West End · Mon–Wed 11am–2am, Thu–Sun 11am–3am · walk-in for the bar, book the theatre

The old rooms

The same branch has named The State Bar on Holland Street its Pub of the Year nine times, most recently jointly in 2024, more than any other pub in the branch’s record. Go for whatever is on the hand pumps. Holland Street, near Charing Cross · hours not published · walk-in

On the Southside, The Allison Arms has poured since 1884 around a U-shaped bar, with about 100 gins from independent distilleries and German beers on tap. Dogs come in after walks in Queen’s Park. Pollokshaws Road, Strathbungo · daily 11am–midnight · walk-in · dogs welcome

Whisky and real ale

Two more pubs sit in the branch’s latest top ten for beer quality. Bon Accord, the North Street real-ale bar that won in 2010 and 2022, reopened under new operators on 29 May 2026; its former landlords have since opened The Valinch, a whisky bar and shop, on Hope Street. North Street, Charing Cross · hours not published · walk-in

Babbity Bowster in the Merchant City also made that July to September list, and runs a restaurant and hotel rooms above the bar. Blackfriars Street, Merchant City · hours not published · book for food online

Locals worth the bus

Opposite the Barrowland Ballroom, The Gate prices its taps on its own site: Tennent’s £4.50, Drygate Kelvin Pilsner £5.00, Guinness £5.50. It keeps over 160 whiskies and hands its kitchen to visiting chefs, with toasties from £7 the rest of the time. Gallowgate, East End · Tennent’s £4.50 · Wed–Fri 4pm–midnight, Sat–Sun 2pm–midnight, closed Mon–Tue · walk-in

Redmond’s of Dennistoun calls itself Glasgow’s first vinyl bar and stocks more than 40 German and Belgian beers. Duke Street, Dennistoun · Mon–Thu 4pm–midnight, Fri 2pm–midnight, Sat–Sun noon–midnight · walk-in

Up Great Western Road, The Belle is a small room with an open fire and a mixed crowd, ninth on the Glasgow list. Great Western Road, West End · daily noon–midnight · walk-in

Checked October 2026.