Trip to the Big Smoke part3

So I know that this wee series of posts have been a bit spread out to say the least, but life and business has gotten in the way of blogging these last few months. Also my laptop is dead slow and stop meaning it wasn’t really enjoyable for me to sit and wait for it to load and take ages to do my blog posts on it. But I felt so guilty not producing any blog content recently that I thought right I’m going to get this final instalment of our trip finished.

If you want to read parts 1 and 2 they are here and here

So lets get to the point of this post, part 3, our last morning in Glasgow before starting our 6 hour journey home.

 

We checked out of our lovely hotel, The Abode Glasgow, and took our last trip down in the 19th Century lift. We had some time spare time to get some food before we caught the train at 1.30pm and we had been recommended The Anchor Line.  This multi award winning bar and restaurant is perched just off George Square so perfect for nipping to catch our train from Queen St Station.

There was scaffolding up outside as work was being done on the exterior, so no pics of the beautiful outside as it was hidden. When we entered, our case in tow, we were seated at a booth which was lovely. A great view of the gorgeous feature bar, stunning large marble pillars finished off with gold detailing and ornate ceiling. We were in just after noon it was lovely and quiet meaning we were able to take in our gorgeous surroundings without the hustle and bustle of city centre venues at the weekend. This place is relaxing, luxurious with attentive and very professional staff. It was like stepping back in time….I am a sucker for vintage luxury incase you didn’t know.

 

My friend that had recommended The Anchor Line had also told me about their delicious cocktails so I had to try a couple of those out. From our booth we could watch the bar staff shake, stir and finish off the beautiful looking drinks.

I started off with Indian Summer while we looked at the menus and it all sounded so good. The cocktail was absolutely delicious, refreshing and full of flavour.  I was sold as it had limoncello in it and when we were in the Amalfi Coast for our honeymoon I tried it for the first time and loved it! It’s a firm favourite of mine topped with some fizz too.

There was a couple of menus to choose from, a lighter lunch menu,  an a la carte menu and then a set price Sunday lunch menu which is what we went for.

I finally chose the Shetland Mussels with onion and bacon in a white wine sauce, a bit messy but oh so delicious. Dipping the bread in that sauce at the end mmmmmmm. For main I decided on the chicken breast with fondant potato and cumin carrot puree and a delicious jus, which was cooked perfectly and oh so tasty. A gooey choc sponge with black cherries and a vanilla ice cream arrived but it nearly finished me off, I couldn’t eat all my dessert so Garry helped me out with that.  I honestly don’t know where he puts it all, we often refer to him as the human dustbin, I wish I was that lucky!

 

I always used to be a sweet person but these last few years I often choose a starter over a dessert and plump for a cocktail to finish off my meal, which is what I kind of did this time with Garry finishing off my dessert as well as his own. I had been recommended the Marilyn Monroe cocktail by a friend so I had that to round off our last half hour in Glasgow and make the most of the beautiful surroundings. With the mango, pineapple, lemon and raspberry ingredients in this cocktail it was a good one to finish on, sweet but not sickly.

 

Almost time to go and I knew I would rather go to the lady’s room here than on the train. So off I went, venturing through the lobby and down the stairs, which was lined with info,  posters, pictures & even old vintage uniforms from the ships staff. All history, pictures and information about The Anchor Line Shipping Company that saw sailings from Glasgow to New York, Canada and India. You see the building where we were lunching in used to be the Head Office and booking office for the first class services.

 

I love finding places like this with history behind them and still retaining some original features. It makes being there feel that bit more special than just a chain restaurant that looks the same no matter where you are. We always try to support independent businesses when we can, it is a bit of a habit of ours to find at least one place with a bit of character on each trip we go away on together.

It was lovely to finish off our weekend at the Anchor Line but sadly it was time to head home and leave Glasgow behind. We wandered round to Queens Street Station and boarded the train for the 3.5 hour train journey to Inverness. Once we arrived in Ness it was straight to pick up our car and the drive of just over 2 hours home still in front of us.  All I can say is we definitely had no problems falling asleep that night!

If you are looking for a proper cocktail and delicious food this is a place in the centre of Glasgow I would definitely recommend. We felt it was such good value for the quality of food, professional service and the beautiful setting. It was £21.95 each for a 3 course lunch, we also had two cocktails and a cappuccino on top of that. It was a lovely treat and to try somewhere new.

Have you been to Glasgow or the Anchor line?

Let me know in the comments below if you have any recommendations in Glasgow as we love trying new places each time we visit,

Lynsey x

 

(All blog posts on Lark & Lily are my own opinion/views.)